Email Marketing Tips

Some useful tips on email marketing from the folks at Pinpointe:

• 10 Best Performing Email Subject Lines
• 10 Worst Performing Email Subject Lines
• 9 Tips for Writing Email Subject Lines That Work
  (includes the 50/50 rule and the 80/20 rule)
• The Ideal Email Subject Line Length

Bottom line: keep subjects short, descriptive, and accurate.

The Right Audience

I got a marketer's email today (SPAM) announcing a new restaurant. I'm always interested in trying new dining experiences, so I opened the message. The first sentence roped me in:

Introducing Chenaab Restaurant which specializes in Indian & Chinese Cuisine.

I love Indian food. And I love what Indian chefs do with Chinese cuisine. So my first thought was, "excellent - a new place to try". Then, of course, I wondered "Where did they get my email address?" How did they know I'd be interested? Am I on some secret list of exotic food connoisseurs? And actually, "Good for them! They managed to deliver the right message to the right person."

Typically, the SPAM I get is for things that I have no interest in or are obvious Phishing or scam attacks. This one actually seemed on-target. The second line put me off a bit, but I figured it was just a language-use issue and I decided to overlook it:

We have been taking care of gastronomy needs of the corporate.

The lesson learned from that line? Have someone proofread your copy. Ideally, someone from the target audience. I know the definition of the word. Ironically, it has to do with culture and in this instance, I think it's clashing with my cultural bias. I know logically that the definition fits its use in this message, but when I see the word gastronomy, I can't help but think of a trip to the doctor's office. ...maybe that's my working class roots?

The rest looked great... watch the food being prepared, air conditioned, free Wi-fi, etc. Sounds great. Then, all the way at the bottom, I read something that told me I'd probably never eat at the new Chenaab restaurant. And I realized that they had, in fact, NOT reached the right audience. If I were them, I'd even ask for my money back from whoever they bought their list.

The restaurant is in Bangalore India.

So, the real lesson: Get the basics right about your target audience. The details (in this case, what kind of food they like) is less important than the basics (do they live within reasonable distance to the restaurant's location).