Effective Email Marketing Strategies: Guidelines for Compliance and Best Practices

1. Using email for Marketing ISPA 8 September 2004 John Arnesen

2. Background • IPSA requested that a representative of the Marketing Federation of Southern Africa present the mfsa Guideline on using email for marketing to this conference • www.mfsa.co.za • mfsa setting up GAMPP (Generally Accepted Marketing Principles and Practice) which would include this guideline.

3. Background continued • GAMPP • Codes, Standards, Legislation, Guidelines, Best practice. First edition 2005. • Profession is gaining substance (teeth) • Also wanted a non-technical marketer. • Professional member of mfsa • Chartered Marketer • Commercial perspective • Still in a strategic marketing role at SAQA

4. The Marketer’s perspective

5. Consider • Mercedes vs BMW • ABSA vs Standard Bank • Vodacom vs MTN • Pick‘nPay vs Checkers • SAA vs British Air • Castle vs Windhoek • All actually very similar ito specifications, performance and price

6. Differentiation • In addition to providing quality and value they maintain and grow market share by continuously enhancing: • Brand equity (perception) • Experience (sensory) • Design (look and feel) • The digital medium provides new and exciting ways to do this

8. Marketing paradigms!

9. 20th Century Customer was satisfied with tangibles. 21st Century Tangibles are a given! Intangibles will provide the significant differentiator Paradigm 1

10. 20th Century Idea Product Market Sell Happy consumer 21st Century Understand customer Understand need Develop solution Present and Satisfy Receive payment Paradigm 2

11. 20th Century The important things were Value for money Good service reliability 21st Century The important things are Values of the corporation Relationship with the community Integrity/reputation Paradigm 3

12. Marketing today • Way beyond the 4 P’s • Product, Price, Promotion, Place • Is both a Science and an Art • GAMPP • Is becoming a profession in its own right • 4 Std Based Q’s on NQF 7 plus Professional status CM(SA)

13. Marketing perspectives Just like Finance: • Marketing is everyone’s responsibility • Marketing is disciplined • Marketing requires a unique set of resources • Marketing has a range of sub functions • Marketing is measurable

14. Marketing scope • Research • Needs, Trends, Opportunities • Strategy • Position, Branding, Products/Services, Packaging, Channels, ROMI • Communications • Above the line, Below the line, PR • Customer Management • Retention, Acquisition, Service, Data

15. The guideline….

16. Understanding the Guideline • Mfsa Corporate and individual members subscribe to the code of conduct • Moral obligation to comply with all codes and guidelines • Mfsa, if need be, will take action against a member. (self regulation) • mfsa adopts a positive approach of encouraging compliance

17. Email a new form of Direct Mail? • Initially thought by most marketers to be similar. In fact just a new medium similar to Print, Radio, TV and Outdoor! • mfsa Committee (born out of the DMA) which I joined concluded that email was in fact significantly different and therefore need a separate guideline. (to counter SPAM)

18. Core differences in business (my perspective) • No effective filters • Post and for that matter all other mediums can be screened out • Cost insignificant • Invades time I could be using to do other work

19. Reason for guideline • Excellent tool that unless well managed would be “blocked” out of the marketers tool kit • Some worrying trends in that regard already • Educate the marketing community of how best to make use of the tool. • Still a long way to go…

20. SPAM is… • Unsolicited email - in other words there has been no prior relationship between the two parties • Can be done individually or in bulk • All commercial (advertising and promotions) communications included in the definition

21. Upfront requirements • Express verifyable permission • Clear understanding of purpose • Choice to opt out simple • Ongoing choice to opt out

22. Senders must also ensure…. • Data bases are clean • Failures are regularly deleted permanently • Publish their privacy policy • Have a valid postmaster and abuse address • Ensure email is not objectionable

23. Bulk email senders must… • Maintain complete and accurate records • Have a valid and workable removal procedure • Apply the same removal procedure per unique brand • The agent (if outsourced) complies as above

24. All marketing messages must include…. • Accurate sender details • Valid contact information • Clear honest subject line • Automatic option for un-subscribing • Authorisation if sent by agent

25. Where responses are called for… • The terms and conditions must be clear • This is especially important where personal data is requested. A specific message should be included stating that this data will not be used for other commercial activity.

26. Senders must also… • Use extreme caution when using third parties • Focus on properly segmented customer groups • Respond promptly

27. Who needs to know this? • Academics • Marketers • IT Practitioners • Marketing industry service providers • Research • Communication • Agents • CRM partners

28. Where do we stand? • Extensive communication to mfsa members has been done • Also significant media exposure • IT world is still leading the discussion! • IT world is introducing anti SPAM products • Marketers by “osmosis” are integrating email into the marketing mix • 1998 IMM ran the first 3 day course on e Marketing!

29. Closing comments • Too valuable to loose • Lots of educating still needs to be done • Blow the whistle where needed • Work together with all the parties in the value chain • Compliance become a natural a way of doing business

30. Thanks for listeningQuestionsRemember www.mfsa.co.za