by Chris Sietsema on August 30, 2010
"The Scream" / Edvard Munch
Many of my newer clients or those that attend educational sessions in which I am a speaker often talk to me about some concerns they have about social media. Some of them are not sure where to start, several wonder which social media venues are right for them, and others question whether they should have a presence in social media at all. All these questions are valid, and they all boil down to one single element with which we are all familiar: fear. We fear what we do not yet know. We fear making mistakes. We fear the prospect of looking like a dope in public.
Based on the dozens of discussions I’ve had with accomplished and promising social media managers, I’ve collected a list of items native to social media campaigns that should not be feared.
Fear Not
The Negative Customer
This is the guy who loves to gripe. He is the constant jeer. He complains incessantly for all to hear. He can transform a mood from pleasant to pissed in less than 5 seconds. Many companies avoid him like a spoonful of Robitussin, a necessary confrontation, or a 30-minute cardio workout. Here are three reasons why the negative customer is good for your business:
1. He’s Honest : When a customer complaint happens online, please do not fret. At least now you know. Complaints empower you to gain visibility to the pieces of your business that are most important – the same ones that are closest to your customer. The negative customer will tell you what is wrong in public so in turn you can fix it in public. Sure, we all want to adorn our walls with pretty pictures and beautiful photographs, but mirrors are important too.
2. He’s Often Misinformed : Sometimes the negative customer is just plain wrong. There may be few or many misconceptions about your business practices or individuals within your organization. A carefully worded response to a negative review can help to set the record straight for the malcontent and potentially many others who didn’t know the whole truth either. Use caution, however, as you do not want a response to a negative customer to ignite a flame war. Sometimes the best course of action is to take the conversation offline. Crazy people are everywhere, but they run rampant on the interwebs.
3. He’s Not Always Popular : When I worked at Off Madison Ave, we had a client that was opening a new public venue. There were some unforeseen construction delays which forced us to push back the opening, and many customers started voicing their displeasure. Before we could respond, several other customers did so on our behalf. For every complainer, there were at least three “defender” customers. Soon enough the argument was squelched by the populace. We sat back, watched and smiled.
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by Chris Sietsema on August 1, 2010
This past week, email marketing service provider Mailer Mailer produced an email marketing metrics report. The report offered up some averages and trends for several metrics relied upon by email marketers. A number of main stream media outlets picked up on the report including emarketer, and the results are very telling about the email marketing industry. Performance is honestly a bit lousy.
Open rates are declining. Click rates are trending downward. These effects are commonly referred to as list fatigue. On the whole, campaigns around the world are missing one key ingredient: L-O-V-E, love.
Consider this for a moment: the connection you share with your subscribers and regular recipients should be viewed as a relationship. Strong ties between individuals typically lead to greater rewards in business and in our personal lives. The more we strive to create and take part in meaningful experiences for both parties, the greater likelihood the good times will continue. And in the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make.
The following breaks down potential problems and solutions to email list fatigue. Each is followed by a translation to similar scenarios in our personal relationships.
Love on the Rocks
Here are three potential issues you may have if your email metrics are in decline.
Delivery to the Same Tired Old List
List fatigue is often the result of sending the same messages to the same people and expecting different results. If this sounds familiar, good luck. Consistency is good, but if your campaign is lacking anything worth getting excited about, it’s time to mix things up.
“Nothing ever changes. You’re bored. I’m bored. What’s the point?”
Lack of Relevance with Messaging
One of the primary reasons for unsubscribes is lack of relevance. Each email send should be viewed as a method to communicate with the individual, not the masses. If your messages do not resonate, expect people to unsubscribe or just stop opening.
“It’s not you, it’s me. We’re just growing apart and going different places.”
Attempts to Rekindle an Expired Flame
The genesis of several shoddy email marketing campaigns is the discovery of an old list. The problem here is that many of the people that used to buy from you, used to do business with you, or used to know you probably don’t anymore. Resist having high hopes when sending to a list of recipients with whom you have not connected in months (or worse, years).
“Hey! Remember me from college? Wow, good times, huh? It’s great to catch up with you here on Facebook.”
Let’s Stay Together
Woo your recipients back with these three email campaign strategies.
Re-Engagement Campaigns
No matter who you are, not all your recipients share equal enthusiasm about receiving email messages from you. Many on your list may have not opened a message from you in the past few sends. It’s important find out if they are still interested in receiving mail from you or if you are simply sending to an abandoned account. Pull a list of those that have not opened any messages from you in the past three months. Send an email only to those members of your list with some kind of relevant invitation or incentive to re-engage. Perhaps they would like to receive messages from you less frequently. Maybe they want you to send them only messages pertaining to one piece of your offering. Find out why they are on the fence, and do your best to win them back.
“It’s time we fish or cut bait, sweet pea.”
Segment & Personalize
Use every touchpoint with your customers to learn something more about them. Observe when they open and when the do not. Monitor what they click on and what they ignore. Segment your lists and your subsequent messages based on behavior and survey results data. Understand the motivations and interests of each individual. Avoid the trap that many email marketers fall into when they begin to believe this is a one-to-many medium. In reality, it should be one-to-one times the number of people on your lists.
“What do you love most about being with me?”
Seek Advice
New to email marketing or not sure what the best way to craft and send a message or how to measure the results? Find someone who does. Read up on viable techniques and service providers from proven email marketing experts. Ask questions.
“You guys have been together for years. How do you do it?”
So who are these purveyors of sage email marketing advice? Who is the Clark to your Rusty Griswold? Here are a few of my personal favorites:
Retail Email Blog
ExactTarget Blog
Blue Sky Factory
Mail Chimp Blog
eROI Resource Center
by Chris Sietsema on July 1, 2010
S. E. O. Just three little letters, but they often carry a boat load of confusion. For those new to the practice and others who often have to explain it to clients and colleagues, try comparing search engine optimization to political elections.
Keywords are The Issues
In Politics: When politicians do not have a stance on a relevant and popular issue, they are essentially irrelevant. Political hopefuls must research the important issues, understand how voters feel about them, and be prepared to give their thoughts.
In Organic Search: If your site does not include the keyword phrases with which the audience is searching, you will not be in the game. Use relevant and popular terms in page titles, meta descriptoins, H1 tags, HTML content and inbound links to attain rankings and traffic.
hjl / flickr CC
Links are Endorsements
In Politics: When running for office, officials often seek the endorsement of others in the community. However, not every endorsement is created equal. Obtaining an endorsement from a prominent business person, influential media outposts or other elected officials carry more weight than getting a thumbs up from your next-door neighbor or your grandma.
In Organic Search: Typically the more inbound links you acquire, the better your site will look in the eyes of “the Google.” However, not all links are created equal. For example if you own a company that sells pool fences, links from popular sites that sell pool supplies or offer information on water safety are much more valuable than links from low-trafficked blogs about remote control cars or a site that sells semiconductors. Popularity and relevance are the key.
Design Obstacles are Shady Land Deals, Media-Hungry Girlfriends and Pictures Taken at Frat Parties 30 Years Ago
In Politics: Want to pull yourself out of a political election quickly? Crack open a Coors Original and go 80mph in a School Zone. Punch an autistic kid in the back of the head. Park your car in a handicapped spot with your dog locked inside. Date your brother.
In Organic Search: Want to pull yourself out of natural search results quickly? Place all your content in frames. Use duplicate content throughout your site. Replace all the text on your site with pretty motion graphics. Place 300 of your favorite keywords in “hidden” white text. Throw a “nofollow” tag on your home page.
Was this helpful? What other analogies do you use when explaining digital marketing?
