Email Marketing to AOL Subscribers

Today there are over 35 million AOL email users. Most of us who conduct email marketing know this well as they make up close to 30% of our email lists. The majority of AOL users also have business email addresses that they use strictly for work, and they use AOL email for personal reasons only. AOL is also a provider for many home based businesses. This means that most AOL users are accessing the internet and their email accounts from home and 50% of these folks are doing so from a dial up connection. This article focuses on ways to reach these users by avoiding being tagged as spam, and once successfully delivered, how to ensure your email is opened and read.

People tend to be much more cautious of their own belongings than that of their company's. The computer for most home users is the second most valuable possession in their home other than their car. For the at home small business owner their computer is their lifeblood if it goes down, so does their business. So it comes as no surprise that these consumers are using an arsenal of tools to identify spam and guard against malicious virus attacks. A typical way to spread a virus is to send an email containing a file that seems like it is harmless, but actually contains the virus. If the email is viewed, even in preview mode then the virus gets launched.

The most common are

• Images
• Flash
• Animations
• Sound files
• powerpoint files

Now you can see why text based messages are the best shot at getting past the consumers suspicion and or virus protection software.

Spam detection software reads each email, checks for valid email addresses and filters for words and other elements that are common to spam emails. Here is how NOT to be tagged as spam.

Never use a bogus From: or Return to: email address.
Avoid the use of words such as Free, limited time, Special offer, or other classic marketing key phrases in your subject line or body copy. If you MUST use these terms try to insert an asterisk in between the letters like, "F*ree software".

Avoid using any profanity even light profanity, or phrases that could be mistaken as adult oriented spam such as these real world examples:

"hell of a deal" - hardware store Halloween email
"Get whipped back into shape" - health club
"blow your stress away" with the Hog leave blower. - Home improvement store

If you made it past the filters you still have to entice the consumer and convince them that you are not spam or a virus. The first inclination any user has when they see an email they don't recognize immediately is to delete it. Simple as that. So IDENTIFY yourself.

Always include your company or brand name in the subject line
Use your name in the From field if you know your customer will identify with it.
The first line in your message should identify who you are and why you have sent the email.

Also, note that many AOL customers share the same email account with another person in the same household. So don't make too many assumptions when creating body copy. One person may have subscribed but the other is not aware of this, so include a statement as to why they received this email.

"Joe, thank you for joining our Pet Rock club for the eccentric recluse"

This is also helpful for emails sent to a new purchased list. Be honest and tell them up front.

"Joe we heard you were an eccentric recluse and thought you would enjoy a f*ree companion pet rock …..body copy…. If you don't want to receive our f*ree pet rock newsletter you can unsubscribe here anytime."

Bottom line:

• Use text based messages with simple HTML links only.
• A 1 screen length message with no scrolling is the most effective message for ads, newsletters up to 2 screen lengths.
• Use quickly identifiable subject lines
• Introduce yourself and the reason you are sending the email in the first line of the body.
• Avoid cliché marketing terms
• Avoid terms that could be construed as "adult oriented"
• Always include privacy policy, subscribe and unsubscribe links.
• Send out your emails in the evening when home users are most likely at home using their computers.
• Purchase and install your own spam software and test your messages against it to see what works and what doesn't.

Or, give Lead Discovery call. We have over 8 years of experience in developing effective email campaigns and we can do it at a price any small business can afford.

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