Blog Box

Rob and I have used Twitter for a while now for personal interactions - starting connections with people that some have turned in to more formal business connections or simply closer relationships with people we have already known. Realising that it can be a great tool for business, we have launched a new account for Brown Box. On it we will be discussing issues relating to:

• small to medium businesses and making the most of being online
• web design
• email marketing
• our work as we get through it
• events and issues significant to the company

We hope that you can join in the conversation with us - it’s a great way to make small updates and start conversations that can lead to greater things. So take a couple of seconds and look up Brown Box on Twitter. We’d love to speak to you soon.

I can just imagine Print Marketing and Email Marketing standing 100 meters apart in a dusty one-street town.  The Old Sheriff and Johnny-Come-Lately with his shiny new hat ready to mix the town up.  Though, Johnny’s not so ‘lately’ and he already has mixed the town up.  And seeing them standing there I realise they each serve important purposes and neither has yet found it’s time to leave so the bullets miss, or never leave, and a strange peace prevails.  As long as different people access information in different ways, some on a screen and some on a page, some both, bedfellows they will remain.  But similar they are not.

While perhaps this is an exaggeration, we do know that on the web, people approach communication very differently than they do print.  This is obvious.

Even the same people.

Different expectations, different opportunities. So the challenge is being aware stepping into the different opportunities and expectations?

In light of this I was dwelling on a few thoughts this week and I hope these might be of interest:

• More ‘touches’ can be allowed online than offline, but expect a number of these to be user-initiated. Facilitate that
• There is an expectation of discourse over broadcast
• Don’t keep making the same pitch. Don’t send something you wouldn’t want to receive yourself
• Narrative is powerful.
• When it comes to print people appreciate that you’ve taken the time to mail them something that looks good. Yet no matter how ’shiny’ your campaign, email is a perceptually lower-value item with a different set of typical responses.
• We expect propaganda in our mail-boxes however people feel a type of ownership over their email in-boxes. Respect that.

Now, if you’re Coles or Clint’s Crazy Bargains, I would feel very weird if I received anything other than a simple ‘here’s our specials’. But most of us are not involved in selling groceries and two-dollar tools. We have important relationships with key customers. Where is your value to them? Can you provide more of it via email? That’s a good place to start.

Some thoughts I’ve been chewing on recently anyway.

~ Rob

Key 1. Provide clear, attractive choices to your users (rather than monopolising the conversation)

Yes, you’re at this party with no girlfriend or wife to rescue you (only males read this) and resigned to the fact that even if you could fit a three letter article somewhere inside the incoming monologue it would probably be a waste of air. So your peripheral vision starts seeking an escape and that little mental book opens to record another name under ‘who-not-to-make-eye-contact-with-at-parties’.

I shall name it ‘Customer Claustrophobia’.

To be honest, I don’t think the party experience is that dissimilar to what many of us experience from the many charities and retailers all vying for the various digits on your credit card.

As I’ve mentioned it’s tiring and, I am convinced, detrimental.

Fig. 1 - Original Email

While I won’t delve into established theories regarding the evolution of the conversation and resurgence of the communal marketplace, working with Dunham + Company and Samaritan’s Purse we’ve finally had the chance to address some of these very common errors. 

Clear Choices - The Email

The new email is now enjoying a high open rate with the highest click-through percentage yet seen for a Samaritan’s Purse email (28.5% of people who opened the email clicked a link) and beyond that, those visiting the site read on average over two articles.

What’s changed? Traditionally Samaritan’s Purse’s emails were similar to what many of you may have seen in your inbox from other organisations. Well formatted (we did them) but very singular in their focus - if you were not interested in the primary article there was not any clear idea of what else might be of value/interest.

If your mailing list is of any size you can safely bet there will be wide range of interests seeking accommodation in the material you distribute.

Fig. 2 - Current Email

Back to the party analogy, if your listener isn’t interested in your topic, allow a change of subject. We applied this truth firstly with Samaritan’s Purse via an overhaul of their newsletter email. Our goal was a more visually engaging format (recognising online users low copy-tolerance) and allowing readers to choose the subject they are most interested in.

However, as the copy is removed from the email itself, we needed infrastructure for providing the content on subjects requested. Yet we needed to be wary of the false ‘more-words-means-more-information-in-someone’s-head’ position.

Key 2. Allow conversation (stop yelling with your hands over your ears)

‘Hi, I’m Rob’ - The Site

Like some of you perhaps Samaritan’s Purse didn’t have infrastructure needed to implement a dynamic of this type so we worked closely with Samaritan’s Purse and Dunham + Company to develop an online archive, presentation and correspondence system developed using as a starting point the fantastic WordPress. Many hours later we were happy to see a model emerge where clearly formatted design, quality images, formatted text and user response were facilitated on budget ensuring a valuable experience for all members.        

Visit the newsletter site here.

I think Facebook address this well by having made almost everything ‘commentable’. While not entirely applicable in this situation (or maybe yours), the expectation is now interaction.

Changing Samaritan’s Purse’s method of email correspondence required changes in both the email and supporting frameworks.  The site and email now complement each other and provide far more opportunity for Samaritan’s Purse to converse with those interested and involved in their work than before.

So again, provide choices and facilitate conversation.  Important thoughts I think.

It’s an evolving process with a long way to go, but I think application of these important principles will allow for new growth for Samaritan’s Purse.

Thanks for reading,

Rob

While Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) is not a company we work for or have any affiliation with besides some small financial support, they are a fantastic organisation and we’ve watched their email newsletters roll in for some time now.  

They have in the last 12 months made a dramatic revision in the formatting of their HTML email newsletters and their evolution is worth considering if you have been adhering a certain type for a while now in your own email marketing.

I’ve attached a screenshot saved from a 2008 newsletter we received from MSF.  It may remind you of the odd newsletter you’ve seen, or maybe of your own. :)

While we received these regularly and it kept MSF in our minds, they were rarely read due to the heavy amounts of text and the inability to clearly see any subjects of interest to us.  This ‘heavy’ format inhibited MSF’s ability to communicate by forcing the user to stop and read lengthy copy they may not be interested in in order to find something they might.  Almost as fun as eating Weet-Bix with no milk.

Significantly this older style of email makes assumptions about what content is relevant to publics rather than helping recipients to select areas of interest to them within the organisation’s sphere of activity.  I have illustrated the effectiveness of such emails in a graph I generously made for you here.

So, in the words of Dana Carvey from that-movie-I haven’t-seen-and-don’t-intend-to, ”This is what you doing.  This is what I want you to do.”

So, we were particularly interested when MSF recently transitioned to a very different email format (see second image). Beyond providing an emotional appeal through images of their work, I am now able to quickly see if there’s anything of interest in less than two seconds. Often I find myself clicking through to one or more areas. That possibility may have been there before, but, I just didn’t see it.

Succinctly, their emails have transitioned from a  monologue to a question/opportunity.  This is a far more acceptable method of digital communication respecting the recipients online sensibilities and time poverty.

Readers now follow through on areas of interest to them and click into an environment where they can fully engage with the area that they care about most and easily donate/register/forward/comment etc.

They choose, rather than being told.  This facilitates an even greater likelihood of further action.

So, what are you doing with your email newsletters?  Are you stuck in a marketing rut, where the only way to get a message out there is to cram it down like fairy floss in a fat kids face, or do you entice the user, respect their time and achieve a far more, er, healthy result.

MSF since launching their revised template has been very careful never to overload or grow it beyond the current ‘hero’ image, two article images, two paragrah-type-text areas and persistent footer links.  

Just looking at it now you can see how attractive and easy to decipher it is.  They are still careful to ensure all the images are ALT tagged and a kind disclaimer resides down the bottom.  But beyond that, I believe their understanding and consideration of their constituents has resulted a far more effective email.

Another great spin off is that you will be able to better judge what people actually are interested in as they follow through on particular topics.  You’ll be able to tailor your emails and begin a cycle of increased effectiveness.  So while you may not have powerful pictures relating to important issues of justice, you might just be able to change the way your emails are sent to facilitate easy communication and action using few words and clear links.

Love to know your thoughts,

~ Rob

Bad publicity can be hard to overcome - especially if your business relies on reputation for 50% of its income.

In December 2007, Kangaroo Island had some pretty horrible publicity: widespread fires on the island (and media coverage to equal the fires). Now that the fires are out - so too are the tourists. The ABC reports that tourist bookings have dropped dramatically. With the economy of the island being 50% tourism this is a big issue - so is the reliance of the summer period to sustain through the winter down period. Hard times may be ahead for some.

The usual response to this kind of publicity is to communicate your story with the public. With more and more people researching online, your website is an important place to make sure this happens. Kangaroo Island promoters have indeed done this. The ‘official’ Kangaroo Island website have put a notice on their front page:

‘Coming to KI and concerned about the fires? Don’t be. Download K.I OK Map here (PDF 467KB)‘

Download the pdf and you’ll see a well prepared map with fire damaged areas highlighted and the reassurance that everything is ‘OK’. I think this is a good thing - checking the site for up to date news was the first thing I did when I heard about the fires. However I think there are a few things that could be done here to maximise the effect of the communication efforts:

1. Make sure it’s widely visible. One link on the front page is not enough - people will enter the website in other ways and may still have this issue in mind. Under the menu is an appropriate place to insert a site wide link/text/graphic.
2. Combine the power of the Internet. Ozone Hotel is a website of a business on the island yet there is nothing addressing the issue there. Ensure that as many other businesses are on board with you promoting your good news. A simple link on other websites promotes both the freshness and unity of all businesses involved. Both are important in helping people make a decision on travel.
3. Show the reality. I don’t see how showing people what they will get is a bad thing. If people go to the island not knowing there have been fires they may be disappointed. If they expect everything to be they may be disappointed.
4. Tell stories. Allow the personality and people of the island to tell a positive story. A personal response can communicate a greater deal of trust, and persuade those who doubt that the island is still a great place to go. This is done to a degree on the pdf download - where a ‘personal’ appeal is made, I believe a widening of this idea could help.

In the end - bad publicity is still going to affect the island and people may have their minds made up without even looking at Kangaroo Island related websites. However there are those who can still make up their minds. Don’t let them make their minds up without hearing your side of the story - ensure they can hear it. When/If this happens to your business - the important thing to do is to use the news. Be loud and clear and let people hear your side of the story.