Page 225 - Electronic Commerce

Chapter 4

should be more successful than a marketing strategy that sends general promotional
messages through the mass media. Companies such as Return Path offer opt-in e-mail
services. These services provide the e-mail addresses to advertisers at rates that vary
depending on the type and price of the product being promoted, but range from a minimum
of about $1 to a maximum of 25–30 percent of the selling price of the product.
200
Combining Content and Advertising
One strategy for getting e-mail accepted by customers and prospects that many
companies have found successful is to combine useful content with an advertising e-mail
message. Articles and news stories that would interest specific market segments are good
ways to increase acceptance of e-mail.
E-mail messages that include large articles or large attachments (such as graphics,
audio, or video files) can fill up recipients’ inboxes very quickly, so many advertisers send
content by inserting hyperlinks into e-mail messages. The hyperlinks should take customers
to the content, which is stored on the company’s Web site. Once customers are viewing
pages on the Web site, it is easier to induce them to stay on the site and consider making
purchases. Using hyperlinks that lead to a Web page instead of embedding content in e-mail
messages is especially important if the content requires a browser plug-in to play (as many
audio and video files do). The Web page can provide a link to the needed plug-in software.
An important element in any marketing strategy is coordination across media outlets.
If a company is using e-mail to promote its products or services, it should make sure that
any other marketing efforts it is undertaking at the same time, such as press releases,
print media ads, or broadcast media ads, are delivering a message that is consistent with
the e-mail campaign’s message.

Outsourcing E-Mail Processing
Many companies find that the number of customers who opt-in to information-laden
e-mails can grow rapidly. The job of handling e-mail lists and mass mailing software can
quickly outgrow the capacity of the company’s information technology staff. A number of
companies offer e-mail management services, and most small to midsized companies
outsource their e-mail processing operations to an e-mail processing service provider.
The Additional Information section of the Web Links for this chapter includes links
to several companies that offer e-mail processing and management services. These
companies will manage an e-mail campaign for a cost of between 1 and 5 cents per valid
e-mail address. Many of these companies will also help their clients purchase lists of e-mail
addresses from companies that compile such lists.

TECHNOLOGY-ENABLED CUSTOMER
RELATI ONSHIP MANAGEMENT
The nature of the Web, with its two-way communication features and traceable
connection technology, allows firms to gather much more information about customer
behavior and preferences than they can gather using micromarketing approaches.
Now, companies can measure a large number of things that are happening as customers

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