VerticalResponse teamed up with GoToWebinar to put on a webinar about how to launch a great webinar and how to use email marketing to drive people to it. We didn't get to all of the questions so here they are are with our answers from Richard our Manager of ISP Relations and Josh our VP of Product Management. BTW, the webinar can be found here for those of you who weren't able to make it. (Windows 2000 or higher only :-()
Question: Does VerticalResponse allow purchased email lists?
Answer: VerticalResponse does not allow the use of third party email lists to use with our solutions. If you do rent a list with another provider, make sure the list owner emails your offer on behalf of you to their members.
Question: How do you recommend we build our mailing list?
Answer:
1. If you have a website, put an opt-in form up there. VerticalResponse provides a form creator free of charge.
2. If you have a storefront, put several sign-up books or note pads out where people can sign-up for your email updates.
3. When meeting people, exchange cards and ask if they're interested in your company and if they'd like to be added to your mailing list.
4. Give people a reason to sign-up! An interesting newsletter or a chance at special offers will get more sign-ups than a generic marketing email.
5. Check out the Building an Email List section of our Email Marketing blog to get more ideas.
A great combination of building your list from the ground up and advertising it can help you in the long run.
Question: On average what is an acceptable open rate and click through rate for any e-mail campaign?
Answer: VerticalResponse published a Trend Watch Report for the first half of 2006 by industry and list size. You can see where you're averages should fall by looking up your industry.
Question: What kind of some spam words and content should we avoid in our email campaigns?
Answer: There are a number of phrases and words to avoid. Some examples would be:
“Will not believe your eyes”
“Save big money”
“Join millions of Americans”
“Act now! Don't hesitate!”
A full list of potentially problematic spam words and phrases can be seen here.
Is your email going to be filtered simply because you have a word or phrase that the spam filter doesn’t like? Probably not. Most spam filters score your email based on a number of factors, so don’t feel like need to scrub your content of everything shown in the list I linked above. Just keep this info in mind when creating your content.
Question: How can I join a whitelist?
Answer: It is difficult to get whitelisted without the help of your Service Provider. You may not be the only person mailing through your IP Address (something you must know in order to be whitelisted) and so cannot vouch for everything going out through that IP. Note that if you are already using a program like VerticalResponse then this is something that you really don’t have to worry about.
But still, you can check out the whitelisting process an ISP like AOL has in place.
Question: How can I find out if I’m on a blacklist?
Answer: To check if you’re on a blacklist you need to find out your IP Address, and then check a SPAM Database list like the one found at DNSstuff.
Question: Does VerticalResponse offer “Forward to a Friend” functionality?
Answer: Yes we do. You can add a forward to a friend link to any email sent out using our service. This will allow your recipients to easily pass the email on to others, and also gives those “friends” to whom the email is passed an easy way to opt-in to your mailing list.
Question: Are you integrated with salesforce.com?
Answer: Yes, we are. Take a look!
Hope you got something out of this. If you have other questions, feel free to comment!
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