Results Revolution Blog
Windows That Beat the Winter Sales Blahs
This is one of my favorite windows ever: newsprint and rocks.
It’s tough to beat for a cost-effective window display! There will be, inevitably, times when business owners and visual merchandisers simply run out of ideas. (I can mark January 2006 as the year I officially exhausted my ability to produce a new and different type of Swimwear display.) At our studios, we turned to “Arts in America” and other arts-focused publications, visited area galleries, took a field trip to a museum–whatever it took to recharge our creative batteries and generate new inspiring ideas.
I snapped this window–a Boulder, Colorado gallery installation –not a retail store–for possible re-interpretation as a retail display. There’s tremendous potential for additional iterations. The suspended elements could switch to balls of yarn, bags of candy or Valentine’s gifts. The floor could be kept clean or become a continuation of the hanging display. Please note–the artist has executed this work with a great deal of precision and attention to detail. Note the consistent heights along the strings, etc. It might appear random but it is anything but! In order to achieve the same effect, one must observe the same careful execution.
As fine artists continue to explore technology and push the boundaries experimenting with new materials, there are countless ways for us to adapt their work and to bring fresh creative perspective to our offerings.
In closing, here is another window inspired by arts periodicals–clean, simple, inexpensive and effective. In fact, all 13 of these windows closed ahead of schedule–SOLD OUT!
(Editor’s Note: We’re welcoming in 2010 with some can’t miss window and merchandising techniques that apply whatever your customer presentation. Our resident expert on all things visual, Amy Meadows, shares her creative inspiration for some phenom January presentations.)
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No King Ever Ordered a Revolution
I’m a nerd. It’s official.
Here’s the proof: Just picture me. Sitting in paradise this past weekend: Key Largo to be specific. Reclining oceanside in the privacy of a mangrove tree dappled beach. My toes are nestled into the rocky sand and the clear water is gently swooshing in over my feet. I can see the coral below the surface a few feet away and see folks snorkeling off shore in the distance. I’ve got my beach read in hand… Trust Agents by Chris Brogan and Julien Smith.
(That’s the nerdy part.)
We’re writing a book – Andy and I. The book leans heavily on the analogy of teaching a child to ride a bike to communicate the process of “learning” how to assimilate to the social media/new media world. At one point in his book, Chris used my analogy. He stole it. I’m sure he’s stalking me. I gasped and almost dropped the book in the water. But it was too good, so I didn’t. (And no, I really don’t think he stole it or is stalking me. But I think he’s REALLY smart. *wink*)
So, after another hour or so, I finished the book. I know it’s really bad form to give away the ending of a book, but hey, who am I to do things the way they’ve always been done, so here I go (sorry, Chris). Last three sentences of his book:
“Try something new today. It may just REVOLUTIONIZE what you do. Trust us.”
Did you see that? Again, I almost dropped the book. But since I had read all the way to the end, I had filled the margins with notes, my own ideas and analogies – and lots of underlining, stars and arrows…I really didn’t want to feed my notes to the sharks. So, I held on to it. I mean, WE are HOME of the Results Revolution. (I’ve had the domain name for a long time – like more than 6 years a long time: resultsrevolution.co – being reworked right now for a cool 2010 project.) Brogan stole my word! (Again, spoken in jest.) I’ve been giving the Webster’s definition slowly and carefully in speeches for more than nine years. I sign my e-mail newsletter with two words: “Be Revolutionary.” But I’ve also been raising babies and running carpool lines and generally doing this life thing at a pretty hectic pace the last few years. That is very good work – the best work in fact. But maybe now it’s time to finish that book, to really demonstrate “revolutionary.” That’s part of what this weekend in paradise was all about. Refocusing, rejuvenating, writing, learning, listening and thinking – about nothing in particular – just letting the creative juices flow with no pressure induced. I’m so fired up.
(In case you missed it, Webster’s says that a “revolution” is “a drastic and far-reaching change in ways of thinking and behaving.” It’s really a revolutionary definition all by itself, if you stop long enough to unpack it.)
So, today, I’m plugging back in and some past Brogan e-mail newsletters and ran across one titled the same as this post: “No King Ever Ordered a Revolution.” Made me stop and think over this revolution thing one more time.
How about you? Are you willing to take on the status quo, to be the leader that sticks his neck out for the sake of the cause – even when the cause doesn’t think it’s the right move. Are you the lone voice in the wilderness of thinking that social tools and networks might just give your business a chance to connect in a whole new way – even survive? What would a revolution look like if it happened in your business? Isn’t it time you pursued your own personal or professional revolution? No one but you can order it. It’s you against the world – go do big things, different things, far-reaching things.
I’d love to talk about what that means for you. What say you?
P.S. If you haven’t read it, it’s a good read. And if you don’t follow @chrisbrogan. He’s smart, keeps it all real, and you will benefit from him and his network.
Photo Credit: chris.corwin
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Does Your Experience Make Customers Feel Like Insiders?
A few weeks ago, I wrote the following for my weekly E-mail letter (Want to get this letter? The content is current, relevant and behind the scenes business owner information. Sign up here):
Sometimes a project comes along that just warms the soul. Right now, Andy and I are working with the new owner of a historic soda fountain as he seeks to share the nostalgia and heritage of this landmark with a new generation – using New Media and Social Media tools. Recently, when meeting with the new owner, I found myself saying something that I say a lot: “Customers are more loyal when they feel like an insider, and prospects are more likely to convert when they have ‘insider’ information.”
Similarly, several times a week, without fail, folks ask us about our lives… Usually the question goes something like this: “It seems like you are on the road ALL THE TIME… HOW do you do it?” Or, “How do you have time to do all of this?”
Really, the bottom line is that folks want insider information – they want a peak behind the scenes. And your customers want the same from you. As strange as it may seem, in this age of reality shows and YouTube (check out our channel), people really do care what happens behind the scenes at your business. I don’t think I’m that interesting, but who am I to tell you how to feel or what to be interested in? Or maybe, if you’re like me, it’s so refreshing to know that other people think or feel like I do. I believe “Insider Information” is a “needle-mover” when it comes to customer loyalty, word of mouth marketing and long-term success.
What are YOU doing to make your customers and prospects feel like “Insiders?” (Yep, go ahead, hit the “reply” button and tell us. Seriously.)Maybe “Insider Information” from us will help you become more motivated and/or equipped to use the tools of Social Media or New Media effectively for your business. So, from this point forward, our e-mail newsletter will be flavored with the spice of our life: tales of life on the road, digital nomad-ism, social media, new media, late-night brainstorming sessions, work/life balancing acts and our disdain for early starts. Welcome to the INSIDE, loyal readers.
In follow-up to this e-mail, I got a note from friend Mandy Becker, owner of Swagger Gifts in Cary, NC. I asked her permission to share her comments with you because I thought her feedback was so apt – it reinforces the message. Here’s what Mandy had to say:
I loved this! I totally think the insider info think is critical! The last three times I went to market, I wrote a blog about what it was like, what I was buying, etc. My customers loved it! They felt like they were part of the action! I have heard so many times, “Oh, I wish I owned a gift shop – what’s it really like? Do you love it? What’s a typical day.” It is amazing how much people care about one another’s lives; I think we live vicariously through others in some way. Anyway – thank you!
P.S. I think I might even do a weekly blog post called “Insider Information.” Thanks for the idea – I hope it is okay if I use it?
Where are the points in your customer experience that make a new customer feel awkward, out of the loop? Do some customers walk into your restaurant and know exactly what to do, what to expect, how to respond? Learn from your regulars – and find ways to make new customers feel equally comfortable. Sales and tips will increase accordingly.
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How to Get Recommendations on Yelp & Urban Spoon
This morning, a hotel client asked me how to motivate positive customer reviews on popular ratings and review site, Yelp.
One of the ideas she threw out was to offer a gift certificate to those who commented positively. Another was to hold some sort of contest for a free gift card. These are common responses that take one thing for granted: Genuine praise cannot be bought or sold. But it can be reciprocated and appreciated.
Here’s how that breaks down along with some specific ideas for motivating your own customer reviews on ratings and review sites like Yelp, Urban Spoon, etc.
Why Public Gift Card Offers Will Fail
It just smells bad. Think about it. For example, what if a hotel offered its Facebook fans a gift certificate for their positive review on Yelp? No matter how large or small, it’s still a pay to play situation.
First off, it takes away all chance of an authentic review because the review has been “bought.” Making a simple positive review is pretty low risk, and since humans have a tendency to say almost anything for money or perceived value, they might just patronize your business for their own benefit.
Worse than that, however, is that for all of those who saw your offer – which extends to the networks of your fans and friends, you’ve just devalued, even broken the trust of the ratings site for which you were seeking to motivate reviews. If I know outrightthat the reviews on a site are “bought,” then I’m can no longer trust that site, and it ruins it for the rest of the businesses and users. Now, I understand that your intent as a business owner may be completely pure. And in the old world (pre-social media and relationships marketing), such a tactic was widely accepted. But in today’s world, customers and prospects alike have little trust – and are looking for a reason NOT to trust you as a business. Tactics like these give them just such an excuse.
Bottom line: Reject tactics that offer “payola” in return for customer recommendations or high ratings in any form on any site.
All you have to do is ASK.
First things first: Make sure you’ve set up your page, completed your profile with all vital information, photos, etc. on the ratings/review site in question (This allows you to communicate more directly with your reviewers and gives you some analytics and other information. Your business is most likely present on these sites – you just may not be informed or able to access the data directly.) Here’s what you do next:
- Get the link to the exact place where one would go to comment or give recommendation about your business.
- Post the “ask” on your Facebook Page wall. It might look something like this: “If you’ve ever stayed at our property and LOVED it, you can tell others about it by posting a recommendation or testimonial at Yelp.” Share the link and post. If appropriate, write a blog post or “note” on Facebook explaining the importance of such recommendations to your business – from a customer perspective.
- Tweet out the request with a shortened link to the recommendation page
- Post a graphic on your web site asking for recommendations from past customers and pointing prospective customers to this site for unbiased feedback.
- Ask for feedback as a part of a routine e-mail newsletter. Maybe re-use the graphic you put on your web site.
- Institute a system that e-mails customers within 24 hours of departure asking them for a recommendation while the adrenaline of the experience is still flowing. These will be your best and most vivid comments.
All of these efforts make your customers AWARE of your endorsement and desire for them to participate in specific ratings/review sites, and it encourages them to be human – to share their positive experience with others.
As an alternative to the public campaign, you can ask your best customers for their testimonials. If you’ve been in business for more than a week, you should have at least a handful of loyal, dedicated, outgoing customers. For most of our clients, this list of folks comes immediately to mind. If I ask you to name ten folks who are your “ideal” customer – few business owners hesitate before naming these customers. In this case, call these customers up, send them a private e-mail or Facebook message or Twitter direct message (DM) and just flat out ASK for the testimonial. Send them the link to appropriate page of the ratings/review service. Make it easy for them. Whatever you do, make it a private communication.
Be a Giver. And Always Reciprocate.
Instead of making public offers of reward, I recommend changing your perspective. No matter what the technology platform or off-line situation, a thankful attitude and giving spirit are always in style – and always appreciated – because it’s never done enough.
While potentially controversial among social media purists, this is business after all, and here are two possible alternatives to public purchase of ratings:
1. Say thank you.
When you say “thank you” publicly, you are showing gratitude, taking the spotlight off of you and putting it where it belongs (on your customer) and creating an atmosphere of appreciation and trust among your customers and prospective customers.
Say thank you on the platform, if allowed. Most ratings and review sites have some means by which the business can show appreciation for reviews. Regardless of the tone of the comment, you can learn from it. Be thankful for that insight – and voice it. Future visitors to your business’ profile will see gratitude and a willingness to listen to customers as part of your business DNA. This leads to trust and sales.
Say thank you across platforms. For instance, if someone recommends you on Urban Spoon, but you are already connected to that person on Facebook or Twitter – be sure to publicly thank them on the other platform. Something like this posted on their wall or tweeted at them will do: “Jenny, thanks so much for recommending our restaurant on Yelp! You have no idea how much we appreciate your loyalty.” This will likely lead to an exchange where all of Jenny’s friends and your connections see this and are also motivated to either try out your business OR make a recommendation based on their own experience there.
2. Be a giver.
Random acts of kindness never go out of style. You have a currency that you can spend in your business. If you’re a restaurant, you can give gift certificates or certain food/drink products at very low dollar value – but with great perceived value to your customer. If you’re a hotel, you can give room nights, meals, drinks, value-added experience like free spa treatments or valet parking. Whatever your currency, you can and should spend it to build loyalty through random acts of kindness.
There are many applications for this practice, but today we’re going to focus on how it applies to appreciation for recommendations given. Specifically in this case, I personally believe that you should not give publicly. Use the messaging feature on Facebook, the DM on Twitter or an e-mail to thank the customer and make them aware of your gift. Let THEM do the telling. This is much more authentic and valuable. Once they tell, you can re-tweet, reply to their wall post, etc. thanking them again publicly for their loyalty. Do not in any way tie the gratitude to the specific action of the recommendation in the public forum. May that recommendation simply be a signal to you as a business owner that you have a customer who is sincerely and overwhelmingly loyal – to the point of sharing your business with others. These are the types of customers you want to build relationships with for the long-term. Showing your sincere gratitude to them as part of an ongoing relationship is a great step to this end.
3. Whenever possible, reciprocate.
Do you have customers who are business owners themselves? Whenever possible, look for your customers and their related businesses on-line. Do business with your customers whenever feasible. And if you have a good experience – say so. Go to their profiles on Yelp, Urban Spoon an the like – and leave positive recommendations. Become a fan of THEIR Facebook Pages and leave praise for their business. Comment on their blogs. Don’t ask for anything in return. Be habitual about this. Just build social capital for you and your business – it will pay sooner AND later.
See related article: Leverage for Success
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Why You Should Encourage Employees to Use Social Media
In short, restaurants and hotels should encourage and train employees in STRATEGIC social media use because proper use of these tools will motivate personal responsibility, provide greater job fulfillment, and lead to improved employee productivity.
Connecting directly with customers makes your employees’ work more fulfilling leading to more loyal, passionate employees. If you’re the boss, you know that keeping employees happy, motivated and highly productive is your key to success. There is a myth circulating out there that says that social media will lead to lower productivity – I’m here to tell you that nothing could be farther from the truth. Employees with an inclination to be lazy will find a way to be unproductive whether they are allowed to use social media at work or not.
However, good employees will do the opposite and improve your bottom line. Our restaurant and hotel clients tell us they attribute larger and larger percentages of sales to social media each month, with the same team of human resources. Sales are made more quickly and in a shorter sales cycle. Sales are made when they’re needed. And employees are able to become more and more passionate about their positions – and create more and more value for YOU in their positions. Andrew, a General Manager at one of our client restaurants put it best when he wrote us the following about his social media experience after a training session with Andy:
Comments Off | Permalink“We have been doing the Twitter thing here, and I have to say I am quite impressed. As of now we have over 700 people following us on Twitter alone.
We want to create actual interaction with people instead of them just reading a post we pushed out there.
One of the things that we have done is put interesting facts out about us and our restaurant. ‘Did you know that Americans consume more ice cream per person than any other nationality?’ These are great because they spark interest in a way towards us and our brand.
Another thing that we have done is doing trivia about our restaurant. One question sparked 20+ people interacting and commenting. People were even cross commenting to people that got the answer wrong. That is amazing because we created buzz about us by asking just one question. We tried this again with a free scoop of ice cream ($2) to the first person who could tweet back with an answer. Again the same thing happened.
The coolest part is the fact that people are ACTUALLY interacting with us! We have even gone through and posted pictures as well. GUESTS love that! Whenever we post a picture of something that is NOT pizza or ice cream, we usually get back comments like, ‘Ohh… I never knew you all could do Sea Bass’ and ‘Wow… that Shrimp looks amazing.’
I think the key to this is to have fun with it. It really is not that hard and is not that time consuming. Just think about it on a slower Saturday night if you post ‘We’re officially OFF THE WAIT.’ Could this bring in any extra revenue on an already slow night? Maybe…”
Twitter Builds Relationships: An Example
It seems like we can talk until we’re blue in the face about Twitter and its benefits. But really, it all comes down to what my journalism professor used to say: “Show. Don’t tell.”
So, in lieu of watching my “feed” on Twitter (because it’s pretty cumbersome at this point in the game), I follow search queries a good bit of the time. I primarily use Tweetdeck for this purpose (but that’s another post). Yesterday, I ran across an interesting tweet that caught my attention. The link was to two photos of a hotel room – one quite striking, bright, welcoming. The other – well, dull and a bit roach-motel-esque in its appearance. The author of the brief blog post was seeking to explain how different a hotel room might appear if the photographer used the right equipment, perspective, light and skill. In a world where a massive number of travel decisions are made on the Internet, great photos have become even more critical. I agreed with the point and appreciated the incredible visual demonstration, so I “re-tweeted” the message. I had never had previous contact with @winterparkphoto in my life.
Later that day, I got a tweet back from @winterparkphoto. Here is how the conversation unfolded. (Keep in mind that if, for example, the tweet is @andyathalo, then it is the other person talking TO Andy in that case):
@resultsrev: how can I use Twitter to get this point out there to the right people?
@winterparkphoto: That was a good start. Lots of case studies. @andyathalo is our Twitter master – connect w him definitely.
@winterparkphoto (from @andyathalo): Ahem…did someone say we should meet?
@WinterParkPhoto: First off, Love your work. Checked out your website and your twitter pictures. Great eye. Pictures tell the story.
@WinterParkPhoto: Use twitter to educate people on what you do. Show don’t tell. The eye behind the camera matters. Show more examples.
@WinterParkPhoto: Find the places out there (with terrible pics) (that you want to work for) make friends, get on their radar.
@Andyathalo: Tell me more
Then, the conversation went private with DM’s (direct messages) as follows:
@Andyathalo: Brilliant advise thank you. If confirms something I heard from another person who knows Twitter culture really well.
@WinterParkPhoto: I’ve tried to make connections by following and listening for opportunities. You CANNOT start by pitching your services. Build relationships.
@Andyathalo: Yes, I agree. It’s about being patient. Even though Twitter is very much based on instant response and satisfaction.
@WinterParkPhoto: ok, and now one quick question to you. http://bit.ly/31qxHN what do you think of my photo. What could I have done better?
@Andyathalo: Like it!
@WinterParkPhoto: thx. Loved your fire escape shots. BTW what we just did, is exactly how I use twitter to build online relationships, bringing offline value.
@Andyathalo: Lighting and composition. A stronger light from one direction would give the food more depth and bring out more constrast and colour.
@Andyathalo: (((What type of photography equipment did you use?))) Are you a food photographer or food writer?
@WinterParkPhoto I used a digital rebel (from 2 years ago) the standard lens on it. http://bit.ly/CuCgq is another angle with more green in it. (touched up)
@WinterParkPhoto Neither. I’m a marketing guy. And we do a lot in the hospitality industry. I can usually get a shot or two of plated food, that gives our guys the idea that they need to REALLY go that route. I could eat desserts like that for a living though.
@Andyathalo: By tweet #3 I realized that. I can see how it works and you are a master at it. Let me know if I can help you at all.
@WinterParkPhoto: Now all I need to do is see if you have a great property or restaurant that needs some marketing help…particularly one in the Keys… 
By the way, here’s the link to the article that started it all:
Why should I use a professional hotel photographer?
Photo Credit: Andy Chapman
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Leverage for Success
Recently, after spending the weekend talking to other business owners, social media folks and marketing leaders in different industries, I visited a client’s restaurant for a very late lunch on Monday. It was perfect timing. As it happened, we ran into the bakery manager who was testing out some new treats, and she let us taste a new chocolate concoction. The dessert she was letting the staff (and lucky bystanders and restaurant consultants) taste was great, and the experience of testing something as it was created and developed was amazing–especially something for the bakery case!
But even better than the dessert was the reminder of a concept businesses often forget to use. To be successful, we must LEVERAGE.
What does LEVERAGING mean?
One can be over-leveraged financially, and that’s not a good thing. But in this case, I’m referring to “leverage” as the ability to move faster or grow more quickly or make sales more efficiently by spending in the currency you have. In every business there is something – whether intellectual property, food, room nights, beverages, event tickets, etc. – that are worth more outside of your business than within.
Leveraging Food Costs in the Restaurant Biz
For a restaurant, that means spending in food whenever possible. Instead of spending $1400 for a magazine ad where ROI is difficult to measure, why not spend $100 in food costs to reach a specific target customer group? Not only do you spend less in overall dollars, but you may be simply using food costs that would have been wasted anyway since food waste is a very real portion of any restaurant’s overall budget.
With that in mind, what if you took excess cookie samples to the law office around the corner or gave away one free pastry tray a week to a deserving office in your neighborhood. What if you gave away a free appetizer through a daily drawing or simply offered dessert samples throughout the lunch and dinner hours to existing guests as leverage to make the upsell?
Recently, one of our restaurant clients ran a last-second Twitter promotion targeting college students. To help spread the word quickly, we offered a free pizza for the first person to re-tweet the message. It turned out that two tweets basically tied due to a technological blip, so we gave a way two free pizzas instead. Let’s assume that the pizzas hold about $4 in actual food costs (not counting wait staff, business overhead, etc. when considered as a menu item). In this case, the folks who won the free pizzas brought in groups of 6 and 12 respectively leading to a direct ROI of more than $200 in additional sales on our $8 in leveraged food costs. This doesn’t even count the other sales they helped generate through their social media participation.
Other Ways to Leverage In Business
Business owners can leverage any asset that is of more value outside the business than within. This means your time, expertise, food costs, employees time and skills, etc. are all fair game. I believe that, as business owners, one of the most critical things we can do is to leverage our time. As an example, I use social media to convert more clients and maintain a much larger network reach than I could have imagined five years ago before Facebook and Twitter.
Marianna and I leverage our time to create opportunity for you. An airplane ride like this one (I am currently flying back from Florida) is filled with getting blogs written, e-mails returned and photos cropped, edited and tagged – tasks that don’t require the Internet. It’s amazing the things we can do when we steal time from a wasted time category and turn it into profitable activity.
It’s great how the little moments that were formerly wasted, can be used profitably, but that also means that as business owners, we must make a real point to relax and turn off sometimes. Some of you know that I can’t seem to free myself from my cell phone at any given time, but we all know there’s a time for disconnecting and turning it all off.
I took a little vacation this month, where you weren’t able to get me by phone, email, Facebook, or Twitter… I leveraged that time to recharge, stop thinking about old work, spend time with my family, clear my brain, eat some good food, and return–and turn back on!–ready to find opportunities for new work!
How can you use the concept of “leveraging” to improve your business today?
Photo Credit: shortlake
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When to Send E-Mail Marketing
Lately, I’ve been inundated by poorly timed e-mail marketing campaigns from downtown organizations, restaurants that I love and even boutique hotels and travel destinations…
So, I thought it was time for a quick review lesson (sans lengthy statistics, research data, etc.) about WHEN to send e-mail marketing.
Disclaimer: This message is for those of you needing consistency and a weekly message. That’s my preference for most of our clients (who are primarily restaurants, hotels, hospitality venues like spas, etc., downtown organizations and the small businesses in those downtowns): try to keep it consistent by sending something valuable and interesting every week. In some cases, every other week works okay, too. But, I realize that some of you have emergency situations, reminders, etc. Those are SUPPLEMENTS to a regularly scheduled e-mail marketing campaign. Not replacements.
So, in the context of your regular e-mail marketing campaign – the one that helps you consistently stay top of mind, cross educate directly to your customer, etc. (See my previous post on the benefits of e-mail marketing.) Here’s the skinny on when to send:
DO NOT send on Monday: Monday is Monday. It’s a bad day for the Inbox, because the Inbox and the Inbox owner have to conduct weekend recovery on Monday.
DO send on Tuesday: Specifically, send on Tuesday morning. Some prefer to have it in the Inbox before the first person checks their e-mail. Some prefer to send AFTER the inbox has been cleared. I have tested the mid-morning theory lately with lesser results, but I think geography is the defining factor. This is a theory, but here goes:
If your e-mail list is primarily located in the same time zone, then I think you have a greater than average shot of benefiting from the mid-morning send time. The Inboxes will be cleaned out and folks will be in their routine, and your e-mail will appear new and get immediate clicks.
However, if, like me, your e-mail list is spread across many time zones, the mid-morning send is more difficult to nail – because mid-morning on the East Coast is still pre-morning on the West Coast. This is why I think I benefit from sending my e-mails out about 6 a.m. central on Tuesday morning. Again, it’s a theory overall, so test it for yourself. And thank goodness e-mail programs allow us to schedule ahead so none of us has to actually be awake at 6 a.m. to get that e-mail out on schedule.
As an aside, I believe Tuesday mid-morning is a classically perfect time for many restaurants with a local e-mail list. It’s a great time to boost mid-week sales. Most will see an immediate lunch and dinner boost on the day of the e-mail send. Also, for last minute travel plans and weekend planners, now is the time to get them the information, so they have time to make arrangements before the weekend.
DO send on Wednesday IF… you were too overloaded on Tuesday to get it done. Wednesday, statistically, is the second best day to send an e-mail campaign. Again, morning is best.
DO NOT send on Thursday. Everyone is in the rush to the weekend. An EXCEPTION to this, in my opinion, are last minute reminders. This is best done using the “trigger” feature in your e-mail marketing program. For example, if I received a Symphony special from a local restaurant on Tuesday, and I clicked on the link to learn more, then that restaurant would do well to send all of us who clicked on the link another e-mail on Thursday reminding us of the details of that offer.
DO NOT send on Friday. It will result in abysmal open rates. Not a good thing.
DO NOT send on the weekends. Ever.
If, however, you don’t want to take my word for it, I recommend two things to you:
1. Try it and test it for yourself. Any e-mail marketing program worth its salt allows you to test the metrics of your open rates, click-thru rates, date, times, etc. The proof is in the pudding, so to speak.
2. If you’re a nerd like me, you’ll find great security and assurance in the research and data. You can find all you’ll ever want to know on the subject MarketingSherpa (www.marketingsherpa.com). In my opinion, their EmailSherpa e-newsletter and related reports and conferences have led the way in practical, case-study based data on the subject of e-mail marketing for quite a few years now. I’m not sure how long I’ve been a subscriber, but it dates back to my very first business e-mail account which isn’t the one I’ve had for at least five years. I find them just as current and applicable today as they always have been.
Happy e-mailing!
Photo Credit: theogeo
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Seven Reasons to Keep Using E-Mail Marketing
To paraphrase Mark Twain, “The rumor of [e-mail marketing's] death has been greatly exaggerated.” E-mail marketing is NOT dead.
Consider your toolbox. You know, the old fashioned handyman tools that you keep around in case a picture needs to be hung or the sink clogs or a drawer knob gets loose. The hammer, the screwdriver, the wrench. Tools. Tools that work, right?
Then, let’s assume that you somehow acquire a fancy new cordless drill. The drill is useful, and it produces tremendous results. But sometimes…don’t you find yourself just needing a good old fashioned flat-head screw driver?
So, sure, there are some fancy new tools that are useful and produce amazing results. Tools like Facebook and Twitter, YouTube and Flickr, ratings and review sites of all sorts. But sometimes, don’t you just need to communicate with your customers? Don’t you want to just know what they think or let them know what’s up with you? It’s like getting that weekly phone call from your sister in Boise… it’s that consistent, reliable tool that keeps you connected.
That’s e-mail for you. E-mail provides the following primary benefits for your restaurant, hotel, or downtown district – or for anyone else who wants to be a savvy business owner:
1. There is no gatekeeper with e-mail. Back in “the day” of traditional media and cold calls, the gatekeeper screened calls, sorted the mail, etc. In today’s world, all of this is true PLUS I know plenty of executives who don’t check their own Facebook 100% of the time. But most still check their e-mail in some form or fashion. This rang true to me last week when we were visiting with a hotel executive whose staff checks her personal Facebook a lot of the time – but she gets her e-mail directly.
2. E-mail is convenient.You can setup an e-mail campaign whenever you want – then set it to send at the time of your choosing. Once sent, your reader can choose to read the e-mail at his/her convenience, respond at his/her convenience, etc. Therefore, while e-mail is still deemed an “interruption” style of marketing because it is “pushed” into your Inbox – it is not nearly as disruptive as other traditional media because readers have opted into your list, may read at their convenience and always have the option to quit receiving your e-mails by opting OUT of your list.
3. E-mail has viral potential. Because having readers is a privilege, you should always respect their time and work very hard to create content that is in every way appealing, informative, captivating and motivating for your readers. But more than that, e-mail has one potential that direct mail never had. I never got a direct mail postcard from the mailbox with such glee and excitement that I ran to the quick copy shop, made 30 copies and mailed them to my best girlfriends. It just doesn’t happen. But e-mail is often shared via the forwarding button.
4. E-mail is measureable. Measurement is at its best in the e-mail marketing world. You can learn a LOT about your readers through the tools available in a good e-mail marketing system. Open rates, click rates, what clicks were most popular, open times, dates, who, what, when, where, why, how… The details are all there to be applied to your marketing goals for future improvement. I love that e-mail marketing allows us to market well now – and teaches us how to market better in the future.
5. E-mail can be targeted and/or triggered. Basically, because I clicked on the ad for the red ballet flats in last night’s Boden USA e-mail campaign, I gave them the right to e-mail me about ballet flats for the next couple of weeks – or until inventory runs dry. Because I clicked on the link to the Art Opening next Tuesday, I gave them permission to remind me via e-mail until the event is past. That’s a TRIGGER. I was moved into a subset of customers who cared about ballet flats and an art opening which triggered ongoing communication to me about those things while the current offers were relevant. And in the future, because I showed a past interest, I should be the TARGET of special promotional messages about similar offers and events…
6. E-mail is very affordable. Compared to the time and expense of direct mail, traditional media – and the total lack of measureable return on investment, the penny per e-mail cost of e-mail marketing is a phenomenal marketing wonder.
7. With e-mail, the sender has control. I am a total advocate of the social web, and I really do believe that if you are one of those people with control issues that is still in denial about social media…you need to GET OVER IT. You lost control a long time ago. The only thing left for you to do is to DEAL WITH REALITY. Period. However, sometimes, its fun to have a little control for just a little while. C’mon, you know you want to. E-mail is the perfect solution for the recovering control freak in all of us. E-mail marketing plays well with the other New Media like web sites and with the social web, but you can control the message, the subject line, the graphics, the time/date of the send, and how your respond, segment, trigger and target. You can do a LOT or do a little with your e-mail marketing: it’s your campaign. Control it.
Aside from those primary benefits, I believe that e-mail provides a secondary opportunity not available anywhere else.
E-mail allows you to TEST all sorts of ideas to an already loyal and willing customer and/or prospect group. A good e-mail marketing program will allow you to perform “split testing” on e-mail campaigns. A split test allows you to send any combination of headline and content (multiple headlines and/or multiple types of content or content layouts) to your customers. For instance, the program we use allows me to conduct SET (you choose who gets which message) or RANDOM (the program randomly sends the messages) split testing. This matters because if I test three different subject lines for the same basic information/e-mail content, I can test which SUBJECT LINE got the greatest OPEN RATE (that is, rate at which e-mail recipients actually opened the e-mail). Then, I can use that favored subject line as a headline on store signage, traditional media, social media postings, etc. and expect a similar response. You can do the same for content and layouts to learn what types of e-mail layouts or what type of content is most interesting to your customers. Basically, you are surveying your customers and they don’t even know it!
Why do YOU use e-mail marketing? What success stories do you have to tell?
Photo Credit: Djenen
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Julie & Julia: New Media Success Story
Just got back from watching the “Julie & Julia” movie with Andy. Two inspiring tales of paralleling perseverance in ages of “new media” – that’s my summary. (The movie was brilliantly done, in my opinion.)
One of my favorite lines from the movie was later in the movie when Paul (husband to Julia Child) said to Julia, in the depths of her woe over her manuscript rejection: “You can teach cooking in our kitchen…you CAN teach cooking on television.” (Keep in mind, TV was still a “new media” – and cooking shows were unheard of.) Julia was completely taken aback – but she also believed it possible. Julia Child made her own game from the moment she pursued doing something she loved instead of just something culturally acceptable. Julia was a game-changer on so many levels – of the sort that Chris Brogan describes in Trust Agents.
And then there is Julie – the picture perfect example of what happens when an “average” person does something extraordinary. I would suggest that everyone is extraordinary – we just don’t always find our passion. We don’t always have that fire to pursue our dreams, to do what we love, to find our fire and go with it at all costs. But Julie didn’t know anything about blogging or technology or even anything extraordinary about her topic. But she set a goal that had to do with something she LOVED, and then she mustered discipline and determination and was willing to share her journey with the world. And she wrote and wrote and wrote. She wrote transparently and honestly. She had success – and she had strife. And she wrote. Authentically. A real person.
Julie and Julia are both loved for their authenticity. Julia Childs wasn’t afraid to mess-up or spill or even fail on the camera. Julie wasn’t afraid to have a “melt-down” on her blog. Nor did either hold back their successes and joys – the celebrations were euphoric and contagious. Human. So very human.
Julie’s story can be your story. Just with a different passion attached. New Media – like blogging, YouTube, Flickr, Twitter, Facebook, etc. give you an opportunity to do something extraordinary, to be “found” and to earn a living on the coattails of something you LOVE. You don’t really have to KNOW anything more than how to be human and willing to develop a discipline and perseverance for the long haul.
If you’re willing to be very human – you too can be a “New Media Success Story.”
Photo Credit: Rakka
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