Your email campaign

Transparency

The reporting mechansim is one of the great strengths of the dotMailer system. With your own login and password, you can see amongst others:

• Number of emails sent
• Number of emails delivered
• Number of emails opened by recipients
• Number of times the email has been forwarded by the recipient
• Number of click throughs per link within the email
• Number of unsubscribes

Measurability

The reporting format allows for measurability. Depending on the nature of the message sent, the level of responses will vary.

For those companies conducting multiple email campaigns in 2009, the average open rate and click throughs across all the companies were as follows:

• Open – 12.8% to 17.5%
• Click through – 1.1% to 1.8%

Certain campaigns have achieved an open rate of 52.5 per cent and a click through rate of 7.1 per cent and others less than 10 per cent and 0.5 per cent respectively.

As much can be learnt from a campaign’s lack of success as can be learnt from a successful campaign.

Five working days after your email campaign has been sent, those recipients that clicked through on the links within your email, will be matched against our database. We will then send you a spreadsheet containing the full contact details (where held) of these recipients.
 

Cost effectiveness

As a method of lead generation, email marketing is proven to be one of the most cost effective marketing methods. For many, email marketing is the stepping stone to a wider campaign, allowing companies to compare reaction to different campaigns.
 

Where Hospitality Databases Ltd provide the email database, emails that bounce back (do not reach the recipient) are discounted from your invoice.

Four tips for maximising cost effectiveness:

1. Calendar month: dotMailer works on the number of emails sent in a calendar month. The more you send the lower the rate per email. Multiple campaigns sent within a calendar month (for example, week one and four of February) would be less expensive.
    
2. Split testing: For larger campaigns (in excess of 20,000) we recommended split testing. This allows a company to select multiple subject lines, and test a percentage of their database, to establish which subject line generates the best response.  
    
3. Click throughs: Where the subject matter of multiple campaigns is similar, it is recommended that a different message is sent to those recipients that have clicked through on previous campaigns. This guarantees a new set of leads.
    
4. Bounce backs: An email that bounces back is not necessarily "dead". Hospitality Databases do not charge for emails that bounce back, but will regularly check the validity of the email using a different broadcast platform.

Your email template design

DotMailer offer a number of free templates that allow you to create your own template. It is also on hand to help you with any technical aspects and offer free “webinars” that act as a step-by-step set up guide to basic template design.

Once the template has been designed and uploaded, textual and editorial amends can be made easily. Hospitality Databases Ltd can also recommend template designers.

Prior to sending, all html templates are given a “spam” rating from 0-5 and recommendations as to what to change within the template. The higher the spam rating, the lower the expected delivery. Amendments can thus be made before sending.

Your own database

Your database(s) can be stored securely on DotMailer. Hospitality Databases Ltd also offer a facility that allows you to use DotMailer to send your own campaigns.