Key Points to e-Marketing

• Welcome Newest Client
• E-Marketing on the Rise
• Bounced E-mails, What a Pain
• This Month’s Tips

CITIZENSFIRST CONVERTS TO DIGITALMAILER eSTATEMENTS

DigitalMailer would like to welcome CitizensFirst CU (Oshkosh, WI). CitizensFirst CU converted from another vendor’s eStatement program and launched our eStatement product in July.

E-MARKETING ON THE RISE

You may or may not know this, but the most popular use for the Internet is still email. I’m starting to see a dramatic increase in the number of credit unions seeking ways to put the valuable email addresses that they have collected to use. The next, admittedly big, e-marketing step is the hard part but credit unions are finding ways to promote business development by creating a second and sometimes third email contact each month. When planning e-marketing campaigns remember these key points:

1. Always use an Opt-in strategy
2. NEVER SPAM your members
3. Focus the content. Make it different than other content and your members will read it
4. Avoid the hard sell. Inform members of options available
5. Provide an Opt-out option

DigitalMailer’s e-LERT product is the perfect email address collection service and gives CUs the ability to offer members "tell-me-when" email notification services. Learn more about what members are asking for from their CU at http://www.digitalmailer.com/elerts.html or contact us at info@digitalmailer.com if you want to see how DigitalMailer can put e-LERTs to work for you.

BOUNCED E-MAILS, WHAT A PAIN

The most frequent question asked at seminars and in implementation meetings lately is about returned or "bounced" emails. Typically, a CU should expect 5-10% of the emails it sends out to be "bounced" for a bad address. Our clients are managing and reducing this number by:

• Pre-noting new enrollees to catch bad addresses early
• Adding a "confirm email" field to online enrollment forms and verifying that the same address was typed twice
• Flagging teller systems and online banking systems that a new email address is needed
• Managing a bad email is no different than managing a bad physical address. Have the same department do both.

Of course, using the address on a regular basis will remind the member to give the CU their change of email address to the CU too.

THIS MONTH’S TIPS

Compliance: New client prospects always ask about compliance and regulatory issues. The e-Sign Act is the first place that a CU should go for some of the regulations on eStatements. Here’s a click link to NCUA’s library: http://www.ncua.gov/ref/reg_alerts/reg_alert.html

Passwords: A forgotten password is the number one reason eStatement members call the CU. When DigitalMailer installed our "Forgot Password" feature we eliminated 90% of the password trouble calls to a CU’s call center. Make sure any vendor you select can eliminate these calls to your CU.

Implementation short cuts: Start thinking about your internal CU processes while interviewing vendors. Vendor limitations may not allow you to do what you want with your program.

THANKS FOR FORWARDING
Thank you to all the subscribers that have been forwarding the newsletter to other industry professionals.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR & COMPANY:
Ron Daly is President/CEO of DigitalMailer, Inc., an eStatement and digital communication provider helping clients gain a strategic business advantage through electronic statements, e-newsletters, targeted email and other custom CRM tools in the credit union and mortgage industries. www.digitalmailer.com. You can email Ron at rdaly@digitalmailer.com if you have any questions or want more information on any topic found in our newsletters or web site.

© 2002 DMI