Many people who send out bulk email newsletters often do so without much thought. The act is routine and little (if any) thought is given to how to improve the processes and the effectiveness of their email campaigns. I put together this presentation for my organization to spark communicators to think about how to make their email campaigns more engaging, and in the process, find ways to improve processes and eliminate wasted time.

1. Improving Your Email Communications
(and making your life easier in the process)
by Reid Dossinger
Twitter: @reiddoss

2. Email is...
...the most used channel for communication both personal
and promotional
...checked daily by more users (91%) than any other channel
...the direct channel that influences the most actions (66%)
...the preferred channel for alerts
...preferred even by teens over all other direct channels for
permission-based communications
- Source: Subscribers, Fans & Followers
The 2012 Channel Preference Survey

5. PDF Downloads on NAP.edu
= day an email was sent

6. PDF Download Rate By Medium
organic search: 2.13%
referring websites: 9.60%
RSS feeds: 15.14%
email: 29.06%

7. Know Your Goals
(that is, know why you send email)

9. Occam's Razor:
The simplest explanation is usually the correct one

10. Get Out Of The "Newsletter" Rut

11. Dear Katie,
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12. Header Image
Table of Contents
Social Media Links
Related Websites
EVENTS
NEW PUBLICATIONS
NEWS
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13. More Emails, Less Text
Send more often, be more focused

14. Don't get distracted by design
(unless you're optimizing)

16. "I strive for two things in design: simplicity and
clarity. Great design is born of those two
things."
- Lindon Leader, designer of the FedEx logo
fastcodesign.com/1671067/the-story-behind-the-famous-fedex-logo-and-why-it-works

17. "Keep me informed about things that I wouldn't
otherwise research. Remind me of things I
would otherwise forget. Teach me new things
I'd otherwise pass over."
- user comments from a usability study
useit.com/alertbox/mobile-email-newsletters.html

19. Test & Measure
AB test your pain points
...and measure everything

20. Also consider...
...a welcome email.
...ways to increase subscribers.
...survey your subscribers (carefully).

21. In sum:
Define your goals
Always test
Simplify (or go crazy)
Always measure

22. Resources
Guide to Reporting, Conversions & Email Campaigns
www.campaignmonitor.com/guides/reporting/
Subscribers, Fans and Followers
pages.exacttarget.com/sff
My "Great Email Designs" Pinterest board
pinterest.com/reiddossinger/great-email-designs/
Me on Twitter:
@reiddoss