Presentation from Silverpop's Agent ROI Digital Marketing Tour. NYC, Nov. 8th, 2011

1. CRACKING THE CODE:
Keys to Email Creative Success
Justine Jordan | Marketing Director | Litmus | @meladorri + @litmusapp
#spoptour

2. WHO AM I?
• 5+ years in email
marketing
• Design & production
• A “left-brained”
creative
• I’m a marketer, too!
#spoptour

3. LET’S TALK ABOUT…
• Why does design matter?
• Great design helps you visualize success. It
requires an action plan with measurable goals.
• It’s more than pretty pictures!
• Creating an excellent subscriber experience
• Quick wins for mobile optimization
#spoptour

4. THE ACTION PLAN
• WHO are you sending to?
• WHAT are you trying to communicate?
• WHEN is it appropriate to send the message?
• WHERE will the recipient read it?
• WHY are you sending this message?
• HOW does the recipient take action?
#spoptour

5. THE ACTION PLAN
• WHO are you sending to?
• WHAT are you trying to communicate?
• WHEN is it appropriate to send the message?
• WHERE will the recipient read it?
• WHY are you sending this message?
• HOW does the recipient take action?
= SUBSCRIBER EXPERIENCE
#spoptour

6. WHAT
are you saying to me?
aka “do you make sense”
#spoptour

7. FIRST IMPRESSIONS MATTER
Sender Subject line
• What is recognizable, trustworthy and
relevant?
• Does the subscriber have a relationship with a
person, or the brand?
#spoptour

8. FIRST IMPRESSIONS MATTER
Use subscriber-friendly language
#spoptour

9. WHAT ARE YOU SAYING?
• What’s the point?
• Is there enough context for understanding?
• Appeal to emotional and rational drivers.
• Use imagery, data and personalization when
appropriate.
• Tie subject line, headlines and calls to action
together. Follow through.
• Don’t forget the landing page!

10. WHAT IS
THE
MESSAGE?
#spoptour

11. A POSITIVE EXPERIENCE?

12. A POSITIVE EXPERIENCE?
Add to cart?
Where’s the download?

13. MESSAGE HIERARCHY
• Content hierarchy
• Prioritize important
information
• Prune extraneous and
irrelevant content
• Visual hierarchy
• Use color, weight, size and
placement to provide
emphasis
• Bullets are your friends

14. 8.15.2011 | Page # Internal Only

15. Internal Only

16. HOW
do you want me to take action?
aka “tell me what to do”
#spoptour

17. OPPORTUNITIES TO ENGAGE
• Linked imagery
• Video
• Buttons
• Charts
• Colored backgrounds
• Preheader text
• Forward & share

18. MAKE IT OBVIOUS
• What’s the call to action?
• Use buttons, context, active language

19. WHAT
SHOULD I
DO?
#spoptour

20. WHAT
SHOULD I
DO?
#spoptour

21. WHAT
SHOULD I
DO?
#spoptour

22. WHERE
am I reading your email?
aka “the mobile factor”
#spoptour

23. BIGGER IS BETTER
Beware minimum font sizes; automatic resizing
• Body copy < 13px will be resized
• Recommended minimums
• Body copy: 14px
• Headlines: 22px
• CSS fix: “-webkit-text-size-adjust: none;”

24. NO-GO NAVIGATION

25. CREATE TOUCH TARGETS
The finger is the new mouse
Design for tappable touch targets; not text links
44 x 44px minimum

26. CREATE TOUCH TARGETS
Text Buttons Image “Buttons”

27. STREAMLINE
Single column layout; simplified content
• Get skinny: 320-550px wide
• Short, direct copy
• Eliminate or hide low priority content
• Clear and direct calls to action
• Make it obvious

28. DITCH THE “MOBILE VERSION”
Why the extra click?
email mobile version web site

29. DITCH THE “MOBILE VERSION”

30. “MOBILE FIRST”

31. TAKEAWAYS
• Design for your subscribers
• For every email, ask:
• WHAT am I trying to say?
• HOW will subscribers take action?
• WHERE will the email be read?
• Make everything simple, obvious & clear
• Consider “mobile first”

32. THANKS!
Justine Jordan
Marketing Director, Litmus
Testing & analytics tools
justine@litmus.com
www.slideshare.net/litmusapp
@meladorri @litmusapp