Conversions are Key: Great Sales Emails Use Alt Text
Email is one of the most powerful tools in any marketer's toolbox. It can be used to augment anything from email newsletters, social media promotions and announcements, and even your website. When you send an email that includes a call-to-action (CTA) button or an image, it's important to include alt text so email recipients know what they will find when they click on that link. Great Sales Emails use Alt Text - Period! The issue is alt text and I’m taking a stand. Lack of alt text is a wasted opportunity and I simply do not understand why it happens. Do you see a problem with this email screenshot? This email is missing alt text. [...]
Purging Your Subscribers: How to Determine Who Needs To Be Purged
Check your marketing ego at the door, people, because at some point in your email career, you will be faced with the decision to purge subscribers from your email program. Purging your subscribers is a great way to maintain the legitimacy of your database. What does purging mean? Purging means that you take a pre-defined segment of subscribers and remove them from your sendable database. Here, the operative term is "pre-defined," which means that you need to agree on what parameters make up the need to kick the subscribers to the curb. There are almost always spam accounts lingering on your subscribers' list. DEFINING THE PURGING SEGMENT Let's be clear; there is no definitive definition or [...]
Take Your Transactional Emails from Dull to Dynamic
If you're sending transactional email, you already know transactional emails get a much higher open rate than other ESP marketing emails—from 40% to 85% higher depending on the source you turn to. You probably also know that’s rarely because they’re compelling and interesting. Nope, they’re usually boring. They are literally a transactional message. Yet people open them. Why? The high open rate happens because these emails are expected. I order something, and then I get an email confirming I ordered it. Then another when it ships. As a typical consumer, I look for these emails so I can track my purchases and know when they’ll arrive. As an email copywriter, I dread these emails from my [...]
iPost Joins American Society of Association Executives (ASAE)
SAN MATEO, CALIF., April 06, 2021 iPost, an enterprise email marketing and automation provider, has joined the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE). ASAE is a membership organization of more than 48,000 association executives and industry partners representing 7,400 organizations. Their members lead, manage, and work in or partner with organizations in more than a dozen association management disciplines, from executive management to finance to technology. “We joined the ASAE because an association’s email needs are similar to those of franchises, an industry iPost serves particularly well,” says Andrew Kordek, VP of Customer Engagement at iPost. “Most larger associations have multiple locations, like state or county chapters, so the iPost capabilities around accounts and subaccounts is a big deal.” [...]
DMARC: what it is and why you need it now.
With the rise in email scams, it is more important than ever to be sure that your business's emails are authentic. DMARC (Domain-based Message Authentication Reporting and Conformance) is an email validation system designed to protect your organization's email domain from spoofing and phishing scams. It uses your existing email authentication protocols such as SPF (Sender Policy Framework) and DKIM (Domain Keys Identified Mail) to determine your email message's authenticity. It adds an essential piece of functionality of reports back to the domain owner, who can then decide who is sending email on their behalf. DMARC: what is it? The DMARC tool adds a level of certainty on whether an email is legit. In a nutshell, [...]
Franchise Marketing: What is the Most Important Email?
As a franchise email marketer, you undoubtedly have many things to do. However, I highly encourage you to stop what you are doing for the next 3-5 minutes to read this post. It doesn’t matter what type of franchise marketer you are, only that you have influence or decision-making capabilities for your marketing plan program. The reason why I am asking is that individual franchisees typically have one thing in common: they want results! If franchise owners/managers like yourself view email as valuable and implement it into their marketing plan, then the results will follow suit (in theory). But...are they? Why would franchise buyers think this way? Does your franchisee follow up with franchisees after receiving [...]
Common Questions: New Email Service Provider (ESP Provider)
If you’re in the process of choosing an email service provider (ESP), you may be experiencing some confusion. That’s because Email Service Provider isn’t a straightforward term, and some companies that provide email services aren’t even aware that they are Email Service Providers. So, before you choose an email service provider, ask yourself these questions: What do I need from my email service provider? Is Gmail / Outlook / Apple / Yahoo an ESP? What is an example of an Email ESP? What are the various email service providers? What is an ESP? An ESP (email service provider) is a company that allows marketers to send email campaigns to their email contact lists. ESPs are technology [...]
7 Hidden Costs of Switching Email Service Providers (ESP)
If you’re switching email service providers, one of the questions that’s likely top of mind is, what will it cost to move from one ESP to another? Although there are steps you can take to make the ESP migration easier, you still might not understand the real costs. Based on anecdotal evidence from watching—and helping—clients switch email service providers, both before and during their engagements with iPost, I’ve pulled together some hidden costs to consider to help you understand those real costs associated with switching ESPs. Please note: This is not a breakdown of the costs of switching email service providers, nor a guide to figuring out if the cost is worth it. It is, however, [...]
iPost Joins International Franchise Association (IFA)
SAN MATEO, CALIF., March 02, 2021 iPost email marketing platform for franchises joins International Franchise Association (IFA). iPost, an enterprise email marketing and automation provider, has joined the International Franchise Association (IFA), the world's largest membership organization for franchisors, franchisees and franchise suppliers. The decision to join the IFA is tied directly to the capabilities of the iPost email platform. “We joined the IFA not because we plan to franchise, but because our platform works so exceedingly well for franchise businesses,” says Cameron Kane, iPost CEO. “Being part of a vibrant organization like the IFA helps us connect to those franchises that can benefit greatly from the iPost email marketing platform.” It is a competitive marketing environment, with consumers [...]
Avoid These 5 Bad Email Habits in 2023
It's fair to say that none of us in email marketing are in it to annoy our subscribers with our email newsletters. We have all read articles about why subscribers leave your email program. This article about five bad email practices to avoid in 2023 is no exception. In addition to frequency and lack of personalization in emails, some things just flat-out drive people nuts. They may be things that you don't intentionally do, but they are things nonetheless. I hope you will take inventory of your program and see if these five things impact your engagement in any way. #1 POOR SIGN-UP EXPERIENCE Imagine you have been invited to a fabulous party where tons of [...]
Doing an ESP Migration? Avoid These 7 Pitfalls
For Basic ESP Q & A, refer to this previous post for What is an ESP?. You thought going through the ESP selection process was hard? It might look like a walk in the park compared to the actual ESP migration. Moving from one ESP to another involves many different people and parts, and how well you do the migration affects how quickly you’ll be up and running with your new ESP. It’s worth doing it well! Yet it’s also fraught with potential pitfalls. At iPost, we see the after effects of ESP migration pitfalls when organizations come to us with issues such poor deliverability, inefficient processes, or lack of insight into how to take advantage [...]
5 reasons email copywriting is different
Email marketers & business owners usually assume email copywriting is easy. Or they assume it’s like writing any other kind of marketing copy. But they’re wrong. If you want to succeed with email marketing in 2022 and beyond, it’s time to start learning how to write killer emails. To really learn email copywriting, it takes a lot of experience, testing, trial, and error, etc. You might be wondering what makes email copywriting different? Here are five reasons email copywriting is different, and also learn how to write like an expert copywriter. Reason 1: Your email copywriting is showing up in someone’s email inbox. Showing up in your email subscribers' inbox or on their phone is much [...]
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