How Subject Lines Resembling Spam Hinder Deliverability

How Subject Lines Resembling Spam Hinder Deliverability. A lot depends on what you are putting in the subject line when sending a marketing email. It can make or break your email marketing campaign. The receivers are fed up of getting emails like “download this software for free” or “upgrade for free” or “RE: some software”. Now, it is difficult even for an email marketer to identify which emails are from a legitimate software marketer based on subject line the how someone could expect recipients to guess. And when receivers can’t identify them they think that it is spam. They will simply send the message to trash and would even report the message as spam or unsubscribe from the email program. 

Irrespective of whatever action they might take you’ll have delivery problems. One should never take it for granted when you are earning the goodwill of the subscribers. There have been innumerable instances where marketers in spite of not being spammers were mistaken to be spammers and dealt with heavy fallout. This is a word of caution for anyone who is actively involved in email marketing but in particular to those who deal in healthcare, financial services, technology, and luxury goods. 

The best guard against mistaken identity is the subject line which means that one must hard and get really creative to outsmart spammers. The subject line must not only be catching to the eye but also brief, informative and provide assurance to the recipients that the email came from a trusted source.

The best thing to do is to be awake and vigilant of the spammers around you. One should take a note that spammers usually use the key events to launch their spam emails like around product launches, national disasters, holidays and news events to entice recipients and make them open their emails. 

The launch of Microsoft’s new operating system Vista could be taken as an ideal example here wherein every spammer try to take advantage of its release and spam everybody’s emails with promotions of vista. Now, due to this a real marketer could become a culprit. If a real marketer tries to endorse the same product through legitimate means the recipients thinking that this email also came from the spammers would simply spam it. Next morning an email marketer wakes up to see nothing but countless number of spam complaints resulting in blocking emails from this particular email marketer. What is the cause of this? It didn’t happen due to incorrect filtering of content but due to recipients not being able to differentiate between legitimate email and spam. The email marketer in this case lost both excellent reputation and good subscribers. Thus, one should realize the importance of good subject line and save oneself from paying huge price of losing reputation and clients. 

To avoid falling into these traps keep an eye on alerts as well as reports triggered from anti-virus and anti-spam companies which keeps track and reports virus and spam outbreaks related to some specific events. Good thing about those reports is that they also contain spam emails with subject lines, which would help in noting down the keywords and phrases that spammers have used and thus avoiding them in your emails. Also, be careful and watchful if the email marketing program coincides with any key events or product launches and better stay away during that period. It is also not a bad idea to check your inbox and spam folder to see what subject lines the spammers are using and then stay away from those in your emails. Also, make sure that the name of the product, company and newsletter clearly shows in the subject bar to assure the recipients that it has come from a reliable source.

Costly Email Mistakes

Costly Email Mistakes. When an email program is designed and executed well it can bring more subscribers and revenue than what was targeted. If, executed poorly it will get terrible results and also anger among recipients and not to forget answering your boss’s innumerable questions. 

Outlook is the most used email client, so it shouldn’t be ignored, especially the Outlook Junk Filter. But many companies do not spare time to learn about keywords and symbols with the default filter searches for. Some of the common words and symbols, which are also the most widely used, used for filtering the email as spam are ‘free’ and exclamation mark at the end of the subject line. But the word ‘free’ does not always arouse suspicion like many legitimate email marketers think. It can be used correctly and in context with shipping or sample, etc. Nobody can disagree that it is still the most effective email offer. So the key here is to know the words and how to use them so that the email does not get caught by spam or bulk mail filters. 

Certainly quality costs money, which also applies to email marketing. Some marketers say that even low cost email list delivers a respectable turn over, but experts advise that more expensive list produces even bigger returns because of high quality. Another point to be noted here is that when you are mailing to an inferior quality list, you are actually harming your brand. 

The subject lines of eNewsletters must not be meaningless. Examples are ‘SE Update #101’, ‘Career Journal Today’ and ‘eClub Newsletter’. These subject lines say nothing at all, when it is the purpose of the subject line to entice the recipient to open the email. Things such as issue number and words saying that this email is a newsletter are of no value; instead they should include information which will grab the attention of readers. 

A target link which will work in one email client won’t work in another. For example, if it was mentioned ‘AB Company’ in the “from” line, it will be displayed as ‘marketing@ABCompany’ in AOL email client. If it is written ‘Order by Sunday for Free Shipping and Arrival by Nov 28’ in the subject line, AOL will render it as ‘Order by Sunday for Free Shipping and Arrival by Nov’. Either some part of the message is missing or the content is manipulated. So such variables must be tested in different email clients and if not, it will have a big impact on the email results. 

The ease in email marketing when compared to other marketing is the immediacy of testing. If variables aren’t tested regularly then the medium is not used correctly. Successive and regular testing not only builds but refines results. Many marketers like to test on rented list, but wouldn’t mail in great number to the best performing email lists. 

It is understood that the email campaign is successful when it promotes a compelling offer. Compelling does not mean that the offer should be ‘free’ or ‘50% off’, but it should be of value and relevant to the reader. The lists must be segmented and the offers made must be more relevant to the recipient’s needs, behavior and interest. When lists are being rendered, the most appropriate ones must be selected and the offer must be developed upon the needs of the targeted audience. 

Some of the top email clients have emerged as big challenges for the customer oriented marketers. Every ISP has its own issue which needs immediate addressing, such as HTML compatibility issues, spam, blacklisting, and volume based filters, etc. The biggest mistake is not monitoring the results by ISP or domain. Problem is not known until it is discovered. 

Everyone is becoming search engine optimized. The key to reach the top ranking on top search engines is search engine optimized content. Since eNewsletters are the best content sources, they definitely must be search engine optimized by including various keywords, so as to increase the rankings. 

Building Email List Based on Permission

Building Email List Based on Permission. The biggest challenge for email marketers is to build a cost effective list. This is because at least thirty percent of the email addresses change on most lists. Therefore, marketers have to go for a more aggressive approach in order to expand the list and to get more significant investment returns. 

Taking permission is the basic key to maintaining a almost constant email list, along with other steps. Permission is certainly not the optional thing. If permission is not taken it means direct landing up as a spam complaint or even greater, breaking the U.S Law for spamming. The sign up form should be featured on every web page. No opportunity should be missed for turning the visitor into a subscriber. Subscription value can be enhanced by adding sample emails, screenshot of an email, testimonials and good copy on the sign up and registration page. To attract more number of subscribers, incentives can be offered upon signing up. The incentives can be as small as white papers and as big as special discounts. Incentives increase the conversion rates to great extent. 

Today everything is becoming search engine optimized. Therefore it is the need of the hour to optimize the website in order for the website to land in first hundred search result. The current and archived web pages and newsletters must be optimized for increasing the traffic rate of the website and subscription rate. Search services such as Google AdWords can be made use of, for including subscription link on the landing page and for promotion of the website. Opt-in check boxes must be added on the demo requests, registration forms and white papers. This increases the conversion rates by at least fifty percent. 

Very simple method to increase new subscription is by including the ‘Send-to-a-friend’ option. If the current subscribers find an email interesting, there are greater chances that the email be liked by their friends too. And if they like the emails, there is an even greater chance that they will subscribe to receive future emails. Email subscription can also be encouraged by print ads, catalogs, direct mails, radio and television. Employees can be directed to include the ‘Subscribe to the company’s newsletter’ link in their signature lines. The sales employees and customer support can ask customers whether they would like to receive promotional email, in appropriate situations. Sign up forms can be distributed at seminars and public speaking engagements and presentation on newsletters can be given at such locations. Permission can be taken to include opt-in forms in trade show lead generation forms so that booth visitors can subscribe.  

If the postal information of the customers is in the database, post cards can be sent to them which ask them to subscribe to newsletters. Sign-ups can be promoted in transactional and confirmation emails. It is optional to include opt in link on receipts of credit card, product registration cards, invoices and warranty.  The company’s email and newsletters can be promoted in other company’s publications. Sites and industry directories can also be used for promotion.  Product shipping boxes are the next important place to include the opt-in form. Many catalogers and retailers even include promotional offers of non-competing companies. Newsletters which have topical articles can be used for press release, along with information such as how to subscribe and content being offered. This option is useful to smaller companies. 

Managing And Recruiting Affiliates

Managing And Recruiting Affiliates. Once affiliates begin to sign up, even if you are automatically approving them, its in your best interest to audit your network on a regular basis. Now, the FTC is making marketers responsible for the actions of their affiliates.  If your affiliates get out of control, it could cost you a lot of money.

You'll have hundreds of affiliates sign up for your program.  Hobbyists, spammers, webmasters and even marketers.  It's very important that you review each one on a regular basis to ensure the way they are promoting you is acceptable to your company and above all - its legal.

Below, you'll find some tips when screening:

1. All affiliates must have an active web site.  If not, they may be spammers.
2. The affiliate site content must relate to your products or services.
3. The site should have appropriate levels of content.  
4. Misuse of content.  Be very clear with your affiliates and what content they can use from your website.  

Affiliate fraud

Fraud with affiliates has been increasing over the last several years, which is another great reason to screen your affiliates on a regular basis.  With fraud, there are two main types:

Malware - Some affiliates out there have developed software that is installed on a machine, normally as part of a free download.  When someone clicks on the affiliate link, the true affiliate ID is replaced 

with the fraud.  

Fake purchase - If you have a product of high value that returns large commissions for affiliates, you

may notice some bad parties signing up, then using stolen or fake credit card information to purchase

products via their links.  

Communicating with affiliates

Good affiliates are normally busy, as they can easily forget about your services and products. As time goes by, your offers can wind up less in less visited areas or accidentally deleted.

It's extremely important to stay in contact with your affiliates, even more so with the high performers. Do not wait for them to contact you, as if you do, it normally means they are reporting a problem. By taking the time to contact them, you are showing that you are interested in the partnership.

You don't need a new product as an excuse to contact your power affiliates.  Even if it's just a quick note to ask if they need anything.  You can also use the opportunity for feedback on your program as well.

Managing a successful affiliate program is not an easy task you can fully automate, as you'll have to get involved.  Happy affiliates are more productive, and the more money they make - the more money your company makes as well. 

5 Qualities For Affiliate Marketing

5 Qualities For Affiliate Marketing. More and more people these days are turning to one of the most popular businesses around - the business of affiliate marketing. In this business, there are no bosses, deadlines to meet, or piles of work that have to be finished by the end of the day.  In order to succeed, you only need the necessary tools.

There are basically five things you can't do without if you want to make it in the business of affiliate 

marketing.  Below, you'll find each quality you'll need.

1.  Desire to learn

The first quality you must possess is the desire to learn, coupled with the willingness to be trained.  Treading through unfamiliar territory is tough indeed, especially if your lacking the right knowledge. This is a combination of the right frame of mind, coupled with a strong work ethic.

When starting out, you'll need to be willing to keep your eyes and ears open, using the experience of others to learn more as you go.

2.  Invest time and effort

The second quality you must have is the willingness to invest time and effort in helping your business

grow, even if you don't see immediate results.  Even though weeks may pass without hearing good news,

it's very important for anyone who wants to get their foot in the business world.

3.  Determination

The third quality you'll need is determination.  If you want to make it in the world of affiliate marketing, you must possess to push yourself forward.  The ability to push yourself to greater heights will determine what type of future you have.

4.  Discipline

The fourth quality is self discipline.  If you teach yourself to work everyday with all of your heart and soul, you'll be that much closer to reaching your goals and making your dreams come true.

5.  Optimism

The last quality you must have is optimism.  Bad attitudes should never discourage an affiliate marketer from pursuing their dreams in order to make life better for themselves or anyone around

them.

The attitude you have towards the business should always be good, because you'll have to realize that

you're the captain of your ship and your the one steering it towards destiny.

If you put the above tips to good use, you'll go farther than you ever thought possible in the world of affiliate marketing.  You'll need these qualities to succeed, as affiliate marketing can be a cutting edge career.  With the above qualities, you'll do just fine in the industry.

Things To Know About Affiliate Marketing

Things To Know About Affiliate Marketing. The truth behind affiliate marketing is the fact that 90% of affiliates will actually make less than 100$

a month.  Therefore, you shouldn't count on making full time income unless you can get very good at the following:

1. Building a good web site that converts.
2. Search engine optimization.  You'll need a lot of traffic, as maybe 1 out of 200 visitors will buy your products.  SEO can help you get your site in the search engines so more people will be able to find you.
3. The trial and error of picking the right merchants and learning the correct ways to promote them.

Too many people out there assume that affiliate marketing is actually a get rich quick type of program.  These types of people will throw up a couple of banners, then wonder why they never make a single sale or any money at all.

How long you'll need to do it depends on how much money you are wanting to make.  If you are a quick learner and really good at affiliate marketing, you may high 2,000 in 2 years.  This is based on the fact that you are starting at 0 and the fact that you have another full time job, not being able to devote a lot of time working with your affiliate marketing program.

If you decide to give it a try, the hardest challenge will be the first few months.  If you check your stats and see that you are only making a couple of bucks, you'll find yourself wondering if all the hard work was worth it.  If you get some sales going and stay committed with your hard work, the commissions should start growing.

One of the biggest factors with affiliate marketing is the traffic that goes through your site.  Even though you'll get a lot of traffic passing through your website, only a fraction of the traffic will be buyers.

The key here is knowing your visitors and then being able to determine which affiliate programs you can offer to meet their needs.  There is also the concept of pre sale, which is the ability to put your visitors in the required open and  mind set that's required for them to actually click on what you are selling.

By sticking with affiliate marketing, you'll learn more and more over the years.  You can't expect to be the best when you first start, it'll take a lot of hard work and dedication.  By putting the time and effort into your programs, you'll be well on your way to making it in the very profitable and exciting world of affiliate marketing.

Smart Affiliate Marketing Advertising

Smart Affiliate Marketing Advertising. Affiliate marketing is really about the promotion of products with an online company.  The affiliate will sign up with the advertiser or marketing arm of the company, then the affiliate will become an active looker of clients.  

Advertising is the means to making a great number of consumers aware of certain products. therefore, advertising should be both attracting and appealing to consumers.  If the advertising isn't appealing enough, it won't be effective.  If the advertising manages to pull the attention of consumers, then it's considered to be powerful.

To make advertising powerful and effective, the affiliate must use smart methods of advertising.  An example of smart advertising is the re-use of one key concept of affiliate marketing - the harnessing of human resources.  What this means, is that an affiliate may tap on the capacities of others to bring more visitors to the website.

The economics involved of making an affiliate marketing program beneficial can be simple, yet unquestionable.  Say for instance, when a visitor ups a form to the website of the affiliate, the affiliate may be earning .50 cent from the company that he's promoting.  In a single day, he may  refer ten visitors - which is equivalent to 5.00.

Keep in mind, the affiliate may increase his income by utilizing others as well.  The more people an affiliate manages to recruit or get to make purchases or fill out forms, the more money that affiliate will make.

To have a significant increase in income in affiliate marketing, an affiliate can actually do three things.  First of all, the affiliate must search for a profitable site.  Next, he'll need to link with companies that are generous with their leads.  Last, the affiliate will need to locate a progressive and rising company online then recruit affiliates for the company.