This document summarizes an email marketing bootcamp presentation. The presentation covered email marketing best practices like design, content, and segmentation. It included data on email effectiveness and engagement. Interactive exercises had attendees discuss newsletter vs. email blasts, list segmentation, and follow up messaging. The goal was to help attendees improve their email strategy and tactics.

1. EMAIL
MARKETING
BOOTCAMP
CECI DADISMAN
DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS // PALM BEACH OPERA

2. HELLO
ABOUT ME
PITTSBURGH NATIVE
WEST VIRGINIA MOUNTAINEER
RECOVERING OPERA SINGER
DIGITAL MARKETING NERD
TREKKIE
MOM

3. LET’S
INTRODUCE
OURSELVES!
YOUR NAME
YOUR ORGANIZATION
YOUR EMAIL MARKETING PROGRAM

4. THE PLAN
FOR TODAY
EACH SECTION
EXERCISE/HANDOUT
DISCUSSION/QUESTIONS

5. LET’S START
WITH SOME
DATA

6. EMAIL
MARKETING
BRINGS IN $40.56
FOR EVERY
DOLLAR SPENT
DIRECT MARKETING ASSOCIATION

7. NEARLY ⅓ OF PEOPLE
HAVE STOPPED DOING
BUSINESS WITH AT
LEAST ONE COMPANY
AS A RESULT OF POOR
EMAIL PRACTICES
MERKLE SURVEY

8. NOW ON
TO DESIGN
& LAYOUT

10. BEFORE

11. AFTER

12. AVERAGE TIME ALLOCATED TO AN
EMAIL AFTER OPENING:
51 SECONDS
PEOPLE ONLY FULLY READ
19% OF EMAILS
PREDOMINANT BEHAVIOR:
SCANNING
ONLY SKIMMED A SMALL PART
35% OF THE TIME
NEILSEN

13. SOME
ELEMENTS TO
HELP
ENGAGEMENT

14. A COMPANY EMAIL
THAT INCLUDES A
VIDEO RECEIVES AN
INCREASED
CLICKTHROUGH
RATE BY 96%
DIGITAL SHERPA

15. QUALITY IS BETTER
THAN QUANTITY
WHEN IT COMES TO
IMAGES

16. HERE ARE
SOME BEST
PRACTICES

17. FEATURE ONE
MAIN CALL TO
ACTION

21. KEEP YOUR
GRAPHICS IN
CHECK
CHOOSE IMAGES THAT ARE IMPACTFUL AND
KEEP THEM LARGE ENOUGH TO SEE

23. USE ONLY TEXT
THAT IS
NECESSARY
REMINDER: THE POINT OF AN EMAIL IS TO
GET SOMEONE TO TAKE FURTHER ACTION.
LOVE THE “READ MORE…” LINK

25. RECOMMENDED TOOLS

26. LET’S TALK
ABOUT
SUBJECT LINES

27. THE USE OF
“POWER WORDS”
INCREASES OPEN
RATES
URGENT, IMPORTANT, ANNOUNCEMENT,
INVITE/INVITED, THANK YOU

28. PERSONALIZATION
INCREASED UNIQUE
OPEN RATES TO 73%
GET RESPONSE

29. SUBJECT LINES
PHRASED AS
QUESTIONS
PERFORM BETTER
THAN STATEMENTS
MAILCHIMP

30. KEEP YOUR
SUBJECT LINES TO
50 CHARACTERS OR
LESS
MAILCHIMP

31. YOUR SUBJECT LINE
SHOULD ALWAYS
REFLECT THE EMAIL
CONTENT

32. Good!
Unclear +
Repetition of
Org Name
Name of the
Newsletter

33. Good!
Unclear +
Repetition of
Org Name
Name of the
Newsletter

34. TIME FOR A
LITTLE
EXERCISE!

35. NEWSLETTER
VS.
EBLAST

36. NEWSLETTER
ONCE PER MONTH
DIGEST OF IMPORTANT UPCOMING EVENTS
FOCUS ON THE “SOFT SELL”
INTERESTING NEWS
COMPELLING CONTENT

37. TED GOAS
MAIN FEATURE
SECONDARY FEATURE
TERTIARY FEATURE

40. EBLAST
FREQUENCY VARIES
DRIVEN BY SPECIFIC EVENT
“HARD SELL”
ONE CLEAR CALL TO ACTION
COMPELLING CONTENT

41. COMPELLING IMAGE
EVENT DETAILS + CTA

42. EVENT TITLE
CTA
TERTIARY FEATURE
DESCRIPTION

43. LISTS AND
SEGMENTATIO
N

44. RELEVANTNOT RELEVANT NOT RELEVANT

45. RELEVANT RELEVANTRELEVANT

46. WHY SEGMENT?
INCREASE OPEN RATES
INCREASE CONVERSIONS
DECREASE UNSUBSCRIBES
INCREASE CLICKTHROUGH RATES
MAKE PEOPLE HAPPIER

47. NOT EVERYONE
SHOULD GET
EVERY EMAIL
HIGHLY ENGAGED PEOPLE CAN WITHSTAND
MORE MESSAGES. LESS ENGAGED PEOPLE
CANNOT.

49. IMPORTANT!
THE MESSAGE
MUST MATCH
THE SEGMENT

50. BEHAVIORAL DEMOGRAPHIC
TICKET HISTORY
EVENT ATTENDANCE
CONTEST ENTRY
DISCOUNT USE
MEMBERSHIP HISTORY
GROUP PROSPECT
INVITE LIST
GEOGRAPHY
GENDER
REPERTOIRE INTERESTS
PROGRAM INTERESTS
INTERNAL DATA
SIGN UP FORM DATA

51. SAMPLE LIST SEGMENTS
NEWS & UPDATES
2015 SEASON SUBSCRIBERS
2014 SEASON SUBSCRIBERS
2013 SEASON SUBSCRIBERS
2015 SEASON TICKET BUYERS
2014 SEASON TICKET BUYERS
EVENT RAFFLE ENTRIES
YOUNG FRIENDS MEMBERS

52. EMAIL VERSIONS
TRADITIONAL
NEW ACQUISITIONS
ALREADY BOUGHT

53. UPCOMING EVENT:
TRADITIONAL
LISTS SUPPRESSIONS
2015 SEASON SUBSCRIBERS
2014 SEASON SUBSCRIBERS
2013 SEASON SUBSCRIBERS
2015 SEASON TICKET BUYERS
2014 SEASON TICKET BUYERS
NEWS & UPDATES
YOUNG FRIENDS MEMBERS
EVENT RAFFLE ENTRIES
PEOPLE WHO HAVE ALREADY BOUGHT

54. TIME FOR
ANOTHER
LITTLE
EXERCISE!

55. NOW, WHAT
DO YOU DO
AFTER YOU
SEND?

56. FOLLOW UP
OPENED BUT DID
NOT CLICK
CLICKED BUT
DID NOT BUY
UPCOMING EVENT:
TRADITIONAL
DID NOT OPEN

57. OPENED BUT DID NOT CLICK
Here is
something else
really cool
about this

58. CLICKED BUT DID NOT BUY
Hi! Is there any
way that we can
provide some
extra help?

59. DID NOT OPEN
Here is a really
provocative
subject line to
entice you...

62. WHEN IS THE
BEST TIME TO
SEND?

63. KISSMETRICS//DANZARRELLA

65. TIME FOR ONE
MORE LITTLE
EXERCISE!

66. QUESTIONS?
THOUGHTS?
FEELINGS?

67. THANK YOU!
CECI DADISMAN
DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS // PALM BEACH OPERA
561.835.7550 {office}
412.523.8861 {mobile}
@cecidadisman
cdadisman@pbopera.org
www.cecidadisman.com