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Email Marketing News

EzyMsg Email Marketing overview in a minute

19/3/2015

 

Are you email marketing campaigns going to shine this year?

29/1/2015

 
PictureThis article appeared in the QHA Review
Email marketing is one of the most powerful and effective forms of marketing used today and it is going nowhere. It is quick to deploy, offers immediate highly measurable results, enables advanced segmentation and personalisation and delivers a high return on investment.

A good email marketing program helps tie together your hotel’s entire buying cycle, from marketing and sales to customer service, connecting the guest with your hotel at all levels. You can easily process reservation transactions and handle customer service inquiries and feedback via email. Through the cycle, you can gather valuable information about your guests that can help you target sales strategies, refine your email database, identify market trends and uncover opportunities for new products and services.

A bad email marketing program is a one way communication piece where you are just stuffing “one size fits all” offers and deals into receivers inboxes.  Your list will fatigue quickly and your emails become less relevant.  It also means your churn rate is high as you need to constantly chase large numbers of new contacts to replace the ones that have become non-responsive on your database.

Our Top Tips for Email Success:

  1. Never ever stop building and refining your email database 
  2. Establish objectives of each campaign before you start
  3. Build a message that is relevant to the recipients interests
  4. Get to the point … quickly! You only have a few seconds
  5. Target specific demographics within your database
  6. Move away from one size fits all communication
  7. Make sure your email designs look great on mobile devices
  8. Test, test and re-test. Never stop refining your campaigns.
  9. Determine your best time to send. Not all businesses are the same
  10. Pay much more attention to the senders name and subject line.
  11. Don’t hide your call to action. Make it obvious what you want people to do.  If it’s a button make it a BIG button.  If it’s a link to click on make sure it’s underlined.

To achieve the maximum results from your email marketing program requires experience, expertise and advanced technology as well as some time to get it right.  Amazing results are there for companies that spend the time.

Speak to an Expert

How to avoid Gmail clipping your email marketing campaigns

28/1/2015

 
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Did you know that Gmail desktop clips HTML emails that have a message size larger than 102kb?  It hides the full content behind a View entire message link (below). While this in itself of course isn't good news, it gets worse because it can also hurt your email reputation.
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Why are emails being clipped in Gmail bad for you and what you can do to fix this issue?

Possible Spam Complaints

Unsubscribe links usually sit at the bottom of your email so if your email has been clipped subscribers can't see this.  So what are they likely to do?  Just click on the mark this as SPAM button.  Ouch!  This situation could also damage your email reputation and deliverability.

Two step reading ... ughhh!

For people to be able to read your entire email they have to click the View entire message link to open up a new window to see the entire email.  How many busy people do you think will do this?  It's more likely they will just hit the delete button.

How to fix the issue. Minimise HTML

Gmail clips emails that are 102 KB or larger. This only includes the underlying HTML file, not images that are loaded from an external location.

So to prevent Gmail from cutting off part of your email, all you need to do is make your HTML document as light as possible.
  • Remove all comments from your HTML code. A comment like
    <!-- News overview starts here --> is of course super handy for creating emails in HTML, but takes up unnecessary space in recipients' inboxes.

  • The same goes for tabs, double spaces and white spaces in your HTML code. Eliminate them from your email document before deployment.

Online tools

Minimising HTML documents by hand is very time consuming to say the least. Fortunately, there are many online tools available that can do this for you automatically. Some examples:

Text Fixer
HTML minifier
HTML compressor
Mini Web Tool

Emails larger than 102kb

If for whatever reason you're not able to minimise your HTML file below 102kb, then at least take the following steps:
  • Put a clearly visible link to the web version of your email in the top of your email document. Because you host this version yourself, Gmail has no influence on the way it's displayed.
  • Include an opt-out link at the top of your emails. This way you'll minimise the chance that the recipient will report your message as spam when they're not able to find an unsubscribe link.
  • Use a list unsubscribe header. This'll allow you to include an extra opt-out button at the top of your emails, reducing the number of spam complaints.
Speak to an Expert

Email Marketing Power Tip #13: Database Cleaning

24/11/2014

 
Have you ever wondered, why is my final send total different to that of my overall list total?

Answer: EzyMsg excludes any unsubscribed, bounced, and duplicate contacts from your final send.

EzyMsg reads these as DEAD CONTACTS, with our recommendation being to remove those contacts. Find below steps to ensure that your databases are clean of dead contacts:

How to Remove Unsubscribers

  1. Go to CONTACTS
  2. Use the CURRENT LIST drop downs to locate your list
  3. Select the ADVANCED SEARCH icon (located far right next to LEGEND icon)
  4. 1st drop down choose SUBSCRIBED
  5. 2nd drop down choose IS
  6. 3rd drop down choose NO
    Unsubscribed is No
  7. Click SEARCH to display all contacts that have unsubscribed
  8. Select the checkbox located top left to automatically select all 10 contacts
    Selecting Contacts
  9. Then click SELECT ALL on the yellow notification bar
  10. Finally, click ACTIONS fly-up menu > DELETE > OK

How to Remove Bounces

  1. Go to CONTACTS
  2. Use the CURRENT LIST drop downs to locate your list
  3. Select the ADVANCED SEARCH icon (located far right next to LEGEND icon)
  4. 1st drop down choose ACTIVATION STATUS
  5. 2nd drop down choose IS
  6. 3rd drop down choose INACTIVE
    Activation Status is Inactive
  7. Click SEARCH to display all contacts that have permanently bounced
  8. Select the checkbox located top left to automatically select all 10 contacts
    Selecting Contacts
  9. Then click SELECT ALL on the yellow notification bar
  10. Finally, click ACTIONS fly-up menu > DELETE > OK

How to Remove Duplicates

  1. Go to LISTS
  2. Use the CURRENT LIST drop downs to locate your list
  3. Select the checkbox beside the list you want to remove duplicates from
  4. Click the ACTIONS fly-up menu > REMOVE DUPLICATES
  5. Find all Contacts that have the same = EMAIL
  6. Check the box for Show rows with blank entries
    Duplicates
  7. Click SEARCH to display all duplicate contacts
  8. Select the checkbox located top left to automatically select all 10 contacts
    Removing Duplicates
  9. Then click SELECT ALL on the yellow notification bar
  10. Finally, click ACTIONS fly-up menu > DELETE > OK

Email Marketing Design Tip #3: Order Stacked Columns

24/11/2014

 
Got two or more columns of content in your responsive email design, but find them stacking in the wrong order when viewed on mobile devices? This simple coding technique will put them in their place.

When coding emails, there are likely times when you wish you had a little more control. For example, when creating layouts with the intent of stacking multiple columns (or technically, table cells) for easy reading on mobile displays, the natural order when using % column widths is left on top of right. But, how about if you wanted an image in a right-hand side column to stack on top of some text in a left-hand column? The answer is something quite unlikely - the dir attribute.

Quite simply, dir allows you to change the ordering of any HTML elements, although its original purpose is to adjust content for right-to-left text (as you likely know, the browser default in places that use Romanized text is left-to-right). It's also supported in every email client that we know of.

By applying dir="rtl" to a table (thus changing the order in which nested cells stack) and dir="ltr" to the cells within (to ensure the text reads left-to-right instead of, well, backwards), you can reverse the browser/email client defaults and reliably stack content when it's viewed on small viewports. Here's the simplified code:
/* Media query for mobile*/
@media only screen and (max-width: 480px)  {
  .full {
    display:block;
    width:100%;
  }
}
...

/* HTML */
<table dir="rtl" width="100%">
  <tr>
    <td width="50%" dir="ltr" >
      <p>Right-hand side content: Stacks on top on mobile</p>                 
    </td>
    <td width="50%" dir="ltr" >      
      <p>Left-hand side content: Stacks underneath on mobile</p>      
    </td>
  </tr>
</table>

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The natural order when using % column widths
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Applying dir=rtl when using % column widths
    And that's a wrap. With an understanding of these techniques, you can take control of your content flow on any device

New and Improved Autoresponders

24/11/2014

 
An autoresponder is an email or SMS that is triggered in response to a customer’s action, such as a ‘welcome email’ in response to a newsletter sign up. Autoresponders are often under used especially considering they can receive a higher response rate than regular emails.

WHY USE AUTORESPONDERS?
  • Generally receive a higher response rate than regular emails
  • They're great at engaging your audience at the right time  
  • Saves you countless hours on manual tasks

We've also created popular pre-built autoresponders which are now available in your account. They're super easy to customise and you can find them under the new automation tab.
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If you already use autoresponders and advanced campaigns don't worry they'll all still work. But they've moved to a new home you can find them both now under the automation tab. 
Login to start using Autoresponders!

Inbox By Gmail: How will it effect Email Marketing?

11/11/2014

 
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The Gmail development team over at Google has been really busy lately. Over the past year and a half, they have made numerous changes to Gmail—including quick actions, image caching, the auto-unsubscribe, and more. Earlier this week, they released yet another change (and perhaps the biggest one yet). They launched an entirely new email app, Inbox by Gmail.

While built by the Gmail team, Inbox is not meant as a replacement for Gmail. The team over at Google assured that “Gmail’s still there for you, but Inbox is something new.” Inbox is currently only available for @gmail.com addresses—it is not yet available for business app email addresses. At the moment, it’s only accessible via the Chrome browser, and iOS and Android apps.


WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN FOR EMAIL MARKETERS + DESIGNERS?

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A more visual inbox
While Gmail moved towards a more visual inbox with the introduction of the Pinterest-like Promotions tab (still an opt-in feature), Inbox takes it to a new level with Highlights. Highlights showcases information from the email in the inbox view underneath the sender image, from name, subject line, and preheader text.

This feature enables users to see key information, such as flight itineraries and photos, without having to open the email. Similar to quick actions, you can use a little code, called schema, to include these visible actions in the inbox. You can use these markups to add images, reservation information, and more directly within your subscriber’s inbox!

Responsive email
Despite all the innovation and forward thinking displayed by Inbox, it appears as though these advancements have been layered on top of Gmail’s existing rendering engine, which lacks support for responsive design. That’s right—Inbox doesn’t support responsive emails. This isn’t a huge surprise, but it’s still disappointing. Gmail mobile apps for iOS and Android (as well as Gmail on the web) have a long history of stripping out CSS—and the media queries that make responsive email design possible—placed in the <head> of HTML emails.

There is no support for responsive email in Inbox (or the Gmail app) whereas iOS Mail offers full support for media queries.
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Inbox by Gmail (Not responsive)
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iOS Mail (Responsive)
So you know what Inbox looks like and how it works, but what does it mean for email marketing? It was only released a few days ago, so we’ll keep our eye on it, but here are a few email design quirks to note:
  • No support for media queries. Be sure to use mobile-friendly design elements like a single column design, large text, and touch-friendly buttons so Inbox mobile app users can easily interact with your emails.
  • Uses Google+ profile picture. Like Gmail’s visual Promotions tab, the sender image is pulled from your company’s verified Google+ profile. For senders that don’t have a verified Google+ profile, it will display the first letter of your sender name.
  • One line of preheader text. Similar to Gmail, Inbox displays one line of preheader text next to the subject line. Use this critical space to further encourage your subscribers to open your email and take action.
  • Images automatically enabled. Last year, Gmail started downloading images automatically (of course, after they’ve been cached and checked for viruses). You can rest-assured that your subscribers using Inbox will see your design and associated content. However, you’ll still need to optimize for images off through the use of bulletproof buttons, ALT text, background colors, and a proper balance of imagery and live text, since many other clients do not display images by default.

Continue to send relevant, timely emails
With this new inbox essentially burying marketing (and even transactional emails), it’s more important than ever to only send emails that resonate with your subscriber. Relevancy is crucial! And, as always, be sure your sender image, from name, subject line, and preheader text are optimized to encourage opens.

In addition, consider longer lead times for your emails. If your subscribers have set their bundles so they only receive them once a week, then they miss out on key deals and promotions.

DON’T send an email about Inbox
When Gmail’s tabbed inbox was released, there were a flurry of emails explaining how to “move us to your Primary tab”—we don’t recommend sending those. If your subscribers are engaged with your brand, then they will actively search for your emails (and perhaps even pin them!). Wouldn’t you rather send an email with an impactful, relevant CTA than ask your subscribers for a favor?

You may see a decrease in Gmail opens…but don’t worry!
Similar to quick actions, Highlights enables users to take action without opening an email. While it may affect open rates, Highlights are a great opportunity for email marketers. Not only will the visual element help your email stand out in the inbox, but they offer direct access to conversion opportunities without users needing to open an email. While your open rates may decrease, your conversion rates may go up (that’s a win!). Test to see what resonates with your subscribers (maybe an A/B test on the image used in Highlights?).

December Email Marketing Calendar

15/10/2014

 
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Get your own email marketing calendar for free.  Click on the link to download the calendar and get your email marketing campaigns organised for December.
Email Marketing Calendar
File Size: 181 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

iPhone 6: What does this mean for email Marketing design?

5/10/2014

 
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The iPhone 6 has arrived and once again consumers are queuing out the door to purchase Apple's latest offering.

Of course the new iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus boast a whole host of new features; and most email marketers and designers are wondering how this will affect the messages subscribers receive on these new devices.

Screen Size

The biggest news about Apple's latest smartphones is their increased screen size. During the four years between the release of the very first iPhone and the iPhone 5, the width of the screen never changed. Email designers will now need to account for the diversity in iPhone screen sizes when creating responsive and mobile-friendly emails. In many cases, adjustments to media queries and breakpoints for responsive or adaptive emails will be necessary.

Below is how each of the new devices compares to their predcessor the iPhone 5.
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Traditionally, as the iPhone is the most popular device for viewing email, many email designers used that device as the main breakpoint when setting up responsive emails.

A lot of templates typically use a media query like this:
@media screen and (max-device-width: 320px)

The main thing that these new dimensions highlight is that responsive or mobile friendly design is now the best way to build emails for all users. And, although scaled emails look great on the larger iPhone devices, just sending a campaign optimized for the desktop is no longer acceptable in the mobile world.

With the new screen sizes of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, the traditional media queries need to be adapted. There is no longer a “one media query to rule them all” for iPhones. At the very least, your new media queries need to start at 414 pixels.
@media screen and (max-device-width: 414px)

To make matters a little more confusing; at this point I'd like to make a special mention of the unique display dimensions of the iPhone 6 Plus.

Internally, the iPhone 6 Plus native resolution is 1242px by 2208px. However this is actually downsampled into a 1080px display as its physical representation. The above media query breakpoint of 414px is calculated by it's native resolution of 1242px/3 device pixel ratio.

Email on iPhone 6

Apple’s Mail on iOS has long been regarded as one of the best mobile email experiences. Rendering is usually bulletproof, with support for the latest in HTML and CSS. Plus, email marketers have had support for some of their favorite techniques like preheader text, responsive emails, and even video in email. But, how does iOS 8 and a larger iPhone affect the email experience?

THE INBOX
The first noticeable difference between the iPhones 6 and older models is that the increased screen sizes allow for more space for Mail to display content. This means that, when looking at the inbox, more emails are visible. More importantly, Mail on the new iPhones display more characters in the from name, subject line, and preheader text. This could be highly valuable for email marketers since they will be able to provide more information for subscribers right in the inbox view.

PRE HEADER TEXT
We’ve long recommended using preheader text to help inform subscribers and draw them into an email. Now, with the iPhone 6 Plus’ 5.5 inch Retina display, preheader text lovers have a whopping three lines of preheader text available to them.
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LANDSCAPE MODE
Apple has also introduced a new view for the iPhone 6 Plus. With the added screen real estate, they have introduced a new landscape view, similar to how the iPad has traditionally displayed the Mail app.

While this had email designers initiallly concerned that this would add yet another breakpoint to account for, our testing has shown that there is likely some scaling going on and this view renders emails using the same targeting and breakpoints for the iPhone 6 Plus. It should be noted that the sidebar in the landscape mode can be collapsed, displaying emails at full width.

Our final evaluation: should we be concerned?

Do the two larger iPhones mark a drastic change for email designers? Do we all need to completely rethink how we approach our campaigns?

No, we don't believe the introduction of Apple's two new phones is that drastic of a shift from what we have currently been dealing with.  For a long time now, email designers have had to think and consider the possiblity of their emails being viewed on multiple screen sizes and devices.

The new display sizes mean that we need to think about our responsive layouts a bit more and it’s likely that email designers will need to adjust their media queries to account for these larger iPhones at some point.

However through our initial testing of the EzyMsg mobile friendly templates we're happy to find that so far there has been some scaling taking place when viewing on these new devices and emails are still rendered in an optimised format.

EzyMsg Design

Exciting new features: 70+ new templates plus a new image manager

11/9/2014

0 Comments

 
The EzyMsg team are very excited to announce the launch of our new email templates which will make it easier to create beautiful emails.

Have a look at the gallery below to check out some of the awesome new email marketing template designs!
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New files and images manager
We've also just launched a new files and images manager so you can do much more in less time.
  • Select multiple images (great for bulk deleting / moving images)
  • Drag files straight into the image manager
  • Easily rename files
  • A selection of free stock images and buttons.
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Don't forget about the in-built image editor where you can edit your images directly in your EzyMsg account, no need to jump between different programs.
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These new features are now available in your account NOW!
Login and take a look at the impressive new templates that will make designing beautiful emails that much easier.

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