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UK retailers need to improve their email marketing: study

The UK's retailers are actually getting worse at email marketing, as many are failing to follow best practice guidelines, according to a new report.

This is the verdict of dotMailer's Hitting the Mark study of 36 UK retailer's email marketing efforts, which places HMV and Republic at the top of the class, with Currys in last place.

by Graham Charlton 11 May 2010 11:23am 3 comments

Publish, engage, sell with 'ethical bribes'

Leading marketers are investing in a NEW approach to creating sales and leads. Are you? Here's what it is and how you can.

by Jeff Molander 05 May 2010 09:03am 5 comments

Marketers want video email to take off. Will it happen?

With the rapid growth of social media, the once stalwart digital marketing channel of email is experiencing growing pains. Consumers are finding email messages less relevant and experiencing email fatigue.

One way to fight the decline of email relevance is through increased engagement. According to a new study from Implix, marketers are planning to grow their video implementation exponentially. In fact, there could be a 480% increase in planned video email usage over the next year. But do consumers want to receive marketing via video in their inboxes?

by Meghan Keane 01 March 2010 16:38pm 8 comments

Email isn't dying, it's just turning into social media glue

Bleak times ahead for email according to Gartner, which is predicting that social networks will claim a growing share of communication among business users.

Seems plausible enough, though any reports of the death of email are somewhat premature. But can social networking sites claim the communications crown before this decade is out?

Gartner says: “By 2014, social networking services will replace e-mail as the primary vehicle for interpersonal communications for 20 percent of business users.”

Cue much head shaking among the email services providers at TFM&A this week. I asked a few of them to fight their corner, and to provide an alternative view on the future of email.

by Chris Lake 25 February 2010 15:08pm 8 comments

Are multichannel retailers providing a better customer experience?

A new study of online retailers in the UK suggests that, thanks to the ability to offer a 'seamless and consistent' customer experience both online and offline, multichannel retailers have the edge over pure plays.

In the eDigital Research Benchmark study, which used mystery shoppers to look at 58 UK e-commerce sites, found that multichannel retailers dominate the top 20, with only three spots occupied by pure plays.

So why is this?

by Graham Charlton 22 February 2010 11:12am 3 comments

Political parties fail on email marketing

It seems that the UK's political parties have a lot to learn about email marketing, with all making some basic errors in their campaigns.

As demonstrated by Barack Obama, email can be a powerful tool in political campaigning; allowing parties to build up a profile of their subscribers, and to bypass the media and open a direct channel of communication with potential voters.

However, according to my own research so far, the email marketing strategies of the three main UK parties could be improved...

by Graham Charlton 18 February 2010 09:25am 4 comments

The rules of email engagement: part two

A couple of weeks ago I posted a piece on the rules of email engagement, very much laying out fairly broad thoughts on the subject.

Now I want to follow up with a more pointed ‘plan’ that, if followed, will ensure a virtuous spiral of engagement and increased ROI...

by Matthew Kelleher 09 February 2010 10:26am 0 comments

Could email fatigue give social media the upper hand with marketers?

Americans are suffering from "email fatigue." At least that's the take away from a new study from marketing service provider Implix, which found that Americans are one of the least likely groups to open emails worldwide.

Due to its newness, social media is fast gaining ground with marketers as a way to reach out and build relationships with consumers. But a turn away from email messages could also make social media the go to for marketers trying to reach customers and grow revenue.

by Meghan Keane 08 February 2010 20:20pm 4 comments

Is email marketing becoming less relevant?

39% of UK consumers claim that the marketing emails they receive are less relevant than they were 12 months ago, which suggests that brands need to improve to keep customers engaged.

According to an e-Dialog E-mail Attitudes Report, which surveyed 2,000 UK adults, there is a 34% increase in the number of people who are finding emails irrelevant to them, compared to the 2009 report.

by Graham Charlton 04 February 2010 09:01am 10 comments

Are US retailers sending too many emails?

According to a report released last week, the 100 top online retailers in the US sent an average of 132 promotional emails to each of their subscribers.

Perhaps this is a tactic that is working for some of these retailers, but surely by sending so many emails, retailers run the risk of damaging the relationship built up with a customer...

by Graham Charlton 18 January 2010 09:06am 2 comments