A cheer for email - Charlie Meyerson

Charlie Meyerson Bit.ly/Meyerson linkedin.com/in/cmeyerson 708-TEQ-NEWS© Meyerson 2013

Who am I ... and why am I here? I worked here for 13 years: © Meyerson 2013

Who am I ... and why am I here? But before and a>er that, I worked in radio news for more than 20 years: © Meyerson 2013

... And why is radio relevant to email and audience development? Because ... © Meyerson 2013

Radio’s been ﬁghJng tuneout since the early 20th Century: For radio (and, later, TV), the compeJJon has almost always been a click away. hQp://www.fredsuniquefurniture.com © Meyerson 2013

Now, for everyone ... ... Whether you’re peddling shoes or news, the compeJJon is just a click away. How do you keep an audience? © Meyerson 2013

Show of hands: •  How many of you check Facebook, TwiQer and email regularly? •  How many check all three at least once a day? •  How many of you, when you check them, scroll all the way back to the last item you checked ... •  On TwiQer? •  On Facebook? •  On email? © Meyerson 2013

Do young people skip email? A friend describes “ Twenty-‐somethings who neither check nor respond to email when not on work hours.” Common or not? Discuss. (Even if so, “work hours” is a preQy sweet spot.) © Meyerson 2013

Assuming they use email ... (and if they’ve given you their email addresses, they’re conﬁrming not only that they do, but that they’re willing to hear from you and that they’re the sort of people who look at email once in a while) ... How do you get people to open it? © Meyerson 2013

It’s the wri7ng. © Meyerson 2013

WriJng for digital media ... isn’t much diﬀerent from wriJng in general. What’s always been interesJng, what’s always been can’t-‐ put-‐it-‐down, is s7ll interesJng, can’t-‐ put-‐it-‐down. © Meyerson 2013

WriJng for digital media The diﬀerence is ... ... now we know what works and what doesn’t. © Meyerson 2013

The right email at the right Jme, with the right content and the right subject line: ... o>en achieved Tribune Co. editorial newsleQer-‐leading 60 percent clickthrough rates – 60 clicks per 100 subscribers. And it went to tens of thousands of subscribers. How? © Meyerson 2013

It’s the wri7ng ... ... and watching how that wriJng works for the audience. © Meyerson 2013

It turns out ... WriJng for the Web has a lot in common with wriJng for broadcasJng – wriJng for the ear. © Meyerson 2013

Secrets to geang people not to tune out -‐-‐ for radio and, it turns out, just about anything on the Web: Omit needless words. -‐-‐ Will Strunk, The Elements of Style, 1918 TwiQer. TexJng. Tiny smartphone screens, 2013. Need we say more? © Meyerson 2013

Secrets to geang people not to tune out -‐-‐ for radio and, it turns out, just about anything on the Web: •  Select the most interesJng word or phrase. •  Make that the ﬁrst element of your story (and, in email and on the Web, your headline or subject line), and let your wriJng ﬂow from there. © Meyerson 2013

But what are the most interesJng words? •  Develop a sense of the wider world’s prioriJes by checking sites like Google Trends <google.com/trends/> •  And develop a sense of your audience’s prioriJes by monitoring clicks. © Meyerson 2013

By your clicks shall ye know them The People Formerly Known As the Audience are telling you what they want. In doing so, they’re telling you how to get them interested in content they may think they’re not interested in. © Meyerson 2013

The joy of email •  Summon your most devoted users at will •  Your biggest fans share their interests •  Lingers in in-‐box, unlike the rivers of TwiQer and Facebook •  Fixed, unlike Web site front pages – and so easier to gauge elements’ popularity •  Heat maps make paQerns easy to spot © Meyerson 2013

But ... ... Ya goQa get ’em in the door. So ... © Meyerson 2013

Would you do this? © Meyerson 2013

No, but many companies do just that. ... by failing to use Subject and From ﬁelds wisely. © Meyerson 2013

Use your Subject and From fields wisely InteresJng words first Don’t repeat Subject Don’t echo From from day to day fields in Subject © Meyerson 2013

Compare these to those in the previous screens. Which would you click? Note how few words you get here. If the future is mobile, now more than ever, every word – every syllable – counts. Strunk & White: Omit needless words. © Meyerson 2013

Anatomy of an email turd © Meyerson 2013

Anatomy of an email turd Consider what we see, word for word ... © Meyerson 2013

“Unbeatabl...” what? © Meyerson 2013

“Oh, that’s what a circular is ...” © Meyerson 2013

So ... What are the odds you’ll open the next email you get from these guys, if it’s labeled and subject-‐lined the same way? © Meyerson 2013

What’s your audience interested in? © Meyerson 2013

Headlines that work Two kinds of headlines: •  Search-‐engine-‐op:mized headlines. Good for story-‐level placement. •  “Curiosity gap”-‐opJmized headlines. Good for front-‐page and email placement, for print publica:ons ... and for social media (TwiEer, Facebook). © Meyerson 2013

‘Curiosity gap’ The diﬀerence between what you know and what you want to know Like The Onion, the editorial team at Upworthy begins with dozens of headlines and works on them un7l they create what Mr. [Eli] Pariser called “a curiosity gap” — a need to know more that prompts the impulse to click on something. -‐-‐ David Carr, The New York Times hQp://mediadecoder.blogs.nyJmes.com/2012/07/09/two-‐guys-‐made-‐a-‐web-‐site-‐and-‐this-‐is-‐what-‐they-‐got/ © Meyerson 2013

SEO-‐friendly headline techniques •  Place the storys most interes:ng word or phrase as close as possible to the start of the headline. •  Simple, direct headlines (with familiar names). •  “How-‐to” or “Why” headlines. •  Accentuate the posi:ve. Say what did happen, not what’s unchanged or stable. © Meyerson 2013

Elements of Style: Use deﬁnite, speciﬁc, concrete language •  Regardless of headline or wriJng style ... Consider words’ “point value.” hQp://www.amazon.com/University-‐Games-‐1520-‐ Man-‐Bites/dp/B000087BDT © Meyerson 2013

‘Curiosity gap’ headlines •  Assume most people aren’t interested. Write headlines to engage people who think they’re not interested, and your core audience will sJll be there for you. (Dare them not to be interested.) •  Play down loca:on. (Except for famous locaJons.) •  Play down names. (Except for famous names.) © Meyerson 2013

‘Curiosity gap’ headlines •  Simple, direct headlines (with generic nouns for unfamiliar names). The most-‐clicked Internet headline (or most-‐ read newspaper headline) ever might be ... © Meyerson 2013

‘Curiosity gap’ headlines •  Ques:ons: ‘Who was Deep Throat?’ •  Ellipses, teases: ‘NaJon’s faQest city is ...’ •  Pull-‐quotes: ‘Suck it up, wussies.’ © Meyerson 2013

The power of YOU •  Works with SEO-‐friendly headlines. •  Works with “curiosity gap” headlines. hQp://www.theonion.com/ arJcles/secondperson-‐ narraJve-‐enthralling-‐you, 30380/ © Meyerson 2013

The case for sentence case ... vs. Title Case for headlines: •  Concrete nouns drive traﬃc. •  The most concrete concrete nouns are Proper Nouns. •  So why not make Proper Nouns easier to ﬁnd? A demonstraJon ... © Meyerson 2013

Charlie Meyerson* Bit.ly/Meyerson linkedin.com/in/cmeyerson 708-TEQ-NEWS *Feature this presentation at your next birthday party or bar mitzvah. Business cards available. © Meyerson 2013

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A cheer for email - Charlie Meyerson

by Charlie Meyerson on Feb 15, 2013

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