Email and email subject lines

With a number of our clients coming to us with holiday email campaign requests around this time of the year, we've got email marketing on our minds. And since we not only create the designs for these email campaigns but create the content as well, we've been thinking specifically about one of the most important part of a great marketing email: subject lines.

In doing some initial research on subject lines, we came across a great article written by Mailchimp, one of the leaders in low-cost email marketing services.  They have some great metrics on which subject line strategies work, and which don't. You'll be surprised by the results, which you can read in their entirety HERE.

Mailchimp is a great service, especially for small businesses that need to bring their email marketing to a new level of sophistication at a low-cost; however, for our larger clients that have more robust email marketing needs, we typically recommend Blue Sky Factory, a company located in nearby Baltimore. Blue Sky Factory is by far the hottest email service provider in the industry, providing an acclaimed, feature-laden platform and beyond amazing service. Their platform, Publicaster, does things no other email platform can do. These folks just plain know email better than anyone. Make sure to check out their website, and follow them on Twitter!

by Garret Ohm

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Sharpie A Backpack

Earlier this week I wrote about Sharpie’s newest campaign, “Sharpie Uncapped” and how they are taking the idea of aggregating content generated by users through social media and making it pay off. Today on Twitter I learned about another element in their integrated campaign that I also wanted to share.

Apparently they’ve partnered with Office Depot, a huge supplier of Sharpie product, to create “Project Backpack”. Through the site http://www.myprojectbackpack.com, users are encouraged to visit Office Depot to purchase the qualifying backpack and two free Sharpie pens and submit their custom backpack designs. It reminds me a little bit of Champion’s “Hoodie Remix” which I covered HERE.

This is a brilliant effort by Sharpie to use integrated marketing to support their existing Sharpie Uncapped campaign (which is noted on the myprojectbackpack.com site). I imagine through Project Backpack they'll receive tons of great submissions on sharpieuncapped.com. Thanks, @sharpiesusan (another element in their integrated marketing arsenal)

by Garret Ohm

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User Generated Content Is Beautiful

When done properly, marketing using user generated content can be effective at building a brand and beautiful all at the same time. Take for example the site created recently by the brand that essentially owns the permanent marker category, Sharpie. The “Sharpie Uncapped” site, which you can visit HERE is a site that allows users to register to share anything and everything Sharpie. Users can register to upload images directly to the site, or submit images through the web via popular social media platforms such as Flickr and Youtube.

It’s an amazing repository of inspiration and information about the many unique ways consumers are using Sharpie’s products. One look at some of the content on the site and it’s easy to see how the brand could develop an advertising campaign generated from the submissions on the site. It’s also a great way to encourage people to spread the Sharpie message via word-of-mouth marketing, as you can imagine the people who submit will be proud to have their work featured online.

While the visual appeal of the Sharpie site really helps to generate and sustain interest, there are many other categories where user generated content can and has worked: automotive, airlines, snack foods, shoe companies, car dealerships, restaurants, tourist attractions, and more. That said, it’s important not to simply give your customers the keys to the castle, so to speak. In order for a UGC effort to work, it’s key to engage in careful planning, think creatively and to know your audience (including having a healthy knowledge of what could go wrong). Need help? We’ve got that.

by Garret Ohm

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The Simpler The Better

As communications designers, it’s our job to create materials that present information and messaging in the clearest and most compelling possible way. As such, we believe that there is such a thing as providing too much content, which can overwhelm your target audience. We’re advocates of simplicity and conciseness, which is why we wanted to share a link we found chronicling 40 examples of impressive websites where you never have to leave the homepage. Sometimes that’s all you need to communicate a message.

Here are some of our favorites:

See the full list HERE, and get inspired.

by Garret Ohm

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Which Video Player? It Depends…

So you’ve been playing around with that shiny new digital video camera and you’re dying to get some of the video up on the Web so you can share it with friends, add it to your blog, or even feature it on your website. And since you want to keep the process of uploading and presenting them pretty simple, you’ve decided you’d like to use one of the free video uploading/sharing sites that are so popular in our digital society. There are a ton of great options, but for simplicity’s sake, let’s say you’ve narrowed it down to the two most popular, Vimeo and YouTube.

But how do you decide which one to use? They’re both free. They both allow you to sign up and begin uploading and sharing immediately, and they both allow you to build a social network with which to share your videos with relative ease. Indeed, they both have their advantages and disadvantages, so the answer to that question really depends on your objective. Allow me to explain.

Let’s say you’ve invested in a high definition video camera and have just caught some spectacular footage of London at night. Since the content of your video is exceptionally beautiful, you’ll not only want the quality of the playback to be great, but you’ll also want to display it with the best looking video player. This will be especially important when embedding it into your website or blog. If this is the case, Vimeo is for you. Not only is the video playback quality better, but the navigation for the interface disappears after you click play and only reappears when you roll over the video again with the mouse, leaving nothing but the content of the video for you to see in its full splendor. The playback experience on Vimeo is by far and away better than over on YouTube. Here’s one of my favorites:

On the other hand, let’s assume you were out with your pocket-sized Flip video camera and happened to catch Sasquatch sauntering across the road in your hometown. You snatch the camera out of your pocket and catch 25 seconds of proof that he exists. With this video, you might not be as concerned with quality, but you certainly want to make sure that folks all over the world see the video. In this case, choose YouTube. It’s the third most visited Internet site of all time, so with a massive amount of traffic comes a massive opportunity for your video to go viral.

To recap – If you’re looking for high-quality video and a seamless video viewing experience, Vimeo is the solution. But if you’re looking to go viral, you should probably go with YouTube, as it will help ensure your video spreads like wildfire. Now get to uploading!

by Garret Ohm

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