email strategy, design and user experience

EMAIL STRATEGY, DESIGN AND USER EXPERIENCEJustine Jordan, Litmus

AGENDA

‣ Introductions ‣Laying a great foundation ‣The subscriber experience ‣ Increasing performance through A/B tests ‣Email review / group exercise !YES! You can download the slides: litmus.com/lp/generalassembly

‣Content, education, community at Litmus ‣Previously at ExactTarget ‣Midwest born and bred ‣ I ♥ email

I’M JUSTINE.HELLO!

@meladorri @litmusapp

HELLO!

‣Your name ‣Where you work / your company ‣What you do there ‣What email-related challenges are you facing? ‣What are you hoping to learn tonight?

GETTING TO KNOW YOU…

HAVE YOU HEARD? EMAIL IS DEAD.

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

OR NOT.

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

‣Effective — yields more ROI than any other channel ‣ Inexpensive — sending one email < $0.01 ‣ Immediate — no complicated set-up ‣Measurable — opens, clicks, conversions roll in right away ‣Easy — software makes it so!

!

It works—and customers prefer it.

EMAIL 101

‣ It’s all about permission ‣Not implied ‣Not purchased ‣Expires after a certain period of time !Respect the user’s inbox

EMAIL ≠ SPAM

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

Emails are not weapons of mass destruction.

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

‣Physical mailing address ‣A way to unsubscribe ‣Don’t make the user jump through hoops ‣Process request within 10 days ‣Opt-in / permission required in some countries ‣Prior business relationship usually OK !Know the law in the countries you send to

CAN-SPAM, CASL AND OTHER ACRONYMS

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

“… you recently created a Litmus account.”

“… you recently downloaded our templates.”

“… you recently ran a test.”

“… you signed up for our newsletter.”

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

You got this email because…

EVERY EMAIL SHOULD HAVE A

PURPOSE.EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

EMAIL IS: A unique medium with unique considerations

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

EMAIL IS NOT: A JPG A print ad A banner ad A one-page web site

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

‣WHO are you sending to? ‣WHAT do you want them to do? ‣WHEN is it appropriate to send the message? ‣WHERE will the recipient read it? ‣WHY are you sending this message? ‣HOW are you going to measure success?

ASK THE FIVE W’S

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

‣ Internal vs. external ‣B2B vs. B2C ‣Demographics ‣Know your audience!

WHO

‣Register for a webinar ‣Read an article ‣Buy something

WHAT

‣Triggered vs. mass ‣Drip or automation ‣Behavioral-based ‣Day and time

WHEN

‣Mobile / tablet ‣Web browser / webmail ‣Desktop / at work

WHERE

‣Brand awareness ‣Content marketing ‣ Influence behavior ‣Drive purchases

WHY

‣Opens ‣Clicks ‣Conversions

HOW

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

NO PLAN? NO PURPOSE?

NO EMAIL.

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

‘WHERE’ HAS BECOME A COMPLICATED QUESTION.

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

25%

27%

48%

Mobile Desktop Webmail

‣Smartphones (iPhone, Android) and tablets

!‣ Installed email programs

(Outlook, Apple Mail)

!‣Email accessed through a web browser

(Gmail, Hotmail, Yahoo!)

MOBILE

DESKTOP

WEBMAIL

MOBILE EMAIL: +400% since 2011

TYPES OF EMAIL YOU SHOULD SEND

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

‣Lead nurturing ‣Drip campaigns ‣Product updates/announcements ‣Actions (and inactions) ‣Brand awareness ‣Events and webinars ‣Follow-ups

MORE EMAIL OPPORTUNITIES

FROM NAME SUBJECT LINE PREHEADER OPEN TAP/CLICK PAGE/SITE

SUBSCRIBER EXPERIENCE

FROM NAME SUBJECT LINE PREHEADER OPEN TAP/CLICK PAGE/SITE

‣What is recognizable, trustworthy and relevant? ‣Does the subscriber have a relationship with

a person or the brand?

FROM NAME SUBJECT LINE PREHEADER OPEN TAP/CLICK PAGE/SITE

FROM NAME SUBJECT LINE PREHEADER OPEN TAP/CLICK PAGE/SITE

FROM NAME SUBJECT LINE PREHEADER OPEN TAP/CLICK PAGE/SITE

+ open rates – gimmick ~ value

SYMBOLS IN SUBJECT LINES

Source: https://litmus.com/blog/how-to-write-the-perfect-subject-line-infographic

THE PERFECT SUBJECT LINE?1. ‘Free’ is okay!

2. Shorter = better?

3. Relevance

4. Specific

5. Useful

6. Test!

FROM NAME SUBJECT LINE PREHEADER

FROM NAME SUBJECT LINE PREHEADER OPEN TAP/CLICK PAGE/SITE

FROM NAME SUBJECT LINE PREHEADER OPEN TAP/CLICK PAGE/SITE

FROM NAME SUBJECT LINE PREHEADER OPEN TAP/CLICK PAGE/SITE

‣Support your subject line ‣Call to action ‣Reminder ‣Special message ‣Make it measurable

BE CREATIVE, USEFUL, HELPFUL, FUNNY OR ENGAGING

✔

✔

✔

✘

✘

FROM NAME SUBJECT LINE PREHEADER OPEN TAP/CLICK PAGE/SITE

FROM NAME SUBJECT LINE PREHEADER OPEN TAP/CLICK PAGE/SITE

~25 characters 25% of the inbox !!~35 characters 25% of the inbox !!~85 characters 50% of the inbox

FROM NAME

SUBJECT LINE

PREHEADER

FROM NAME SUBJECT LINE PREHEADER OPEN TAP/CLICK PAGE/SITE

FROM NAME SUBJECT LINE PREHEADER OPEN TAP/CLICK PAGE/SITE

‣Prioritize and prune ‣Use color, weight & size for emphasis ‣Bullets are your friends ‣Use rational & emotional appeals ‣Link images and text ‣Use a variety of media (charts, buttons,

graphics, images, videos) for visual interest and to communicate

ENGAGE THE USER

FROM NAME SUBJECT LINE PREHEADER OPEN TAP/CLICK PAGE/SITE

FROM NAME SUBJECT LINE PREHEADER OPEN TAP/CLICK PAGE/SITE

“Does your iPhone fold? …Mine doesn’t…”

FROM NAME SUBJECT LINE PREHEADER OPEN TAP/CLICK PAGE/SITE

“Scrolling is easier than clicking.”

FROM NAME SUBJECT LINE PREHEADER OPEN TAP/CLICK PAGE/SITE

‣Minimize friction ‣Be clear and concise ‣Test buttons vs. text ‣Use active language ‣Consider size, placement,

color, and context

CREATE A GREAT CTA

FROM NAME SUBJECT LINE PREHEADER OPEN TAP/CLICK PAGE/SITE

FROM NAME SUBJECT LINE PREHEADER OPEN TAP/CLICK PAGE/SITE

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

‣Create hierarchy with symbols ‣Avoid hard breaks ‣Put links on a new line ‣Tabs, spacing and CAPs to organize ‣Convey imagery with text

DON’T FORGET THE TEXT VERSION

REVIEW: WHY ARE THESE ON THE ‘BAD EXAMPLES’ SLIDE?

EMAIL: UNDER THE HOOD

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

‣HTML for email is not HTML for the web ‣Code like it’s 1999; use HTML tables for layout ‣Think in modules: images and text should be in their own table cell ‣Avoid CSS for positioning or layout ‣Rely on progressive enhancement / graceful degradation

‣No JavaScript, Flash, forms… ‣Web standards don’t apply; support for HTML and CSS is wonky ‣Use inline CSS(Gmail strips out the <style> block) ‣Background images are not supported in Outlook 2007+ ‣ Web-based email clients behave differently based on the browser (IE vs Firefox)

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

‣Many different email apps and programs ‣Varying support for HTML/CSS ‣Screen sizes ‣ Individual preferences ‣PREVIEW / TEST!

OUTLOOK, GMAIL, IPHONE…

THE MOBILE FACTOR

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

25%

27%

48%

Mobile Desktop Webmail

‣Smartphones (iPhone, Android) and tablets

!‣ Installed email programs

(Outlook, Apple Mail)

!‣Email accessed through a web browser

(Gmail, Hotmail, Yahoo!)

MOBILE

DESKTOP

WEBMAIL

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

70%+ open on mobile >15% open on mobile

80.3%

30.2%

13.5%

3.8%

6.3%

If you get an email on your phone that doesn’t look good, what do you do?

Source: BlueHornet Study: Consumer Views of Email Marketing, 2012 and 2013

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

Delete it

Unsubscribe

View on computer

Don't know

Read anyway

0 25 50 75 100

+68%

+15%

The finger is the new mouse

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

BIGGER IS BETTER

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

‣Body copy: 16px+ ‣Headlines: 22px+ ‣Buttons: 44px by 44px ‣Space: 10px+ ‣Tappable touch targets

iOS will resize fonts under 13px -webkit-text-size-adjust: none;

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

iOS tries to help…

‣Make phone calls

‣Track packages

‣Find addresses

‣Create events

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

Bright screen = dead battery

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

email mobile version web site

Kill ‘mobile versions’

Large text

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

‣More than a “line of code” ‣Set of conditional statement that enables specific styles ‣ If the screen size is x, then display y ‣ If the screen size is x, then increase headline size to y ‣ If screen size is x, then show image at 100%

‣Detects screen size, not device type ‣Not supported in every mobile email app

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT RESPONSIVE EMAIL

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

Email is an application and occasionally a mobile browser

Rendering is inconsistent across devices and operating systems

WHICH TEST WON?EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

Email is the ideal environment for fast, easy, and cheap testing. !BUT—what works for one email won’t always work for another.

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

‣Time of day ‣Day of week ‣Subject lines ‣Creative look/feel ‣ Imagery ‣Call to action

CREATE A HYPOTHESIS SO YOUR TEST IS REPEATABLE.‣Preheader ‣Navigation ‣Content layout ‣Length of content ‣Personalization ‣Segmentation

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

Subject lines ‣Specific vs vague ‣Buzzy vs straightforward !Call to action ‣Product vs content ‣Click opportunities !Video thumbnails ‣Person vs product !Button color ‣Green vs blue

SOME TESTS WE’VE RUN AT LITMUS…

Version A: Green button Version B: Blue button

Version A: Green button Version B: Blue button

NO CHANGE

Version A: Start testing Version B: Read our overview

Version A: Start testing Version B: Read our overview

2X CLICKS

Subject line A:

Don’t forward this…

!Subject line B:

The best way to share emails

SUBJECT LINES

Subject line A:

Don’t forward this…

!Subject line B:

The best way to share emails

SUBJECT LINES

54% MORE CLICKS

Separate sections

vs

All links together

DIGEST EMAIL

Separate sections

vs

All links together

DIGEST EMAIL30% MORE CLICKS

MEASURING SUCCESS

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

‣Twitter mentions ‣Unsolicited comments ‣Endorsements ‣Web visits ‣Blog comments ‣Anecdotal evidence

BEYOND THE OBVIOUS

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

@litmusapp mentions

GREAT RESOURCES !!litmus.com/lp/generalassembly

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

Q&AEMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

PLAN YOUR NEXT GREAT EMAIL

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

EMAIL STRATEGY / DESIGN / USER EXPERIENCE

‣Who ‣What ‣When ‣Where ‣Why ‣How

FIVE W’S‣Audience ‣Objective ‣Goal

BRIEF‣Subject line ‣From name ‣From address ‣Preheader text ‣Headline ‣Subhead ‣Copy ‣Call to action ‣Graphics / images

PLAN

Sketch a wireframe of your email and identify key components.

‣Elements ‣Your hypothesis ‣Success criteria

TEST

THANKS!

‣Body Level One ‣Body Level Two ‣Body Level Three ‣Body Level Four ‣Body Level Five

JUSTINE JORDAN‣Body Level One ‣Body Level Two ‣Body Level Three ‣Body Level Four ‣Body Level Five

‣ justine@litmus.com ‣ litmus.com ‣@meladorri ‣@litmusapp !litmus.com/lp/generalassembly