This email from Salesforce.com inviting corporate customers to visit them at CES last week has the incorrect year in the headline graphic.
Some people forget to write the correct year on their checks, others in their marketing communications.
Lesson: Proof every element of your direct marketing communication.
Examples of and lessons from communications that neglect basic direct marketing Best Practices.
1/13/2013
Salesforce is so last year
Labels: direct marketing, direct mail, e-mail
creative,
Salesforce
11/27/2012
Facebook sends email at the worst time, perhaps on purpose
DirectMarketing guru Bob Stone once said, “Once JCPenney has its first Christmas Sale, you are
done for the year except for giving gifts and charity.” Back then, JCPenney
actually had sales and, when he said that, JCPenney’s first sale was typically
around November 7.
A separate direct marketing conventional wisdom is that
sending marketing communications too close to a holiday dilutes the likelihood
that a customer will read it. Consumers
are focused on preparing to travel or host people -- or perhaps a holiday event
-- to read what you send. And when they
return, they are focused on digging through the most important email (or snail
mail) to read marketing communications.
These two things intersect when considering that Facebook recently sent
this notification of a change in privacy policy to its users at around 11:12 pm
on the day before Thanksgiving. That would be a Fail for Timing.
Or perhaps they did not want many to read it – the email
was a notice of a change in terms that are not favorable to Facebook's users.
Some people have interpreted this change to mean they have to declare their
postings off limits while sharing with hundreds of friends, leading to
explanations on Snopes
and news sites.
Lesson: If you
want people to read your email, avoid sending it too close to a holiday. If you
do not want people to read your email, time it to arrive close to a holiday.
11/13/2012
Embassy Suites: A hotel for old people?
I consider myself a young guy. I haven’t hit my midlife crisis yet, although I did eye a red sports car last week. I relate to ’80s music and take issue when the Classic Rock radio station groups it in with ’60s and ’70s music. Hey, Men Without Hats is still current!
Are they drinking apple juice? |
Perhaps I am older than I perceive myself -- so old that Embassy Suites thinks I am at least 50. Otherwise, why would they send me an email promoting an AARP Member discount? Those people in the picture appear to be older than my parents (or maybe my parents are older than I think they are. Mom still says her age is “39 and a bit”.)
The email is a Fail for both List and Creative. From a List standpoint, the hotel chain and Hilton HHonors should be judicious before sending out age-specific emails. Don’t presume your customers are old -- ask them their age. The Creative Fail is that the picture shows a couple of old people hanging out; however, the image does nothing to suggest that they are at an Embassy Suites hotel. Why not show them enjoying their signature Embassy Suites breakfast or manager’s reception, or perhaps at an outdoor table in front of the hotel? Perhaps the ad designer is concerned the intended target market might confuse the hotel for a local diner serving the early bird special.
Lessons:
- Do not send customers an age-specific message unless you know their age.
- Present your product or service with images of your customers using them.
- Don’t use visuals of old people that make them appear old.
Labels: direct marketing, direct mail, e-mail
creative,
Embassy Suites,
List
11/08/2012
Even the best mail can run afoul of a bad wind
Two weeks ago, I launched a direct mail campaign in the northeast offering prospective customers savings on electricity supply. The mail went out Standard Rate with expectations of reaching prospects in 3-5 business days.
Last week, Hurricane Sandy made its way up the East Coast. Based on the timing of when people on the seed list received their mail, I know that much of the mail arrived as people were preparing for the storm or recovering from the storm. Many people in the area targeted by the direct mail campaign lost power for several days. Saving money on electricity is not top of mind when you have no electricity, so it comes as no surprise that this campaign is not performing up to expectations.
Lessons:
- Develop and use a seed list. A seed list is a group of people who are added to your mailing who are not customers and can note the timing and quality of the mail received. Ideally, they should have addresses that are close to your target market and be fully integrated into the list so your creative agency and mail house treat them exactly the same as your target audience. This article from unsolicitedmarketingadvice.com is a good starting point to learn more about the benefits of seed lists.
- Stuff happens. More professionally stated: sometimes the best planned marketing effort can be impacted by acts of God. Make the best of it, learn from it, and move forward.
11/05/2012
Who Am I? 1 of 3 possible voters at my address
The Pennsylvania Voter ID law requires voters to show proof of identification in order to obtain their right to vote on Election Day. Implementation of the law was postponed until next year, but I thought I would use this Election Day to share some mail I received at home.
A few weeks ago -- before implementation of the law was postponed -- my mailbox included three postcards, all the same. Each one was addressed to a different person with my street address. This means the state of Pennsylvania has three records on file for this address, even though only one person lives here. Perhaps that is why they want to make sure each voter positively represents him or herself.
The three postcards below do not quite merit a Fail for List, because the state is striving to reinforce the new law, but it certainly is interesting. No lesson today, just friendly a reminder to vote.
Not me |
Not me |
The real me |
9/09/2012
Health Magazine: Wandered in a bit late
This advertisement for Wanderlust Yoga in the City was included in the September 14 issue of Entertainment Weekly. It includes a contest that ended August 29 for an event that starts September 7, the same day the issue hit homes. Easy fail for Timing and a waste of Health Magazine advertising dollars.
Lesson: When running a promotion, time your communications appropriately.
8/13/2012
Drake Harper: Vindictive Spammer
Today, I received a spam email from Drake Harper, LLC, an Accounts Receivable firm (AKA collection agency). I made the mistake of clicking on their Unsubscribe link and completing their unsubscribe form. Approximately an hour later, I received this reply:
Lesson: Do not send spam and don't be rude to prospective cusotmers, or they might just write a blog post about you.
You have successfully added your email to our list 5 more times.This is a Fail for List -- sending spam -- and Creative -- writing rude messages to people who are not interested your services and never opted-in for your emails.
Many thanks,
Drake Harper, LLC
[address & ph # redacted]
Lesson: Do not send spam and don't be rude to prospective cusotmers, or they might just write a blog post about you.
Labels: direct marketing, direct mail, e-mail
creative,
Drake Harper,
List
7/22/2012
Celeb Boutique: Look before you tweet
Twitter is a popular way to connect with customers. Trends
can be followed and shared with customers, sometimes automatically. This post on consumerist.com is
an example of being too aggressive. An offshore social media agency for celebboutique.com had misinterpreted
a trend -- no doubt because they were not following U.S. news media.
Lessons:
1) Don't rely on a company located physically and culturally far from your target audience to
develop and execute your marketing communications.
2) Don't leave your marketing communications on
autopilot. You own it, not your agency.
Labels: direct marketing, direct mail, e-mail
Celebboutique,
creative
7/10/2012
7-Eleven: Inconvenient Timing, Quick Recovery
National Slurpee Day is tomorrow, July 11. 7-Eleven sent an email to their loyal
Slurpee enthusiasts reminding them to get their free Slurpee "today".
However, it was sent two days early. Perhaps some eager junior person hit the
Send button too quickly, or 7/11 11:00 am was incorrectly programmed as 7/9
9:00 am. Regardless, this is an easy Fail for Timing.
Three and a half hours later, 7-Eleven emailed a correction.
While it is a late recovery from a Fail, at least the email keeps the mood
positive. I look forward to my free half-Coke half-Cherry Slurpee tomorrow!
7/08/2012
Chase: Double the Mail, Double the Fail
Two, two packages in one |
I recently received not one but two solicitations for the Chase United MileagePlusExplorer card. The pieces were addressed exactly the same to me. The
lack of removing duplicate names is a classic Fail for List.
Is this a side effect of the Continental / United merger? |
The inside flap of the self-mailer shows my mileage balance -- a prudent and
creative method of demonstrating the potential of the credit card by showing
how many miles I can get for acquiring the credit card. However, in this case, the
difference between the two mailers also suggests why I received two of them. One
reflects my miles balance on my legacy Continental OnePass account while the
other reflects my balance on a legacy United MileagePlus account.
The man holding the credit card on the mailer I received appears to be
African-American while the man holding the credit card on the landing page, billboards,
and TV ads look like a young Jeff Goldblum. Why the difference? Did Chase
attempt to appeal to a presumed heritage based on the fact that my last name
is Davis? If so, that would be a Fail for List & Creative because I don’t fit the racial profile.
Chase Bank appeals to an incorrect racial profile -- twice. |
Lessons:
- Dedupe your solicitation mailing list by name and address.
- Carefully consider when and how to use race-based visuals.
Labels: direct marketing, direct mail, e-mail
Chase,
creative,
List,
United Airlines
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