Email Marketing RulesThe Last Word on December 2018
Posted on January 11, 2019
A roundup of email marketing articles, posts, and tweets you might have missed last month…
Must-read articles, posts & reports
The Email Innovations That Most Interest Consumers (MarketingProfs)
You can now ask Amazon Alexa to read your email messages and respond by voice — here’s how (CNBC)
Verizon says Oath is dead. Meet Verizon Media Group. (NBC News)
Insightful & entertaining tweets
Your child might be texting about coding html emails. Know the signs.
LMAO – Leave me alone Outlook
HTH – Huh? <th>?
BRB – Big rendering bug
TBH – That broke Hotmail
WTF – Writing tables forever
LOL – Looked Ok in Litmus
OMG – Only mangles Gmailapp#emailgeeks— Elliot Ross (@iamelliot) January 31, 2018
On the 9th day of Xmas my Inbox sent to me 9 classes activating,
8 gifs a-jumping,
7 <tr> a-stacking,
6 campaigns a-testing,
5 @Litmusapp pillows,
4 nesting snippets,
3 conditional statements,
2 Google fonts,
and an #EmailGeek in a <table> tree.— Sarah Cressler (@ReactionRebel) December 23, 2018
The problem for most companies when it comes to email marketing is not a lack of planes, but rather a lack of pilots….. #EmailMarketing #emailgeeks #databasemarketing
— Chris Marriott (@CSMarriott) December 28, 2018
Noteworthy subject lines
Chipotle, 12/18 – Watch the bowl with a bowl, delivered FREE
Banana Republic, 12/17 – Infinite parties await (here’s what to wear)
Banana Republic, 12/23 – Watch the ball (and everyone’s jaws) drop
Burlington, 12/17 – Goodbye 2018, hello new dress
Lane Bryant, 12/1 – Spend your weekend with self-gifting deals!
Panera Bread, 12/6 – Chad, give a $50 gift card, get a $10 bonus card.
Saks Fifth Avenue, 12/6 – Saks Fashion Director’s go-to gifts to give & get
Saks Fifth Avenue, 12/11 – What Pierre Mahéo of Officine Générale is gifting this year…
FansEdge, 12/15 – SHHH…Don’t Tell. Gifting Cheat Sheet Inside
T.J.Maxx, 12/4 – Made in Italy: luxe for less.
Michaels, 12/11 – Trendy Tuesday: Handmade gifts for everyone on your list.
REI, 12/15 – Stuff Their Stockings with More than Socks
Dick’s Sporting Goods, 12/5 – Finish Your List! Up to 50% Off Deals, Gifts & More
Bass Pro Shops, 12/11 – Clock’s ticking! Last chance to stretch your payments
Walgreens, 12/17 –Still shopping? 25% off ends tomorrow!
UncommonGoods, 12/18 – Got a Minute? We’ve Got Last-Minute Gift Ideas
RH, 12/18 – Last Call for Standard Holiday Shipping. Order by 12/19 at Noon EST for 12/24 Delivery.
Everlane, 12/20 – Gift Cards To The Rescue
Petco, 12/21 – FINAL HOURS: 20% off your in-store purchase
Aeropostale, 12/23 – Final Hours For Buy Online Pick Up In Store
Target, 12/6 – Yesss! 20% off select LEGO + savings on must-have toys.
Lane Bryant, 12/6 – Bra-la-la-la-la…$19.50 cotton bras!
Saks Fifth Avenue, 12/25 – To: You // From: You – Up to 60% off shoes, bags, etc.
Everlane, 12/1 – Super Limited. Super Human.
Starbucks, 12/18 – Santa has elves. You have coffee.
Epicurious, 12/15 – Announcing the winners of the Epicurious Cookbook Awards
Office Depot, 12/11 – In-App Coupon – Valid Today Only!
West Elm, 12/8 – When your home IS the Instagram inspo…
New posts on EmailMarketingRules.com
Our Favorite Litmus Blog Posts of 2018
Our Favorite Litmus Reports of 2018
Our Favorite Litmus Webinars of 2018
Webinar Recording + Q&A: Key Insights from a Year of State of Email Research
Help us help you by participating in Litmus’ 2019 State of Email Survey
2019 EEC Awards: Nominate an Email Marketer, Thought Leader, or Program
Posted on January 7, 2019
The Email Experience Council is accepting nominations for their 2019 EEC awards until Feb. 1. Get your submissions in now for the following awards:
The 2019 eec Stefan Pollard Email Marketer of the Year Award
This award winner will be a brand-side marketer who is responsible for creating an Innovative Email Marketing Program; or may have achieved compelling results while under significant pressure or challenges from management; or might have achieved compelling results from their email marketing program by making a quantum leap forward in progress and sophistication.
The 2019 eec Email Marketer Thought Leader of the Year Award
This award winner will be someone who works at a digital agency; ESP; or 3rd-party service provider. They should have had a recognized impact on the email marketing community by fostering conversation around an industry issue or proposing a solution to an industry challenge. Or the nominee may have had an overall positive impact on the industry not limited to a single topic or issue.
I won this award last year and I can tell you that it feels amazing to be recognized by your peers for your contributions to the email marketing industry. If there is someone in the industry at an agency, ESP, or 3rd-party service provider whose advice or work you find value, please consider nominating them.
The 2019 eec Email Program Awards
This set of awards promotes excellence in email marketing. In particular, these awards will showcase the impact that email is having in the marketplace and within organizations. Most importantly, these awards will feature email campaigns that make us excited and proud of the work being done in our industry.
- Best Use of Data, including Automation and Triggers:
- Best Makeover of an Existing Email Program
- Best Use of Email in a Cross-Channel Campaign
- Best Nurture Campaign
- Best Use of Humor; Personality, Content, or Brand
For full details on each of these awards and for submission forms…
>> Visit the 2019 EEC Awards webpage
2019’s Top Email Design Trends
Posted on January 4, 2019
This year you can expect to see more personalized emails, as well as more interactive emails. For the second year in a row, those two email design trends stood out above all others, according to a Litmus poll of more than 240 marketers.
The next tier of email design trends included using more AI-driven content and live content, and simplifying email designs. The other eight email design trends that we asked marketers about received a bit less enthusiasm, although they’re all still likely to be important this year.
To bring some perspective to these email design trends, we reached out to our friends at Action Rocket, Campaign Monitor, Trendline Interactive, Oracle, Really Good Emails, Yes Marketing, and Adobe. Let’s discuss each of these 13 email design trends in more detail.
To see the ranking of trends and a discussion of each one…
>> Read the entire post on the Litmus Blog
Report: Live Optimization Notebook on Welcome and Onboarding Emails
Posted on January 3, 2019
Creating effective welcome and onboarding emails is hard—and many of your peers are struggling with the very same challenge.
In this notebook, onboarding email expert Val Geisler, Litmus Community & Product Evangelist Jason Rodriguez and I review welcome emails submitted by fellow email marketers and provide hands-on copywriting suggestions, design feedback, and strategic takeaways that you can apply to your own campaigns.
You will learn:
- How to make a good impression above the fold
- Why focusing on the most valuable call-to-action helps declutter your message
- How to create a clear content hierarchy so your email is easy to scan
- Why defensive design and optimizing for image blocking is key for effective onboarding emails
We’re bringing the spirit of the highly popular Live Optimization sessions at our Litmus Live conferences directly to your desk with this report. Download your copy to get the tips and inspiration you need to take your welcome emails to the next level.
>> Download the free guide
Happy Holidays!
Posted on December 25, 2018
Whatever you celebrate, I hope your holidays are filled with family and fun. Best wishes, Chad
Our Favorite Litmus Blog Posts of 2018
Posted on December 21, 2018
Litmus published more than 130 blog posts in 2018—that’s a lot of tips and resources!
Not sure where to get started? We asked some members of the Litmus marketing team to share their favorite blog resources of the year. Here’s what they said…
- Jason Rodriguez’ pick: Presentation Tips: Lessons Learned from Giving 100+ Talks and Webinars
- Jaina Mistry’s pick: Gmail’s Promotions Tab Is NOT the Spam Folder
- Bettina Specht’s pick: The Ultimate Guide to Background Images in Email
- And my pick: 6 Manipulative Email Tactics that Disrespect Subscribers—And Hurt Marketers
To learn why these are our favorites…
>> Read the entire post on the Litmus blog
Our Favorite Litmus Reports of 2018
Posted on December 20, 2018
Litmus published five reports and six whitepapers during 2018, covering a wide range of email marketing topics from analytics to email service providers and interactive emails to email’s return on investment. The reports and whitepapers we released during 2018 include:
- 2018 State of Email Analytics
- 2018 State of Email Service Providers
- 2018 State of Email Workflows
- 2018 State of Email Report
- How to Recover from Email Marketing Mistakes
- Interactive Emails: Understanding the Hottest Trend in Email Marketing
- Why a Lack of Email Marketing Mistakes Is a Red Flag
- Email Marketing ROI: The Factors that Lead to Better Returns
- How to Improve Email Review Cycles and Email Approvals
- Email Marketing Staffing & Resourcing for Success
- How to Overcome the Biggest Email Marketing Challenges of 2018
That’s a lot of content. More than 135 pages of email marketing insights! (And those are just the reports. We also did webinars, infographics, and blog posts based on this research.)
Of course, we think every one of those reports is worth your time, but in case you’d like some guidance on which ones to read first, members of our marketing team have selected their top picks:
- Jason Rodriguez’ pick: Why a Lack of Email Marketing Mistakes Is a Red Flag
- Bettina Specht’s pick: Email Marketing Staffing & Resourcing for Success
- Jaina Mistry’s pick: 2018 State of Email Workflows
- And my pick: Email Marketing ROI: The Factors that Lead to Better Returns
To learn why these are our favorites…
>> Read the entire post on the Litmus blog
Our Favorite Litmus Webinars of 2018
Posted on December 18, 2018
Litmus hosted eight webinars during 2018, covering a wide range of email marketing topics from email workflows and how to start the year off right to the ESP industry and welcome emails.
That’s a lot of content. More than 8 hours of email marketing insights! (And those don’t include the webinars that did with our partners like Salesforce, SparkPost, and the Email Experience Council.)
Of course, we think every one of those webinars is worth your time, but in case you’d like some guidance on which ones to watch first, the members of our marketing team have selected their top picks:
- Jason Rodriguez’ pick: Live Optimization: Supercharge Your Onboarding Emails
- Bettina Specht’s pick: The Trends Transforming the Email Service Provider Landscape
- Jaina Mistry’s pick: Email Tactics Customers Hate
- And my pick: Key Insights from a Year of State of Email Research
To learn why these are our favorites and watch the webinars…
>> Read the entire post on the Litmus blog
The Last Word on November 2018
Posted on December 14, 2018
A roundup of email marketing articles, posts, and tweets you might have missed last month…
Must-read articles, posts & reports
Email Accessibility: How to Craft the Perfect Accessible Email (EmailMonks)
The Challenges of Attribution in Email Marketing (OnlyInfluencers)
Introducing Reminders and Unsubscribe features in Yahoo Mail (Yahoo! Mail Blog)
Insightful & entertaining tweets
Look what showed up on the Siren chalk board today @BrightWave pic.twitter.com/nqlux8QbjY
— Simms Jenkins (@SimmsJenkins) November 26, 2018
Ok I’m all about using email subject lines to create urgency, but, uh Cyber Monday literally JUST started… pic.twitter.com/5kNkditmeg
— Matt Lindner (@RetailMatt) November 26, 2018
Black Friday: the day of the year when you find out what marketer’s list your email has been buried in for eternity only to resurface in all its glory. #emailmarketing
— Anthony Chiulli (@AnthonyChiulli) November 22, 2018
Noteworthy subject lines
Saks Fifth Avenue, 11/5 – Your “I Voted” sticker needs an outfit to match
American Red Cross, 11/2 – A friendly reminder for Daylight Savings Time
Panera Bread, 11/28 – Chad, an update on the romaine recall from the CDC.
Applebee’s, 11/2 – We’re Thanking Veterans With A Free Meal Nov. 11th
Aeropostale, 11/12 – In Honor Of Those Who Serve
Epicurious, 11/4 – Our 155 best Thanksgiving recipes
Hayneedle, 11/11 – 5 steps to a holiday-ready home …
West Elm, 11/15 – Up to 30% off SUPER deals to get you guest-ready
eBags, 11/4 – Heading Home For The Holidays?
Crate & Barrel, 11/1 – An early-early holiday gift: 15% OFF.
Nike, 11/13 – Nine great gift ideas for kids
Staples, 11/30 – Do your coworkers rule? Give them something great >>>
Saks Fifth Avenue, 11/30 – Your favorite person wants these…
Gap, 11/30 – This would look so good on you (it’s okay to self-gift)
RH, 11/2 – Introducing the Ultimate Faux Fur Holiday Collection
Lenovo, 11/21 – PCs starting at $99 – extremely limited quantities!
Lane Bryant, 11/28 – 2019 is coming FAST. Grab your glitter.
Brooks Brothers, 11/19 – Save 15%. Save lives.
Wayfair, 11/10 – SPOILER! Awesome WALL PANELING inside >>
Ikea, 11/2 – IKEA Wins J.D. Power Award
Neiman Marcus, 11/4 – Be the best-dressed wedding guest
Anthropologie, 11/7 – Stand out in a marshmallow world.
Feeding America, 11/10 – We know we’re your favorite. Will you make it official?
P&G everyday, 11/2 — *Gasps.* *Clasps face.* *Happy tears.*
MAC Cosmetics, 11/17 – Say SOIRÉE NOT SORRY with These Fashion-Forward Gift Ideas
Clinique, 11/13 — #FindMyiD: It all starts now.
New posts on EmailMarketingRules.com
3 Reasons Brands’ Email Marketing KPIs Are Overly Focused on Engagement
Total Retail: Email Marketing’s ROI – Three Insights for Retailers
Webinar Recording + Q&A: Key Insights from a Year of State of Email Research
Posted on December 13, 2018
If you didn’t have time to read all of the hundreds of pages worth of reports and research insights that came out of our 2018 State of Email Survey, you’re in luck: We’ve condensed the key stats, trends, and takeaways from all our research into a single webinar.
In this webinar, I discuss four major themes from this year’s research:
- Why most email review and approval processes are inefficient (and what you can do to fix them)
- How performance visibility impacts the subscriber experience
- The use of third-party tools to supplement ESP functionality
- How the under-measurement of email marketing ROI is hurting budgets
To watch the recording, view the slides, and read the Q&A…
>> See the entire post on the Litmus blog
Welcome! Email Marketing Rules is your guide to understanding the best practices of this complex, often misunderstood channel as you craft the best executions for your brand. Every week, we’ll explore strategies and tactics, discuss tips and inspiration, and dig into industry news and trends.
Chad S. White
Head of Research
Oracle Digital Experience Agency
Author of Email Marketing Rules and nearly 4,000 articles about digital and email marketing
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