Based on the quantity and quality of leads generated, companies said email was their best lead generation program, followed by live events, website registrations and webinars. The effectiveness of online channels, coupled with the fact that prospects indicate the web is the first place they look for more information, makes it natural for companies to be increasing their investments in web design, email marketing and search engine optimization.

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In a survey of shoppers in four states, nearly four in 10 told cross-channel commerce solutions provider CrossView they preferred to receive promotional messages from retailers by email. It was the most popular communications channel, with direct mail drawing about a quarter of respondents and text messaging coming in third with 18%. Just 9% of shoppers were interested in promotional messages on social media.

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Email marketers searching for subject lines that will grab their recipients’ attention should look to highly relevant, time-based messages for the best results, according to data from Experian Cheetahmail.

The email marketing services company conducted a study of more than 40,000 messages in March 2010 and discovered that, overall, almost half of transactions and about three-quarters of opens and clicks happen within a day of receiving a marketing email. So good results will often come fast.

One of the fastest ways to get email recipients to open and click on messages is to send notices of abandoned carts. As Sara Ezrin, senior director of strategic services at Cheetahmail, explained to eMarketer, recipients of such messages are already thinking about the items in their cart, and that they are in the market for those products will spur them toward quick response.

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Social Sharing Adds 30% to Email CTRs

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Email marketing messages with a social sharing option generate 30% higher click through rates than emails without these features. So says a new survey by Get Response - as well as anecdotal evidence that the rules governing email and social media communication are increasingly becoming blurred.

The study, “Email Marketing and Social Media Integration Report” also found that messages with three or more sharing options generated 55% higher CTRs and emails with a Twitter sharing option returned over 40% higher CTRs than messages without any social media links. Read more at www.marketingvox.com

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Many more small businesses have plans for the coming year, and more than three-quarters consider integration of e-mail and social at least somewhat important. A majority plan to allow users to sign up for e-mails directly from social media sites like Facebook. This tactic allows e-mail marketers to grow their lists—cited as the top benefit of integrating social and e-mail by one-third of respondents—by allowing consumers to use their channel of choice and sign up on their own terms.

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Social Media Links Improve Email CTR

Social Media Links Improve CTR 30% GetResponse research indicates that on average, promotional emails sent by small-to-mid-sized business (SMB) marketers that include links to at least one social network have a 9.4% CTR. Meanwhile, promotional emails without any social network links have a 7.2% CTR. This means promotional emails including social network links generate an average CTR 30% higher than promotional emails without the links. Read more at www.marketingcharts.com

Email Tactics Rated as Highly Effective, by Target MarketRead more at www.marketingsherpa.com

A shocking 21% of young adults said they would turn down a job if it didn’t allow them to access social network sites or their personal email during work hours, according to a new global survey of workplace attitudes and behaviors by Clearswift, a software security company. This is part of a larger phenomenon which is blurring the lines between individuals’ private and professional lives, Clearswift found in its survey of 1,600 managers and employees in USA, UK, Germany and Australia, performed in January and February.

As noted, the trend is especially pronounced among younger adults. Among employees ages 25-34, Clearswift found that 57% do personal tasks like checking social networks, emailing, and online shopping while in the workplace. On the other hand, 66% of all employees (of all ages) say they stay later or work through lunch to make up for the time they spend on personal Internet use. Read more at www.mediapost.com

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Despite minor improvements, about 1-in-5 commercial, permissioned emails still fail to reach consumers’ inboxes, according to new research from email and reputation management firm Return Path. In the second half of 2009, 19.9% such emails never reached consumer inboxes in the United States and Canada — representing only a slight improvement over the first half of the year when 20.7% such emails missed their target. By contrast, European inbox placement rates fared markedly better with just 15% of requested, permissioned emails never reaching consumer inboxes. Read more at www.mediapost.com

The “2010 Digital Marketing Outlook” report found that 81% of the brand executives surveyed expected an increase in digital projects in 2010, and one-half will be moving dollars from traditional to digital budgets. Further, more than three-quarters think the current economy will push more allocations to digital.

Senior marketers reported that social networks and applications were their biggest priority for 2010, followed closely by digital infrastructure. While social media marketing looks set to stay top of mind, a majority of respondents considered a range of digital activities at least “important,” with only games failing to inspire widespread interest.

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Types of Email US Internet Users Always Open Type of Email % of Respondents Monthly bills 72% Bank statements 60% Promotional offers 41% E-newsletters 40% News alerts 37% Source: CMO Council and InfoPrint Solutions Company, November 2009 Read more at www.mediapost.com

According to a new poll from the Chief Marketing Officer Council, 64% of consumers say promotional offers dominate both the email and traditional mail they receive, and only 41% view these as must-read communications. Of the 91% of consumers who opt out or unsubscribe to emails, 46% are driven to brand defection because the messages are simply not relevant.

Reasons US Internet User Unsubscribe from Email Newsletters (% of Respondents Unsubscribed) Reason % of Unsubscribers Not relevant 46% Too many to manage 23 Cause clutter in inbox 16 Not from trusted source 16 Source: CMO Council and InfoPrint Solutions, November 2009 Read more at www.mediapost.com

The recession has had its effect on consumer behavior online, and the watchword is frugality. Whether or not shoppers go back to their spendthrift ways, for now coupons are cool and deal-seeking is the norm.

Higher open rates for coupon offers translated into higher click rates as well, though the difference was much smaller. E-mails with coupons that could be used online were most likely to be clicked, at 4%.

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There is a pronounced difference between open rates for e-mails that include a coupon offer and those that do not. Open rates of around 24% to 25% for coupon e-mails dropped to just 16% to 18% for noncoupon campaigns, according to Experian.

Higher open rates for coupon offers translated into higher click rates as well, though the difference was much smaller. E-mails with coupons that could be used online were most likely to be clicked, at 4%.

Experian also reported that 80% of online coupon mailings saw higher transaction-to-click rates and transaction rates than noncoupon campaigns. And 78% of that group also earned higher revenues per e-mail. Read more at www.emarketer.com

SUMMARY: Email has not only been spared the ax that fell heavily on most marketing budget line items, it seems to have actually benefited from the down economy. This boon wasn’t skewed by a few email-reliant sectors, it occurred in every industry participating in our benchmark survey.

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1. Facebook Replaces Personal Email

2. The Cloud Helps Open-Source Software Make Proper Money

3. Mobile Commerce -  The Promise That Has Never Delivered, Yet

4. Fewer Registrations - One Sign-in Fits All

5. Disruption vs. Continuity - Alternatives to the “Big Idea”

6. Self-Sufficiency: The Continuing Evolution of Web-Driven, Open-Source DIY Culture

7. Info-Art

8. Crowd Sourcing

9. More Flash, Not LessRead more at www.marketingcharts.com