“Please Read”……..a phrase often synonymous with those reviled spam e-mails that seem to constantly inundate our inboxes. I can’t speak for you but rarely do i ever actually read, or even open, e-mails sent to me by companies offering products and services i usually have no interest in, which leads me to question how effective e-mail marketing really is.
Wreden (1999, p3) has previously described e-mail marketing as the “Internet’s killer application” because of its precision, enabling companies to adapt their campaigns to different target audiences whilst also providing a platform to track consumer response. Subsequently, this would suggest that when implemented carefully and considerately, e-mail marketing can be one of the most effective forms of online marketing. Keeping this in mind, the focus of this blog will be on analysing an e-mail i have received from the electronics company Wowcamera with the aim of evaluating its features and gauging its overall effectiveness.
Email Analysis
My initial thoughts prior to analysing the e-mail are that i would open it simply because the subject line is appealing and holds some relevance to me, having previously purchased a smartphone from Wowcamera. The subject line is the first point of contact the viewer has with the e-mail, therefore it needs to be pertinent to them (Mohammadi et al, 2013). Taking a closer look at the e-mail, its clearly identifiable that it falls under a house-list campaign with the new iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 plus being offered through integrated trackable links. The message content excels in that it is clear and concise, immediately providing me with the information of what’s on offer whilst also including links to the subsequent landing page.
One particular aspect that i think works well is the use of imagery at the top of the e-mail showcasing the product, an effective tactic in helping to grab the readers attention (Ellis-Chadwick and Doherty, 2012). Another feature of note is the fact that by starting the e-mail with “Dear Nathaniel”, Wowcamera look to play on the personalised aspect in order to build the customer relationship which, admittedly, does make me feel a lot more compelled to open their e-mails as a result. This is imperative as incorporating this kind of personal touch into an e-mail campaign can often lead to an increase in the overall conversion rate (Wainwright, 2012).
On the other hand, despite the use of imagery at the top, i wouldn’t consider the rest of the e-mail to be very eye catching as i found the layout to be quite tedious and plain to look at. Furthermore, while the all-important call to action does make use of key phrases such as “don’t miss the chance” in order to inspire urgency, it’s located near the bottom of the e-mail and fails to include the actual prices of the iPhones on offer, a crucial facet of an effective call to action (Bonini, 2013).
On the whole i think the e-mail does perform effectively, although to improve its overall visuals i would suggest the following few points:
- The brand logo should be prominent at the top left of the e-mail rather than at the bottom (Ellis-Chadwick and Doherty, 2012).
- The information in the e-mail could be displayed on one page, thus removing the need for the viewer to scroll down.
- More eye catching imagery could also be added in order to grab the attention and keep the viewer engaged throughout (Constant Contact, 2013).
Simply follow the link if you would be interested in viewing more useful best practices for e-mail marketing here.
Landing Page Analysis
In regards to the aforementioned landing page, the links provided take you straight to the iPhone 7 advertised where you’re subsequently provided with a host of features including the product description, pricing, reviews and an add to cart option (call to action). An aspect of the landing page i feel works very well in particular is the super deals tab at the top linking to other offers that may be of interest, subsequently, even if i decided to not buy the iPhone 7 there could be another phone that i might purchase.
Looking at the landing page holistically, it must be said that the user interface design is aesthetically appealing with the layout communicating the various key features clearly without congesting the page. The webpage looks sophisticated and maintains a consistent theme throughout, although i would put forward that the add to cart option being near the bottom of the page is a little annoying as you need to scroll down in order to find it which, to an extent, mitigates its effectiveness. Thus, if i were to make a recommendation for improvement it would be to change the position of the call to action, i.e add to cart, and move it further up the web page next to the actual product.
John Bonini provides helpful tips for designing productive calls to action in his blog located here.
References
Bonini, J. (2013) Design tips for creating calls-to-action that pop off the page [Online], Available: <https://www.impactbnd.com/blog/design-tips-for-creating-calls-to-action-that-pop-off-the-page> [Accessed 3rd November 2016]
Constant Contact (2013) How to use images to bring your emails to life [Online] . Available: <http://img.constantcontact.com/docs/pdf/images-email-marketing.pdf> [Accessed 3rd November 2016]
Ellis-Chadwick, F. and Doherty, N. F. (2012) Web advertising: The role of e-mail marketing. [Electronic version] Journal of Business Research, Volume 65, Issue 6, June, pp 843-848. [Online] Available: http://www.sciencedirect.com (accessed 1st November, 2016).
Wainwright, C. (2012) 9 undeniable advantages of using personalized content in your marketing [Online], Available: <http://blog.hubspot.com/blog/tabid/6307/bid/33971/9-Undeniable-Advantages-of-Using-Personalized-Content-in- Your-Marketing.aspx#sm.000o8j4aw11areguzw82pkfrvrl1i> [Accessed 3rd November 2016]
Wreden, N. (1999) Mapping the Frontiers on Email Marketing. Harvard Management Communication Letter.