MarketingSherpa’s Email Summit in Miami March 2007

My second year at MarketingSherpa’s Email Summit was extremely profitable once again. Last year was in Chicago while this year was in Miami. Here is a picture of Anne Holland, president of MarketingSherpa, and myself after several takes. Anne is famous for closing her eyes during pictures, so this was the best one. Anne claims I almost gave her whiplash when I appeared before her on the last day in my Joel Bauer suit after wearing just shorts and a t-shirt the previous day. It wasn’t entirely my fault. The conference hotel didn’t have dry cleaning if you can believe that, and I had just come from another conference in Dallas.

I last saw Anne at the 2006 Miva Conference in San Diego where she was a keynote speaker. Unfortunately Stefan Tornquist, research director at MarketingSherpa, didn’t stay for most of the last day and missed out on getting his picture taken with me.

What went on at this year’s Email Summit? Here is a small taste of what you missed.

• Other then the dry cleaning, the restaurant, check-in, check-out, the conference location and setup was great.
• I would have liked to see a more advanced session from EmailLabs. Where was Loren? Their session was good but basic, and I heard and read the same thing from others.
• Reputation was all the rage, but have people forgotten about everyone who uses somename@some-company.com from their HSP (Hosting Service Provider) where Spam Assassin is used to analyze emails for spam? For example, I just read the Motley Fool from my spam folder based on their Spam Assasin score. And what about McAFee and other desktop spam checkers? Did I miss that session?
• Where was video and audio for opt-in and response landing pages? It is 2007, and Web 2.0 is big right now. Info marketers could learn a lot if they educated themselves more about email marketing, but more mainstream marketers could learn from them as well when it comes to using audio and video.
• I was able to interview Habeas, EmailLabs, IPost, Responsys, WhatCounts, LisTrak, DirectLogic, Exact Target, Eloqua, Blue Sky Factory, GoodmailSystems, Strongmail, thee Email Diva, and Premiere eMarketing Solutions on video for an upcoming info product targeted towards info marketers called “Email Marketing in 2007: Get A Clue!”
• The deliverability clinic was excellent. There was no sell from what I saw. They just answered your questions and helped as much as possible with your deliverability issues.
• I took over twenty pages of notes this year. Last year had several standout panels on deliverability and email design. This year had a more rounded group of sessions, but I still would have liked to see some panels like 2006.
• The vendors were really cool and discussed a lot of different topics on email marketing with me while nobody was at their booth at the moment.
• I happened to sit down for lunch at the very same table as Melinda Krueger, thee Email Diva from MediaPost. It was really cool to meet her in person since I have been reading her column for awhile.

Here are some pics of me and the little attendees of the email marketing summit.

Here is Adam Meshot, Sales Executive, of of Blue Hornet Premier Emarketing Solutions.

This is Greg Cangialosi, President, and Tim Barton, VP of Business Development, of Blue Sky Factory. It was interesting to find out that Blue Sky had actually worked with some dan kennedy cult members. That is actually a compliment since I am one of his cult members too.

This is Edward V Barrett, President of Direct Logic Solutions.

This is Rich Gaasenbeek, VP of Demand Generation, Eric Schouten, Deliverability Manager, and the rest of the guys and girl from Eloqua.

Here is Per Carde, Sr. Sales Rep, and Stefan Pollard, Directory of Consulting Services, of EmailLabs.

This is the Exact Target team.

Here is Christopher Word, Account Development, David Atlas, VP of Marketing, and Brook Rose, Marketing Coordinator, of the GoodmailSystems team.

This is J.F. Sullivan, VP of Marketing, and Chris Brubaker, Director of Marketing Communications, from Habeas.

This is Greg Fox, Vice President of Channel Sales and Business Development, and Marsha Stark, VP of Sales and Marketing, from IPost.

Here are the guys from Lyris.

This is Ryan Deutsch, VP of Sales, of Premiere eMarketing Solutions.

This is Scott Ollivier, Director of Product Management, Barry Stamos, Sr. Directory of Strategy, Kim Schwager from Continental Airlines, a Responsys client, and Carolyn Love, Marketing, of Responsys.

This is Scott Cundill from Majestic Interactive in South Africa.

This is Spencer Kollas, Directory of Delivery Services, Kristen Hersant, Director of Coporate Marketing, and another representative from StrongMail.

This is Christian Vanek, Co-Founder of Survey Gizmo.

More detail on what you missed:MarketingSherpa’s 2007 Email Summit in Miami was a sell-out success. Attendees discovered the latest research and practical, real-world tactics to improve results:

How to grow your list faster — with names that respond

How to tweak your creative design for better results (including A/B and multivariate test Case Studies.)

How to automate personalized, high-impact campaigns including welcome series, purchase reminders, lead nurturing, loyalty generating, etc.

How to avoid filters and improve delivery (for permission mailers only.)

How to better measure engagement, test results, true delivery, and value-per-name (far beyond the open and click.)

Fresh content ideas to give your email newsletter new life 4 Interactive LabsMarketingSherpa’s Summit included interactive labs featuring interactive displays where attendees could get private one-on-one advice from experts to improve their results.Lab #1. How to Grow Your Opt-In List
Sponsored by EmailLabs

Presentation and Q&A on permission list building techniques and the opt-in/out process.

Discover how multivariate and a/b tests can improve your opt-in rates by testing small (but significant) tweaks to your online forms.

See concrete examples of offline methods to grow your list.

Discover alternative, permission-based sources for opt-in names, such as co-registration, bartered partnerships, and opt-in promotions run on third party media.Lab #2. Email Design Lab
Sponsored by Premiere Global Services
Eyetracking provided by Eyetools, Inc.

Have a one-on-one design consultation with an expert consultant. Get advice as they view your actual email newsletters and alerts.

See how your own email creative renders across many different email clients - how do Yahoo! users see your messages? How do you look on a Blackberry? etc. Is your creative “broken” for viewing in popular ISPs?

Be inspired by real-life before-and-after email redesign case studies.

Take part in a live, on-site, eyetracking lab. See what it feels like to be one of the email recipients whose eye movements create the results heat maps.Lab # 3. Advanced Email Measurement & Integration
Sponsored by Omniture and Responsys

Learn how your email analytics should tie together with other systems — especially Web analytics and sales force automation systems so you really know how much a click is worth.

Brainstorm ways to segment your list based on how they behave on your site *after* the clickthrough. For example, if someone visits multiple pages, should you increase email frequency or change your email offers to them?

Get ecommerce, lead generation, and content-site advice. Discover which advanced measurements can make your email programs more powerful.

Sit down for a one-on-one consultation with an email measurement expert. Yes, you can even bring along your own measurement reports for them to take a look at and advise you on. All consultations are private and confidential.Lab #4. Triggered & Automated Email Campaigns
Sponsored by Datran Media

Find out how to make your email team’s job much easier — and improve response rates — by setting up more automated programs.

See ‘decision-tree’ email campaigns live in action. Interact on a trigger-based Web site and see how it changes the email offer you’d receive as an opt-in.

Gain new ideas from Case Study presentations featuring real-life triggered and automated campaigns with powerful results.

Brainstorm your own prospective campaign ideas in one-on-one consulting sessions with experts. Keynote: New Email Marketing Research — What Works, What Works Even Better & What Kills ResponseIn this practical numbers presentation, our real-life research team will reveal brand new research results that could change your 2007 plans. Includes:- New eyetracking study results of *actual attendees* email campaigns
- Exclusive Transactional Email & Promotions study results, new for March 2007.
- Revelations how many of your email marketing peers really use proven best practices in real-life. Plus, stats about budgets and testing plans for 2007. Includes results from an all new study of 250+ of the most advanced email marketers in the world.Top 2 Case Studies: Inspirational Marketers Present Newest Email Test ResultsDiscover what tests your marketing peers are trying — and how the results are so far. We picked three fascinating tests you may want to duplicate back at the office after the Summit:

#1. Doubleday Entertainment runs more than 300 email campaigns to market books and book clubs every month. Get their latest test results including: emailing wishlists, cart abandons, behavioral targeting, list clean-up campaigns, event-triggered flows, offer tests, and of course subject lines.

#2. Sprint Nextel has been testing adding promotional offers into their transactional messages routinely sent to customers. Find out how the tests worked out, and if this tactic is one you should consider copying.

How to Improve Your Email Newsletters — Proven Tactics from Real Life Marketers

The good news is both consumers and business execs are still signing up for email newsletter subscriptions in the millions. (The average list grows more than 20% per year.) But, newsletter open and click rates have been sagging for the past two years.

Is your newsletter too routine? Do you have ‘click-me-now’ editorial content? This session will help you understand how to segment your newsletter for better responses, and how to create content that’s not just ‘yet another article’. Revive your content and revive your results.

Office Politics - How to Get Your Budget & Email Best Practices Approved

Do you dread returning to the office after an inspirational Summit, only to find your email improvement ideas are squashed by the Powers That Be? Learn specific real-world tactics for getting decision makers in an organization to move past the same old email marketing they’ve been doing for years. This session may be the most useful one of the entire Summit for you.

Top 3 Ecommerce & Retail Case Studies

Three real-life ecommerce marketers will present the results of recent tests to inspire you. Does something so simple as adding a security icon to your email creative improve sales? Discover’s PETCO’s data.

Next, apparel marketers and marketers targeting the teen and 20-something demographic won’t want to miss West49’s Case Study. Hear how they launched an All Acccess Pass Loyalty program, and used the data to tailor future sales offers by gender and geography. Was all the extra work worthwhile? Find out.

Top 6 B-to-B Case Studies

Business-to-business email marketing challenges can be *completely different* from consumer campaigns. That’s why MarketingSherpa includes two full panel sessions featuring six new Case Studies from B-to-B marketers, including Intel, IBM, Bucyrus Blades, Adobe, Intertek, and BBiOnline.

You’ll learn:

How to send dynamically driven offers out via your field sales force

Tips on international email marketing to execs outside the US

How emailing small-medium businesses is unlike marketing to the Fortune 500

Improved pre-event and post-event emails for webinars, trade shows and user conferences

How to use email for competitive positioningFundraising & Non-Profit Email CampaignsHorrible but true, the not-for-profit sector is one of the most behind in using email marketing. In this expanded 90-minute session, learn why fundraisers and charities are often so bad at email. Then be inspired by a series of real-life examples and Case Studies of fundraising emails that really work. Yes, after the Summit, we’ll send you a copy of the slide deck from this presentation (as well as the rest) so you can use the creative samples to galvanize your team’s work.Top 3 Arts & Entertainment Email Marketing Case StudiesAre you in charge of marketing tickets to an event? Whether you’re marketing for a symphony, an art exhibit, Shakespeare, or the Rolling Stones, be prepared for real-life samples and tactics to rev up your ticket sales. Yes, this 90-minute session features real-life marketers from both sides of the non-profit/for-profit fence. No matter what your budget is, you’ll get some worthwhile advice.Invited Presenters: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Berkley Repertory Theatre and TicketsNow.

New Research + 2 Case Studies: Consumers Reveal What They Really Want from Email (But Does it Work?)

This winter, two marketers from completely different organizations — a local credit union and a nation-wide entertainment ticket seller — asked consumers on their opt-in lists to take a survey that asked, “What do you really want in emails from us?”

Find out what the consumers told the marketers. PLUS, discover how email response rates changed when the marketers ran test campaigns based on specific consumer feedback. Do consumers really want what they say they want? This is a fascinating session for anyone who’s ever run a reader survey or focus group.

Integrating Mobile + Email Marketing

Chances are many of the emails you send are being opened by people on their Blackberries, cell phones, and other PDAs. What does that mean for your clicks? Discover how to tweak your landing pages and/or site to be mobile-friendly without a complete overhaul. Plus, discover how advanced marketers include triggered text messaging as an automated supplement to their regular email programs.

Buying Email Names: Append, List Rental & Co-Registration Realities

If you are relying on your own site traffic and viral pass-along alone to build your list, you are missing up to 60% or more of your list growth potential. Please note: MarketingSherpa and our presenters only advocate 100% permission-based opt-in tactics where consumers proactively ask to be on your list. In this 90-minute session you’ll learn from brand-side marketers with real-life experience:

How to use append to “recover” email accounts that have lapsed when consumers switched addresses.

How to create permission-based campaigns to rental (double opt-in) names, asking them to join your list as well.

Why co-registration is the most aggressively growing sector of the list industry in 2007. Bootcamp Training Sessions Arrive early on Sunday March 4th for a half-day intensive bootcamp on email marketing. It’s perfect for marketers who want to train a team or bring themselves up to speed before the big expo. Bootcamp training is included *free* as part of your Summit ticket.Your instructor will cover all the basics, including:- Email Laws
- Opt-ins and list management
- How to measure campaign success
- Frequency and content guidelines
- Creative design and copywriting tips+ Exclusive Bootcamp Case Study:

0-60: Lessons Learned from Creating a Successful Ecommerce Email Program From Scratch

Marketers from Esscentual Brands — Vitabath and Claire Burke — never sent a single email to consumers until 2006. Discover how they launched all-new email programs, and tested everything from basics such as subject lines to advanced tests such as time of day, frequency, and cross-brand sampling. Real-life marketers behind the tests will reveal their result stats, including creative samples and which tests failed.

Inspirational for every marketer who needs to start a high-powered email program from scratch (or re-invigorate slumping results).

Awards Gala, Expo Floor & Networking Loungue

MarketingSherpa’s Summit is the biggest gathering of email marketers anywhere in the globe. (See below for a list of who’s already reserved tickets….)

We make networking easy with:

o Welcome cocktail party Sunday night
o Gala Awards party Monday night March 5th at Bongos Cuban Cafe, Miami — owned by Gloria Estafan
o Networking breakfasts and lunches
o Booths to meet 31 top vendors on show floor
o Private networking lounge when you want to chat quietly with a fellow attendee one-on-one

Bonus! Deliverability Clinic
Sponsored by: Eloqua, ReturnPath, ExactTarget, Listrak, M4 Internet

Depending on your list and content anywhere from 20-40% of your permission email may not be getting past filters — even though you think it is. Here’s your chance to get one-on-one advice about your unique situation, including:
- Your content
- Your design (including text vs HTML)
- Your standing on blacklists
- Your opt-in tactics
- Your list demographics
- Your reputation

The Deliverability Clinic will be open for 10 hours during the main Email Summit. Stop in at your own convenience to get your questions answered in a private session with an expert.

Attendees:

4imprint	Krueger Direct/Interactive
AAA Mid-Atlantic	KVH Industires
AAA National Office	La Senza Inc. Ecommerce
AAAS/Science	LeapLab Group
AARP Services, Inc.	LexisNexis
Acceleration	LifeScript
Accenture	Listrak
Acxiom Digital	Liventus
Advanstar Communications	Loop Consulting Group, LLC
Advanta Bank Corp	LoopNet.com
Advanta Corp	L’Oreal
Affinity Group Inc.	Lorel Marketing Group
Affinity Resources LLC	LOTSolutions
Alaska Airlines	LTV Marketing
Alienware	M4 Internet
Allegis Group	Made In Napa Valley, A Division of Tulocay & Co
ALM	Magazines.com
Alterian	MailChimp
American Airlines	Marketing Support Network
American Management Assn	MarketingNPV
Andrew Associates	Matrikon Inc.
Angel Publishing	Matrix Solutions
Antics Online	MBS Consulting
AON Insurance Services	MCD Partners
APICS	Meetup.com
Apple	Memolink
Ariad Custom Communications	Memphis Convention & Visitors Bureau
Armstrong World Industries Inc.	Meredith Corporation
Arnold	MeritDirect LLC
ATB Financial	Merrick Towle
Autobytel Inc	Metal Creative
Avery Dennison	Metis Marketing Solutions
Azorus	Microsoft
Bank of America	Mighty Interactive
BD Biosciences	Miles Media Group
Benchmark Hospitality International	Minitab Inc.
Big Marketing	MM Sport
Blinds.com	Mohegan Sun Casino
Blue Cross & Blue Shield	Moxie Interactive
Bluegreen	MWM Dexter, Inc.
Bonnier Publications A/S	NAHB
Brink’s Home Security	National Geographic Society
Broadwick	Navtrak
Brooks Bell Interactive	NearMeNetWorks.com
Business Objects	Nerac Inc.
BZ Media	NETGEAR
California State Automobile Association	NetIQ
Campbell Soup Co.	New England Journal of Medicine
Carbonite Inc.	Newsweaver
Care2	nFusion
CareerBuilder.com	Novartis
CFA Institute	Odin Development
Check Point Software Technologies	Old Time Candy Co.
Citrix Systems Inc.	Olympus America
Classmates	onOne Software
Collections Etc.	OnStation, A Division of the Cobolt Group
Comcast Spectator	onTargetjobs - HEALTHeCAREERS
Commercial Direct	OppenheimerFunds Inc.
ConAgra Foods	Optical Society of America
Conde Nast Publications	Optiem LLC
Constant Contact	Ottaway Newspapers Inc.
Consumers Union	Paradigm Learning
Coore Communications Intl	Paramore/Redd Online Marketing
Crain Communications Inc.	Parthenon Publishing Inc.
CSN Stores	Patron Technology
Custom Direct	Peppermill Hotel Casino
CUTCO	Petplan
Cvent	PetSmart Inc.
Dell Inc.	PFSweb
Demand Engine	Plateau Systems
DEMCO	Platform Computing
Diennea - Mag-News	PMV Technologies
Direct Marketing Association	Polo Ralph Lauren
Discmakers	POP
Discover Financial Services	Potrero Media Corp.
DMi Partners	PrecisionPlay Media
Dow Jones & Co.	Premiere Global Services
Due North Consulting, Inc.	Primavera Systems Inc.
Dun & Bradstreet	Prism Busniess Media
EB Practice LLC	ProSchools
eBay	Prudential
Ecount	Public Interactive
eCU Technologies	Quadrant Software
EDGAR Online Inc.	Quicken Loans
Eli Research	R/GA
Email Experience Council	Rabbit eMarketing
Email Response Systems Inc.	Race Trac Petroleum
Emergency Medicine Practice	Rapp Colllins Worldwide
emfluence, LLC	Rauxa Direct
Emma	RedEye RPM
Endeca	Reed Business Information
eNeighborhoods, Inc.	Regence
Enmark Performance Development	REI
Enterprise Rent-a-Car	Reputation Technologies Inc.
Envision EMI	Return Path
Epicor Software	Rhino Marketing Inc.
Epocrates	RSVP Development
Epsilon International	Safeway.com
Equifax	Sage Software
eROI	Seagull Software
ESRI	Select Comfort
Esurance	ShopLocal
ExactTarget	Sigma-Aldrich
Expedia.com	SignOnSanDiego.com-The San Diego Union Tribune
Eyetools	Silverpop
e-Zen	Simply audiobooks
Fannie Mae	Smarter Living Inc.
Fargo Electronics, Inc.	Software & Information Industry Association
FastWeb	Solimar Systems
FileMaker, Inc.	Sourcemedia
First Marketing	Spark Network
FocalPoint Marketing, LLC	Spire Vision
ForgeBusiness On-Line / forgeBusiness USA	Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc.
Franklin Electronic Publishers	Survey Sampling
FulcrumTech LLC	Symantec
FurnitureFind	Synovate
Garden Home Title	Technology & Technology Corp
Garrison Partners	Techsmith Corp.
GCDirect	The Cobalt Group
GE Money	The Lubrizol Corp.
General Mills	The Motley Fool
Genius.com	The Phelps Group
Georgia Tech	The Presidential Prayer Team
GhislandiWeb	The SEC Institute Inc.
Glowac+Harris+Madison	The Thompson Group
Goodmail Systems	The Tire Rack
Gordmans	The TJX Companies Inc.
Got Corp.	The Vanguard Group
Grainger	The Walt Disney Co.
H Careers	ThinData, Inc.
H.H. Brown	Thomson Delmar Learning
Hachette Filapacchi Media US	Time Consumer Marketing Inc.
Hanley Wood, LLC	Time, Inc.
Harvard Business School Publishing	Toshiba America Information Systems
HEALTHeCAREERS Network	Towson University
Help/Systems Inc.	Toys R Us
Herman Miller Inc.	Travelocity
Hewlett Packard	Trip Advisor
Hexaware Technologies	True.com
Hitachi Consulting	U.S. Plastic Corp.
Houghton Mifflin	Uniqueleads.com, Inc.
HydroWorx	United Online
I H S	USAToday.com
ICE.com	User Interface Engineering
Iconix, Inc.	Vaisala Inc.
Idea Park	Verizon
IFS North America	Vision Systems Inc.
Indiana University Foundation	VNR Vertag Fur die Deutche Wirschaft AG
Institutional Investor Inc	VoiceObjects, Inc.
Insurance.com	Vontoo, LLC
InterfaceFLOR	Vortx, Inc.
Internet Marketing Center	W.W. Grainger, Inc.
Interval International	Walgreens
Intervoice	Web Hen Media, Inc.
Intuit	Webloyalty.com
iSuppli Corporation	Webroot Software
iWin, Inc.	Weil Lifestyle
J. Paul Getty Trust	Wellesley Hills Group
James Tower	White Delivery (A Media Company)
JangoMail	Wolters Kluwer Financial Services
JAS MTS Inc.	Woodcraft Supply
Javelin Technologies Inc.	WorkinSports.com
Jockey International	WPNI
Joined	Wyndham
Kelly Services Inc.	Xerox Corp.
KeyBank	Yahoo!, Inc.
Kiehl’s Since 1851	Yesmail, Inc.
Knotice Ltd.	Zero to Three
KnowledgeStorm	Zondervan
Komunick Corp.	Zustek

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