F2F 2.0

Spread it!

Email This

Everyone is wise to the Forward to a Friend (F2F) link; recipients know that marketers are tracking them, so even if they like your offer and want to share, they won’t. This is because your recipient wants to protect their friends more than share your offer, so if they pass it along they do it through the use of the forward function in their email client, or by sending the link in a separate note or mention it in passing… not what you planned.

The good news is that F2F is getting a revival of sorts through Social Media, allowing recipients to post your email content/ offers on their Facebook pages, Twitter etc. This posting allows your offer to be shared with their friends on a much larger basis – because instead of one or two recipients, it’s now exposed to their entire social network. So not only is the exposure greater, the odds of reception are also greater because you’re receiving that third-party endorsement and being seen in a more casual environment, where future recipients may be more receptive to your offer. For instance if one recipient posts your offer on their Facebook page, odds are that their 100+ friends (average profile has 120 friends) will see your offer. This does more than simply push your message to one recipient (traditional F2F), rather it spreads the message and helps you reach much further.

We did a case study with a cataloger that sends to their list about twice a week – in all, about a million total sends each week. They’ve historically included an F2F link in all emails but only had 1142 clicks over the past 12 months, that’s over 48M emails sent. Comparatively, they tested a group of 200K recipients offering links to join their Facebook page or share the email content – all told they had 8,500 clicks on the Facebook links within their campaigns (just a test group!)

Don’t be a Wallflower
Incorporate social media with your email campaigns – if only to take advantage of the new F2F trends. First figure out where to play, get in the game by creating your top social media pages (Facebook, Twitter etc.) and provide adequate content to get the user engaged. Once you’re set, here are a few additional points to consider:

1) Make it Easy – Check with your ESP, a few are now providing the code necessary to include in your campaigns. A simple inclusion can make your email shareable in the various Social Media outlets (Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, Flickr, Digg, StumbleUpon and Del.icio.us) and help your recipients offer your message – even if you don’t have a corresponding corporate social profile. Be sure to include links to your sites on your website, in your welcome emails etc.

2) Get Creative – Obviously some campaigns are better positioned for sharing, keep this in mind and be sure to offer a catchy, shareable campaign or design element when you can. This increases the likelihood of your recipients spreading the word.

3) Stay Engaged – You have to provide consistent information, think of your Social Media profile as an extension of your website, they should work together although they may have different features/ offers. Consider offering something specifically for your Facebook Friends or a great offer (quick expiration) to your Twitter Followers. This allows you to elevate the importance and attract recipients. You could also use these social sites as a teaser – pre-announcing an event or even the next edition of your newsletter.

4) Know the Measurements – Keep in mind that your Web 2.0 technologies yield only basic metrics, you’re tracking interest and activity not the traditional open or clicks. Remember that you’re dealing with a broader universe and metrics span browsers, applications (i.e. widgets) as well as destinations like walled social networks (i.e. Twitter)… you’re watching for interaction, the number of times someone looks or engages with your offer.