Autoresponder - What's Your Name?

I can't be bothered. If that's what they put in, that's what they'll be called.

Focus your energy on subscribers who really want to be on your list.

Have you ever stopped to think that the "experts" that have been saying this about names in e-mail, aren't actually experts at all. That they may be simply posing as an authority on the subject?

If you think that using the name will cause an e-mail to be delivered as you described above, then it is up to you to decide if the "benefits" outweigh the downside...

The only true way to know this is to test your response an conversions rates and let the statistics tell you what to do...

Very few e-mail marketing decisions of mine are based on what other people tell me..

Gather names, test, e-mail to those names, track and test

Rinse and Repeat

Simples...

Peace

Jay

Theres not a lot you can do about this

I personally wouldnt care what they think to put it blunt, they cant be too serious in the first place if they put a load of trash as their name.

Those that have seriously signed up to your list I would definately say its good to include their name so dont worry about sending mail to people that have put a false name.

They asked to be called that right

Dean

Both the above are valid points of view. I remember when I first got a customized email... I thought WOW.. now I think spam or "what are they selling". The overall convept of your offer will do more than just Dear John or Dear Mary... And I have gotten some that do indeed say.... Dear 3245Rt6. That throws me for a moment, then I remember... "oh yeah, I signed up that way".

Dear Elcabron,

Elcabron, what you should concentrate on is your message. Because, Elcabron, what many of those so called experts (who might not be experts at all Elcabron!) are talking about are e-mails that try too hard to sound familiar. Elcabron, when you use your opt-in signer upper's name too often, they think "Elcabron! Why are you sending me spam Elcabron! I wasn't sure I was that interested before Elcabron but Elcabron, now that I can see that you, Elcabron, use an autoresponder I'm definitely not going to buy your Elcabron-y products." Which you can admit, Elcabron, would be pretty sucky.

Instead, Elcabron, if you keep the mentions of opt in signer uppers names to a minimum and concentrate on the message that you would like to get through: the quality of your product/service, how you think it can benefit them, etc. The mention of their name in the greeting of the e-mail won't seem all that bad or irritating. The use of the name in a salutation is perfectly all right. It is, Elcabron, the repetitive use of people's names in places that you, Elcabron, can admit are pretty odd or potentially spammy sounding.



(writing that, Elcabron, was kind of fun!)

Personalization has been around for almost a decade and only newbies actually think you're sending them a personal email and they eventually figure it out too. This is especially true in the IM niche.

I see a lot of "experts" are switching to email only on subscription forms for that very reason. But I still collect the name. I think if you use verified optin, the people who verify will enter a real name.

I make up names for my own amusement (I know I need to get out more) like "bullsh*t" or "not another con" so they read Bullsh*t, grab you product before its too late!!
or not another con, you really need to see this.....
etc

A 'Guru' once mentioned to me that the thing was to NOT use a person's name in an email title, that who the email was from was more interesting to the receiver than whether or not the sender knew their name when it came to deciding to open or trash it. If you have a good relationship with your list and most of your emails contain interesting content your list would be interested in, they can come to look forward to getting an email from you. (even more so if you divulge human characteristics, usually by sharing a part of your life in the form of a story that leads to wherever your email is going.)

He said the time to use their name was occasionally in the BODY of an email. Especially if you are describing a scene and want the person to visualize themselves in that situation/scene.

Visualization is a common and effective technique in car sales. Such as, "So, where will you take your family to for your 1st trip in your new car, John?'
or, "John, does the color of the car match your house?"
"Will this new car fit in the garage, John?"
Each question makes the person 'visualize the answer (see themselves driving somewhere, seeing the car in front of the house, seeing the car in the garage) and the use of their name personalizes it and makes the experience unique to them. It helps that you DO NOT use their name at the start or end of every question or statement, otherwise, it is just ho-hum. When you use it selectively, it can add a punch of intimacy at the exact time you want it the most, much more easily. Using it to get an email opened, (to me) is wasting a resource, especially as there are so many other ways to get the email opened. (Like: "You won the Nigerian Lottery!" Lol)