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19 OCAK 2002

E-mail kampanyaları pazarlamanın,vazgeçilmez bir kanalı oldu

Despite their unfortunate early association with spam, e-mail marketing campaigns have become viable and even necessary components of a company's marketing strategy, according to a new report released by AMR Research.

However, before a company can begin to think about designing a campaign, it must settle on a few preliminary issues, including vendor selection, tech platforms, list procurement and certain creative tactics.

"The world of e-mail marketing is constantly changing," the report said. "Some providers that are here today will not be tomorrow. Users are struggling with not only having to assess functionality, but viability as well."

AMR interviewed a number of industry experts, e-mail service providers and users of hosted and licensed systems. The research firm also conducted a Web survey of marketing professionals regarding their use of e-mail.

To ASP or Not

According to AMR, the first -- and most important -- choice a company must make is whether to go with an MSP (marketing service provider), choose an ASP (application service provider) or license software and carry out the campaign in-house.

Each option has its own benefits, the research firm said. An MSP is best suited for a firm with little or no creative or IT staff where e-mail marketing is not seen as a strategic differentiator.

In contrast, an ASP is best suited for a company with a larger staff that views e-mail marketing as a strategic need for the future.

Licensing software is the best choice for a company that can dedicate a large team to creative research and that has an IT staff with relevant expertise and experience, AMR said. For such a company, all marketing functions are business critical, both now and in the future.

AMR concluded that the outsourced model is the best choice for at least some, if not all, of a company's e-mail campaign needs. The research firm also cited a survey of marketing professionals, which showed that 42 percent of businesses are using both licensed applications and outsourced services.

Integrating Channels

According to AMR, integrating traditional channels can significantly increase the lift of e-mail campaigns.

"In the beginning, companies wanted their electronic channels and campaigns to have a new and flashy look to distinguish them from a boring, carbon-based world," the research firm said. "For dot-coms, the electronic channel was its only means of communication to attract and retain customers. This caused e-mail campaigns to become increasingly isolated from the rest of marketing's activities."

But inboxes around the world became more and more cluttered. Customers began deleting messages without opening them.

Combining e-mail campaigns with more traditional means can significantly enhance response rates, AMR said. Some 61 percent of survey respondents said follow-up methods resulted in a 5 to 10 percent increase in responses. Another 6 percent reported an increase of 15 percent or more.

"One surprising fact was that almost 40 percent of respondents still haven't integrated their electronic and direct campaign activities," the company noted.

Targeted Campaigns

Not surprisingly, AMR found that response rates to targeted campaigns are seven to 12 times higher than response rates to mass mailings. According to the company, the throw-it-against-the-wall-and-see-what-sticks strategy is simply not effective, even though e-mail marketing is cheap.

"You run the risk of confusing and upsetting your customers, making each mailing less and less effective," the research firm said.

In addition, customers tend to be more receptive to offers when their e-mail addresses are collected in-house, rather than gleaned from a purchased list. Fifty-five percent of respondents reported response rates of 11 percent or more when mailing to in-house lists, while just 26 percent said they had the same level of success with purchased lists. However, AMR stressed that companies should be sure to provide customers with a clearly marked opt-in section when collecting e-mail addresses.

Info Generates the Most Click-Through

Most marketers base ROI (return on investment) -- or at least success -- on an increase in sales. However, AMR said, informative newsletters are more likely to be opened, and thus to have higher click-through rates.

"This again poses the question whether companies are measuring the right metrics when evaluating their CRM deployments," the company said. "While a newsletter might not result in immediate revenue, it does create value in terms of brand and customer awareness."

The subject line of any marketing e-mail is the most important piece of copy. Unfortunately, what works today will be old by next week. The word "free," for example, used to result in high response rates. Now, unless it is coupled with "shipping," it is a surefire way to make sure the e-mail gets trashed, according to AMR.

Startup Costs Remain

E-mail marketing is cheap, but there are still sizable up-front fees to get started, depending on the chosen deployment method.

Companies that purchase licensed products can expect to spend between US$100,000 and $200,000 to get started, while outsourcing startup fees range from $10,000 to $20,000, AMR said.

HTML vs. Text

Not all e-mail systems can read HTML, and an improperly translated HTML e-mail can be very annoying for its recipient. Unfortunately, HTML messages tend to be more effective than plain-text missives.

"Marketers need to make sure the e-mail systems they choose can not only send both types of messages, but they must also be able to detect what format the recipient is capable of receiving. This functionality is known as sniffing, and it should be a key criterion of your selection process," AMR said.