Email Marketing RulesShould Emails Expire? Yes and No
Posted on January 11, 2022
Most commercial email that’s sent is never deleted by recipients. Moreover, most commercial email content is only relevant for a fairly short period of time—say, weeks tops for the vast majority of it. As a consequence, mailbox providers currently store and maintain access to a tremendous amount of old and completely irrelevant email. That’s costly for them and an ecologically senseless use of electricity during a time of escalating climate risk.
For those reasons, the issue has been raised as to whether marketers should be allowed and enabled to schedule the emails they send to delete themselves. Even if only instituted for future emails, it would stop mailboxes from filling up with even more messages of limited long-term value.
We already have a good starting point for this process: the schema that’s used to tell Gmail and other mailbox providers when the deals in our emails expire. That schema could be used by all senders to set reasonable expiration dates for their messages, when applicable. This is a mechanism that wasn’t available when the idea of auto-deleting emails was first raised around 2012.
However, many of the barriers that stopped this idea from gaining traction a decade ago are still problems today. Let’s talk about those, plus an alternative approach to solving this problem.
On-Demand Webinar: Effective Testing & Optimization Across Digital Marketing Channels
Posted on January 7, 2022
Consumer behaviors, desires, and needs are changing faster than ever. Simply watching your analytics and listening to your customer service feedback isn’t enough, if it ever was. To stay aligned with your customers across all of your digital channels, having a robust testing program in place is critical.
But how do you set up an effective testing program across your digital channels? How do you avoid making mistakes that undermine your testing? How do you determine the right kind of test to use and right parameters?
To answer those questions and more, Oracle Marketing Consulting hosted a value-packed webinar, featuring JT Capps, Director of Analytic & Strategic Services, Oracle Marketing Consulting; Doug Sundahl, Senior Director of Analytic & Strategic Services, Oracle Marketing Consulting; and Chris De Marinis, Senior Consultant, Oracle Maxymiser.
To read the 5 key takeaways or to watch the 45-minute on-demand webinar…
7 Burning Questions about Email Unsubscribes
Posted on January 5, 2022
Brands work hard to build their email marketing lists, so they understandably want to minimize unsubscribes. However, lingering misconceptions about unsubscribes lead some brands to put the wrong tactics in place. So, in an effort to reduce unsubscribes, some brands actually end up increasing list churn or hurting their deliverability, or both.
Here are seven questions that you or your boss might have about unsubscribes that are at the heart of devising wise practices that protect your list and your reputation:
- If I make my unsubscribe link too prominent, am I essentially encouraging people to opt out?
- Do unsubscribes hurt my email deliverability?
- What about native unsubscribe links?
- How can I retain more subscribers when they visit my unsubscribe page?
- What about offering a “Snooze” option?
- How many clicks should it take to unsubscribe?
- What should I pay attention to when testing my unsubscribe process?
To the answers to those questions…
The Last Word on December 2021
Posted on January 3, 2022
A roundup of email marketing articles, posts, and tweets you might have missed last month…
Must-read articles, posts & reports
2022 Marketing Predictions for an Increasingly Digital World (MarketingProfs)
Defining the Four Types of Data and Knowing When to Use Them (Litmus)
Insightful & entertaining tweets
It’s been a minute since we’ve seen #CASL enforcement but if you’re a retailer you’ll want to read this one carefully… https://t.co/A6faNfqx5J
— Matthew Vernhout (@EmailKarma) December 8, 2021
Ok so I built a little something…
It’s a magic trick.
It’s built in CSS.
It will predict your favourite email app.https://t.co/1h2YBujDjdCheck it out #EmailGeeks
— Mark Robbins (@M_J_Robbins) December 8, 2021
New acronym? PSPUF. Primary, Social, Promotions, Updates, Forums. AKA the dreaded Gmail tabs.
— Al Iverson’s Spam Resource (@spamresource) December 1, 2021
Baffling how many forms don’t support autofill. Such an easy way to increase your conversation rates.
— 𝔸𝕃𝔼𝕏 (@alexcwilliams) December 13, 2021
Someone in @WomenOfEmail shared this amazing email and I cannot stop laughing at this copywriting glory. Someone at @Shinesty has the best job ever. Enjoy #emailgeeks! 🎄 https://t.co/U5sAgcCrEl
— April Mullen (@aprildmullen) December 22, 2021
Noteworthy subject lines
Spotify, 12/14 – Who’s your #1 artist of the year?
Nintendo, 12/14 – It’s here, Chad—your Year in Review with Nintendo Switch!
Uncommon Goods, 12/4 – We have almost 4,000 gifts—so you can find just the right one.🎁
Target, 12/4 – Now available LEGO Collection x Target 🙌
Belk, 12/21 – You get a flannel! And YOU get a flannel! 🎁🎁 From $10 flannels for the fam
Kohl’s Green Monday, 12/13 – Here’s an extra 15% off to sweeten your shopping trip!
DICK’S | Weekend Savings Event, 12/4 – 3🎁Days🎁Left🎁Shop the Guaranteed-Under-The-Tree Event
West Elm, 12/6 – Up to 70% off: In-stock styles, going FAST!
Neiman Marcus, 12/6 – 50% off runway names (before they sell out!)
Eddie Bauer, 12/12 – These Gifts Are In Stock & Ready to Ship!
Williams Sonoma, 12/13 – The modern holiday table | Shop in-stock & ready-to-ship dinnerware
T.J.MAXX, 12/12 – Shipping gifts? Now’s your last chance!
DICK’S Sporting Goods, 12/14 – Get it in time: Order by tomorrow & choose standard shipping
Nordstrom, 12/16 – The most wanted UGG gifts | Last day for free delivery by Christmas
Express, 12/21 – ❗Order by 10 a.m. ET to get style steals under the 🎄 in time❗
Zales, 12/22 – ⏳ Time’s Running Out! Order NOW to Get it By Christmas!
Kohl’s Last Minute Gifts, 12/22 – Last-minute gifts + fast & free store pickup = check off that list!
DICK’S Sporting Goods, 12/21 – 💰 Score last-minute deals TODAY with curbside or in-store pickup
Bed Bath & Beyond, 12/22 – Save 20% on your ENTIRE purchase when you use FREE 1-hour pickup OR get FREE same day delivery!
Big Lots, 12/24 – LAST CHANCE for 15% OFF pickup orders! 😱 Shop by 5PM!
Starbucks, 12/21 – The perfect last-minute gift ☕ 💚
Macy’s, 12/24 – Down to the wire? E-Gift Cards to the rescue! ✉️
Victoria’s Secret, 12/24 – Christmas Is Tomorrow! Send an E-Gift Card
Banana Republic, 12/24 – Save Time, Get an E-Gift Card
Lowe’s Home Improvement, 12/29 – Easily redeem your gift cards with new tools.
Sears, 12/25 – 🎮 Now it’s time to give YOURSELF something…
Zales, 12/26 – Didn’t Get Everything You Wanted For Christmas?
Express, 12/4 – Your invite’s inside! ✉️ Express Live with Rachel Zoe
IKEA, 12/14 – Chad, be the first to watch the Host Masters finale 🥂🍾
Bed Bath & Beyond, 12/6 – Katie Lee Biegel’s expert tips & picks for fun holiday get-togethers 🥳
Express, 12/6 – Ready to put on your party pants? 🎉
Nordstrom, 12/6 – Beauty picks for holiday parties
Burlington, 12/14 – Inside: Brand-name New Year’s Eve outfits!
Big Lots, 12/26 – 🎉 New Year’s party? 🎉 Ring it in right!
Belk, 12/29 – There’s no party like a pajama party! 🎉 55% off women’s & kids’ sleepwear
Nordstrom, 12/24 – Get set for winter self-care
Walgreens, 12/29 – 💰 YES. PLEASE. A FSA is waiting at Walgreens! These deals mean it’s time to order
New posts on EmailMarketingRules.com
Wishing Every #EmailGeek a Safe and Happy Holidays!
Dyspatch: The Email Marketing Trends That’ll Dominate 2022
8 Lessons Learned from Giving 100+ Webinars
13 Inclusive Design Changes to Increase Your Digital Marketing Engagement
Wishing Every #EmailGeek a Safe and Happy Holidays!
Posted on December 23, 2021
From my family to yours, wishing you a safe and Happy Holidays!
Dyspatch: The Email Marketing Trends That’ll Dominate 2022
Posted on December 17, 2021
It’s that time of year again: Prediction time. Since the future is always hazy, Dyspatch’s Liz Willits pulled together 12 experts to share their thoughts on the email marketing trends that will take off in 2022 and help marketers succeed. I was honored to be included, along with:
- Dave Gerhardt, Chief Brand Officer at Drift & Founder of DGMG
- Eddie Shleyner, Founder, VeryGoodCopy.com
- Andy Crestodina, Co-Founder of Orbit Media
- Matthew Smith, Design Goofball and Founder Really Good Emails
- Ryan Robinson, a blogger and podcaster
- Kaleigh Moore, eCommerce writer
- Anne Tomlin, Founder of Emails Y’all and Email Loot
- Dylan Moore, Director of Customer Success at Dyspatch
- Brian Minick, COO at ZeroBounce
- Rachael Pilcher, B2B SaaS copywriter
- Andrew and Pete, Founders of ATOMIC
Across everyone’s predictions, some interesting themes bubbled up out of the haze. For example, subscriber-centricity in terms of empathetic copy, personalization and segmentation, and strong usability was stressed. Also, ease of production was a theme, which included more use of modular email architecture and more use of plain-text email. There was also some consensus that brands would spend considerable effort adapting to Apple’s Mail Privacy Protection, which was the focus of my prediction.
For a look at all the predictions…
8 Lessons Learned from Giving 100+ Webinars
Posted on December 14, 2021
With the pandemic shutting down live conferences for the better part of the past two years, B2B marketers have leaned hard on virtual events. And as the number of webinars has risen, so too have people’s expectations. That’s a challenge because there are so many ways big and small to mess them up.
Based on the 100-plus webinars I’ve done, plus the hundreds more I’ve attended, here are my tips for improving the webinar experience…
The Last Word on November 2021
Posted on December 3, 2021
A roundup of email marketing articles, posts, and tweets you might have missed last month…
Must-read articles, posts & reports
Holiday Apple Pie: MPP Is Having An Impact At A Bad Time (MediaPost)
Micro-Conversions: What They Are and Why They Matter (MarketingProfs)
Email Shopping Reimagined (Postmaster @ Yahoo & AOL)
When Cookies Turn To Toast: First-Party Data Will Be The New Jam (MediaPost)
What You Need to Know about the Consumer Data Protection Act (Trendline)
Brand Romance: Most Marketers Think They Have a Distinct Tone of Voice (MediaPost)
Mail Privacy Protection Seemingly Undermined by Apple Watch (MacRumors)
Four Techniques for ‘Story-Splitting’ Your Marketing [Infographic] (MarketingProfs)
Insightful & entertaining tweets
It’s helpful when cold emailers send you subject lines like “”Holy Amazeballs!”” so you can identify and flag as spam more quickly. 💌
— Lauren Meyer (@LaurenEmailGeek) November 9, 2021
Every time a bell rings, an email gets its wings. 🔔📨 #emailgeeks #BlackFridayDeals pic.twitter.com/qIiCfN8747
— April Mullen (@aprildmullen) November 22, 2021
Noteworthy subject lines
Uncommon Goods, 11/24 – 🎅 Order early: Santa’s supply chain’s iffy (three reindeer just quit 🦌)
REI, 11/7 – Our Top Gift Picks Are in Stock… For Now
Bed Bath & Beyond, 11/5 – 12 joyful ways to shop faster & easier this holiday
Walgreens, 11/20 – Curious about boosters? We did the legwork so you don’t have to
JCPenney, 11/1 – Early access: Black Friday Ad
The Home Depot, 11/1 – BLACK ⭐ FRIDAY ⭐ PRICES
Nordstrom, 11/4 – Black Friday Deal are on now!
Macy’s Black Friday, 11/11 – Shop early, save early. Black Friday Early Access is on now!
Zales, 11/12 – It’s Go Time. Black Friday Starts…NOW!
Crate & Barrel, 11/14 – Early Black Friday is ON. 🎁
Office Depot, 11/26 – 🔔 STORES ARE NOW OPEN FOR BLACK FRIDAY 🔔
Express Black Friday, 11/26 – 40-50% OFF EVERYTHING + 100s of Style Steals
Gap Black Friday, 11/26 – That *Black Friday* feeling! 40%–50% OFF + EXTRAS 🎁
Applebee’s Grill & Bar, 11/26 – Flash Sale: Buy a gift card, get 2 $10 bonus cards
IKEA, 11/18 – Black Friday is going green
JCPenney, 11/29 – It’s time! Cyber Days starts now
Office Depot Cyber Monday, 11/29 – 🖨️ 💻 🪑 📝 ☕ 🎁
DICK’S Sporting Goods, 11/1 – Our holiday gift guide is here! Plus, other great deal ➡️
Tractor Supply Company, 11/4 – Shop Our Holiday Gift Guide Today
Zales, 11/18 – 🎁 Perfectly Personalized Gifts
Petco, 11/4 – Get your dog in the holiday spirit 🎄 🐾
Michaels, 11/1 – You’ve uncovered *these* perfect and on-trend trees! 🎄
Bed Bath & Beyond, 11/18 – Introducing H for Happy, our festive new holiday collection
The Home Depot, 11/11 – Today & Every Day: Our Commitment to Veterans
Target, 11/11 — Hip, hip, hooray—it’s Disney+ Day 🥳
Crate & Barrel, 11/12 – Everything you need for an easy, beautiful Hanukkah 🕎
IKEA, 11/22 – Chad, welcome back to Host Masters!
Burlington, 11/5 – Stress-free saving for all your hosting needs
Olive Garden, 11/18 – The Answer to Your #HostingGoals
Big Lots, 11/22 – Get Turkey Day ready quick! Order In-Store Pickup!
Williams Sonoma, 11/7 – Sharp deals on knives for all your Thanksgiving prep
Williams Sonoma, 11/9 – Introducing the Williams Sonoma Recipes App
Bed Bath & Beyond, 11/9 – ICYMI: 5 reasons you’ll love our 5-star app ⭐
Gap Friends & Family, 11/9 – FLANNEL SZN
The Nuts.com Family, 11/5 – PB&J? How About AB&J?
Bass Pro Shops, 11/12 – Join us next weekend for the grandest tournament in fishing history!
Starbucks, 11/29 – Starbucks for Life is almost here!
IKEA, 11/5 – A new start for old IKEA furniture
Burlington, 11/22 – Donate a coat and get 10% off your purchase
Express, 11/4 – Introducing: Power of Mentorship 📺
VS PINK, 11/4 – Lana Candor for UNWRAPPED
Zales, 11/9 – Discover Serena’s Favorite Gifts
Uncommon Goods, 11/12 – 📣 This one’s not about shopping: a message from Dave, our founder
New posts on EmailMarketingRules.com
The Evolving Use of the Email Snooze
ZeroBounce: How to Make Your Holiday Emails Stand Out
5 Best Practices to Make Your Customer Experiences Truly Mobile-Friendly
Webbula: 2022 Email Marketing Predictions from the Email Experts
13 Inclusive Design Changes to Increase Your Digital Marketing Engagement
Posted on December 1, 2021
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), 21st Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act (CVAA), and other laws forced companies to make their stores, marketing campaigns, and other aspects of their business more accessible to people with disabilities. However, many brands began to realize that huge portions of their customer base benefit from such accommodations.
The understanding that people with permanent, temporary, and situational challenges all benefit from design changes has fueled a transition from accessibility, where post-production accommodations are made based on the exception, to an embrace of inclusive design, a pre-planned intention to be more user-friendly toward everyone.
To engage a broader audience, consider incorporating these inclusive design best practices into your marketing campaign planning…
The Evolving Use of the Email Snooze
Posted on November 29, 2021
The email snooze began humbly as a way to reduce unsubscribes during brands’ highest volume times of the year. Positioned before “unsubscribe” on the unsubscribe page, the snooze option would let a subscriber pause their subscription for, say, 30 days or until the end of the selling season, such as the holiday season for retailers. Then, when the peak season was over and the risk of unsubscribes decreased, the option was removed.
However, the email snooze has evolved recently from a purely seasonal role-player to a year-round contributor to reduce opt-outs and increase engagement. In this post, Oracle Marketing Consulting’s Jeannine Pine talks about both of the ways that marketers are evolving their use of the snooze.
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
