Sometimes it's more beneficial in the long run to ask for
the e-mail only and other times it's better to ask for the
name and e-mail address.

It depends upon how you use the name afterwards and
the market your targeting.

It's better to split test two different opt-in forms: one
requesting e-mail only, and the other asking for the
name and e-mail address.

Then track the conversion rates all the way through
your sales process (not just the initial opt-in conversion
rate).

Then discover which approach works best for you and
your market for a given opt-in route.

Dedicated to mutual success,

Shaun

I don't, myself. I used to, but I stopped a long time ago, after getting subscriber feedback in a range of niches (not spontaneously: I ask for freedback quite often, and find it helpful).

I think its main use is to make you sound like an insurance salesman.

I don't know - there may be all kinds of perfectly legitimate and reasonable and advisable uses for it, for other people's businesses, which have never occurred to me at all, as an affiliate marketer - but I don't envisage doing it again myself, anyway. I'd rather do without it (since I'm not going to use it anyway) and have the extra 12-15% of people opting in.

http://www.warriorforum.com/main-int...ml#post7934937

Capturing the name, in addition to the email address, helps you personalize your emails. If your goal is to build a rapport and relationship with your subscribers, then addressing emails to them using their first name would come across as less salesy.

Personally, I am more receptive to emails I receive addressed to me using my first name. I would think that if your market or audience is outside the IM niche, receiving an email using their first name would be more appealing and have a positive psychological effect.

Those of us who are affiliate marketers don't really care much either way, I would guess.

Of course, the more information you ask for, the more potential subscribers you may lose. But it depends on how you plan to use the information you capture.

If you are a mobile marketer or want to reach those who use mobile devices, then capturing the mobile telephone number would definitely be a plus. As a matter of fact, I think it's wise for any affiliate marketer, especially offline marketers, to capture the mobile number because the numbers are increasing in terms of usage of mobile devices over desktop PCs and laptops. Mobile device users are much more responsive to text or SMS messages vs. email messages.

Split-testing is the key to finding what will work best for you, based on how you plan to use the information you capture.

If you are interested in personalizing your emails then you should use the name field. Otherwise email should do well. Even with name field, some people do not put in their real name so when you personalize, their seudo name will not be pleasant to them :p

But with only the email field to capture, signups should be easy because of less work involved.

I don't think capturing their names is necessary. Unless you are personalizing each email, just the email address is okay

When I collected emails on past websites, I never asked for the name. Only time I got the name was when they were signing up for a program or something and I kept the email to market to them after.

This can be debated till the end of Internet time and there still won't be a one answer fits all. Personally I've went both ways in the past but always came back to asking for the name.

I also look at it as being another qualifier. If someone can't be bothered putting their name into an opt in form to get my freebie it's usually because they're not a super target prospect looking for what i have to offer.

Fake names get put into opt in forms by freebie seekers and tossers. I don't care who disagrees with me on this. I've never signed up to a list using a fake name because I'm a grown adult, not an immature ass. I'm confident that a person putting a fake name into an opt in form is a person I don't want on my list anyway. If you just got their email addy, it doesn't resolve the fact that they're an idiot and a time waster. Good riddance IMO.

As for the person who asked above whether we use our friends name in an email message. Well, absolutely. Who doesn't address their friends by name? Most likely you don't address your Mother and Father by name, but everyone else, of course you do. Everyone does.

Fact is. No amount of testing will resolve this debate. Anyone who tests this and believe they have accurate results, are fooling themselves. Unless the test is scientifically controlled, you will NOT be able to get accurate results. Too many variables. Even if the same opt in form, copy, freebie, and autoresponder sequence is used for the testing, the results are still not going to be accurate. That's a fact. Get over it.

Personally, I respond better to a person who addresses me by name. So I have to assume others think like me too. Again though, it entirely depends on the quality of your content, prospects and how you use the person's name.

There's no right or wrong answer to this question. Results are NOT determined by whether the recipients name is used, or not. Bad marketing will ultimately determine how unsuccessful a campaign will be.

Most often it's the "marketer" on other "marketers" lists that have a problem with their name being used.

Declan O Flaherty has it right .... when your target is wide (like a solo ad) ... no name ... when your target is short (buying a higher end product)... a name is better. When I read am email from a marketer and my name is there I feel a bit more connected. If someone cant put a good name in the box you probly don't need them on a list.

KBrown
Rock On~

It can be a waste of time to ask for name because most people don't like to give their name. Well, we can use the name to make the message more personalized but this benefit is overwhelmed by the fact that many don't want to give their names at all. :0

if you are trying to build a personal relationship with your list subscribers then include a name, but I think in most cases, people get annoyed at entering names, and thus always enter a fake name anyway. Well that's what I do at least!

It depends on what you have built already with your traffic. If you just want a quick lead, email only, but if they already trust you, always go for the name.