Return Path recently published a great study outlining opportunities that are being missed by email marketers in their initial communications with their readers. The study revealed that 85% of companies failed to personalize the first email message sent to new subscribers. What's even more surprising is that the majority did collect such personal data at sign up but they didn't take the time to insert it into the greeting and body of their messages.

It may sound like a trivial task that couldn't possibly affect your return on investment. But think of it this way - doesn't it make you smile when your pharmacist, mechanic, or grocery clerk uses your name in your interactions? It sure does for me! It adds that personal touch that makes me feel like they're paying attention and that my patronage is truly appreciated. Moreover, if it's so easy to automatically personalize email campaigns, then why don't we just do it?

Another fact that baffled me is that a little over half of email marketers (60%) did not send a welcome message at all. Wow! What a missed opportunity. First impressions are everything, even in the email world. A user who signs up and receives a personalized welcome message confirming what they will be receiving from you, when and how often is more likely to continue the email relationship and be more receptive and interactive than the one who signs up and waits days, weeks or even months for that first communication (which is most likely non-personalized or not targeted to them). In the latter case, the chances are that you'll be forgotten about and chucked into the spam rubbish when you do eventually arrive in their inbox.

So my advice is this: take the 15 minutes to set up a personalized welcome message. The little effort that it takes will reap many benefits.

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About The Author

Lindsay Kloepping is a product manager at Lyris. She is responsible for defining and delivering customer requirements to improve their email marketing ROI.

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