It's that time of year when people reflect on the past 12 months and get optimistic about what could happen over the next 12 months. The email marketing industry really isn't that much different, even though our business isn't one that can put together sexy Top Ten lists or a Year in Review column.
Three such things that stood out to me in 2008:
- I learned that there is still a long way to go with many would-be email marketers out there. Whether it's due to time, education, money or a combination of all of them, there are too many of you out there not challenging yourselves to be better. Stop worrying about the print ads and the traditional forms of advertising and communication that aren't working and focus in on what could be working: email. Take this as a positive: you have tremendous marketing upside at your fingertips, especially in a form that puts more control in your hands, is cost-effective and trackable.
- I learned that regardless of how many ESPs there are and how many marketers use email, there are still those say 'email is dead'. They give RSS feeds or texts as a reason. A more in-depth defense of our industry is coming from me, but I think saying email is dead is very short-sighted. I'm still not sure what email marketing's naysayers get from dumping on our industry, but every time I read one of these posts, I shake my head at how incorrect they are.
- I learned there are no shortage of experts and good people out there to help with email marketing. From blogs to podcasts to help forums to regular old ESPs, there's no reason why you can't be a case study in how to do email marketing the right way and make it a huge positive for your company. There's a multitude of us out there, so ask for our help or self-educate using the power of the 'net.
So what would I like to see in 2009?
- Emails that aren't 100% graphics and that follow the best practice of 70/30 text-to-image ratio. This is a huge pet peeve of mine and something that hurts delivery rates. Graphic-only emails are a classic spammer trick, so by not following the guidelines, you're putting your campaigns at risk to be classified as spam - plain and simple. Cutting and pasting a print ad or flyer isn't going to work anymore. Your HTML designers can figure this process out by using the resources available to them. It's money on the line here, my friends.
- More of an open relationship between Internet Service Providers and Email Service Providers. This is more of a behind-the-curtain wish, but it can be extremely frustrating to assist in getting reputable clients' emails through when you have an ISP limiting traffic or causing delays because of an unknown reason. Maybe it's more of a classification system or some sort of certification that an ISP can give to certain ESPs, but I think more open communication between the two sides could do wonders for the business. Listen, we hate spam just as much as they do. By working together, we can help eliminate it and alleviate headaches on both sides of things. Peace on email Earth, I say!
- Innovation. Whether it's a design of the inbox, better reporting or something to improve the experience for both sender and recipient, the email marketing industry needs to continue to push innovation and be better than what it was last year. I think the group here at SendLabs took a big step toward that with the release of their agency-only version, enabling ad agencies to manage their entire client base with a single log-in - completely private-label. The basics of what we all do are in place, but are they the best they can be?
If 2008 showed us anything, it's that a lot can happen in a year's time. Let's make a pact to not meet back in 12 months and be the same email marketers we were before. Instead, let's be better and push others around us to do the same. Sound like a deal?
Have a great New Year's Eve and an even better 2009!
Josh Nason is the principal of NasonMedia, a network of blogs that cover sports, email marketing and personal growth. Connect with him on LinkedIn, Twitter and other social networking apps.