Posted by Rob Ropars on August 24th, 2009
I just received the latest email from Michaels and wondered how a company focused in part on artwork/framing would approach email marketing campaigns. Would they ensure optimization of the preview “frame” and layout the information, have a “level” use of text and images, easy to use call-to-action links, and be a masterpiece to hang it on my wall? Based on what I saw, or rather didn’t see, I would have to think twice before decorating any room with it.
The “From Name” was straightforward and to the point “Michaels”, and the subject line was as well “Save 55% on custom framing”. So far so good. I receive their emails to my Yahoo address, so I don’t know at this point whether they used snippet/preview text (Yahoo currently doesn’t display it), but at the very least I know who it’s from and the offer which is a good start.
Upon opening the message and previewing with the default “images off” view I see yet another “all image” email. They have done several things correct in this top area, web copy link and safe sender info, but there’s a lot that’s missing. There is in fact no snippet/preview text so in those emails that display this element, such as Gmail, recipients probably saw the first available text,“This message contains graphics. If you…”, gripping.
I don’t see an alt tag for their logo/company name which is odd. Most marketers have that top left in an email to reinforce brand/name ahead of the message info, but when I view images I was sure I would see where it was lurking. What then follows is a “ladder” or “bookshelf” effect of multiple missing images without alt tags that looks terrible. I don’t know whether to guess what’s missing, climb up on the roof or start shelving books.
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Posted by Nic Winters on August 14th, 2009
Welcome again to The First 2 Weeks, where we analyze 3 competitors’ email marketing strategies when it is most crucial… the opt-in process, welcome message, and first few campaigns as these marketers attempt to establish relationships with subscribers.
For this edition of The First 2 Weeks, we have chosen 3 competitors in the fast food hamburger restaurant segment: Burger King, McDonald’s, and Wendy’s.
OPT-IN PROCESS
Wendy’s easily outpaces their competitors regarding promoting email opt-in, as their website highlights the ability to opt-in for “WendyMail” on the center of the page. They even boast a $1 coupon that you will receive by email – always a great strategy to reinforce the value of your email communications during the signup process. In comparison, McDonald’s has a fairly general “Subscribe/Unsubscribe” link at the base of their website and Burger King practically hides their opt-in form. To opt-in for Burger King messages you must hover over the “Explore BK” area at the base of the website and then click on “BK Promotions” to find the option to sign up for emails – not a process I feel many visitors will be compelled to search out.
McDonald’s falls behind their 2 competitors regarding having a visually appealing opt-in form, as they rely upon a fairly non-branded form in comparison to Burger King’s and Wendy’s forms surrounded by food items. Each form collects a considerable amount of fairly similar information with a few items that stand out. McDonald’s takes a two step approach that allows you to specify the type of offers you would like to receive on their second opt-in page. Burger King asks you to specify how often you visit their restaurants and how many children you have in your household (a useful item for inclusion in kids-themed promotions). Also, both McDonald’s and Burger King offer the option of receiving mobile alerts as well.
Finally, in response to an opt-in Burger King displays a humorous thank you message (matching the off-kilter style of their advertisements) that proclaims filling out the form “That makes you a really great person. Seriously.” Wendy’s takes advantage of this chance to gather more information and provides you with the opportunity to complete a survey to further increase the relevancy of future emails.
WELCOME MESSAGE
A greeting from Wendy’s arrived just a few hours after opt-in – a fairly timely response to begin the email relationship. On top of the timely welcome, this email includes the $1 off coupon that they advertised during the opt-in process – a great incentive to establish value and relevance. This email utilized personalization fairly well as it incorporated the subscriber’s first name in at the beginning and pulled in the subscriber’s email address at the end (a great feature to assist in confusing mess that occurs once you forward an old email address to a new address). Wendy’s has done a decent job of using a significant amount of images but still maintaining a text portion of the email that can be seen with images off.
Both Burger King and McDonald’s failed to deploy welcome emails, missing out on this key opportunity to set the tone for future communications.
EMAIL PREFERENCE OPTIONS
None of the 3 competitors sent any additional emails within the first 2 weeks (and through the first 9 weeks only Wendy’s ever sent email). Thus, we have been limited to evaluating the email preference options provided by Wendy’s on their welcome message.
While Wendy’s fails to offer any preference center (only providing you with the ability to unsubscribe at the base of each message), their unsubscribe page does capitalize on this opportunity to collect additional information about those removing themselves from their list. It gives you the opportunity to inform them why you are unsubscribing – allowing Wendy’s to gather further insight.
Watch for our next edition in the coming weeks in which we will evaluate the campaigns of 3 new competitors!
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