Want to ensure your email is opened? Get inside the minds of your readers.

Send them an email just for the sake of “keeping in touch” - and your email will probably get deleted faster than…well, let’s just say that even Michael Phelps couldn’t possibly swim that fast.

But if you send a message that’s interesting, relevant and timely…boy, will it have an impact.

Just ask Bill Burton, Barack Obama’s campaign spokesman. According to a CNN.com article yesterday, he’s one heck of an email marketer:

The subtle art of campaign humor
From CNN Associate Political Editor Rebecca Sinderbrand

(CNN) — Pity the poor Obama beat reporter – sleeping with their blackberry within arm’s reach and their cell phone tucked under their pillow awaiting the looming vice presidential announcement, their job description expanded to include Talmudic-style dissections of vacation itineraries, campaign logistics and grammatical slips.

Having trouble working up any sympathy? So is Barack Obama’s campaign. Wednesday morning, as VP speculation reached fever pitch, national spokesman Bill Burton sent reporters an e-mail titled “Vice presidential….”

First line of the message: “Just kidding.”

It’ll probably be a lot funnier after the convention.

Nice guy, huh?

Bill certainly got his readers’ attention, albeit in a way that would probably not work too well for your company. And while I strongly recommend against this kind of “bait and switch” email campaign, the story underscores the importance of knowing your recipients. Understand what they’re passionate about, what they’re waiting to hear…and they’ll scramble to open your next email as well.

Misleading subject lines? BAD. Relevant content? GOOD.

What can you send your readers today that would make them open your email just as quickly?

In my years in the homebuilding industry, I’ve done quite a bit of copywriting. It’s not always an easy task.

From crafting mass email marketing messages to writing copy for web sites, I am constantly seeking new and creative ways to describe a particular home, community or lifestyle. And to tell you the truth, it can get rough. After all, once you’ve already used the words “spectacular”, “magnificent” and “elegant” in a paragraph, how many words are left to use in describing a luxury home?

But the reason I love writing MAILbytes is because it offers me the opportunity to speak in my own “voice.” I don’t have to sound like a brochure, and I don’t have to sound like a stodgy company memo. It’s just me writing to you. I can say what I want, how I want. I can write like a person, not a corporation.

I’m pleased to offer you the same exciting opportunity.

Take a look at some of your recent email correspondence with customers. Do your emails read like sales literature? Are you regurgitating the copy from your community brochure? Do your personal emails read as if they’ve been written by like an ad agency?

If so…well, welcome to Email Writing 101. Here are a few email writing tips to make every message count:

• Find your voice. Think of 4-5 adjectives that best describe YOU – then write like that person. Be yourself!
• Write like a human being. Customers know “brochure-speak” when they see it. It looks great in sales literature, but this is a personal email! Writing becomes less tedious when you can inject a little bit of personality. Try it! Your customers will see you as a real person, rather than just another representative of a large company.
• Ask questions. Don’t just answer questions; ask some of your own! Start dialogue and create a relationship with your customers over email. You’ll be one step closer to a sale with each message.
• Spelling and grammar count. More than ever! Don’t get too carried away - remember that you’re not writing to your sister in Chicago. This is still a business letter, and you represent a company with a reputation to protect. Proper sentence structure, paragraphs, punctuation and spelling are critical (they also make your message easier to read).
• Keep it brief. If you stop and think about it, reading on a screen is harder than reading from a piece of paper. To make your email easier to read, keep it short and sweet.

Once you start writing like a human, you’ll soon see how liberating it can be…plus, there’s a good chance you’ll start seeing better responses from your customers. Let me know if you’re successful!

In our last exciting episode of Stampless MAILbytes, we discussed how a speedy response to a customer’s email inquiry can send a powerful non-verbal message to the customer. But sometimes it takes a real-life, personal experience to drive the point home.

So this time, I’ll prove it to you…with my own bank account as evidence.

Last week, my wife was browsing through the Bed, Bath & Beyond web site. She had a question on a product she was interested in, so she sent them a quick email.

Within 4 minutes, she received a response.

Pleasantly surprised and truly impressed, she emailed a follow-up question. Three minutes later, poof, up popped the response. Knowing that I’d be interested, my wife forwarded me the exchange. She does a fair amount of shopping online, but never had she experienced such a high level of quality online customer service.

To be honest, I’m really not sure if this rapid response prompted her to actually buy that particular product. But boy – it sure left her feeling really darn good about Bed, Bath & Beyond. And as a result, I’m really scared to see what my credit card bill will look like next month…

The Internet is a big place. Email goes unanswered much more than it should. So, in the mind of a potential customer, a quick…no…immediate response goes a very long way.

In new home sales, we speak quite a bit about maintaining an upscale image for our homes and companies as a whole. We make sure our Sales Centers are clean and neat. We double-check our models to ensure all light bulbs are working properly. We’re careful to portray a “classy” image from the moment a customer drives into a community.

All of this to impress our potential customer every step of the way.

But now you have the chance to do even better. Show ‘em what your company stands for right off the bat, before they come to visit. My wife was truly “wowed” by the service she received from BB&B. She’s even told her friends about it. Wouldn’t you like to delight your customers the same way…long before they visit you in person?

Remember the “Seinfeld” episode about the “close talker”?

In the episode, Elaine’s new boyfriend (played by Judge Reinhold) had a tendency to stand WAY too close to people when speaking with them. Of course, his weird behavior made everyone feel uncomfortable, and hilarity ensued. It was episode #82, in case you care.

Have you ever stopped to think about the important role of nonverbal communication in our everyday conversations? You know – gestures, facial expressions, “close talking,” physical appearance, etc. Whether we realize it or not, we often make judgments about people based not only on the words they say, but also on the “supplemental” information provided via non-verbal communication.

OK, so you probably knew that already. But when you speak to another person, I’ll bet you never realized just how important nonverbal communication really can be in the way your message is received. Consider these statistics:

For every spoken message:

• 8% of the recipient’s total “experience” comes from the actual WORDS you use.
• 37% of the recipient’s total “experience” comes from the WAY you say the words (volume, tone of voice, how the words are pronounced, level of excitement, etc.)
• 55% of the total “experience” comes from nonverbal communication.

Amazing! You can spend all day crafting the perfect message – but the recipient will miss out on 55% of your message if he/she thinks your breath stinks of the garlic from the pizza you ate an hour ago.

So – knowing what you now know, you would think that communication over the Internet is practically worthless, right? If Internet communication strips things like tone of voice, and there’s no nonverbal communication, then all our customers receive is a measly 8% of what we REALLY want to say! Why do we even BOTHER with this Internet garbage? How can you possibly live with yourself, Josh, telling us that the Internet is a valuable sales tool?

You could think all that, but you’d be wrong.

The Internet offers an interesting way to reclaim the lost 55% of communication. How? With a quick reply to customers’ email.

A speedy reply sends a powerful nonverbal message to a customer! Think about it: if you were on a web site and emailed a question to a great big corporation (or even a small business), and then someone returned your email within minutes, wouldn’t you be impressed? (For proof, don’t miss the next edition of MAILbytes.)

When a customer believes that someone is literally waiting for their email on the other end, they’ve received a powerful, nonverbal message. So rescue your 55% - and start sending your own power-packed messages today!

Just make sure not to stand too close to your computer when typing the email.

Whenever I meet with a new client, it seems I always get asked the same question:

“Do you have access to lists of email addresses for purchase?”

It never fails. With email marketing as cost-effective as it is, almost all companies are intrigued by the possibility of getting their email out to tens of thousands of potential new customers. And why not? After all, what company hasn’t purchased a “snail mail” list as part of their direct mail efforts?

At first glance, it makes a ton of sense. But a closer look at the nature of email marketing teaches us that, unlike direct mail, the purchase of email lists can do more harm than good.

Quite simply, email is not direct mail.

There are so many reasons why, but it mainly boils down to customer control. With email, your customers expect to be in control of the relationship. They decide whether or not they want receive email from you, what kinds of information to receive, when they’re ready to unsubscribe, even when they’re so annoyed by your emails that they (heaven forbid) click on the “this is spam” button.

Unlike direct mail, customers have come to expect that kind of control. Plain and simple, they don’t want to receive spam from you.

So if you do choose to send out unsolicited email…sure, there may be a few (very few) potential new customers who will be intrigued by what you have to offer and seek further information. But chances are very high that even more recipients will get annoyed by the disturbance and make a beeline for the “this is spam” button.

And if enough people do just that, well, good luck getting your future emails delivered - even to customers who have opted-in to your mailings. Internet Service Providers such as Hotmail, Yahoo, AOL, etc. now think you’re a spammer, and will send your future emails directly to their customers’ “spam” folder.

And besides…how eager would you be to do business with a company that sends you spam?

If you’re bummed about all this, relax. You’re almost guaranteed to get great results from your in-house list, made up of people who have asked to receive information from you. They’re not only willing to receive your emails, they’re often excited to hear from you!

So if we’re all “stuck” with the email addresses (from QUALIFIED potential customers!) in our in-house list, what’s the best way to grow that list?

The #1 best way to grow an EFFECTIVE email list is to ask customers for their email addresses! This can be done online on a company’s web site OR any time a company interacts with a customer.

1. Online, we recommend that you add a signup box to EVERY page of the site, encouraging visitors to sign up for special offers, incentives, news, etc. (For a nice example of this strategy, check out bedbathandbeyond.com, and look near the bottom of every page on the left side) Don’t ask for more than an email address here. When your web site visitor clicks “submit”, you can ask for more customer information on the next page.
2. In person or on the phone, salespeople or customer service people need to ask customers for their email address (and VERIFY it with the customer each time they speak thereafter). Tell customers that you will use the address to send them special offers and news that will be relevant to them - and that you PROMISE not to share it with others. Most customers these days will be willing to cooperate. Some of my clients have even been successful in actually calling the prospects on their lists and asking for email addresses. Hey, it’s worth a shot!

No, email is not direct mail. The rules may be different…but the benefits are huge. Email is a low cost, completely measurable, almost instantaneous marketing channel. Adjust your thinking a bit…and the results will pay off!

Just yesterday, I saw the following question posted on the popular networking site LinkedIn:

“How close, if ever, is the internet to replacing the Sunday newspaper real estate section for researching real estate listings?”

The question received a wide variety of responses. Some said that the Internet already replaced newspaper advertising a few years ago, while others claimed that newspapers still have some life in them, even in this digital age.

Before adding my two cents on the issue, I wrestled with the question for a while.

Sure, everyone is using the Internet as part of their home search. We’ve all heard the line that more than 70% (or is it 80% by now?) of home shoppers use the ‘net at some point. Yes, that’s an amazing statistic, and particularly exciting for people like me who make their living on Internet marketing. But is that the whole picture?

Let’s say you’re looking for new construction in the beautiful but overpriced state of New Jersey. What’s the first thing you’re going to do? If you have no clue where to go first, you’ll probably start with Google.

So you type in “new homes in New Jersey”, and receive, as of the time this was written, a mere 1,720,000+ results. Happy Browsing! You’ll probably look through some of the first sites in the list, but the information overload will soon drive you crazy.

But wait! Something catches your eye in that long list of search results. Hmmm, you think…didn’t I see that builder’s name on a billboard / newspaper ad / TV commercial / park bench / aerial billboard flying over the beach? Pleased with yourself that you’ve at least found a starting point, you begin your search there, a bit more confident in tackling the daunting task that awaits you.

The Internet has changed real estate marketing in a big way. And in a world of online banner ads, Google search results, home listing sites (e.g. realtor.com, homebuilder.com, etc.), blogger opinions and more, I have no doubt that many customers do find their dream home online without ever looking at an offline ad.

But aren’t those same people still influenced by offline media? The “vastness” of the Internet makes brand recognition more important than ever. They may find you online, but will they stop for a closer look?

I’ve met with builders and realtors who have told me that they’re ready to pull the plug on most offline advertising and jump full force into online marketing. Sure, it’s a great idea to GO STAMPLESS (sorry, couldn’t resist) and start allocating additional dollars to Internet and email marketing, but a carefully-planned online/offline combo is still the best approach.

And of course, make sure that all of your offline advertising directs readers to your web site, your 24/7 sales center.

So now it’s your turn to weigh in. Is newspaper advertising on life support? Post your opinion on the MAILbytes blog. And then feel free to check out the other responses offered by some very bright people on LinkedIn.

I was delivering a presentation on email marketing last week for a group of homebuilders in Philadelphia, when one attendee threw out the following question:

“What can we do to make sure our email blasts get through to the inbox - and are not sent to our recipients’ ‘junk mail’ folders?”

Ahhh…the classic “deliverability” question.

At first, I told him to avoid including any information in his emails about those little blue pills whose name starts with a “v” and are used for…well, you know - but then I realized he may be looking for an answer that’s a bit deeper.

Problem is, there’s no easy answer. Email deliverability is not an exact science. The rules change often, and vary depending on your recipients’ Internet Service Providers (such as Hotmail, Yahoo, Gmail, etc.).

But there are a number of things you can do to tip the scales in your favor. I’ll definitely touch on others in future columns, but here’s one simple method you may not have thought about.

ASK your customers to add your email address to their “trusted senders” list or address book!

Let me explain:

E-mail inboxes worldwide have become infested with “spam” (junk e-mail) – and recipients hate it (don’t you?). So over the past few years, large Internet companies like AOL, Hotmail, Yahoo, etc. have designed ways to prevent spam from being delivered to your inbox.

They’ve created email filters for you, so that every time you receive an e-mail that they believe you won’t want, they send it directly into your “junk email” folder and not into your inbox.

While this method has proven very effective in blocking most of the spam we receive, there is one catch: the spam filter will likely block some messages that you want to read – and unless you check your “junk mail” folder from time to time, you’ll never even know you received them.

When customers provide you with their email address, they obviously want to receive information from you via email. But many of these customers never hear from you again, because your emails are trapped in their spam filters!

Fortunately, there is a solution. Find out the email address you use as the “from” address when sending email blasts. If your customers add this address to their address book, safe senders list, trusted senders list, etc., then your e-mails will ALWAYS get through.

Make sure your customers know this! Upon registration - whether online or in person - encourage them to take a minute to ensure that they receive the emails they’ve asked for, by taking the simple step outlined above.

Hey - if you’re spending money on email marketing…you may as well get the biggest bang for your buck, right?

I returned home from a business trip this past week, and my lovely wife greeted me at the door. Being the nosy woman she is, my wife soon began rummaging through my carry-on and found a half-eaten Snickers bar. She caught me red-handed. After berating me for straying from my diet (and then breaking hers to eat the second half) she noticed a contest on the wrapper.

“Enter your code at snickers.com to see if you’ve won the Ultimate Garage Sale Sweepstakes!” the wrapper instructed us.

Convinced that WE were the lucky winners, we logged on. The home page (at right) reassured us that we were in the right place. But when we clicked through to the contest page, we were informed that the contest had ended.

Well, then…WHY are they still advertising it on their home page?

As sales and marketing people, we are expected to know our products and services inside and out. But with information, pricing, incentives and the like changing on a daily basis…how familiar are we with our own marketing materials? Don’t answer yet…

There is a tale of a man who used the Internet to find a home in a new development. After weeks of intense research, he narrowed his search down to five communities, and drove to each so he could see them in person. But after speaking to the salespeople at each community, he discovered that, due to his extensive research, he actually knew more about the communities than they did!

The man was so frustrated that he took the $50,000 deposit check that was in his pocket and decided to use the money to renovate his existing home instead.

Like it or not, your customers are using the web extensively to research your products. They’ve dutifully read, studied, critiqued and printed almost every page of your site – and your competitors’ sites as well.

Have you?

Be sure to schedule some time regularly to review the web sites your customers are looking at:

• Check your site often to make sure pricing and all other information is correct and complete. Notify your “web guy” (or gal) of any necessary changes immediately.
• Do you syndicate your content on any “partner” sites? Review the information on those sites as well so you know you’re viewing the same listings your customers are.
• Monitor competitor web sites. Are they doing something you’d like to see on YOUR site?

Know thy web site…and you’ll have a better knowledge of your customers!

I’d like to take this opportunity to wish myself a very happy birthday.

(Hey, it’s my column. I’m entitled to a little self-promotion, no?)

Okay, so it’s not until Friday. But I wanted to give all of you time to find that perfect gft.

So I’ve been checking my “snail” mailbox, expecting to receive a birthday card or two from family and friends. Fat chance.

These days, no one goes through the trouble of going to the store, browsing through hundreds of cards, picking out the perfect one, writing a personal message, sealing the card, finding a stamp, looking up my home address, writing it out and leaving it in their mailbox for the post office to deliver…up to a WEEK later.

But these days, my family and friends usually take the cheap and lazy route. They send “e-cards” online. Awwwwww…they DO care!

Why am I sharing this self-serving tale with all of you? Because yesterday, I received this “electronic” birthday greeting from the salesperson at the dealership that sold me my last car:

Dear Josh,

I just wanted to take this opportunity to wish you a healthy and happy birthday! Hope you and your Honda are doing well and please remember, if you need anything at all, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Once again, have a wonderful birthday!

Wow! I’ve never been so pleased to receive a birthday card from an automated computer system. Yes, it’s only a small gesture, but who doesn’t like to receive a birthday greeting? It made me smile, made me feel good about the company - and made me want to give them more business.

Want to make your customers feel the same way about you? Send your own birthday greetings by email! Be sure to collect your customers’ birthdays, then send them a quick note on their special day. And if you’d like to send something a bit more on the “warm and fuzzy” side, send a free e-card at hallmark.com. They have free e-cards that you can customize and send in only a couple of minutes, guaranteed to make your customer smile.

A small “happy birthday” message can go a long way. If you know your customers’ birthdays, why not let them know you’re thinking about them on their special day? Send them an e-card! Or…how about sending customers an anniversary card on the anniversary of their purchase?

Everyone likes to feel important. Everyone likes to know that someone’s thinking about them. The smallest gestures can win you big brownie points – and with the help of the Internet, it’s faster and easier than ever to show someone you care. Plus – it’s another great example of the FREE promotional tools available to us via the Internet.

So what’s in store for my BIG birthday celebration? Let’s see…I’ll probably spend the day staring at a computer monitor…ruining my “aging” eyes even further…while developing carpal tunnel syndrome from typing…in an office with NO windows…on a gorgeous spring day. What fun!

It’s so easy to make a huge difference in the eyes of your customers. From the CEO of a large corporation to a minimum wage store cashier, any employee can impress customers enough to make a lasting impression.

Sometimes, the most insignificant gestures can leave a huge impact on a customer.

This week, I’d like to go off on a tangent and share two quick stories. They’re not entirely Internet-related, but they left an impact on me and I thought you’d appreciate them.

1. One morning last week, my wife and I went in to our local Quick Check store for coffee, as we do fairly often. After preparing our cups-o’-joe, we proceeded to the front of the store to pay. The line was unusually long that day…and we were in a hurry.

When we finally made it to the front, the cashier apologized for the long delay. “Since you had to wait so long,” he said, “I’ll give you a discount on your coffee.”

Between the two of us, we probably saved a whopping 40 cents. But somehow, we were so impressed by this small gesture. The cashier was not a store manager, but he had the authority to make sure we left the store happy, and with a positive attitude toward Quick Check. And it worked!

2. While watching “House” with my wife the other night, we were really impressed by a commercial we saw from Sprint.

In it, Sprint’s new CEO, Dan Hesse, was promoting the company’s new “Simply Everything” plan, in which subscribers receive unlimited talking, texting, Internet, email, etc. for $99 per month.

The commercial was nothing special…until the very end. The screen went black, and the email address “dan@sprint.com” flashed on the screen.

To me, this is an incredible change in direction for television advertising. Dan wasn’t just selling to us, he wants to talk with us. Love Sprint? Let Dan know. Hate ‘em? Dan wants to hear about it. Did Dan have a piece of broccoli stuck in his teeth on camera? Tell him yourself.

Don’t contact Sprint by filling out a “contact us” form on their web site. Don’t call a customer service center in India. Email the CEO directly.

Wow. By simply flashing an email address at the end of a TV commercial, Sprint impressed me - big time. Don’t you wish every company was interested in starting the same type of dialogue with its customers?

(By the way, if you want to reach me personally, it’s josh@gostampless.com.)

You can watch the Sprint ad here.

From a lowly cashier to the millionaire CEO, the smallest little “extras” can leave a great big impression on a customer, no matter how insignificant they may seem to you.

Here’s one you can implement right now: respond to your email inquiries immediately.

You have a unique opportunity to delight your customers with a prompt, professional response to their email inquiries. After all, if you sent an e-mail to a large company and received a response within two hours, wouldn’t YOU be impressed?

They say “you never get a second chance to make a first impression.” It doesn’t take much to make that impression last. Keep your customers for life. Try to look for more of these kinds of opportunities every day.