Optimising email: data collection

A couple of weeks ago I was asked my thoughts on the different ways a client could improve the effectiveness of their email campaigns. The big area that I felt could be improved was how the client collected data – after all, simple maths dictates that if they have more recipients, they will generate more money without making any other changes to their campaign. Add to this that optimising data collection will also help them collect better quality data that will drive future campaigns and improving data collection processes becomes a must.

Below I have summarised some of the ways businesses can optimise their data collection processes. Before we get started, it is worth highlighting that the success of each method is dependent on many factors including positioning, brand value, number of site visits and footfall in store and that each method has different collection costs associated with it. In my opinion it is important to know the lifetime value of an email subscriber in your database as this enables you to understand how much investment you should place in data collection.

With that in mind, here are some of the clever ways I have seen people building their email databases in weeks.

Design, subscribe and win
For their Design a Watch campaign, DM London asks recipients to sign up and subscribe in order to design a watch. If their watch design wins, they win the watch they designed. Additional data is collected as friends and family are encouraged to go online to view and vote for the design they want to win.

I think the success of this type of data collection is that it engages the recipient. There is great value in the prize and therefore additional data can be collected and all the data collected is useful for future targeting.

Add a subscribe link in emails
A basic method of data collection that many businesses neglect to consider is the inclusion of a subscribe link within an email creative. Even though businesses add forward to a friend links in their emails, some recipients just have the habit of simply forwarding the email on by clicking forward. Adding a subscribe link as well as an unsubscribe link within emails will allow the friend to subscribe to the email easily using this link rather than having to find the sign-up page on a website.

Score board registrations
Several sports clubs utilise Text 2 Mail services to allow their supporters to sign up to receive email communications. This is typically promoted on the scoreboard at half time, on the advertising hoardings and within the match programme. The promotion invites the recipient to text their email address to join the mailing list.

While I would never expect thousands of registrations from this mechanism, its ongoing nature means that subscription numbers remain consistent over long periods of time.

In-store sign-up points
A number of major retailers are currently running incentivised data capture campaigns. The incentives vary from win a “Spending Spree worth £250” to “Get a £10 voucher in your inbox” but all encourage email registration using a combination of data capture approaches.

In terms of the execution I have seen a wide range of different approaches that work including:

• Text 2 Mail i.e. text your email address...
• Take-away business cards emblazoned with a sign-up url
• Receipts that contain the sign up url
• Cashiers asking for the email address at point of purchase

I also like the approach of some of the major coffee shops who will provide you with loyalty points in return for your email address or free access to their Wi-Fi. I think one of the great advantages of this type of data collection is that you are really targeting people who are already engaged with your brand and using mechanisms you are often already paying for or providing.

EPOS sign-ups
A retail business one of my colleagues has worked with recently is now in the process of updating their EPOS system within their stores worldwide to capture customer email addresses along with their language and gender details during the in-store checkout process.

The till operator is presented with an on-screen prompt whereby they ask the customer for the aforementioned details and upon submitting these details they get entered into the central CRM system and a welcome email is triggered to the customer (in the appropriate language) which is then waiting in the customer’s inbox when they get home.

This process also works in exactly the same way for their US and UK website subscribers. In addition, for those customers who decline the option to subscribe, a url is printed onto the till receipt prompting them to subscribe in their own time.

Sign-up screens
Some organisations are now operating small touch screens in store which will only show their subscription page. Data is then collected in-store and this method works better than asking people to write their email address down. The reason being that validation can be applied immediately and there is no room for data input error. This method is typically returning hundreds rather than thousands of email addresses a month, but again is honing in on your existing customer base.

Appending email addresses
Email appending is becoming increasingly popular with businesses that have large postal databases. Postal addresses are matched and then known email addresses are appended to the data. Typically, match rates vary dramatically from 10% to 25%.

Preference managers
One method of ensuring that the data you have collected remains up to date is to utilise a preference manager in each of your future email campaigns. A preference manager simply provides a link to allow the recipient to update the details you currently hold on them or to provide additional information over time. The beauty of this approach is that the recipient is firmly in control of their own data which leads to better data quality and more up-to-date records; this in turn helps to ensure the recipient receives better email communications in the future.

Summary
So there is my whistle stop tour of some of the data collection methods organisations can use to increase the way they collect data at every customer touch point. Of course it is also important to look at how you are collecting data directly from your website. It will be great to hear your own experiences of data collection and what is working for your business.

James Bunting, managing director, Communicator Corp

@JamesKBunting

You can find more articles like this from the Email Marketing Council via .