Email+ Social: Viewpoints from Consumers and Marketers

For several months now, Stephanie Colleton and I have been writing about how email and social media are working together to improve marketing programs. From new social networks (Google+ and Pinterest) to how marketers are integrating the two channels, we’ve seen a variety of sophistication levels.

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Email + Social: Integrating Pinterest and Email

Like many, I’ve been reading and hearing more about Pinterest recently (a visual social bookmarking network). While Pinterest has been around for awhile, its popularity is really starting to take off. According to a recent Shareaholic report, Pinterest accounted for more than 3.6 percent of referral traffic in January – more than Google Plus, LinkedIn and YouTube combined.

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12 Days of Christmas: The “Silver and Gold” of Your Marketing Program

Recently, I was humming the Burl Ives holiday song, “Silver and Gold” (apparently, my early shopping has gotten me in the holiday spirit). As an email marketer, I couldn’t help but think about silver and gold as it relates to marketing: email and social. While email and social (just like silver and gold) can each sparkle in their own right, they are much more vibrant and powerful when combined. In order to take full advantage of these two powerful channels, keep these integration tips in mind …

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12 Days of Christmas: Don’t Forget the Holiday Wrapping

From holiday parties to decorating and shopping for gifts, there seems to be a never ending list of things to do during the holiday season. And while you are not likely to forget to put up the tree or attend your company holiday party, you just might forget to pick up a gift for your child’s teacher or put out cookies for Santa. The same goes for busy marketers. While a great deal of effort is put into the creative campaign planning, it can be easy to forget to put a bow and ribbon on a major work horse of your email program: the transactional emails.

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How Email Marketers Can Start Preparing for Google+ Now

As an email marketer (or any marketer), you can’t seem to go anywhere without hearing about Google+. From how fast it has grown (25 million+) to what it is (a new way to share) and what it isn’t (a Facebook killer). Google+ is everywhere.

And yet, it can be difficult to determine if Google+ is the next big thing or just the newest social media kid on the block.

So, what does Google+ mean for email marketers? Should you care? While I can’t predict the future, here’s why email marketers should care and what they can start doing to prepare for Google+ or the next big thing.

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Helpful Resources for Email Marketers in the Age of Mobile

My husband recently got a new smartphone (yes, I’m completely jealous). Not surprisingly, email was the first application he got up and running on the new phone. Email is the last item he checks on the phone before bed and the first item he opens in the morning. While his behavior may have been unique a few years ago, Return Path’s recent study finds there has been an 81% growth in mobile email viewership.

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Complaints: A Wake-up Call for Marketers

As a Mom, I’m no stranger to complaints. And while I would love to tune out these complaints, I can’t. From “I don’t like this shirt” to “I don’t want to go to the store or take a bath or (insert almost anything here),” I’ve heard more than my share of complaints. With my children, I have taught them that every complaint is an opportunity to learn how to “use our words” and “find solutions.” Unfortunately, complaints aren’t limited to the life of a Mom (or Dad or grandparent). Complaints can also be a challenge for marketers. While ignoring complaints may be the easy thing to do, marketers can’t afford to do so. Complaints are subscribers’ way of communicating dissatisfaction with your email program; and should be treated as a wake-up call for marketers.

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Email and Social Media: It’s more than Including an Icon

The marketing media is awash with talk of “integration” – in general, and specific to social media. But what does integration mean and what does it look like?

To answer that question, my colleague Stephanie Colleton and I couldn’t think of a better place than our very own inboxes. Over the course of a week, we looked at over 75 senders in our inboxes – publishers, retailers, B2B, hospitality, finance – and many more commercial email senders. While including social media calls to action may seem like a simple and logical first step toward integrating these two channels, our unofficial study reveals that marketers still have room for improvement.

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How to Start Preparing for the Email Inbox Organization Revolution

I consider myself an organized person. And yet, my inbox has gotten out of control over the last couple of years (this might be a side effect of a 10 year old inbox). Recently, I decided to do something about this and installed OtherInbox. My once cluttered inbox is now organized email bliss. How it Works

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Part 3 of 3: Integrating Email and Social Media: It’s All in the Mix

As my colleagues Margaret Farmakis and Stephanie Colleton have pointed out over the past couple of weeks, there are several benefits to strategically integrating your email and social media initiatives in both channels. However, this integration is not without risks. When done well, true channel integration encompasses much more than including a “follow us” or “like us” link within an email. Just like the theme of the Twix candy bar states, “It’s All in the Mix” when it comes to integrating email and social media.

So, what can marketers do to create the right mix?

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