Welcome, and thank you for coming today…we’ve got a great session planned, with a little bit of marketing theory, a whole lot of practical marketing tips. This session is about how you can use email marketing and social media to grow your business or organization.[click to next slide]
Presenter should introduce themselves. RDDs should mention Constant Contact ALEs would mention their own company and clarify their relationship to Constant Contact.(Ask people in the room if any of them have ever attended a previous seminar. If there are a lot,Clarify that this is new content but that some of the same strategies we have taught in the past still applySo they might see a few familiar strategies or tips along the way. (Then mention the workbook – explain what it is, briefly, and let them know that you will refer to itThroughout the session with short exercises for them to complete. Next ask …)How many people in the room are small businesses or work for a small business?How many are nonprofits ….on purpose (they will laugh) relate to the room that you know it’s been a tough year for some and that the informationCovered in the session should help them start to move the needle.
Marketing has changed….maybe you’ve noticed? How many of you use [click to build] Facebook for business? How many are on Linked In? Twitter? Anyone tweetingright now? (remind of twitter handle) [click to build] Who uses Pinterest? Instagram? YouTube?[click to build] And how many have checked your email today? (all hands up) …. [click to next slide]Mobile stat from: research from:email open by platform: https://litmus.com/blog/email-client-market-share-stats-infographic-june-2012
Marketing has changed….maybe you’ve noticed? How many of you use [click to build] Facebook for business? How many are on Linked In? Twitter? Anyone tweetingright now? (remind of twitter handle) [click to build] Who uses Pinterest? Instagram? YouTube?[click to build] And how many have checked your email today? (all hands up) …. [click to next slide]Mobile stat from: research from:email open by platform: https://litmus.com/blog/email-client-market-share-stats-infographic-june-2012
Marketing has changed….maybe you’ve noticed? How many of you use [click to build] Facebook for business? How many are on Linked In? Twitter? Anyone tweetingright now? (remind of twitter handle) [click to build] Who uses Pinterest? Instagram? YouTube?[click to build] And how many have checked your email today? (all hands up) …. [click to next slide]Mobile stat from: research from:email open by platform: https://litmus.com/blog/email-client-market-share-stats-infographic-june-2012
I love my job, I love this part of my job. Getting to talk to small businesses and nonprofits all the time. As small organizations,You actually have an advantage over “big business” that you may or may not be aware of – it is specific to your use of email and social media marketing. You have an advantage because you can be the face of the company, the person people associate with that business or organization.You can be your authentic self. Best Buy cannot do that. Pepsi cannot do that. Today we’re going to talk about someOf the ways you can leverage this advantage and also take some of the mystery out of online marketing strategies and how email and social media can help you grow your business.[click to next slide]
We finally come back to what got us started…this idea that marketing, at its core, is about eliciting a physical and measurable RESPONSE. You want someone to do something…call you, come to your store, donate, Like your Facebook page, etc. We discussed just discussed the different ACTIONS that you want your reader, follower, member to take.As you look back through what we’ve done today, you’ll see that we started by understanding this point first, and throughout the process of building out your plan we were never far away from the idea that the more specific you were with your thinking and the more focused you were on that end result the better able you’d be to evaluate the success of your efforts.[click to next slide]
Today we are going to go through this simple framework for marketing that works, that really works. Everything we cover today is about best practices and strategy, not so much specifically about Constant Contact products or tools.You should be able to leave here today and try these things whether you use our tools or not. That said, how many of youUse Constant Contact? (show of hands gives you an idea of what to expect in terms of questions)So here is the framework for marketing we’re going to work with today[click to build] First, set your marketing GOALS and OBJECTIVES (they are different, and we’ll show you how). In this section of our session we’ll give you just enough marketing theory to help you appreciate the pieces of our primary focus today, which is…[click to build] Second, running CAMPAIGNS on the channels that matter. [click to build][click to build] the final piece of the puzzle is, once again, what you’re doing this for – to GET measurable RESULTS. [click to next slide]
Marketing “GOALS” are something that you all have, and you’re likely to have ones similar to the people sitting near you. That’s because all businesses have marketing goals…they’re in business to do something, and at the highest level that’s what these are.[click to build] Was I right? This isn’t an exhaustive list, but I bet it covers a large percentage of what you all would write down as your goals…Another way to think about these is that they are the “30,000 foot view” of marketing…very much part of your marketing strategy. But what we’re here to do today is come down a bit, and get more specific. [click to next slide]
NP VERSION, WITH FINAL BUILD BEING NP-FOCUSEDIn short, what we want to do is talk about marketing OBJECTIVES,which will require you to get much more specific. Look at some examples of objectives you want to set for a specific marketing effort…[click to build] deliver content to tradeshow leads[click to build] fill your seats on a Sunday evening[click to build] or drive donationsNotice how these are all much more specific? The more specific you can be with your objective the better…[click to next slide]
NP VERSION, WITH FINAL BUILD BEING NP-FOCUSEDSome of you in the audience may find that you’re able to juggle more than one of objectiveat a time, but for today’s session focus in and choose just one…Why just one? Because the focus you enjoy by having just one will make it easier to ensure that you’re getting the most out of the steps we’re going to be outlining later as we discuss campaigns and channels.[click to next slide]
Today we are going to go through this simple framework for marketing that works, that really works. Everything we cover today is about best practices and strategy, not so much specifically about Constant Contact products or tools.You should be able to leave here today and try these things whether you use our tools or not. That said, how many of youUse Constant Contact? (show of hands gives you an idea of what to expect in terms of questions)So here is the framework for marketing we’re going to work with today[click to build] First, set your marketing GOALS and OBJECTIVES (they are different, and we’ll show you how). In this section of our session we’ll give you just enough marketing theory to help you appreciate the pieces of our primary focus today, which is…[click to build] Second, running CAMPAIGNS on the channels that matter. [click to build][click to build] the final piece of the puzzle is, once again, what you’re doing this for – to GET measurable RESULTS. [click to next slide]
We’re going to talk about “campaigns” and sending campaigns out to your followers, customers, supporters, etc. Let’s first answer the question “what is a campaign?”Very simply there are two parts to a campaign…first, you [click to build] push out some sort of content (and we’ll talk more about “what content” in a bit) to your followers, supporters, etc.second, you hope to [click to build] “pull” some sort of response from them – you want them to read, forward or share what you sent, show up, call, attend – you want them to take an action of some sortPretty simple idea, right?Let’s look at some examples of campaign types to help you get a better idea…[click to next slide]
There are a lot of different types of campaigns you can run…here are just a few of the more common ones:[click to build] the “Welcome” campaign – this is actually very important…welcoming those people who are new to your list or organization…[click to build] here are some other common types of campaigns…Don’t forget, you can also send “campaigns” that are as simple as a “Thank You for your business” or “Happy New Year.” Sometimes those will get you the greatest level of engagement.How many of you have done one of these (show of hands)? Two of these (keep your hands up)? Three or more (keep your hands up)? Excellent…The[click to next slide]
This is a very, very common question.The answer is simple. You write about what you know that they don’t know. You share your knowledge and raise your profile as an expert in your field.What you are trying to do is build what is called a resource relationships, Where when their need for what you do comes up, YOU are the person that comes to mind. And it’s a good idea to share just for the sake of sharing. Giving your knowledgeAway. You cannot be afraid to give away the farm. Nothing you write in an email or on facebook is going to eliminate a payingCustomer’s need for you and your services. Nothing you write is going to replace your experience,Or more importantly your comfort level with that experience.ABOVE all else, be generous…give away the farm…let people enjoy the full range of expertise you have to offer.(If you have a longer session, this is a great time to ask people in the audience what they do for a livingand give them some ideas for content so that you get the room thinking in these terms)(Also if you have a longer session, you can give an example of a business that “gives away the farm” and drives business doing so)[click to next slide]
(ask if anyone in the class wants to get a long email from anyone else in the class. No one will raise their hand.) No one has ever raised their hand. If you are a church, a chamber of commerce or a school, you probably have long emails and we are all okay with getting those. Our children and our businesses rely on you and we want to see activity – we are willing to get a long email from you. (right? Ask the crowd) …we don’t read them, but it’s okay that we see them.So take the pressure to create or write off of yourself. Instead focus on being the resource. Less is more. Always.There is no rule that says your newsletter needs to have three articles, three pictures and three links. One thing is plenty. There is a Constant Contact customer whose newsletter is called One Thing – he did it to make it easy on himself and it works really well – people can absorb it and he’s not under the gun to come up with a bunch of content to fill it.Your emails and their social media activities are NOT for telling people everything that they do. That is part of the hole people dig for themselves when they start writing their emails, they try to say everything. That is not what your emails and social media posts are for. That’s what your website is for. Your emails and your social media is about offering one thing at a time and tracking whether or not it moved the needle. Plain and simple.Mobile stat from: research from:email open by platform: https://litmus.com/blog/email-client-market-share-stats-infographic-june-2012
Include comment about 97% deliverability of email…Now, notice that we’re talking about on-line channels….you may need to incorporate any off-line channels you use (print, TV, radio, direct mail, etc.).Channels include email, social media sites like those represented here, if you want to go into a more traditional area, you might consider radio, tv or print ads, direct mail. If cost is an issue, you’ll get more return on your time, money and energy by going first through email and subsequently through Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, etc. Each has its own typical audience and decision process. You want to start where you already are, and then begin to move to where your customers and contacts are so that you can leverage the existing network you have on those sites and begin to generate some social visibility along the way.D. Nations comment: include something along the lines of “email IS a social media…” That will set the stage for the next slide…
[click through these samples, letting people see them as ideas]discounts (what most people think of)e-books or downloadable contentserviceshints + tipsexperiences or eventssupport a causeJULIE: perhaps mention a couple of specific examples, for example: “Download our free Spring Gardening guide” or “Free Tradeshow Booth consultation” or something like that…[click to next slide]
The reality is that we have to make this short attention span thing work in our favor, and here’s the good news: According to Facebook itself, a post that includes a video sees 100% more engagement than a post alone. But wait, there’s more – a post plus a picture sees 120% more engagement (we felt that one first hand – we actually got 127%, but I’m not bragging). AND – if you include a whole photo album, you are looking at 180% more engagement.(Now, we’re all aware that Facebook likes to make changes to how it works…and that applies to the algorithm that they use which determines what posts get delivered to friends and fans. So…be aware of when Facebook mentions changes to their algorithm…and be aware of whether or not you can make adjustments to your approach to optimize the visibility and engagement of your posts.)Not to mention the social sites that are entirely visually based - Pinterest has changed everything. Instagram makes your pictures social, instantly. Except when they break their Twitter integration like they did last week. But usually. . Mobile is your best friend here.
Include comment about 97% deliverability of email…Now, notice that we’re talking about on-line channels….you may need to incorporate any off-line channels you use (print, TV, radio, direct mail, etc.).Channels include email, social media sites like those represented here, if you want to go into a more traditional area, you might consider radio, tv or print ads, direct mail. If cost is an issue, you’ll get more return on your time, money and energy by going first through email and subsequently through Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, etc. Each has its own typical audience and decision process. You want to start where you already are, and then begin to move to where your customers and contacts are so that you can leverage the existing network you have on those sites and begin to generate some social visibility along the way.D. Nations comment: include something along the lines of “email IS a social media…” That will set the stage for the next slide…
Include comment about 97% deliverability of email…Now, notice that we’re talking about on-line channels….you may need to incorporate any off-line channels you use (print, TV, radio, direct mail, etc.).Channels include email, social media sites like those represented here, if you want to go into a more traditional area, you might consider radio, tv or print ads, direct mail. If cost is an issue, you’ll get more return on your time, money and energy by going first through email and subsequently through Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, etc. Each has its own typical audience and decision process. You want to start where you already are, and then begin to move to where your customers and contacts are so that you can leverage the existing network you have on those sites and begin to generate some social visibility along the way.D. Nations comment: include something along the lines of “email IS a social media…” That will set the stage for the next slide…
Look at these three words. These three words rule your world as a marketer and as a consumer or business person. Every email or social media post that you get and every one that you send or post falls into one of these three categories. Now. Later. Or Never.Think about this morning when you checked your email. Whether you were aware of it or not, you were sorting your messages into these three categories automatically. Now, later, never.And I apologize now for bringing this to your attention and making it a conscious experience for you now. For the next two or three days, when you go through your email, you will find yourself saying it out loud, “now, later, later, never, never, never” and you’ll want to curse me for making something that was seamless now very obvious to you. It will go away. But it’s important that you know that – you need to know this both as a recipient and as a sender or poster. How do you make sure that you are a now? You don’t want to be never – obviously. And a later, let’s face it, is a well-intentioned never. Right? You flag it or tell yourself, “oh, I’ll come back to that” but 9 times out of 10…do you? (they will usually laugh and say no)[click to next slide]
So how do you win the battle of priorities and get more people to stop and open your email or to stop and read your facebook post or your tweet or to share your pin on pinterest? Think about how you sort your email – or if you’re on facebook, think about the newsfeed. Typically when you open up your email – think about it this morning – you start at the top of the list and you go down, sorting by who it’s from.WHO the email or the social media post came from turns out to be the most important part of winning the battle of priorities. You do it based on WHO, so it’s important for you to [click to build] be recognizable…You do need to exercise care [click to build] and consider how you’re identifying yourself across the channels you’re using. If you send your emails as “Jane Doe,” but your Facebook page shows up in people’s newsfeeds as “Famous Cookies,” people might not make the connection. Just be sure that you’re consistent with the name you use – and ensure that it’s the one that you’ll be recognized by, so that ultimately your readers and followers will stop and open your email, read your posts – because they know they’re going to get something of value and relevance from you.Now, there are some important considerations that shouldn’t be overlooked, and they relate to something called the [click to build] “CAN-SPAM” act…which is a law that sets the rules for commercial email, establishes requirements for commercial messages, gives recipients the right to have you stop emailing them, and spells out tough penalties for violations. The law makes no exception for business-to-business email. That means all email – for example, a message to former customers announcing a new product line – must comply with the law.One provision of CAN-SPAM is that the “from,” “to,” and “reply to,” names “must be accurate and identify the person or business who initiated the message.” Therefore if I signed up for an email from Joe Pizza the from address should be “Joe Pizza” and not “Joe Smith.”(If you have a longer session, here are more notes for talking points)If you are not sure that people will recognize you because they mostly know the company name, then use a combinationOf your name, then a comma, and then the company or brand name – so you can piggy back off of the recognition of thatBrand but knowing you’ll get more people to stop and pay attention to an email from a person.Another way to look at it – when you get an email from a company, don’t you automatically assume thatIt is a marketing message so if you are busy or going thru your own battle of priorities, that one usually goesInto the later or never pile. One other note, for nonprofits in the room, you are – and sorry to say this – often starting at later. And not because peopleDo not care about your message. That’s not it at all. It is more about the timing of your messages (which we will cover in a little bit)But if you think about it, if people are at work and their focus is supposed to be on their work, and then they get an email About your cause or program, even if they really care about it, they cannot always pull away from their primary responsiblities at the office.
Take advantage of the tools out there that can help you ensure consistency between your website/logo and your email communications. We know, and are often asked about, the challenge you face when you’re trying to get your emails to look “just like” your webpage or logo. A lot of focus falls on the colors, so here are two tools that are free for download and can help you ensure that consistency of colors: [click to build]Colorcop and [click to build]Pixeur. They’ll help you capture the exact RGB values and the Hex values so you can apply the same colors to your email templates.The best part about these is that they’re easy…[click to next slide]
Here is a simple method for writing more powerful subject and headlines. It’s called the 2-2-2 principle.Let’s walk through it quickly. The first two is for the 2 seconds you typically have to compel them to pay attention.The second two if for the first two words of your subject line or headline. That’s really all they read before making a decision.And not a decision about whether to read your message, but as to whether or not they will bother to read the rest of the subject line.The third to is for “why does this email or message matter today” Today – that’s the third two. If you can answer that questionIn your subject line or headline, as close to the first two words as possible, more people will stop and at least open your message.So – how do you do it? How do you write one of these? Is anyone here on my email list? Do any of you get my class invitations?(some will raise their hands) …have you ever noticed that my subject lines sometimes begin with something like “12 seats left for tomorrow”Or “ten seats open tomorrow”? … first, let me tell you that it’s always true. And you should always be honest in your messages as well.But the reason I start with that is because it expresses very quickly why the message matters today. Seats are running out for an upcoming session.Some of the emails I send you start with “some seats left”… ever notice those? That’s when I have a lot of seats left and I don’t want to lie to you,But I want it to be more compelling than saying “57 seats still open for tomorrow”… that’s not compelling. It’s important to point out that you don’t need to go to the “urgency well” all the time, meaning you don’t always have to put a time stamp on it orSay things like “today only” or “by close of business” or like that. It’s more about making it very clear to people that your message is relevant and timely in order to win that now, later or never battle.
Examples from customers…can be built quickly either before or after the audience interaction piece…List of customers, in order:BolocoBlue PenguinTee FuryFish and BoneJill Singer Graphics
When to send is another very common question. Both for how often to send and also when in terms of the time of day and the day of the week. For social media, we recommend a baseline frequency of at least 3-5 times a weekly. It’s what they used to tell us for exercise. There are tools and guidelines for what times have the highest traffic and most response but it really depends on your industry, your audience and what you are trying to get them to do.For email marketing frequency, monthly is the most common but it’s also a good idea to add unexpected messages every once in a while[click to build through the steps for testing]
So now you have the best day on which to send and the best time at which to send. Excellent!! But let me caution you… [click to build] DO NOT BE ROMANCED BY A HIGHOPEN RATE – MEASURE ACTIONS!
Today we are going to go through this simple framework for marketing that works, that really works. Everything we cover today is about best practices and strategy, not so much specifically about Constant Contact products or tools.You should be able to leave here today and try these things whether you use our tools or not. That said, how many of youUse Constant Contact? (show of hands gives you an idea of what to expect in terms of questions)So here is the framework for marketing we’re going to work with today[click to build] First, set your marketing GOALS and OBJECTIVES (they are different, and we’ll show you how). In this section of our session we’ll give you just enough marketing theory to help you appreciate the pieces of our primary focus today, which is…[click to build] Second, running CAMPAIGNS on the channels that matter. [click to build][click to build] the final piece of the puzzle is, once again, what you’re doing this for – to GET measurable RESULTS. [click to next slide]
We finally come back to what got us started…this idea that marketing, at its core, is about eliciting a physical and measurable RESPONSE. You want someone to do something…call you, come to your store, donate, Like your Facebook page, etc. We discussed just discussed the different ACTIONS that you want your reader, follower, member to take.As you look back through what we’ve done today, you’ll see that we started by understanding this point first, and throughout the process of building out your plan we were never far away from the idea that the more specific you were with your thinking and the more focused you were on that end result the better able you’d be to evaluate the success of your efforts.[click to next slide]
[click to next slide]
Email is hard to beat for real marketing value. And it’s very much a part of social media. Email is how you can monetize your social media activities.And it still has the highest delivery and response, much higher than social media.In addition to the actual email, there are a number of tools you can use to expand the reach of your emails and help you build your lists for the future.[click to next slide]http://www.istockphoto.com/stock-photo-1322200-carpentry.php?st=6ca4679
We showed you something similar earlier…but it bears repeating.These can be used in a couple of different ways – all together in a “Social Share bar” at the top of your emails (make it as easy as possible for your readers to share your message with their frends). Make it as easy as possible for people to share your email – sure, they may just hit the “forward” button in their email program, but they may also choose to share it socially, especially if you make it easy for them to do so by putting these buttons right at the top of the message.They can also be used to facilitate their ability to follow you on the various social networks you use. Place them within the body of your email, making it easy for them to follow you.[click to next slide]
What questions do you have?(Also, please help us continue to improve these sessions by filling out the form…)[click to build] if you’re looking for more help, don’t hesitate to call one of our fantastic coaches…they’re eager to help and make things work for you.[click] and finally, if you’d like to drop me a line or follow me on Facebook or Twitter, here are my details…I’d love to hear from you and hear how your campaigns are doing!