New research findings indicate inbox advertising provides benefits beyond acquisitions alone.
For consumer brands and advertisers, the summer of 2008 will probably go on record as one of the most challenging in recent memory. Almost every brand with a web presence has ongoing search and display campaigns. With consumers cutting back on everything, it is more important than ever for marketers to get their campaign messages right the first time consumers interact with their brands online -- a necessity that causes many marketers to ask, "What else can we do?"
It may surprise some to learn that the answer may be email. New research indicates email is an effective way to increase brand favorability for both direct response and brand advertisers.
Not all brands have employed email advertising strategies, which is surprising given email's ability to deliver familiar brand creative with exclusive, timely offers, right into the inboxes of opt-in consumers. Some marketers are still unsure about email. One reason might be that brands tend to stick with what they know, but it also may be due to common misconceptions.
A complementary move
eHarmony has long used opt-in email programs as a central component of its business and communication model. The success of its customer acquisition initiatives led eHarmony to inquire about the broader impact of its opt-in email advertising campaigns. eHarmony engaged Dynamic Logic, a division of Millward Brown, to conduct an inbox advertising branding study based on eHarmony's current email model. Dynamic Logic measured the impact of email marketing on the eHarmony brand -- the first time this type of study has been conducted within this particular online channel.
The study measured the effectiveness of an email acquisition campaign at increasing brand metrics and attributes, using unaided and aided brand awareness. Dynamic Logic employed a control-exposed methodology. Each opt-in participant in the study received three different email creatives over a period of six weeks. Each of the three opt-in emails contained strong calls to action, including registering for free personality profiles and free matching. The study assessed each emails' impact on favorability, acquisition and branding.
The study found that the inbox campaign boosted campaign awareness by 37 percent -- meaning that 37 percent of the respondents would not have been aware of the campaign from other sources. General brand awareness increased 11.5 percent among test consumers.
Seasoned online marketing strategists have known for some time that running display ads can help improve the results of concurrent search campaigns. The Dynamic Logic/eHarmony study illustrates that inbox advertising increases branding metrics and brand attributes on a level that is more than competitive with search and display. Like adding display to your search campaign, indications are that adding email to your multichannel mix can further increase awareness of your campaign and brand.
Multiple exposures increase favorability
When analyzing their search and display advertising campaigns, brand marketers focus on frequency, ad size and ad format. They want assurances that their campaigns will build relationships with consumers, and they look to metrics such as frequency as evidence of success. Email has been considered a direct response medium for so long that most marketers only associate it with response metrics, not brand building.
The favorability results of the Dynamic Logic/eHarmony study suggest that the branding discussion should include email. Consumers' favorability rating of the brand increased by 7.3 percent over the participants who did not receive the same opt-in email. Brand awareness and favorability both improved when consumers were exposed to inbox messaging more than once -- meaning that frequency is an important consideration for email as well. This was one of the most counterintuitive findings based on inaccurate marketplace perceptions of email as a chiefly acquisitive channel.
Traditionally, many marketers have hypothesized that the key role of inbox advertising was an acquisitive one, and there was no formal research to verify the branding benefit. But, across each of the key branding metrics, the Dynamic Logic/eHarmony shows inbox advertising enhances branding, including brand favorability.
Not just for acquisitions anymore
Email campaigns are not only effective communication and customer acquisition vehicles, the eHarmony study has shown they also support and enhance consumer impressions of the eHarmony brand. The campaign was driven by strong calls to action and targeted stand-alone branded creative, invited by users as part of eHarmony's opt-in program. While no one creative or call to action works in every campaign, the reaction to the display units provided in the examples indicate that, overall, the inbox advertising and acquisition campaign led to increased agreement among participating consumers that "eHarmony offers something different than the other dating sites."
If done correctly, inbox advertising may significantly increase all awareness metrics and could drive increased consumer favorability toward your brand. This study indicates that many marketers may want to reconsider their beliefs that email is an acquisition-only vehicle. The results strongly counter the popular belief that that email negatively affects brand equity or, more specifically, brand favorability.
Jason Oates is vice president of media services at Datran Media.
