Thursday, April 25, 2013

Designing successful marketing emails is not about the device, it's about user behaviour

I'd like to state upfront – I am not an email designer - for mobile or otherwise. I am, however, an email user (only slightly obsessive), with multiple devices and fairly typical user habits.

I don't think I'm unique in my expectation of a decent user experience regardless of which device serves up my content.

This is not another blog post on designing for mobile email, rather I think the real issue is we're experiencing another seismic shift in user behaviour. In my view, this behaviour is being driven by two key developments: mobile device adoption and touch screens.

The good old days ...


Back when Internet access was only via a desktop or laptop, marketers had to get to grips with designing for traditional screen sizes (remember ‘below the fold'?). We used eye tracking to test how people read online, and we counted ‘clickthroughs' when measuring our email engagement.

Along came devices such as smartphones and tablets, and consumer behaviour is once again evolving.


Multiple devices, multi-screen-size approach


If you're like me, you check your email incessantly on your smartphone throughout the day. I scan through the latest arrivals on my iPhone, make a mental note and take action when back at my laptop (at the office) or tablet (at home). Certain actions - such as detailed replies, inserting answers to multiple questions, registering for competitions, taking up offers and unsubscribing from newsletters – are just easier on the larger screen.

The main reason I  put off certain tasks is because so many of the communications that land in my inbox are badly designed for a small screen. They require an inordinate amount of finger activity (zooming and scrolling) and facial gestures (frowning and cursing)  to carry out the simplest of actions.

Smaller screens require bigger fonts, less images, simpler design, a concise message and large buttons. Statistics have shown that over 50% of mobile click-throughs are made in error. The more difficult it is to take action due to scrolling or clicking, the more likely a user will make a mistake or exit the process in a huff.

Research shows that smartphone (small screen) opens will overtake desktop (large screen) opens by the end of 2013, while multi-device opens are surprisingly low, showing that not everyone uses my 'read later' tactic.



There's no doubt in my mind that device penetration is driving a shift in user behaviour which in turn requires an evolution in how marketers design email communications. Whether a consumer uses one device or swops between multiple devices, the reality is they could open your email on any number of screen sizes.


Click vs touch


In the past, we didn't have to consider the way devices would be held. Desktops and laptops were pretty much positioned the same way by everyone – on a desk with a mouse. Touch screens were only available on ‘kiosks'.

The way individuals hold their mobile devices and interact with their screens is driving the next shift in email user behaviour. 49% of touch-screen smartphone users hold and interact with one hand – with the right-hand being dominant (Litmus webinar April 2013). Tablet users add the ‘double thumb' action. If you looked at a heat map of typical interaction separating ‘clickers' from ‘touchers', the user behaviour would be vastly different.

Yet many emails are still designed to scroll and click in the middle of the screen, as if the user is at their desk with a mouse.

Email communicators need to carefully consider the placement of the call-to-action across device interfaces. Content length and placement, buttons, spaces between buttons and images all become vitally important elements in getting the user experience right, regardless of device.


Users have high expectations


The basic objectives of the email marketer haven't changed: email campaigns still need to maximise engagement and conversions. What has changed is the behaviour of the people you are looking to engage. Whether you introduce responsive design or track touch screen interaction – you will have to adapt your email design to continue improving your open rates.

Here are some fundamental truths that will not change, regardless of what else does:


  1. Use tools that allow you to view your email rendering across popular screen sizes
  2. Test for both the click and touch user experience
  3. Measure and track everything
  4. Adjust according to what your metrics are telling you

How are you approaching email user behavioural changes? Need advice? Then get in touch


Nicola Els
striata.com

Wednesday, April 10, 2013

What is this mystery called organizational culture?

In a recent interview with a candidate applying for an account executive position, I was asked why I like working at Striata. Great question!  It got me thinking:  after managing this business for more than a decade, what keeps me here?

The answer is simple  . . . it's about culture.

For me, culture is that combination of the tangibles and intangibles that make our company unique in how we do things. It's the sum of the physical attributes (environment, work space, tools) and the abstracts (management style, war stories, humour, social interaction, collaboration).

Culture exists outside of a product or value proposition, and many believe it supersedes strategy in contributing to achieving business goals.

What makes a great company culture?


Think about organizational culture as a personality. If someone were to describe your company personality - what words would you like them to use? Would it be words like: cut-throat or sales-driven; or would their description be more along the lines of honest, responsive, collaborative? Choose your words carefully, and then embed them as values and integrate them into your company rhetoric.

While there are many factors that contribute to a company's culture, here are four that I believe are a good place to start – whether you're doing a cultural 'health check' or incubating culture in a start-up:

4 Factors that contribute to company culture


  1. Defining and aligning company values:  Let's face it, humans are pack animals. We like to belong to a group, club or clan and we enjoy having a basic set of rules. It's the same in a business: defining the company's values will inform 'how things get done'.  Teaching each employee the rules makes for a solid foundation.
  2. Work ethic: Don't assume everyone has an appropriate work ethic. Be specific about how your employees are expected to behave. Compile a Code of Conduct and teach each new person the fundamentals.
  3. Growth: Good employees want to improve themselves. Understand what constitutes 'growth' for each person and give them space to grow both personally and professionally. Encourage and assist staff to study further, attend training and engage with mentors.
  4. Make work fun: Sounds simple, but having fun at work is good for productivity, motivation and loyalty. People should enjoy being at work. Does your organisation have a sense of humour?

What's the ultimate measure of a successful company culture?


Once you have defined and embedded your company culture, don't just leave it there. Understand how you plan to measure success.

Here are some measures that we use:



  • Results:  Ultimately an organisation is in business to achieve results. If your company culture is aligned to your goals and you're successful; it will be in part due to culture. Culture is what binds everything together.
  • Laughter: I like hearing people laugh at work and I see humour as an important part of our culture.  In the offices, at client meetings, on the phone - laughter is refreshing, bonding and energizing.
  • Churn: Aside from those that are unavoidable (emigration, sickness, career change) – how many employees resign that should have stayed longer? This is a fundamental testament to your hiring accuracy and cultural alignment.
  • Boomerangs: My personal favourite. Boomerangs are employees who have left us to gain experience out there and returned because this is such a great place to work.

Both your customers and employees experience your company culture on a daily basis. Can you afford not to define, improve and protect your culture?





Alison Treadaway is a director of global paperless communication specialist Striata and managing director of the African region. She doesn't profess to be an expert in organizational culture theories. She writes from experience as one of the custodians of the Striata culture and having conducted hundreds of interviews over more than a decade, with a view to protecting and promoting Striata's unique organizational culture.  

She enjoys being at work, interacting with Striata's fabulous people and having a good laugh.

References:
  1. The Cultural Web
  2. Culture Eats Strategy For Lunch

Alison Treadaway
striata.com

Thursday, April 4, 2013

Paperless adoption plateaued? Ensure your eConsent process for mobile is convenient

"I'm finally going paperless with my bank," states my girlfriend as she thumbs her login into the mobile app.  "About time," comes my natural response as an employee of an eDocument delivery company.  We're waiting for a table at our local diner, so she has a few minutes. Plenty of time to complete the paperless sign-up process, or so she thought… 

5 minutes and many frustrated noises later, she still isn't paperless.



  • No paperless option on the mobile app, so she tries the website.  It's not mobile-optimized. Really? Let the scrolling begin. (1 minute)
  • She must log in, find the button that suggests a paperless option, select each of her accounts, select paperless option, and view two separate pages with terms and conditions before she can give assent in the two boxes corresponding to those terms. (2 minutes)
  • After she's read the terms in a new web browser, she can't find her way back to the "Save Changes" button, as there is no easy re-routing system set up. (2 minutes)
  • She throws her hands up in defeat!  (Total: 5 minutes of frustration)

Thank goodness our table is ready!

What's your paperless eConsent process for mobile? Is it any better than this?

   

Unfortunately, my girlfriend's experience is all too common.  This company has an opportunity to gain a new paperless customer (a rare specimen, now that most early adopters are registered), but the opportunity is squandered because of a feeble mobile eConsent process.  And it's not just banks that have this problem.  Most utilities, insurers, creditors, and other billers lack a convenient paperless registration option for mobile, if the option exists at all.

Your mobile paperless eConsent process should NOT require:


  • More than 3 clicks (including click from an email link)
  • Website registration (aka username/password)
  • A proactive customer that must "come to you"
  • Use of a non-optimized mobile website
  • Lots of typing on the mobile device
  • Multiple verification layers

I won't regurgitate the stats hitting the news every day: mobile is on the rise and consumers want to interact with you on their smartphone or tablet.

Without an easy-to-use mobile paperless process, your company's paperless adoption rate will continue to slow, and maybe even stop completely.

The solution: 1-click mobile eConsent: Yes, it's possible!

Here's how you can fix your mobile eConsent process:

1st Step: Make sure you have a streamlined, minimal-click paperless eConsent option on your mobile app and/or mobile-optimized website.

2nd Step: Add a second – proactive - mobile paperless eConsent channel that does not rely upon website registration (aka username/password).



     

What does a great mobile eConsent Channel look like?


Get proactive with your paperless eConsent method.  Use email to send an introductory email, which allows your customer to go paperless with just one tap of the finger (no website registration necessary).

The actual eDocument is then delivered via the same channel – email - as an encrypted PDF. You only need the customer's email to gain consent and deliver the paperless document.  This channel doesn't rely on customers visiting the website; instead, you just need them to check their email.  Sound easy?  It is…and also very proactive.

Want to satisfy your customers and reach your 2013 and 2014 paperless adoption targets? Contact us to learn more about 1-click mobile eConsent and PUSH eDocument delivery.

Chad Somodi
striata.com