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Rant: Personalizing Emails

by redstanford
6 replies
personally i can't stand it when i get emails from IM'rs and it's personalized. the one size fits all (insert person's name here) is just very tacky and unnecessary.


for instance from one sender, here are the titles of emails:

Just trade Customers Eric M
Are you scared Eric
How about you and I go grab a thousand dollar drink Eric
Can i be brutally honest with you Eric M
How to lose all your customers Eric M

i know the purpose of personalizing the emails is to make it, well more personal but the only impression i get from titles like this is it's a canned email with a (insert name here).

I'd honestly be more inclined to open an email titled w/out my name.

plus don't get me started on randomly inserting my name in completely unnecessary parts of the actual email. no one talks like that real life, why would you talk like that in an email:

Research have found that the richest and most successful business owners on earth all know the same secrets that the rest of the world never knew.
I finally discovered what they are years back. But first Eric...

or

Seriously, if you've read this far Eric, you know that you have a strong interest in making your business produce the kind of response and results you really deserve.
#emails #personalizing
  • Profile picture of the author tpw
    Red, do you take Bill's ex-wife to be your lawfully wedded wife?

    I do.

    Bill's ex-wife, do you take Red to be your lawfully wedded husband.

    Only if he is not like that asshole, Bill.
    People do occasionally use names frequently when talking to others, but that is more a reflection of the person speaking, than the style of communication that is acceptable in our society.
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    Bill Platt, Oklahoma USA, PlattPublishing.com
    Publish Coloring Books for Profit (WSOTD 7-30-2015)
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  • Profile picture of the author Converting Copy
    I'm not a fan of using the name in the title; partly because it looks fakey and hacky and partly because spammers do it way too often. It seems even less personal to do it now.

    Typically I'll use the personalization when I'm opening my letter and addressing the subscriber for the first time.

    I think that you've got to use their name somewhere, otherwise I would get the feeling that someone is just mailing a stock message to their entire list and I'm just part of the queue whereas adding someone's name in opening makes that message feel so much more personal as if you're just writing this one message for that person; and what better time to use it than when you open it so that they know that you're addressing them specifically.

    Maybe it sounds a bit hokey as I've basically just defined the point of personalization, but it really works when used effectively (and not overused).
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    ConvertingCopy.com - Just Good Online Marketing & Copywriting Tips and Advice For Webmasters

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    • Profile picture of the author tpw
      Originally Posted by Converting Copy View Post

      I'm not a fan of using the name in the title; partly because it looks fakey and hacky and partly because spammers do it way too often.

      Most spammers call me by the wrong name. Sometimes they call me Judy, and sometimes they call me Travis...

      And every time they do, I hit reply, and say, "Judy doesn't live here."
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      Bill Platt, Oklahoma USA, PlattPublishing.com
      Publish Coloring Books for Profit (WSOTD 7-30-2015)
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  • Profile picture of the author BloggingPro
    You get the impression that it is a canned email with [insert name here] because... well it is. While I agree that it looks pretty cheesy, I think it should be handled on a case-by-case basis.

    For example in my biggest list I use the [insert name here]. I started getting more of a response once I did, which led to more sales with cash and prizes! It helps that I only ask for their first name on the opt-in, so the headline displays just their first name and not a last name or initial.

    Even then I personally think its cheesy, but my list reacts well to "personalization" because I think it builds trust. They trust they are going to get a good deal on what I am promoting (coupons for shoes) and the personalized emails further that to a certain extent.
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    You're going to fail. If you're afraid of failure then you do not belong in the Internet Marketing Business. Period.
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  • Profile picture of the author Michael Oksa
    Originally Posted by redstanford View Post

    personally i can't stand it when i get emails from IM'rs and it's personalized. the one size fits all (insert person's name here) is just very tacky and unnecessary.
    A one-size-fits-all solution may not be tacky, but it is unnecessary.

    The key is to test it with YOUR list and see how they respond.

    This topic just came up a day or two ago and I will give the same basic answer. Personalization CAN work, but it has to sound completely natural. For example, I start all of my messages with "Hi FIRSTNAME" because that's how I would greet somebody in real life. So, this is my acid test: if using the person's name would sound natural in a face-to-face conversation, then the name goes in the message; if not, then it doesn't.

    More often than not (apart from the opening salutation) the name doesn't get used.

    All the best,
    Michael
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    "Ich bin en fuego!"
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  • Profile picture of the author David Keith
    i tried that several years ago, and found i get better long term open rates if i just brand my emails as an industry leader or expert and quit playing all the tricky games.

    i decided to go the route of training my list to respond to me / my brands because we offer value.

    i changed after taking 1 week to go over all the emails i do read. i get a lot of email, so that was a chore, but what i found was that i opened emails from trusted sources much more than those who sent me tricky subject lines or fake personalization.

    so i no longer play all the games, and anytime i start a new list, i start training them right from the begining to respond to my brand rather than games.
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    Just a Little War Room Gift.
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