Practice What You Teach
Here’s an example of personalization gone wild: An e-mail from Rapleaf to Casey Cochran of Murad was loaded with personalization concerning her attendance at an upcoming marketing conference. Included was a special reminder about a session on e-mail marketing to be presented by Rapleaf. The problem? The company took personalization a bit too far – the email was actually addressed to Casey and from Casey! This example is even funnier because Rapleaf’s home page raps about its amazing ability to personalize communication that will boost sales. Hmmm; don’t think so!
And, here’s one that also made me laugh: Try texting from your Apple iPhone about the new iPad; no matter what you do, the spellchecker will change the noun to “uPas.” Now, I don’t know what “uPas” means, but I think Apple’s spellchecker should be updated.
What’s the lesson here: We all make missteps (myself included!). But when you are the expert in a particular field, it’s doubly important to check, recheck, and check again. In other words, this example would have been ho-hum coming from Williams-Sonoma because its expertise is gourmet cooking, not email. We must fight against the clich E9 that the shoemaker’s children have no shoes; I believe the shoemaker and her children should wear Gucci’s!
Here’s a sizzling example of someone who practices what she teaches: Alexandria Brown. Known as the E-Zine Queen, Ali coaches hundreds of entrepreneurs each year, delivers sold-out seminars, and of course, writes her own weekly e-zine called “Highlights on Marketing and Success. The best part? Take a peek at her subject lines; they are always hot!
Comments