The Three Golden Rules

Too often we get caught up in the cycle of messaging only to realize that we are slowly alienating some our active responders. It got a little too much with email and is now quickly moving to where the consumer could be getting hammered by a constant barrage of email, mobile messages, and lots of 'friendly' messages on social media.

To be successful in your messaging you need to make sure that you put yourself in your consumers shoes.

Here are three simple rules to follow:

First, make sure things work. Test your messages to make sure that nothing is broken in your campaigns. Take it to the next level by even testing out how different messages might be received by sample groups before releasing it out to the entire list.

Second, learn to listen to what your consumer is saying. Look at their preferences, track their clicks, read their feedback, & listen to what they are saying on your social media channels. Now leverage that information back into your messages.

Third, make sure that you are not exceeding the perceived value of your campaigns. Watch the frequency and volume of your messaging. You need to learn to gauge how tolerant your consumer is of your messaging volume. Ensure your message value by focusing on the relevancy and timing of your offer – will the recipient think your message is relevant? Ask yourself that with each campaign you create, edit down as much as possible, if your message doesn’t pass your initial test revise it, consolidate, personalize and make it relevant.

For the timing aspect, look to implemented triggered campaigns for some of your frequently needed/ sent items – automate requests for more information, welcome, transactional (shipping) and thank you messages. All of these triggered examples factor outside of your standard messaging and are typically viewed separately by recipients because of the cause/ effect type exchange. They will also be great revenue generators for your brand.

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How to Make a Phenomenal First Impression

As a marketer it’s easy to focus on the normal email campaigns, these are the ones that you most recently perfected, received management buy-in and the ones with current response data. Odds are you’re planning a couple weeks in advance too, never looking too far back so it becomes easier and easier to forget the welcome campaign that you created a while back… or inherited from your predecessor.

These welcome campaigns may be years behind your current design work or they could be doing only part of their job. Think of the campaign(s)) as your first impression, it’s the best chance you have for the recipient to add you to their safe sender list; your chance to highlight something they may have overlooked while on your site or simply introduce them to your full experience – either through a purchase, survey or social media offerings.

Evaluate these campaigns quarterly (monthly if you can); make sure they are serving your organizations needs:

· Show recipients a sample of what to expect

· Provide them with important information (something that will want them to keep your email for a while)

· Collect information from them – i.e. a simple survey (fill-in from the registration page)

· Push them toward other items – cool/ underappreciated part of your site or social media outlets

· Generate sales – this could be your best chance to convert!

· Don't think about just one campaign - plan a series of welcome campaigns (2 - 3) to help your new prospect become part of your family

· Mix it up – drive your campaigns to them through mobile, social, & email.

You need to use this first impression to start a dialogue with your consumers, it is the best way to learn about them, it is the best way to communicate, it is the best way to market - all towards creating interactive conversations.

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Learning Social Media Throught Total Immersion

This years NACMA convention brought an energetic group of marketers - their quest to learn was on how best to engage fans. Social media was discussed in multiple sessions including the best discussions that took place on the 'sidelines.' The number one question on their minds was, 'How can an organization truly get into social media?'

It wasn't about reading books or attending a class on social media - these marketers were serious. They wanted to know how they could learn social speak, what they could do to train their organizations on social engagement, and how best they could keep the fan engaged. Oh, and these questions are not just limited to my friends from NACMA but to people across industries.

To get started you need to get the fundamentals right - you need to choose and pick your engagement channels. You need to start branding yourself on these channels so your consumer can recognize you and also know why consumers should find you on those particular channels. For example if you choose Twitter or Facebook - identify what each channel represents and what the consumer should expect of each of these channels.

Jump in by researching other brands to see how they are making their way in the various outlets, look to industry experts to accelerate your efforts and keep current with consumer expectations.

Now before you release your 'social might' to your consumers, you need to get involved to learn about how to engage with social media. I can assure you that no course on social media will make you an expert. To become an expert you have to get engaged. To get engaged go listen to other 'experts' on other social media channels. Get involved by watching what others are doing and joining conversations. Set aside time everyday to observe & participate. Log in, observe, & participate - these may seem like really simple steps but you need to do it before you truly can (re)launch your own brands.

Try to practice getting your message across in 140 characters or less. Practice this with people within your organization and see what kind of response you get. Learn how to join conversations or continue conversations past one message or tweet. And most importantly keep asking your organization and your customers for their feedback.

One other personal suggestion that I have is that you have to learn how to balance your efforts in the digital space - integrating your social media program into other digital media programs. You can do even better by tying things into your traditional marketing engagement programs.

Social media is a slightly different language - you can learn it by reading a book. But to be really good at it you need to live in the land of social media and learn to speak the language. It is only done through Total Immersion. You cannot be successful in social media until you experience it firsthand.

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The Power of Transactional Messaging

Transactional messages are essential to drive effective engagement. People expect you to follow up with them for a variety of reasons:

• At the point of signing up
• If they are trying to find things on your site
• If they have a concern or complaint
• After a purchase or completion of a transaction
• Electronic receipts

You can serve them even better if you reach out to them with more:

• A survey about their experience or purchase
• A reminder about an offer that might be expiring
• An invitation to an exclusive event
• & even if they unsubscribe.

The key with consumer messaging is to make sure that you are timely and the message is personalized. Timely personalization makes your communiqués relevant.

Many marketing programs have a transactional messaging plan in place. Great marketing programs incorporate marketing into their transactional messaging as consumers pay attention to the message that is being sent.

Really ‘awesome’ marketing programs kick things up by leveraging all their channels to get the message to the consumer.

Join us this afternoon from 2 - 3 pm EST as we discuss ideal practices around transactional messaging. To sign up for the call visit Service in Action.

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Five Key Fundamentals to Drive Social Success

Social Media continues to receive significant attention at corporations. What is popular today is Facebook, next Twitter (coz it can help create buzz), & community blogs abound. User generated content via text, sound, pictures, & video helps build up the value of a brand. Many companies are making significant investments in social media. Your social media site is like an online mall. You have visitors that are walking through your mall. Your success lies in luring them into your 'store', engaging them, and keep them coming back for more.

Here are key considerations that drive social media success.

1. You need to brand and promote each of your social media sites appropriately. Let the consumer know what to expect from each site and allow them to create a personalized experience with social media. Give them the reasons they should interact with your brand and leverage each interaction to continuously identify their unique preferences so you can keep enhancing your offers to them.

2. You need to integrate messaging across channels. A coupon can drive people to complete a sale. An ad in the paper can drive people to come invest in a certificate of deposit. But you can do more with social media. What if you 'Tweeted' about an article on your blog with links to Facebook where people now shared their personal experiences? You will be able to drive more engagement with this approach and drive other acquaintances in.

3. You need to nurture your social media networks by soliciting feedback - good & bad. Listen & respond to both concerns and suggestions. As you build up your opinions, people tend to pay more attention (search engines do too.) Additionally you can establish a group of experts who could turn into your go to team as you strive to respond to questions.

4. You have to build up your expertise. The consumer can find an answer to so many things from so many sources. They can do it expeditiously with social media. Your channels need to be able to answer things in even more detail. In fact, you should even consider empowering your touchpoints (including your people) with this additional data so your company looks like the expert.

5. You have to be real. This is not a reality show but it is about being genuine and helpful. You don't have to be cute, you simply have to care.

Social media will continue to evolve, your goal is consumer engagement. You have to look for ways to communicate with your consumers and turn them into raving fans. Keep your eyes on the goal and keep on moving.

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11 Ways to Make a Winning Video

Video?!?!... why? That’s typically a part of the conversation from a lot of marketers when suggesting the video route; but there are three very effective reasons to incorporate video into your marketing efforts – 1) Your consumers want to see things; 2) some entertainment/ education requires an “in-person” demo to convey the message – video is the best way to make the two converge; 3) video is expressive and engaging.

The best part is that you don’t have to have TV-quality equipment to effectively use video for your branding – your winning video is just a few steps away, just consider the following:

1) Create brand awareness.

2) Balance the education with the entertainment quotient.

3) Focus on the viewer – how will your message help with the experience/ purchase decision?

4) Showcase your merchandise or offering.

5) Offer interaction – ask people what all they would like to see, let them drive the experience. For example, rather than showing the entire How To video, offer chapters/ sections for the viewer to self navigate.

6) Use the Paul Harvey approach – Tell a little, use intrigue and then drive viewers to a more focused landing page(s.)

7) Tag your video – Key words will be picked up by search engines… they love video!

8) Short is effective – Be crisp and clean, don't drag things out and make sure your video fits in short timeframes.

9) Remember Post-Sale – Videos are good prior to the sale, but are even better post sale because it reinforces the purchase decision and fosters interaction.

10) Initiate a dialogue via email after the video

11) Allow the user to post your video or related comments via social media – just imagine the impact.

Need more inspiration? Search “video” on our blog or spend a little time on YouTube… tell your boss it’s research.

Kim Mueller with Marquette University & Matt Beckman from Gonzaga University spent a fair amount of time giving me ideas on how to leverage video to create 'atmosphere.' I have invited them to share more with us on this blog after her presentation at NACMA.

NACMA brings together college athletic departments to discuss best practices to engage the aspirational fan.

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Twenty20, Change, & Engagement Marketing

You probably have heard of cricket. Yes, this precursor to baseball used to involve two teams of 11 going at each other for five days - two innings each and most contests still ended undecided.

The spectators and fans started moving away looking for more excitement so the one day version of this game was invented. Teams went at each other for 50 over's each (300 legal 'pitches' for each side to use a baseball analogy). It got a little more creative with the game starting in the late afternoon and ending late into the night.

One day cricket became popular and even though stadiums were full, it was hard to engage multiple groups of fans on TV. That was until the advent of Twenty20. This 20 over a side match (120 legal 'pitches' each side) is full of excitement - in three hours you see it all, battle of bat & ball, & even some great entertainment. The thing that is absolutely amazing is that not only are stadiums full, people are glued to the TV & internet all over the world - different time zones!

If you asks the purists of the game they cringe about Twenty20. But the reality is that this game has engaged fans - friends and families gather to watch the game. Movie theaters offer the game in high definition. The reality is that this game has shaken not only the world of cricket but the world of sport on how best to engage fans across continent. Nothing like this has ever been done before.

Not only do teams leverage the game but they also leverage the latest in technology. Twitter, Blogs, You-Tube, live podcasts, all drive stickiness or engagement as fans are entertained around the world. Mobile TV is emerging and with the smarter phone this is going to get even more engaging. Talk about one to one marketing - this is where sports marketing is headed.

Something that is even more interesting about the Twenty20 phenomena is that not only has engagement gone sky high for the game but it has also got people more interested in the sport. The US even hosted a Twenty20 tourney in Florida last month.

Twenty20 is being used as a catalyst to inspire and engage. A lesson for all of us in social media marketing - leverage things that are quick and snappy to help engage the consumer across even more traditional channels. TV drives people to the web & mobile in real time. This is done across the globe, across time zones, & all conversations are interactive.

The momentum is phenomenal. The IPL (Indian Premier League is estimated to be worth $4.5 Billion in three years!)

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Seven Steps on How to Sell on the Web

Here are seven simple steps on how you can sell on digital interactive channels. You can apply this simple approach to audit what you already have, or to start fresh. This approach has been used successfully for selling product, selling service, and some serious consumer engagement.

Step One

Define your product or service with a crisp or clean definition. Let us use a little more than Twitter-speak – 150 – 200 characters but don’t go too far over 200.

Step Two
Offer a value statement in third person. Don’t just tell the consumer how valuable the product / service is. Instead use real testimonials from consumers or consumer personas and show how these consumers are using the product or service.

Step Three

Offer education or guidance. Keep it short with links to lots of detailed content. Train your touchpoints (real & self service) on how to respond to questions. Encourage your touchpoints to show the consumer where more information can be found. Remove the channel bias (if you can) – many in store or in branch transactions discourage the consumer from completing the transaction online.

Step Four

Try to mimic how the purchase or transaction takes place in a real environment. The consumer gets to touch & feel the product. The consumer gets the attention of your associate. Additionally your associate can watch the consumers’ emotions and this can be leveraged into the transaction. Now think about social media – your consumer is a social being – they want to feel, sense, and get feedback from others. Give them an opportunity to ‘check things out’ on social media channels. Of course, there are negatives about real environments as well – you have longer lines, limited inventory, & less information. All three can be improved through the internet.

Step Five

Build a phenomenal search tool. Advertise on your site as if it was a bill board on an interstate – people should be able to glance through and find their information quickly. Let them find the testimonials, mix up the testimonials too. Allow the consumer to go through your maze with ease. If they still cannot find what they are looking for – make it easy for them to contact you. (And if they do, make sure you follow up with them quickly.)

Step Six

Remember what people did, who they are, plus what they like and dislike. You have to build up a preference repository for segments, products / services, & individuals.

Step Seven

Ask the consumer to give you their feedback & most importantly keep seeking the consumers’ expertise (through testimonials). Invite them to become part of your panel. Consumers prefer input from other consumers and this is how transactions are completed.

Engagement over the internet is easier if done correctly. It is about preferences, empowering consumers, & creating interactive conversations.

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How to Reach the Seventh Stage of Marketing

Good marketing starts with recognizing a need and getting the message across. It starts off first with the same message to all, and gradually evolves to the ideal scenario where the consumer solicits your opinion. Here are seven steps along the way - see where you are so you can plot out how you can achieve email marketing nirvana.

Stage I: Mass Marketing

The Build it, and they will Come mentality; eMarketers broadcast their message and consumers are expected to flock. There is no modeling of data, nor is there any customization in message. Despite the short comings, there is actionable analysis in the messaging – consumers are given offers to redeem, which can be tracked.

Stage II: Segment Marketing

After watching how consumers respond to certain offers, marketers leverage some basic modeling strategies to start targeting segments. Uncertain consumers still abound in this segment as marketers often send various mass marketing messages. The offers are beginning to become a little more personal, but not down to the individual consumer level.

Stage III: Target Marketing

Using basic click data, the marketer can reach the consumer with a more targeted approach. Clicks (or lack of) naturally move individuals into segments. Preferences drive some of the emails, marketers have a little predictive analysis, yet the communication is still segment-focused. Some micro-segmentation begins to lead to individual dialogue streams.

Stage IV: Customer-Driven Communications

Communiqués are becoming multi-channel and focused around consumer type; recipients are grouped into categories based on demographics, purchase history, gender, age etc. These categories are combined to arrive at personalized communication based on individual behavior patterns. There is a little more targeting to individuals and consumers now begin to see relevant offers across all channels.

Stage V: Customer-Driven Relevance

Dialogue across all channels with a single consumer is occurring, the application of iterative and progressive communications appear across all channels. A consumer may get a postcard about an offer, with the next communiqué (email,) leading to a call from an agent, driving that consumer to a physical event. The key here is that the channels are now beginning to share information about the consumer and the messaging is coordinated, one story is being shared across multiple channels.

Stage VI: Interactive Conversations

This stage is more enhanced; the consumer is now carrying a dialogue with the business. By providing feedback on the various communiqués – the marketer can start an interactive conversation that meets the needs of the consumer and allows the marketer to be prepared to sell the consumer when the consumer needs the product or service.

Stage VII: Consumer Acceptance

This stage is one of trust where the consumer has started sharing feedback about their purchases with the business. The business is now leveraging this information to provide the consumer with the best possible service. This is akin to the consumer sharing their personal goals and requirements with a private banker who is guiding them with investment and savings opportunities – the same as telling a personal shopper what you want or asking the concierge where you should eat dinner.

The key is trust, leveraging your journey and best practices of each of the previous stages.

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How to Fix the Image Issue in Gmail...

Gmail recently implemented changes to its webmail environment that are adversely affecting how images are displayed in most browsers. There are simple changes you can make in your HTML code that will rectify these image display issues.

What changes did Gmail make?
With their recent webmail update, Gmail now adds a few pixels of horizontal white space when a certain style reference is omitted. This is especially noticeable for images that are stacked vertically (like image slices) or for images displayed on a non-white background.

How can it be fixed?
Easily! Add an in-line style reference to control the image display. Note: Gmail does not support cascading styles which are those referenced in the head or style tags at the top of the HTML. So, it must be in-line. Here is an example with the additional style inclusion in bold, red:

PROBLEM CODE:
Img src=http://www.someurl.com/images/image.jpg height="100" width="100"

CORRECT CODE:
Img src="http://www.someurl.com/images/image.jpg" height="100" width="100" style="display:block"

Note: This style element can go elsewhere in the img src tag if preferred

What browsers are affected?
We have observed this rendering issue in FireFox, I.E. 8, and various Webkit browsers such as Chrome, Safari, and some mobile devices.

What else should I know about this?
The practice of declaring the display:block style for images is already a best practice because Windows Live webmail also adds this white space to images if you don’t declare this (again visible in FireFox and Webkit browsers). But remember, Gmail doesn’t support cascading style sheets, so this style—and all other style references—must be referenced in-line, like in the example above.

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Seven Transactional Must-Do's!

Transactional messages work; we’ve seen open rates averaging over 65%! So why not leverage them to create a more effective engagement strategy?

Here are seven reasons as to why & when you should go back to the recipient:

1) When they sign up – Don't forget to welcome them into your fold; thank them, talk briefly about the virtues of your marketing program and be sure to insert an offer with an expiration date. People didn't just sign up to read your campaigns; they’re usually interested in purchasing something so make it easier for them.

2) Say Thanks – Follow up the purchase with a reminder of why they’ve chosen your company. Send a thank you email with an interesting offer to apply toward their next purchase, a neat idea is to offer them a sample of one of three items – this creates interaction.

3) You want their Feedback – A few days after shipment, ask them for feedback on the products purchased or the service provided. Make it easier for them by making the survey top heavy – solicit open-ended feedback first then progress to the multiple choice items. Be sure to include at least one question to get you feedback on other products (maybe by ranking other products.)

4) When they abandon their transaction – Be it an incomplete transaction or an abandoned shopping cart, you have to go back to them to ask them if there is anything you can do to help them complete their transaction. It doesn't have to be a discount, a simple reminder works wonders. If they still don't purchase, wait and send them a reminder in the future.

5) When they unsubscribe – Mail them after they click on unsubscribe, tell them you’re sorry to see them go. Include a banner to your sales outlet or a special discount at the bottom. You’ll be surprised at the unsubscribed recipient actually makes a purchase.

6) Invite them to your forum - Introduce them to your social media sites. Don't just ask them to follow you or become fans - tell them why they ought to go to your social media sites. Intrigue & incentive - both work effectively. Your consumer is looking for feedback and so they want to know what others are saying about your brand.

7) Do it in real time - Don't make the consumer wait for the information. It is a right now world - the consumer expects information in real time - plus they want the information personalized. The difference between real time & a few days later is a conversion factor of about 41%. Use this to your advantage.

Transactional messages are tremendous revenue generators, plus they help you build brand & create relationships.

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Use Your Reports to Drive Your Campaigns

Email can drive some really quick hits and this causes many marketers to just continue to drive campaigns without really analyzing results of past campaigns. According to a recent survey of email marketers more than 17% of those surveyed aren't tracking campaign effectiveness even though the data is available. An additional 24% of those surveyed look at the results but do not do anything with the results. Reports are prepared for the sake of having a report and while things look good with email (because of the excellent ROI) opportunities abound for improvement.

If there was one suggestion it would be to focus on treating people differently - segment people into categories till you reach the one to one stage.You have to leverage your ability to segment to drive better results. Consumers can be grouped and treated differently based on the results of campaigns. Here are a few simple quick things you can do to drive effective segmentation.

Customers and prospects - these are two broad and distinct categories.

Openers and non openers - so you now have customers that have opened a campaign, customers that have not opened a campaign. Prospect that have opened a campaign, prospects that have not opened a campaign.

Now look at the clicks - customers that clicked, customers that did not click, prospects that clicked, prospects that did not click. Treat the un-subscribes differently.

If someone has 'converted,' you should group that consumer into a different category to start a dialogue.

The opportunity lies in personalization and you should look to personalize different streams of messages to your consumer.

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Take II: A Case Study on a Personalized Contest

Once upon a time there was a digital marketing manager for a regional hockey team; the team was a start-up in an area not very familiar with the sport so ticket sales were low. They managed to sell 4000 of their 12500 seats in season tickets, another 2000 would typically sell on their own and their sales team was able to move an additional 1000 through corporate sales/ event nights. This left them with 5000 empty seats.

Disappointed with the empty seats, the owners tasked him with boosting ticket sales – the email manager tried everything, promoting to his email list (approximately 7000 names), working closely with the advertising group for television, print and bill board ads. He tried PR initiatives and even dressed up in a sandwich board to hand out tickets. Nothing really worked. So one afternoon, while stuffing envelopes, he decided to promote a contest.

He put out an email to his entire list (7000 names). Asking recipients to print out the email and bring to the game, those who did would receive a puck to chuck into the goal during half-time. From his list only 700 opened, 200 brought in the email as instructed and had their chance to chuck-a-puck. There were five winners, who received merchandise, free tickets or photos with the players. After the contest, the announcer told everyone where to sign-up for the next game and their chance to play.

By the next week he had 1,400 new subscribers, the email went out and had 3,600 opens – 2000+ people printed to play at the next game (he still had five winners). By the third game he had even more subscribers, an open rate above 60% and a huge conversion. Response was so overwhelming that he pressed further by giving the non-winners an opportunity to fill out an online preference survey with the chance to win box seats for the next game.

Today (three years later) he promotes his events on Facebook. He uses intrigue to engage his fans. He uses online contests to grow his reach. He leverages social media and mobile to survey his recipients. He even gets his fans to predict plays. He was a one man band, but sales are so good he now has a team - a very productive one too.

So the moral of this story is that a little interaction goes a long way. This one contest helped the manager 1) grow his list; 2) get more “cheeks in seats” and 3) actually CONNECT with customers (he collected personalized information that could be leveraged for future campaigns.)

You could do the same, think of ways to solicit interaction, it could revitalize your email campaigns, reduce direct mail cost and give you access to the personal information you need to attract advertisers… you may even unload some of those expensive “Jack Nicholson” seats.

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How to Drive Results Quickly...

1) Understand your Customers

Don't assume your previous customer insights hold true, economic challenges can change consumer views dramatically. Focus your research investments on customer behavior and tracking tools rather than branding. Create and disseminate engaging, relevant messages based on an understanding of customers' preferences, needs and behaviors. The simplest thing you can do is ask.

2) Concentrate on Current Customers Focus on current customers, in tough economic conditions customers feel vulnerable and are more likely to stay with a company rather than make a switch. Increase your relevant engagement to generate sales, help your customers through their difficult situations to build stronger relationships. Use the opportunity to capitalize on the trust and goodwill that you've created and find ways to help them navigate through the slowdown. Try to invite as many of your current customers to join you on social media channels. Remember, true engagement with your current customers will help you spread the word to their friends. Begin with current customers - they will lead you to more.

3) Analyze and Segment

Pay attention to customer profiling to identifying which customers spend the most, new behaviors will emerge during a slowdown; proactively assess and respond. Focus on the improvement of your customer profiling, segmentation and modeling — not just analytics or insights. Use more sophisticated campaign planning, data management and creative execution. Try to break your customer list into deciles - it will help you drive more targeted offers as you focus closely on those you serve.

4) Recency is Vital
There are three types of customers - those who have just purchased, those who have purchased more than once, & those who have been customers for a long time. If you are looking for a fresh start - grab those you have just transacted with and try to get them to make the second purchase or transaction. Reinforcing each transaction with appropriate follow ups - can drive more business quicker.

5) Empower Your 'People' Channel
Give your customer facing people the opportunity to connect with those they serve. Let your people have access to offers & customer information so they can best serve the customer. Don't stifle their efforts on social media - instead have a policy and help them drive engagement through all channels.

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Seven Stages of Email Marketing

Good marketing starts with recognizing a need and getting the message across. It starts off first with the same message to all, and gradually evolves to the ideal scenario where the consumer solicits your opinion. Here are seven steps along the way - see where you are so you can plot out how you can achieve email marketing nirvana.

Stage I: Mass Marketing The Build it, and they will Come mentality; eMarketers broadcast their message and consumers are expected to flock. There is no modeling of data, nor is there any customization in message. Despite the short comings, there is actionable analysis in the messaging – consumers are given offers to redeem, which can be tracked.

Stage II: Segment Marketing After watching how consumers respond to certain offers, marketers leverage some basic modeling strategies to start targeting segments. Uncertain consumers still abound in this segment as marketers often send various mass marketing messages. The offers are beginning to become a little more personal, but not down to the individual consumer level.

Stage III: Target Marketing Using basic click data, the marketer can reach the consumer with a more targeted approach. Clicks (or lack of) naturally move individuals into segments. Preferences drive some of the emails, marketers have a little predictive analysis, yet the communication is still segment-focused. Some micro-segmentation begins to lead to individual dialogue streams.

Stage IV: Customer-Driven Communications Communiqués are becoming multi-channel and focused around consumer type; recipients are grouped into categories based on demographics, purchase history, gender, age etc. These categories are combined to arrive at personalized communication based on individual behavior patterns. There is a little more targeting to individuals and consumers now begin to see relevant offers across all channels.

Stage V: Customer-Driven Relevance Dialogue across all channels with a single consumer is occurring, the application of iterative and progressive communications appear across all channels. A consumer may get a postcard about an offer, with the next communiqué (email,) leading to a call from an agent, driving that consumer to a physical event. The key here is that the channels are now beginning to share information about the consumer and the messaging is coordinated, one story is being shared across multiple channels.

Stage VI: Interactive Conversations This stage is more enhanced; the consumer is now carrying a dialogue with the business. By providing feedback on the various communiqués – the marketer can start an interactive conversation that meets the needs of the consumer and allows the marketer to be prepared to sell the consumer when the consumer needs the product or service.

Stage VII: Consumer Acceptance This stage is one of trust where the consumer has started sharing feedback about their purchases with the business. The business is now leveraging this information to provide the consumer with the best possible service. This is akin to the consumer sharing their personal goals and requirements with a private banker who is guiding them with investment and savings opportunities – the same as telling a personal shopper what you want or asking the concierge where you should eat dinner.

The key is trust, leveraging your journey and best practices of each of the previous stages.

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Vote For Pedro

I was witness to a very interesting political campaign. I was also subscribed to the same political candidates digital marketing program. The Candidate (I will not reveal who they were) did a good job putting their digital contact strategy together. They solicited names via email, Facebook, & Twitter. They put up videos on YouTube & lots of pictures on Flickr.

The Candidate did a good job monitoring their social strategy - they leveraged Blogs, community discussion forums, & were quick to put out campaign alerts. The Candidate also did well to leverage endorsements & relevant news. All of this was quickly listed on their sites, there was one key site that provided a central repository, & The Candidate did a good job personalizing the messaging.

They did very well. From a non-contender, The Candidate grew their sphere of influence and kept inching their way to the top in polls. They did well to stay in touch with their electorate (that mattered) and emerged a winner in the primaries. Well, almost. In a five candidate field - The Candidate finished with a whopping 25 point lead over their closest adversary. Yet the 49.5% victory has now led to a runoff!

The Candidate could have done more - a lot more via email. The advice to this candidate would be to use email to influence people - to get more people to pay attention to their messages, & to get people to come out and vote.

Here are five specific things they could have done.

First, The Candidate should welcome new subscribers immediately. They can do it with a three step welcome campaign. The first email says welcome, the second email solicits the voters opinion, & the third email leads the voter to go participate on social media sites. Don't forget to lead with intrigue.

Second, The Candidate should be testing subject lines. Not all subject lines are created equal. An A:B test to see what might solicit more opens will go a long way in getting more people to pay attention to the campaign.

Third, The Candidate should re-try those that did not open the email. No harm sending it twice to try and grab someone's attention.

Fourth, The Candidate should tell a story within each email. Rather than the vote for me, give me more money, or a smiling picture - the Candidate should include voter feedback, more pictures, & a clear call to action.

Fifth, The Candidate should try to leverage their email subscriber base to help spread the message. Simple things that say - 'forward to someone who cares,' or 'post it on Facebook' make it easier for anyone to get the word out.

The advice here is not just for The Candidate but for many in the email marketing world - focus on the fundamentals and you can enjoy greater success. Here's wishing The Candidate the very best in the run-off - hope you can apply these simple rules and win.

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Five Rules to Focus on the Fundamentals

Success in marketing is driven by a number of factors. Both B2B & B2C success is driven by making effective connections. There is a person at the other end and if you make a connection, you keep the user engaged. To make that connection you have to be interesting, serve with relevance, & be timely. Here are three simple fundamentals that one needs to leverage into your marketing programs.

First, you need to segment your list. The 80 - 20 rule is a good start. In fact, try to start off with a 90 - 10 rule by designing specialized campaigns for 10% of your base and then gradually start expanding your success to other deciles. The more you segment, the more you can focus. This is how your journey towards one to one begins.

Second, you need to work on your message. Make sure it is crisp, clear, & concise. You have to choose your merchandise or offer, display it correctly, & then decide what to tell the user to do. Your call to action has to be strong. And you also need to think past the landing page. Landing page marketing is important, but you need to think about what to do next.

Third, you need to focus on how & when the message is delivered. Your users will express interest in a particular channel. Additionally, you could use one channel to drive users to other relevant channels. The right channel is vital. Channels to choose from include direct mail, kiosks, ATM's, print, phone calls, email, mobile, & even social media.

Fourth, you have to be timely. Your consumer can find what they need from anyone - yours being timely helps out tremendously.

Fifth, you need to be honest and sincere. Empathy does carry through and a way you can share the empathy with your team - the same carries through to the customers you serve.

There are a number of other great ideas - in fact if you want to join a group of marketers in an interactive discussion - you should check out this years Panel of Peers.

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How to Grow Your Digital Database?

There is a frantic effort to collect as many digital consumer contacts as possible. Companies are springing up to seek & sell digital data. A list purchase is no panacea for your digital database. Remember you have to connect and if you do it well you will not only connect but you will also keep your consumer engaged.

On a positive note, you don't have to mail post cards, run an ad on TV, or even have a phone blitz to seek consumer contacts. You can leverage the web for engagement. Some organizations may ask you to 'Become our Fan on Facebook' or 'Follow us on Twitter' or 'Read our Blogs.'

Focus on intrigue, a genuine dialogue, & real time relevance to get more consumers to join your conversations.

Here are a few simple suggestions in how you can use Facebook, your Twitter account, & your Blog to make connections.

Ask people to join you on Facebook to see the latest pictures from your 'special events.' Encourage people to upload their own events and this is what gets the dialogue going.

Give people a few reasons to follow you on Twitter - perhaps a special promotion code, a white paper, good information, or even using Twitter to answer questions.

Offer part of your story in your Tweet or your Facebook update - put the rest of the story up on your Blog. You can use the blog to consolidate information and provide a headquarter location for all your social media.

Don't forget to tie all social media sites back to your consumer information file. Provide a link to allow consumers to update their preference pages. Your preference pages need to be cross channel. Be sure to ask for social contacts, email addresses, & mobile numbers as part of your engagement strategy.

Think about specific reasons why one should come to your social media sites. List those reasons down, and try to leverage them into your conversations with recipient.

Many organizations still block their 'workers' from social media sites. Instead you should mentor them on the use of social media and train them to engage the customer / prospect in a cross channel dialogue.

You have call centers and stores that are training their employees to direct people to social media sites. They list the question and the answer on the blog, they tweet about it, and even offer solutions on Facebook.

Social Media is here to stay. You have to learn to grow your database of contacts and plan out how you communicate with those that you connect with. Engagement has to become part of your natural conversation.

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Five Tips to Connect with the Empowered Consumer

Here are some of top reasons why people look at their browser & how marketers should try to leverage them.

Look at news,

Look at email messages from family, & ‘friends,’

Look up homework assignments & grades of kids,

Find directions & weather, How to fix things,

Look up information on medications, &

Look for deals

The user feels empowered as they can seek things quickly and pay attention to what was clearly presented. Consumers want to be in control, they appreciate information that was well laid out, and absolutely love the ability to find testimonials / ideas.

As marketers, we need to focus in on the same simple steps:

1 - Grab the recipients attention,

2 - Lay information out clearly,

3 - Include the ability to search for things,

4 - Leverage user generated content,

5 - Provide the recipient the ability to give feedback on what they want, i.e. control.

I realize that our marketing calendar and needs force us to keep the consumer engaged at all times with deals and specials – we can still do all of that, however remember if you let the consumer feel empowered – they will be more participative.

An empowered recipient is a happy consumer, and more likely to work with you as you create interactive conversations with them.

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How to Create a Conversational Survey?

Be careful how you ask questions of your recipients, your tone is particularly important because if you imply that you are soliciting opinion to change things, you must be prepared to do so. Here are some potential pitfalls and ways to avoid them. Simply said here are a few ideas that are a better way to ask questions.

You could be asked to do things that you are simply not prepared to incorporate, for example if you ask the consumer if they want more or fewer messages their likely answer is going to be less. Circumvent by telling them you send x-number messages each month, and you’d like to know how many of those messages they read. This accomplishes two things, first you are telling the consumer that you have an important message and secondly you’re asking them to pay attention to at least some of them.

You could also get varying opinions about what would be best for your email communiqués; each may be a great suggestion but you may not have the resources to come up with that many versions of creative. A better way would be to ask people about the types of things they would like to see in your emails, then attempt to feature as many of these items in future campaigns.

Never forget the importance the text box plays in a survey, make sure it is prominently placed and that you are inviting the recipient to share colloquial feedback with you. Many people love to chat about themselves and their interests; the text box is an open invitation that allows you to gather feedback and segment. What is even better is to incorporate this feedback into your social media channels. Encourage the recipient to share this with their friends, or ask them if you could share it with the rest of your recipients.

Share your survey with a small group just before you deploy, include your team, others in your company and try to get an end-user’s perspective (i.e. first responders club.) Incorporate their feedback before you make the survey available to all recipients.

Remember, your survey should be conversational; never forget they are two-way communiqués and that a good marketing program is all about Creating Interactive Conversations.

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13 Tips for a Better Web Site

1 - Choose an effective color that matches your brand. Have less contrast and use no more than three colors.

2 - Give people a place to go next. Make it easy for them to find things. Keep the confusion out and give people simple options.

3 - Focus on site navigation and the search box is king. People know how to 'google' stuff.

4 - Be consistent with font face and size.

5 - List your content in short paragraphs that are broken up, if you want to offer more in the text, let them click through or offer a download.

6 - Make it easy for people to get in touch with you. List the contact information clearly.

7 - Make your load times faster. Don't give the user an opportunity to tab away while your page loads.

8 - Make your site search friendly with meta - tags - you need to identify the information. Search engines will find it faster.

9 - Be careful about using frames / cascading style sheets - you loose impact. Many search engines don't list pages with frames

10 - Scrolling text, & flashing content - these no longer startle people. Most people tend to ignore this to move ahead.

11 - Oh, & size matters - check the resolution to make sure that you are set to run at 800x600

12 - Have a mobile site ready, it is the least you can do. Over time, more and more people will first access your site from a mobile device.

13 - Keep your content refreshed as you tie in social media into your site. Let your 'social feedback' update your site. Give people reason to visit your site often to see the changes.

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Stop Single Channel Marketing Mayhem

Many organizations define success by how a consumer is convinced to partake in a marketing offer. You see television ads that try to build brand and drive people to a store. You hear radio ads touting a low interest rate or inviting people to a clearance event. Grocers keep mailing their circulars. And the barrage of mass email continues to torment many an in-box.

Direct mail at home and at work have offers strewn all over them. And even when the consumer unwinds on their social media site there are both ads and invitations to 'special events.' The pursuit of the consumer is relentless. These approaches to engage a consumer are typical of single channel marketing programs. These are programs that are seeking a consumer but not necessarily coordinated. Marketers and businesses pursue the consumer across channels in an attempt to convince and then convert the consumer.

Many organizations are guilty of the 'single channel chase marketing approach.' A random sampling of big and small company offers shows that there is really no connection between their channel offers. Most companies don't list their other channels in marketing communiqués, a few do but there is nothing specific. A rare few give you a compelling reason to go to the other channel. And even those who do drive you to the other channel fail to test things out - the transfer was confusing, perhaps the link is broken, the ATM is no longer at that location, the store has closed, the event was held the week before, or the best one: the approached employee was absolutely clueless!

In an ideal scenario your channels should be aware of each other and this includes the employee. Additionally the employee should be empowered to find things and execute offers.

But to be reasonable, this is tougher than you think. Even if you have a single data warehouse it is still hard to coordinate marketing messages. Also, it is not just about good intent - you have to make it a practice to think about the other channels.

Here is one suggestion. Try Channel-Coupling. Take two channels and start coordinating your approach. Carry the message from one channel to the other. Have a requirement that every single communiqué you send is coordinated with at least one other channel. This means couple your email and direct mail. Connect your direct mail with social media. Send people to your Youtube channel from an ad on TV or radio.

Don't just list your channels - give people a reason to go there.

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