AM Inbox: Misdirected Canadian messaging

RetailEmail.Blogspot monitors the email marketing campaigns of more than 100 top online retailers. Here are highlights from our inbox this morning:

Neiman Marcus, 4/7 — Now shipping to CANADA + FREE INTRODUCTORY SHIPPING!
Neiman Marcus announced to subscribers that they now ship to Canada, but the messaging left me wondering who they were targeting with this email. Neiman Marcus knows my zip code, so they know I’m not in Canada. So when they’re talking about shipping to my doorstep it seems like there’s a big disconnect there. Perhaps there was a segmentation problem, but this message seems intended for Canadian customers. For Americans it seems that a more appropriate message would be something like: “Now you can give your Canadian friends and family the gift of apparel, shoes and accessories from their favorite designers and have it delivered to their doorstep.” Similarly, the “Tell a Friend” link could be more specific: “Tell your friends and family in Canada the news”.



SmartBargains, 4/7 — Congratulations!
“Congratulation!” is an awfully spammy-looking subject line. SmartBargains opens the email by saying “Congratulations, Bargain Shopper!” That would have been a better subject line because SmartBargains customers would easily recognize the “Bargain Shopper” greeting. Beyond appearing spammy, the subject line just doesn’t tell you anything about what the email is about. Subject lines aren’t just about tricking subscribers into opening emails. It’s about informing them about what the email is about, so if they’re interested in that then they’ll want to open the email. For instance, I regularly receive emails from MediaPost about various events they’re hosting. I appreciate that I can look at the subject line and know whether that’s an event I want to learn more about. I appreciate that MediaPost doesn’t try to force me to open the email in order to determine what it’s about.

Chadwick’s, 4/7 — Dear Customer, Here Are Your 2 FREE Gift Cards From Chadwick's
“Great! Free gift cards. That’s awesome. What…hey, those are gift cards. Those are just regular, old discount offers.” It’s hard not to feel deceived by this subject line. People know what a gift card is, and this ain’t it.



SUBJECTIVITY SCANNER:
Art.com, 4/7 — 20% Off the entire site + Artist Trivia!
Walgreens, 4/7 — Get a Free Roll of Film Developed - April 9 Only
Old Navy, 4/7 — Mexicali Styles for Women Starting at $24.50, Plus Free Shipping
Spiegel, 4/7 — What to Wear to a Wedding? The Perfect Looks are Here! + Pay Nothing Until July!
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