Teleseminar Offers Research Findings to Improve Email Marketing; Silverpop Partners with MarketingSherpa

"I was impressed with the wealth of information in this year's Benchmark Guide from MarketingSherpa," Nussey said. "While marketers surveyed for the report say email generates 'great results,' it's clear that many seek new ways to improve results."

For example, three-quarters of email marketers say growing their opt-in lists is a top priority. Yet research conducted by Silverpop earlier this year and included in the Benchmark Guide found that only half of Web sites evaluated prominently positioned the invitation to register for emails. While 59 percent of companies used information about sales and promotions as an incentive to obtain opt-ins, 73 percent of consumers said they would be more encouraged to register if the company explained how recipients could control what they received and when.

"Consumers continue to demand control over how and when they will accept marketing messages," Nussey said. "More than eight out of 10 consumers want control over the types and frequency of email they receive, and more than 6 out of 10 said they'd have more trust and confidence in merchants who offered such control."

When asked what works best for gathering names to a company's opt-in list, marketers reported that a check box on registration or order forms works best, followed by offering free trials or downloads. Co-registration and email appends to offline addresses were ranked as methods that either didn't work or weren't worth the effort.

Other findings from MarketingSherpa's report include how marketers with high click rates manage email, the return on investment of various email tactics, list building techniques and much more.

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