Spike in Email Undeliverables: 5 Tips for Increasing Delivery

The Challenge: Major email providers such as Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail and AOL have implemented new algorithms for email deliverability based on “engagement”. If your emails are not triggering sufficient interaction, they are likely not to be delivered.

Recently, most email service providers have converted to a new customized algorithm that calculates deliverability using a combination of the original email delivery rules plus new “engagement” factors: open rates, clicks, unsubscribes, and complaints. With these new human behaviors factored into the equation of deliverability, future emails that you send may be considered SPAM or not delivered at all, even to subscribers who signed-up to receive your emails. Email marketing service MailChimp explains an even more damaging point “if enough recipients click the ‘spam’ button on your email, the providers assume that no one else would want that email either.” Read Google’s white paper on deliverability and the Priority Inbox.

What can you do to improve engagement? Here are 5 tactics:

1. At a minimum, follow basic list management best practices, such as keeping your list opt-in only, honor unsubscribe requests and remove undelivered emails from your list. MailChimp suggests using a double opt-in method to further improve engagement metrics.

2. Motivate new customers to engage with you. Silverpop recommends a quality welcome series.

3. The strategists at Econsultancy suggest “Combining behavioral data and RFM (Recency, Frequency, Monetary value) creates Engagement-RFM (eRFM). Using this methodology can improve the accuracy of segmentation, strengthen influence and engagement, and lead to an increased ROI.”

4. Use personalization and dynamic content. Leverage this information to deploy personalized communications for significant events such as customer appreciation messages, unexpected “surprise and delight” communications, birthdays, post purchase “thank-you’s”, and dropped cart messages.

5. Reward email actions like opens, clicks, and shares. Marketing Profs highlights how companies like GameStop and Southwest Airlines are experiencing success with engagement by tracking subscriber’s interactions and awarding loyalty program points.

Key Takeaways:

1. Sending “spray and pray” emails will damage your brand, hurt your reputation, and compromise future deliverability of legitimate emails.

2. Provide value-added information. Per recent findings from recent Voice of Customer research conducted by our firm, customers are willing to provide in-depth information in exchange for receiving value-added information. For consumers, the rationale for providing preference information is to receive increasingly relevant offers, communications, and experiences.

3. Segmentation is more essential than ever. Develop increasingly specific customer and prospect segments so you can send highly targeted emails that are of interest to each recipient in your sub-segmented groups.

Burberry's Multichannel Innovation; 3 Tips

The Challenge: What can we learn from a 157-year-old fashion company that’s being called “the world’s most digitally competent luxury brand”? That a multichannel and personalized customer experience is becoming the expected standard among consumers.

Just as high fashion brands have been trendsetters in clothing, they are now trendsetters in multichannel marketing. Global fashion icon, Burberry, launched a program recently that upped the ante on multichannel marketing. Burberry’s Millennial-targeted “Runway Made to Order” campaign allowed viewers from around the world to live stream their Fall fashion show, and purchase and personalize items directly from the runway via a state-of-the-art interactive e-commerce platform.

Key Takeaways for Marketers:

1. Offer a Seamless Multichannel Experience
Burberry’s innovation is truly remarkable. The brand has taken the 2013 Autumn runway show -- traditionally an exclusive event, accessible only in-person -- and spread it across every conceivable digital medium: the show, streamed on Burberry.com and other sites, was the first in history to be broadcast live on Twitter; purchases through Runway Made to Order are accompanied by Smartphone-compatible product videos upon delivery; the live stream was accompanied by an Instagram feed showing close-ups of the products as they hit the runway, and a dozen digital cameras photographed handbags and shoes to be turned into an ‘accessories-only’ Facebook photo album.

Burberry has long been on the forefront of digital; but now, as marketers struggle to create a valuable customer experience across many seemingly disparate channels, Burberry shows us just how seamless it can all be.

2. Make it Personal
The ability to order products the moment they’re debuted is impressive enough; but, Burberry has added to this ability a highly-personalized touch.

Upon adding an item to an online shopping bag, customers are immediately informed that their purchase can be “customized with a bespoke nameplate and smart personalisation technology.” Orders are placed with the promise that a Burberry rep will soon reach out to the purchaser personally to ‘confirm requirements.’

3. Adapt Proven Tactics to the New Integrated Multichannel Mix
In a modern twist on product placement, Burberry, according to the recent New York Times article, supplies A-list celebs with key items in order to capitalize on the many active fashion bloggers and social media followers. By not limiting its presence to digital alone, Burberry applies the ‘influencer’ tactic to traditional media, using print and video advertisements featuring British actress, Gabriella Wilde.

The lesson: for maximum brand building, impact, and revenue, deploy a seamlessly integrated multichannel mix.

Providing Unforgettable Web Experiences: 4 Tips

The Challenge: Brands are struggling to stay relevant online. Per a study by Forrester, only 3% of websites earn a passing score in terms of user experience.

Consumers cited 3 reasons why websites are generally failing to live up to customer expectations:

1. Content and website functionality aren’t based on deep customer research.

2. Menu names are vague and typically do not provide visitors with a clear next action.

3. Text is illegible and privacy statements are not clear enough.

Poor website usability is not the only shortcoming. Per findings from Marketing Sherpa: among 1,100 online retailers evaluated, the study found a near 60% average shopping cart abandonment rate.

Per findings from our recent Voice of Customer research, consumers felt strongly about these 4 requirements for valuable web experiences.

4 Key Takeaways for Marketers:

1. Provide easy access to content in just a few clicks.
Customers shouldn’t have to search for the content on your website. For a best-in-class example, check out 2012 Webby Award Winner, Kahn Academy. The online educator structures its homepage around three basic elements: a navigation bar, a search bar, and three call to action graphics targeted to unique visitor segments. The website is a premiere example of what’s possible when ‘simplicity’ and ‘customer experience’ are the key guiding principles for design.

2. Make it easy to share content via social media.
It’s absolutely essential that websites provide social sharing options for published content, including blog RSS syndication.

There are a variety of social sharing tools available to brands, but if you’re starting out, consider adding Digg Digg or Share this -- a Forbes’ 2012 America’s Most Promising Company -- to your site.

3. Make it easy to engage via mobile.
Customers must be able to engage effortlessly when visiting your website via mobile device. Look to beauty supplies retailer, Sephora, for a best-in-class example of a consumer brand mobile site. The website features a clear, thumb-friendly navigational structure and beautifully-modern aesthetic design.

4. Feature Blogs and communities.
In addition to SEO and thought leadership benefits, website blogs function as the homebase for a brand’s community engagement.

Per our own Voice of Customer research on behalf of NBC and Microsoft, we’ve found that consumers demand “connection” to peers, relevant experts, and the companies themselves.

Customers come to your website for more than just ‘transactional’ experiences; provide a community, and they’ll be back when it’s time to purchase.