Local Marketing Ideas » Year

Three Email Marketing Tips for the Bored Email Marketer

ideaguy — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 12:40:31 +0000

by Mana Ionescu

It is common for the seasoned email marketing strategist to notice a pattern of repetitive, typical and established email marketing strategies in the marketplace. There is notable emphasis on the email “holy trinity” – ” subject lines,” “creatives” and “images” – as if all email marketing only needed these three elements.

So after years of testing “subject lines,” “creatives” and “images” to get better “subject lines,” “creatives” and “images” email conversion rates are still dropping. What is the email marketer to do next?

If you, just like me at times, find yourself in this predicament, you may be what I call the “bored email marketer.”

Here are three techniques that boost creativity and help to break away from email marketing boredom:

1. Focus on concepts first not creatives and images.

According to a Merkle Interactive Services 2009 study 52% of email recipients have images turned off in their email reader (via emailstatscenter.com). So more than half of your customers will not see that carefully crafted email creative first. They will see your headline and the first few links you have most prominently placed.

So make a decision to not put creative first this year and focus on developing meaningful concepts that resonate with your target audience.

Take a good look at your goals and work back from them to map the path that will get you there. The first step in the chain that will lead to your goal is understanding the multiple ” personas ” that make up your audience. Based on those “personas” develop multiple concepts to test. Develop content to illustrate the concepts and then develop the creatives. So if you follow the analytics/ hypotheses/ test -planning/ content/ creative/ execution/ post-campaign analysis cycle, there are four other email strategy components to keep the email marketer from getting bored.

2. When you run out of concepts to test, retest concepts from a year ago.

A few years back, before Al Gore’s “fight for green” became mainstream, I developed a campaign to test if “going green” was a stronger driver for web usage than “de-clutter your life.” “Going green” failed the test. A year later, after Gore won the Nobel Peace prize and his global warming message became popular, we re-tested the same two concepts against each other and this time “going green” won.

What we learned here is that trends can change very fast, and we have to change with them, even if it means going back to an old concept. It may be old to the email marketer, but new to our customers.

3. Do the exact opposite of what you have been doing.

When you cannot move the needle enough with new tests it may be time to mix in something which is the complete opposite of what you have been doing so far. If you unsuccessfully tested images, throw in a no-image market-cell. If most of your emails have been short, try testing against a long email. If your communication language has been formal, test against informal copy.

I’m not advising here doing away with tactics that have been consistently proven, nor am I advising throwing away common sense. What I’m advocating is challenging ourselves to break away from patters that keep us stuck in an unproductive comfort zone.

Doing the opposite of what you have been doing may not prove the success you were looking for each time, but it will open up new perspectives, trigger new ideas, freshen up your strategy and keep you from becoming the bored email marketer.

About the Author

Mana Ionescu is President of Lightspan Digital, a Chicago firm that helps small businesses build their brands in their local communities through social media. Mana’s practical tips on digital and social media marketing can be found on her blog at manamica.com and Twitter @manamica.

Marketing to Women using Indoor Advertising

ideaguy — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 13:03:55 +0000

Photo by Frederic PoirotIndoor advertising placed strategically is a great tool for marketing to women. There are several forms of indoor advertising but restroom advertising has proven to be the most effective. With almost two out of three people remembering the ads they’ve seen with restroom advertising, you can be sure that people are seeing your ad and that you are making an impression on viewers. With ads in high traffic locations like nightclubs, movie theaters, health clubs restaurants bingo halls and shopping malls businesses can target women based on the age of the women they are trying to target.

Why marketing to women is a hot trend?

In spite of earning lower wages than men, studies have shown ladies pave the way for up to 80-85% of purchase decisions for their households. Regardless of the product businesses are targeting it makes sense to market to women because of their purchasing power.

Effective ways of using indoor advertising for women of different age groups

The most common form of indoor advertising is restroom advertising. Restroom advertising can deliver up to 3 minutes of captive female attention regardless of the general venue. The greater time of exposure is attributed to the fact that women in general have more patience and hence devote more time reading an ad than men. While indoor advertising can reach women and men of all ages let break down the venue locations for businesses that are trying to reach a particular age demographic.

Reaching the 18-35 year old demographic.

Women in the 18-35 year old age bracket visit health clubs sports bars and nightclubs. Because of how often women visit the restroom in these establishments the recall rate is as high as 84%.

Reaching the 25-69 year old demographic.

On the other hand women between 25 and 69 years of age can be targeted in restaurants, diners, and cafes. A majority of these restaurants have separate restrooms for men and women. Hence, restroom advertising can be used to focus separately for gender-specific products. Because individual restaurants can attract a specific demographic it is important to consult your local indoor advertising company who has the local knowledge to help you pick the restaurants reaching your desired demographic.

Reaching the over 50 demographic.
For women over 50 years bingo halls, golf courses, and restaurants are great locations to target this demographic. Because of the fact women are frequenting these locations you know that have some disposable income.

Adding Indoor advertising to a marketing plan

Adding indoor advertising to a marketing strategy can drive sales and help brand your product or service to a wide range of women. Because of the effectiveness and affordability of restroom advertising, any business small or large can add indoor advertising as a part of a sound plan for marketing to women.

About Author: Kyle Burke owns an indoor advertising company in Naples Florida. Please don’t hesitate to contact me if you would like to discuss options for marketing to over half a million women in the southwest Florida area.

Article Source: www.articlesalley.com/

7 Ways to Make New Year’s Resolutions That Stick

ideaguy — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 13:05:58 +0000

by Maria Gracia

New Year’s resolutions have a tendency to be made with enthusiasm and determination. Unfortunately, very often they’re forgotten by the time February rolls around.

Here are 7 simple ways to make New Year’s resolutions that stick and help you accomplish your goals.

THINK SHORT TERM. For most people, making a resolution for the entire year is way too difficult. Instead, make your resolutions once per month; January resolutions, February resolutions, etc. They’re much easier to achieve and the accomplishments can be celebrated sooner. Plus, if you don’t quite reach what you want to accomplish in any given month, you can simply move that resolution into the next month–no more feeling so guilty that you have to wait an entire year to start over again!

FOCUS ON A FEW. It’s nearly impossible to do everything you’ve always wanted to do in a short period of time. To be sure you don’t forget about the goals you’d like to accomplish, write them all down on a Master Goals List. Then, each month throughout the year, focus on the one or two that are most important to you. You won’t get overwhelmed and you’ll be amazed at what you can accomplish.

MAKE YOUR RESOLUTIONS S-M-A-R-T:

SPECIFIC: Your resolutions must be specific. For instance, saying that you’d like to spend more time with your kids in the new year is too general. However, saying that you vow to spend 1 hour of quality time with your kids each Friday and Wednesday, immediately following dinner, is very concrete and specific.
MEASUREABLE: Resolutions that are worked on and achieved, are those that can be measured and tracked. When you think of making a resolution, think in terms of numbers. Perhaps you’d like to lose weight. Thinking in numbers, you might state that you’d like to lose 5 pounds–1 pound per month for the next 5 months. Or possibly you’d like to go on a short vacation. Thinking in numbers, you may state that you’d like to save $100 per month, so you can go on a bed and breakfast weekend in June.
ATTAINABLE: You can certainly make challenging resolutions, but don’t make them so difficult that they’re going to be almost impossible to achieve. You can always break your resolution down into smaller goals. For instance, if you’d like to put aside $50 per month, make a resolution to set aside $12.50 per week.
REALISTIC: You might want to be a pro golfer this year, but if you haven’t even started training yet, then this resolution is going to be unrealistic and unattainable. Instead, set more realistic goals, such as taking a few basic golf lessons or playing golf once per week on Tuesdays for practice.
TIMELY: The word ‘someday’ is indefinite. Yet, often people say they have so many things they’d like to accomplish … someday. Resolutions with no start or end date in mind never get accomplished. Be sure all of your resolutions have both a deadline, and a starting date. For example, you might say you’d like to change your job. Your deadline might be March, 2001, and your start date might be next week–determining what you’d like to do, seeking available positions, etc.

TELL THE WORLD. It’s so important to be motivated about the things you’d like to accomplish. When you make a resolution, tell your spouse or a friend. Post a message on a discussion forum. Tell a co-worker. You’ll be more determined to accomplish your goal, if other people are cheering you on.

GIVE YOURSELF SOME VISUALS. If you’re constantly staring your resolution in the face every day, you’re bound to keep it uppermost in your mind. If you’d like to lose weight, keep a photo of an actress or actor you want to use as a model, on your refrigerator. Want to go on a vacation? Post a photograph of your dream destination where you’re sure to see it throughout the day.

CONQUER MINOR SETBACKS. There are so many things going on in your daily life, and you may experience a day or two when you lose track of the resolutions you set. That’s ok. Get right back on track. No need to wait until next year, or the 1st of next month. Simply make any day of the week DAY ONE, and begin working on your resolution again. Winston Churchill once said, in the shortest speech ever made, ‘Never, never, never give up.’ Heed his words of wisdom.

CELEBRATE YOUR WINS. Celebrating your accomplishments along the way will give you the motivation to keep going! Set appropriate rewards for each mini-resolution you make, and have a small celebration for each one you achieve. Let’s say you’d like to put aside $10 per week in January. For every $10 you’re able to save at the end of each week, you might indulge yourself in an hour’s worth of free time to enjoy one of your hobbies. Reward yourself. You deserve it!

by Maria Gracia – Get Organized Now!™
Want to get organized? Get your FREE Get Organized Now!™ Idea-Pak, filled with tips and ideas to help you organize your home, your office and your life, at the Get Organized Now!™ Web site
http://www.getorganizednow.com