How many times have you lost sleep over open rates and click-through rates?  As an e-mail marketer, you probably take these two metrics to gauge just how effective your marketing efforts are.  Open rates and click-through rates are good measures because you could easily increase these using some best practices.  If you have an e-mail service like Mail Dog, you can also gain insights on just how your e-mails are working.  With the reports you get from Mail Dog, you do not only get to know the numbers, but you also get help on how to improve these numbers.

In 2011, MarketingProfs.com reported that open rates for all e-mails fell 9 percentage points to 17% in 2010.  But taking a look at the different industries tracked by the report, it showed that those with the highest open rates at more than 20% are pharmaceutical, insurance, government and financial.  Three industries that fell flat, registering only open rates of less than 10% are entertainment, retail and technology.

So while we have an accepted average of what a good open rate is, that can change depending on a lot of factors, including the industry your company belongs to.  This means that a published average might not be applicable to your e-mail efforts because of the following factors that change what a good open rate is for you.

Factors Which Can Affect Your Open Rates

• The size of your address list.
  Bigger lists are known to have lower open rates.
• The people in your list.
  If your recipients are typically busy people, then you should not be worried about lower than average open rates.
• What you are sending.
  Newsletters typically have higher open rates than marketing and sales messages.
• Images turned off by default.
  Open rates are measured by tracking how many times a particular image in your e-mail was accessed.  If the recipient turns off image loading on their e-mail clients by default, there is no way to know that unless they click on something in your e-mail.When looking for a benchmark for your open rates, try to look for an average that is relevant for your company.  For example, if you are sending out marketing messages for a clothing line, take a look at the averages for the fashion industry.

Best Practices To Increase Open Rates

• Downsize your list.
  Break down large lists into smaller ones so that you could further fine-tune your e-mail message and make sure that a larger percentage of your list is targeted and interested in what you have to offer.
• Use a sender and subject line that works.
  These are the only two elements that push a recipient to read your mail, so make sure that you get a feel of what works for your lists.  At the beginning, do some A/B testing on different subject lines and sender names to get to know what would drive more people to open your e-mail. 

  Header Tips
  a. Do not use marketing@yourcompany.com as the sender name.  Instead use a real employee’s name, such as Christine Mullaly.  Better yet, set your list so that it looks like the e-mail came from the CEO or a known company representative.
  b. Avoid using “free,” “reminder,” “help,” and “discount” in the subject line.  Instead of saying Free Information on ABC Product, why not make it more interesting such as 4 Facts About ABC That You Can’t Live Without.
  c. Provide the local area in your subjects, i.e. Try this great restaurant in New York City.
  d. Do not reuse subject lines.
  e. Short, simple and direct to the point subjects are the best.

• Avoid setting off spam filters.
  Spam filters look for common phrases and words in your e-mail to determine whether it should be sent to the inbox or the spam folder.  Do not use all capital letters and having too many exclamation points anywhere.  Also, choose any one of Mail Dog’s e-mail templates to make sure that you do not use sloppy HTML, which would trigger spam filters.With Mail Dog’s reports, you can actually know which of your e-mails are opened and by who.Take into consideration if a lot of people from the same mailing service do not open your e-mail.  For example, if you notice that in your list of 1,000 people, nobody with a yahoo.com or gmail.com e-mail account opened your e-mails.  This might mean that your emails are being marked as spam, if they are delivered at all.
  
• Do not think that it’s a waste to remove an e-mail address.
  Mail Dog’s reports tells you what e-mail addresses are not working for you: those that don’t get delivered, and those that do not consistently open your e-mail.  You might want to remove these from your list, or try to engage them more by sending them a different type of e-mail that would tell you what they are interested in.

 Click-through rates for all e-mails, according to a MarketingProfs.com article,  averaged at 3%.  With the lower number of open rates, it is not unusual to have a click-through rate that is in the single digits.

A higher click-through rate is indicative that you have a good e-mail marketing campaign.  So if you have a lower CTR, do not fret, you may need to do some changes that could improve it.

Best Practices to Increase CTR

You could apply the best practices for improving open rates to your CTR, but in addition to that, you should:

• Optimize your e-mail for mobile devices
  Your e-mail should be a teaser of what you sell.  If you have a low CTR, you might be giving away too much in your e-mail that there is really no reason to click on any links to find out more.  Either that or your e-mail is boring them. Another way to optimize your e-mail is to make sure that it displays well both on desktop computers and mobile phones.
• Tailor your newsletters by your users click-actions
  Mail Dog’s reports tell you what links are being clicked and by whom.  This should give you an idea on what type of links are working.  Is it a graphical call to action button?  Is it the link placed prominently on the page before scrolling down or the one at the bottom of the e-mail?  You can take your cue from this insight and do more of what works for your recipients.
• Add plenty of links
  Make it easier for your recipients to find a link in the screen that they are viewing and you are sure to increase your CTR.  Some recipients might not even bother to scroll all the way down or up your e-mail to find a link to click.
• Check out your open rates and compare it to your CTR
  Another insight you could gain from Mail Dog’s report is whether you need a better copywriter for your e-mail content.  If you have good open rates but have a dismal CTR, then there must be something wrong with your content.  If this is the case, you might want to write e-mail copy that packs a punch, or you might want to make sure that your call-to-action is strong.  You might also want to create a sense of immediacy or urgency for your readers by offering a discount on a limited time basis.

A Quick Guide:

Average open, click-through and click-to-open rates that you can reference:

Apples or oranges? Mayo or Miracle Whip? Salad or hamburger? Life is full of decisions, which in most cases, get made in an instant without second thought. But, as marketers, our decisions greatly impact open rates, conversions, sales, company branding and reputation. So, which will it be … green logo or red logo? Two-column or single-column email newsletter? Everything matters.

Our own personal feelings or intuition can only take us so far. Just because you prefer the red logo doesn’t always mean your subscribers will react the same way. So, why not ask them? By creating an A/B split test you can learn firsthand how your subscribers will react to your test subject.

A/B testing is simply a test wherein you divide your list into two groups modifying the content for each group to figure out which marketing variables give you better response.

With two versions of a marketing element (A and B), the goal is to find a way to quantify and define success for each. For example, you have two email layouts and you would like to find out which one is better at getting people to sign up to your newsletter.  You send one layout to half the people on your email list, and the other layout to the remaining half on your list.  Then see how many sign ups you get from each.  You then ultimately select the version that works better.

In the end, this saves you a lot of time and money when doing e-mail campaigns because it tells you what works and what does not.  It allows you to fine tune your email format, call-to-action buttons and whatever elements you want to test.  More than that, it increases both your conversion rates and return-on-investment.

But how do you do this?  Here are 10 tips on how to start your own A/B testing campaign:

1. One at a time, please.

When you are starting out, it is easy to identify a lot of variables to test thinking that if you test them all at the same time you could save costs.  But this could only lead to confusion on which element really works for each group.  For example, did you get more signups in Group A because the layout was better, or was it because of the bright design of the call-to-action button?  Test only one variable at a time to be sure.

This is also important if you are going to test email campaigns that lead to the same landing page.  You would not know what caused the higher conversion rates if you conduct more than one test at a time.

2. Test the minor revisions.

Some marketers think that they should only conduct A/B testing when they do a complete revamp of their website or create a wholly different layout.  But in email marketing, the slightest changes you make to the layout, or font, or colors could affect your conversion rates in a big way.

3. Check out other data too.

To do A/B testing, you should identify a single measure of success.  For example, one call-to-action button took more people to your landing page, but the other one gathered more sales from the few people that it took to your landing page.  Which one weighs more to you?

In this case, you might realize that the first button might not be better as it may have given your recipients wrong impressions about your products that led them to click on it, and when they got to your landing page, they found that it is not exactly what they are looking for.

4. Split your email list randomly.

The original version of your email format, call-to-action button or landing page would be your control group, while the newer one will become your treatment group.

You should be sending one version to half of your email list and the other version to the second half.  Ideally, these two halves should be more or less equal such as how long these recipients have been in the list, demographics such as gender, age and income, and other characteristics.

Admittedly, going through all these is going to take a lot of time.  The good news is that you can just randomly assign recipients to either half and still get valid results.

5. Test both groups simultaneously.

Timing affects your conversion rates. The day and time you sent it, or which month of the year you sent it, would affect whether your recipients would open it or not.

If you do not test both of your groups simultaneously, you would never know if the success of one was due to the call-to-action button, or the different time of day they received it.

6. Just how much better is better?

Let’s say that your control group has 75 signups, while your treatment group has 77 signups.  Is the treatment group necessarily better than the control group?

Be sure that you brush up on your statistics and check out the statistical significance of the difference in the two groups.  Aim for a high statistical significance: 97% – 99% is typical.  Again, the Internet comes to the rescue of the numerically challenged marketer: there are online tools that can help you test the significance of your results such as this one: http://visualwebsiteoptimizer.com/ab-split-significance-calculator.

7. Remember your branding.

If you have been using the same format for your emails, then you might want to check whether the changes you want to implement would shock or distract your recipients.  This is especially true for your website.  If you have a strong and regular following for your website, you might want to test it out on new visitors.  This is because the variations might not sit well with your branding and these might not even be implemented in the end.

8. Do not preempt the results with what you expect.

You might be surprised to find out that the winner of the A/B testing you have is the dark horse. For example, you might think that the new call-to-action button is ugly and not easy on the eyes.  But you may be surprised to find out that it results to more conversions.  Not preempting makes you more open to implementing the changes.

9. Set an appropriate time frame for your A/B testing.

You should take a look at your past email campaigns to see just how long an A/B testing should last.  Ending your testing too early might mean that you miss out on the signups that occur after that date, while making it drag on a day or two too long would mean that you are serving your email recipients a format that is not converting too well and you lose out on these conversions.

10. Make it consistent.

You might be testing a call-to-action button on your e-mail that also appears on your landing page and in other places on your website.  Make sure that this call-to-action is consistent across all places where your recipients can see it, so that your results will be conclusive.

Most marketers will tell you that A/B testing is difficult to do when you are starting out, and you are bound to make mistakes.  But with these tips, you are sure to avoid making the usual mistakes that most marketers commit.

Unless you’ve boycotted the internet for the last few months (horror!), it would be very difficult not to hear about Pinterest. Almost every tech, marketing and social media blog site is talking about it. Your friends on Facebook are sharing their pins with you. Or who knows, you might already have even signed up for it, your laundry is a thing of the past as you spend hours in the inevitable labyrinth of discovery.

The interesting news (other than some fabulous home improvement ideas) is that Pinterest has a lot of potential to help you market your business, products and services better. Traffic-wise, it had more than 11.7 million visitors in January 2012 making it one of the fastest growing websites of all time.

Pinterest has been credited to refer more traffic than Google+, LinkedIn and YouTube combined. At one point, Time Inc. reported that their Real Simple Magazine’s website got more referral traffic from Pinterest than from Facebook.

So how should you use Pinterest to jump-start your business? Here are six tips to get you started:

1. Scooping out the audience

Before going to Pinterest to boost your business marketing, the first question you need to ask is whether your target market is on it. A recent Mashable infographic actually showed some very helpful statistics to give you an insight on that:

• A user spends an average of 15.8 minutes on the site. That’s quite a lot since Facebook gets only 12 minutes while Twitter gets 3.3 minutes of its users’ time on average.
• Around 28% of users have an annual household income of more than $100,000.
• Around half of Pinterest users have kids.
• Close to 7 out of every 10 users on Pinterest are women.
• A bulk of users on Pinterest is under the 25 to 44 years old age range.
• Pinterest refers more traffic than YouTube, LinkedIn and Google+ combined.

So if you are targeting crafty moms, for example, there is a very high chance they are indeed on the site.

2. But, is it for me?

Not all businesses would prosper on Pinterest. On top of having a target market that matches the profile of a Pinterest user, you should make sure that your business fits what Pinterest is all about.

Do you have products that are highly visual in nature? Sure, cakes, crafts and fashion items are a great fit on Pinterest. However, you might have a hard time coming up with content for your writing services or lending company. But part of this exercise is thinking how you can visually represent your brand, product and services in a visually compelling way.

3. Pinterest best practices

Once you have decided that Pinterest is something that could help your business, then sign up for an account. Fill out all the fields in your profile. Plus check out this bucket list of best practices on Pinterest:

Pin. This is the video or image that you own and would like to share with everyone. Make use of high quality photos and videos. Pinterest is a highly visual site and your pins would be competing with dozens of others in the same page, so make sure it stands out.

Repins. This is the Pinterest equivalent to a retweet. Your goal should include pinning content that others would repin so that you get more exposure for your content. Also return the favor by also repinning content from anyone that matches your brand.

Boards. Remember that Pinterest is based on people’s interests: weddings, home improvement, food, and others. Taken together, a series of pictures you have should revolve around the same themes and make up a board.

Add a funky description to every pin. This is a great way to engage your customers while also saying something more about your image. You could also use descriptions to add your keywords, hash tags and even a link back to your site.

Make it easier for people to pin your content. If you have a website or a blog where you put up pictures of your products, you might want to put up a Pin It button on your sites to make it easier for people to share it on their Pinterest accounts.

Learn from the experts. Pinterest is a relatively new site, so most of its users are still exploring it. But do check out what other brands and users are doing and what is succeeding on Pinterest.

4. Maximize pins by minimal selling

Social media is all about engagement, not selling. On Pinterest, resist the urge to sell your products and service. Be creative and original with your pins and your followers will love you for not having just another online catalog.

Nordstrom, which has more than 11,000 followers, takes time to create themes around their products. Most of their boards are theme-based. They recently came out with prom inspirations and spring trends that featured some of their products.

Remember that, sometimes, you could also indirectly market your products on Pinterest. A travel agency will want to feature its best destinations, recommended hotels and things to do at a certain place. A clothing store could feature fashion pieces that help you achieve a certain look.

Here’s the deal: If you come up with themes for your own products, you may want to use a competitor’s image if they fit your theme. This will give your followers a little bit of variety and will tone down the selling aspect of your boards.

5. Keep the brand alive

Create a consistent look for your boards and pins. Look for ways to translate your brand values into pictures. This is a great way to strengthen your branding.

For instance, use photos of your customers having fun with your products if you want to project a “fun” image. Gap pulls this off with their Everybody in Gap board, which featured different fashion bloggers being fashionable in Gap clothing.

Either that or keep your target market in mind. Create boards that your target market could relate to. For example, DIY Crafts for Busy Moms, or New York Vacation on a Budget.

6. Create a following

Getting your followers on Pinterest to contribute can help you become more popular with them, other users, and can gain you a lot of followers. By putting up boards and asking people to contribute to that board, you are engaging your community more fully. Be sure, however, to monitor the contributions so that the board stays relevant and appropriate.

Despite all the conflicting buzz and your crazy calendar, your efforts at email marketing and your social media campaigns can (easily mix). Don’t worry…it’s more a case of working smarter instead of just harder and longer! You’re not just saving time by killing two birds with one stone (sorry little birds), but you can actually make each process more effective by combining them together. 1 + 1 equals a LOT more than 3 in this case. Essentially, you are taking what is good in one area and combining it with what’s good in another. Here are eight killer tips on how to tie your social media efforts and your email marketing campaigns together, making each stronger (sing it Kelly Clarkson!):

1. Always share on social media

The “Forward to a Friend” link is now viewed with suspicion.  Chances are, if your recipient does not have much of an experience with you or your business, he or she will not give you a colleague’s email address.  You lose out because you may have really good content on that newsletter, but it stops right there in your recipient’s inbox.

Instead, allow your recipients to share your content to their Facebook friends, or have them tweet their followers about it by clicking on a single button. Consider other networks like LinkedIn if you have more of a B2B audience.

» DOG TIP: Mail Dog’s Social Media Share Tools allows subscribers to share your email with THEIR social network with just a click of a button. Learn more online 

2. Highlight the conversation

A good way to illustrate this is if you are marketing an event.  Create a hashtag or a separate Twitter account for your particular event and include these in your email.  This allows you to engage them outside of the email that you sent.

Similarly, your conference speakers might prove to be your biggest brand ambassadors yet.  Ask your resource speakers if you could include their Twitter handles in your email.  It’s a win-win situation as they gain more followers from you, while you get more credibility and authority from them.

3. Publish email articles to your blog

Re-purpose your email content and extend the life of your newsletter articles, while making sure that more people would be able to benefit from your content. Your blog content is an important archive for branding, centralization, plus you get more exposure to potential followers, readers, shares and fans.

4. Using social media to expand your email recipients list

Facebook and Twitter allow you to engage your customers on a deeper level than anywhere else.  You can win their trust with great content, shares from other sources, and re-tweets.  In time, they will see you as a trusted source of information in your industry or business.  So when you ask them to subscribe to your newsletter, it would be highly likely that they will.

How? Encourage them to give you their contact details and email addresses by offering an incentive such as free merchandise, a whitepaper, a contest entry while also having them subscribe to your newsletter.

» DOG TIP: Integrate your Mail Dog Optin Form into Facebook with 5 easy steps.
Learn more online

5. Cast your net on Facebook, follow it up with an email

Social media is a good way for you to go beyond your email lists.  A blog post that you put up on your Facebook page can get shared by your fans or re-tweeted by your followers on Twitter, making it easier for other people to discover you.

Once you get a new like or follower, engage them and get their e-mail address or have them subscribe to your newsletter.  After they do so, always send them a thank you note, which will serve as your icebreaker for further emails from your business.

6. Customer service should end with an email

Twitter has been touted as a great avenue for disgruntled customers to vent their frustrations with the companies they deal with.  It is also a great way to actually get help when you need it.  If you were fortunate enough to catch a complaining customer, reply to that person immediately on Twitter, say that you have sent them an email with further instructions on how to contact you so that you could help.  Be sure to get their email addresses so that you could keep in touch with them outside of Twitter.

7. Own your multimedia content

If you mail a catalog to your customers, consider hosting the pictures up on Pinterest or Flickr, while putting up your videos on YouTube.  This way your pictures and videos are easily seen by other people who may not even know you or your business.

When creating emails, put up a short text or a small thumbnail that describes your video or photo and invite them to visit your social media page.  For example, include a small selection of your best photos and give them the link to your Flickr album or Pinterest board.

8. Craft your email’s content from your blog

If you run a daily blog and a monthly email newsletter, you might want to use your most popular blog posts and send them to your newsletter subscribers!

Explore Permission Email Marketing

Explore Online Video Marketing

Explore Social Media Integration

Explore Web/RSS Publishing

1. [Insert Catchy Subject Title Here]

   Think of the dozens of emails that come through your email box every day. Some emails are from friends, some from co-workers, some from your Aunt Joanne who forwards every (single) funny email, and then there are some from companies trying to market their products to you. Permission email marketing is based on the fact you are marketing to an existing client base, to people who already are interested in your company/product, which means you already have a bit of an “in”. Now, you just have to get them to read your email and take the bait (aka buy something, click a link, share your email, fulfill your marketing objective).

   So jingle the keys in front of the baby and grab their attention! Write a subject line that speaks to them immediately and doesn’t meekly imply what might be waiting for them, you know, if they would just kindly, pretty please, click on the email and read, whenever they get a chance, thanks-so-much. Be BOLD! Be a solution to a problem! Be on their side! What can you do for them, rather than what do you want them to do for you?

2. Show some cleavage!

   Not literally… although, the page views would certainly go up! But think about making the design of your email a little more attractive, even if it’s just mostly text with html markup. If it’s mostly text, make sure you don’t have six huge blocks of text that give the reader the feeling they’re going to need a nap midway through. Introduce your thought, explain quickly how your product can help them and why they need it, and then tell them how they can get it – or where they can read more information about it. Bing, bang, boom! (Also, try not to use, “Bing, bang, boom,” in your emails.)

   If you do use images in your email, try to follow basic design principles, and have an image that makes sense with the subject header. Just because you’re smart, doesn’t mean you can’t be beautiful.

3. Do you believe in love at first sight, or should I walk by again?

   You already have their attention with a great opening line and an aesthetically pleasing look to your email. Now, try not to fumble the ball away by having a boring opening line. Writers call their novel’s opening line ”the hook.” You don’t have to be as engaging as “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times” or “Call me Ishmael,” but you can certainly write something intriguing that prompts them to read further.

   A good closing line doesn’t hurt either. “Your friends wanted to forward you this email, but they haven’t received it yet. Send it along to them!”

4. Use words for your words and numbers for your numbers!

   There are a couple tricks to getting people interested in reading your email once they open it. The first tip is to list things out in bullet points, allowing the reader to scan quickly if they need to, so they can get the gist of your email when they are short on time.

   But to get them to open the email, consider this subject header tip. Write out numbers as numbers, which makes it light and quick to read when a person scans through their emails.

   • Improving Your Bottom Line 5 Different Ways
   • 7 Tips To Beautify Your Living Room
   • Be More Efficient In 9 Easy Steps

    

   Side note: Remember that odd numbers are your friends. List things in threes, fives, sevens and nines. Throughout the universe, odd numbers make for better design. Even in comedy or storytelling, they use, “The Rule of Three.” Ever hear of the Four Little Pigs?

5. People want to “not fail” more than they want to succeed

   People hate rejection or failure, and ironically, that’s what you’ll be trying to avoid by pointing out their possible failures. Readers will be much more inclined to read your emails if they think they’ll be avoiding calamity, rather than hearing good news. It’s human nature – watch the local evening news! Word your subject headers accordingly, like saying, “Top 5 Reasons Your Electric Bill is Too High,” rather than “Top 5 Ways To Save Money On Electric.”

6. Strong language is a MUST!

   Have a strong voice and speak clearly as to how you have something they want/need. Don’t use jargon or words they might not understand. (Like “jargon!”) And don’t be afraid to use emotion in the tone of your writing.

   You’ll also want to pique their curiosity by showing them something everyone else doesn’t know. “The Secret to Better Gas Mileage” or “7 Things You Don’t Know About Saving Money.”

   Another thing to get them enticed is to point out ways they can save time, “The Easiest Route to Doubling Your Client List.”

7. But, my mom says I’m special!

   Show your prospects that they’re special and that you know what they want. Make it personal by using their names or even just the city they live in. Remember, they already gave you information when they opted in to your mail program, so using their name or location isn’t off-putting.

   And let them know you have a solution for something that everyone else doesn’t know, “One of the biggest problems in your industry is XXX and here’s how we can help you solve it.”

On one hand, New Year’s resolutions are just plain silly. On the other, who are we to fight the almost genetic need to organize your sock drawer and counter-tops before digging in to the year ahead? What we can tell you though, is that having goals and a strategy to achieve marketing greatness is key…I mean you can’t reflect on what you’ve achieved unless you have a solid handle on where you were and where you want to go. So let’s have a look at some common resolutions that might resonate with you and trigger your own marketing make-over.

Resolution #1: Lose Weight

No, we’re not talking about love handles – rather outdated and excess content that’s weighing down your email newsletters. Emails today are leaner and meaner than their counterparts from years past. Marketers tend to fluff boilerplate into their newsletters (like “about us” content, un-compelling navigational links, footer call-to-actions). Not that these things are bad, but when’s the last time you really looked at your email as a whole? Take some time to read over the content again, review your past highest performing clickthroughs and trim out the fatty content.

Resolution #2: Exercise Weekly

No, we’re not talking about treadmills – rather moving to more frequent communications. Instead of sticking to the typical once-a-month mailing, try out a new tactic and increase the mailing frequency to once a week. While imperative to keep these relevant and interesting, with the right content and target mailing, it might be just what you need to beef up your marketing campaigns this year.

Resolution #3: Stop Addictive Habits

Drats – whether it’s smoking or spamming – cease all activities that are dangerous to your health and well-being! Using non-permission tactics to increase your subscriber base is bad for your brand. After the initial rush of power has ended, you’ll soon see the effects like blacklisting, negative posts on social sites and just plain bad karma. All of these will eat away at your deliverability and online reputation. Kick the habit now and resolve to grow your list the ‘ole fashion way with permission based opt-in practices. It’s easier and faster than you think.

Resolution #4: Spend Quality Time with Loved Ones

Nope, we are not suggesting you start to fall for your subscribers, but take the time to look at things from their perspective. Whether it’s hanging out in social portals, examining all the messaging and touch points within your communication cycles, even thanking them for their business, digging into your support desk – it makes a difference. Your subscribers will thank you. So don’t be afraid to get a bit personal, try a “Note from the CEO” or write a few articles in first person. It’s a great way to bridge the gap between customer and company, cultivating an ongoing relationship, instead of just “buy me,” “buy me” all the time.

Resolution #5: Learn Something New

Just when you think you’ve got it nailed, there’s some new-fangled gizmo on the web. If you stand any chance in succeeding in the real world, let alone the email marketing world, you have to be continually learning new tactics on how to reach your subscribers. Don’t fight it, just do it.  Try a few new tactics in your next newsletter like integrating video, using social media share tools or using image personalization for improved segmentation.

Resolution #6: Eat Better

You are indeed, what you eat. In email-speak, we’re talking list health. If you are not filling your email list with new healthy subscribers it’s going to get old, run-down and stale. Start by making sure you have a working optin form on your website to gather new subscribers. If you already have one, then revisit the form, make sure it actually still works and is collecting the data you need. Make sure you have one on every page, and at every touch point you have with subscribers…social networks, order forms, popular landing pages what have you. Fuel your business for months to come.

Resolution #7: Get Organized

List makers rejoice! The new year is the perfect time to organize your marketing campaigns and get off to a fresh start. Spend some time brainstorming new marketing objectives and organize an action plan moving forward. Examine your mailings, creative, content, reports, frequency, social media tactics, online video and more. Set quarterly goals and make it rain!

Resolution #8: Save Money

Email marketing still has the best return on investment (ROI) on the planet. But it can’t give you that return unless you’re diligent about keeping up your schedule and keeping your list healthy. Take control of your list, clean out bad emails and leverage retries and global bounce logs to determine deliverability. Getting busy? Don’t neglect your campaigns, rather invest in CMS services to have folks lend a hand to make it happen for you. Not sending should never be the solution. You can’t generate traffic, sales, conversion, response, community, incremental dollars and excitement if you aren’t communicating.

Resolution #9: Stress Less

Don’t tense up…the number one stressor for email marketers appears to be hitting the “send” button on an email campaign. With the proper preventative measures, you can achieve a sense of zen when sending your campaigns rather than fear and trepidation. First, always and we mean always, send a test or multiple tests of your email. We might send half a dozen to various parties (easily). Encourage multiple proofers ensuring they always double check the links. This will prevent mistakes, making the scheduling process the easiest step you’ll take. Namaste.

Resolution #10: Fall in Love

Yes, it’s time for you to fall in love again…with your job, your industry, your team, heck, even your email marketing service. Just like a relationship, things can grow stagnant after a while. Take time to reflect, rejoice, reposition, revise, renew yourself and your professional relationships. From our side, we can promise that 2012 will be a year of transformation here at Mail Dog. Whether you simply take advantage of new tools and wizards or reconnect with us here on a personal level, we look forward to working with you and helping you achieve your own marketing superstar status.