Category Archives: email design

Email Critique: CMS Vendor Asks Too Many Questions

As data sheets go, the design below from Ektron, a New Hampshire-based developer of CMS (Content Management System) software, has its merits. Unfortunately, it’s not a data sheet, it’s an email, and on that score, it breaks virtually every rule in the book. Let me count the ways. 1. Not… Read More

Do Email Open Rates Really Matter?

Open rates are generally paid more attention than they’re due. The ugly truth is this: an open rate is NOT an accurate measure of how many people opened or read an email, neither is it an absolute measure of a subject line’s success. So why are there misconceptions about what… Read More

A Simple Technique for Reducing Bounces & Unsubscribes

It used to be said that the average US business mailing address (snail mail) changes once every 9 months. (That’s individuals moving, not companies.) Fast-forward to today’s highly mobile workforce, where people change jobs like the proverbial underwear, throw in a volatile economy, and more than one-third of the email… Read More

7 Mistakes To Avoid In Your Next Webinar Invitation

I’ve written a number of times in this space about how to maximize response from email Webinar invitations. The campaign below from Parallels, a Swiss-based software company, provides a handy illustration of those techniques by displaying what key mistakes to avoid. For example: 1. Sell the offer, not the product…. Read More

Citrix Email Campaign Crashes on Takeoff

Granted, I’m already sold on the value of Web conferencing, but even then, the email below from Citrix (makers of GoToMeeting) leaves me thoroughly underwhelmed. First, there’s the leading candidate for Most Frequently Used Email Opening of 2009: “In these challenging economic times …” Then there’s a string of lukewarm… Read More