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To-do in this article:  Choose the right option to upload your contacts  Upload your contacts to a list   Why is it important to know which method of uploading is best for you?   Your contacts are most likely the most valuable part of your account. Of course, you’ll need a way to get them in there. We have multiple options available for importing contacts.    If you are importing a spreadsheet, take a moment to ensure the contact file is formatted correctly and in an acceptable format. We accept .XLS, .XLSX, .CSV, .VCF, and .TXT files.   Using an integration? We’ve got you covered. There are integrations available with multiple business softwares and eCommerce platforms that automatically sync your contacts.    What if you have them stored in your personal or business address book from an email client? Use our tools to bring over your contacts from Gmail, Outlook, or other various email providers. See them all here.   No matter what method you’re using, you will need to agree with our email permission policy. In short, these contacts have given you either express or implied consent to contact them through email. We also do not permit the upload of purchased lists.   If you have previously used another email marketing provider, you can upload a list of unsubscribed contacts. Even though you are contacting them through a different provider, these contacts have stated they no longer want to receive emails and you still have to respect their request.   However you decide to upload your contacts, once it’s done, it’s time to create your first email! ... View more

To-do in this article:  Familiarize yourself with the Contacts page  Decide if you are ready to upload contacts or need to grow your lists   There’s a chance you’ll spend a lot of time on the Contacts page so it’s important to familiarize yourself with the different components. It might seem self-explanatory in parts, but we still want to touch on everything the page has to offer so you will feel set up for success!   When you first visit the Contacts page the default view will be on “Contacts.” You can change the view to Lists, Segments, or Tags, as well. Insights provides data on how many contacts are subscribed (this number is connected to your Billing plan, too). How many new subscribers have joined in the last 30 days, the growth percentage in the last 30 days, and how many Unsubscribed contacts. All available contacts are listed here. You can change the view based on their subscription status or whether they are on a list or not.  Up to seven columns can be displayed at once and you can modify which columns are visible (for example, if you could switch out “Source” for “State/Province.” Similarly, the search function allows you to search by their name or email address, as well as any other important contact fields. Click the blue “Add Contacts” button to choose from several import options or click the three dots to view and/or export your contacts.   If you already have a list of contacts, then you will want to decide which method you will use to upload them to your account.   If you still need to grow your list of contacts, it’s time to consider which list growth tools will work best for you. ... View more

To-do in this article:  Create additional users for your account   Why you should create additional users   If your business or organization needs multiple people to access your account, you may be tempted to share your login credentials (we definitely don’t do this for streaming services…right?). This is strongly discouraged with Constant Contact accounts. Think of the password as the key to your kingdom. The more keys that are out there, the higher the possibility of them falling into the wrong hands.   Please note that the number of users your account can have depends on your billing plan. For more information on what is allowed in your particular plan, visit the Plans and Pricing page within your account.   Instead of having to share your password, you can set up additional account users and give them a role based on the amount of access needed. There are three types of users:   Account Owner - This is the only role that has access to billing information, adding additional users and changing their roles. There is only one Account Owner role allowed. Account Manager - This role can create and send campaigns, manage and grow your contact lists, and keep an eye on reporting. Account Managers cannot access billing information. Campaign Creator - This role is more limited. Campaign Creators can create and customize all types of campaigns, but cannot send them. They won't be able to access any of your contact details, account settings, or billing information. ... View more

To-do in this article:   Set or update your password   Set your security question  Set up Multi-Factor Authentication   Your account contains a lot of sensitive information and it’s important to keep it all secure so it doesn’t get in the wrong hands. We have multiple security measures in place to keep your account safe.    There are three things we use to ensure the right people are accessing your account: a password, a security question, and multi-factor authentication. Let’s break them down:    Password   A secure password is the primary key used to access your account. Just like many other sites, we have requirements in place when setting or changing your password. Basic best practices include: Don’t use the same password for other logins. Avoid common passwords (like Password!) Change your password on a regular basis.    Security Question   When setting the security question, you will provide the answer to one of several questions that you can choose from. The answer should be unique and not easily guessable. If you accidentally lock yourself out of your account and need to send an important email, please contact our support team. An agent will ask the security question on your account to ensure we are unlocking the door to let the right person in. Just like a password, this security question should be changed if an unauthorized user accesses your account.   Did you know we have an article on what steps should be taken if you need to transfer ownership of your Constant Contact account? Multi-Factor Authentication   In order to keep your account safe, we add an additional layer of security called multi-factor authentication (MFA). MFA is an effective and standard security technology used by many online services to protect their customer’s data from unauthorized access. By using an additional means to confirm you’re the one attempting to access your account, MFA can help prevent attacks, reduce the risk of other cyber security threats, and protect your personal information from hackers.   Once you enroll in multi-factor authentication, you will need to select a secondary factor of authentication. This includes: Okta Verify Google Authenticator SMS Authentication Voice Call Authentication   If you log in from a new or unfamiliar source, a prompt will appear and ask for a verification code from the secondary factor selected. This is especially common if you use multiple networks or VPNs, or clear your cookies often.   We highly recommend creating additional user profiles if more than one person needs access to the account. Creating additional user profiles allows them to select their own secondary authentication factors and not need to go through the account owner each time. Make sure to check the Plans & Pricing page in your account to see how many additional users are available in your account.   Your account is secured! You are welcome to start exploring your account (we suggest heading over Contacts Overview) but it's important to note that if you have multiple people using your account, it would be worth it to set up additional user profiles for them. ... View more

To-do in this article:  Complete your business profile  Upload your logo  Save your brand colors   Why do your business profile and brand assets matter?   There are a number of ways that completing your brand profile and including your brand assets can benefit your business and boost your digital marketing.   First, filling out your business profile gives us a better idea of your business’s industry and area of focus so we can provide you with more accurate campaign reporting metrics benchmarked against others in your industry.    Every industry has its own set of average rates for opens, clicks, and bounces. We provide updated average industry rates frequently so you can keep an eye on trends.    This also allows us to suggest templates that may fit emails typical for your industry. A retail business has different needs than a nonprofit (though you probably knew that already)!     Your brand assets are important because they help provide a consistent, identifiable visual connection to your business. When a contact opens your email, they should be able to recognize who you are right away.    Uploading a logo and saving your brand colors are quick and easy ways to do this at the account level, ensuring your logo and colors are pulled in each time you select a new template. This saves time and creates a better experience for your subscribers for each email you create and send.   Did you know the Constant Contact blog has a ton of articles covering many different industries and topics related to them? We are more than just email marketing, anyways. Search for your industry and get ready to learn!   Now that your business details are correct, you will want to make sure you have established the right security protocols for your account. ... View more

To-do in this article:   Assign your main contact email address   Assign your billing email address  Change or update your payment method  Confirm your organization details   Why it is important to confirm your account information   After you have verified an email address, you can set it as your main contact email address and account billing email address. If desired, you can set them up to have different email addresses to ensure the communications are going to the right person.   Speaking of billing, this is also the best time to change or update your payment method. This information can be updated at any time, but it’s important to have it correct right from the start to avoid having your account put on hold. Of course, if you’re still in the trial period, you’ll complete this step when you pick which plan is best for you.   Before sending your first email, you’ll want to confirm your organization details, including your company name and physical address. These appear in the footer of your email and are required under the CAN-SPAM ACT for all commercial emails.   You’ll want to make sure your profile details are accurate and easy to remember since these are used when contacting our Support team as an added level of security.   After your account details are set, you can get to some of the fun stuff like filling out your business details! ... View more

To-do in this article:  Verify your email address   Why you should verify your email address   Email addresses must be verified in your account before using them in your account for things like the From: address on any outgoing email or to receive important communications from us. After signing up for your account, you should receive an email from us for verification. Simply click the link to confirm and you’re good to go!   There are no limits on the number of addresses you can verify and they can be switched out as needed. Verified addresses can be used as the main account email, as the billing contact, as the From: and Reply-to: addresses for a campaign, to receive Early Results notifications, and to receive the Subscriber Activity report.   Some things to keep in mind: We strongly recommend not verifying a role or group address (such as admin@email.com). When the verification email is sent to a role address, there can be difficulty with completing the verification process. If a role address is used as the contact or billing email, you run the risk of a recipient seeing information they may not be privy to view.  We recommend you use an address that represents your business domain or a personal email address. This helps with deliverability and appears more professional in the inbox.   Once your email is verified, it’s time to build out the rest of your account! ... View more

  Event Marketing Best Practices   Event marketing is more than just organizing an event; it's also about crafting a journey that captivates attendees, builds brand loyalty, and leaves a lasting impact. Utilize these best practices to elevate your event marketing — before, during, and after your event.   Do you want to generate leads, build brand awareness, or engage with your audience? Having a clear set of goals will help guide your decision-making process, identify key metrics to monitor, and stay focused.   Define who your ideal attendees are and tailor your event to their interests, needs, and preferences. This will help guide your marketing strategy, allowing you to select the right channels to reach them and craft messaging that resonates.   Meet potential attendees where they are by utilizing a variety of marketing channels to maximize your event’s visibility. Leverage social media, email marketing, website promotion, blogs, online ads, and traditional media to create buzz and attract attention.   Event management software can help you manage registration, ticketing, and attendee tracking. This will make the planning process more efficient, saving you time so you can focus on other aspects of event planning.   Provide a way for your website visitors to subscribe to event updates and newsletters. Regularly communicate with your subscribers by sharing updates, sneak peeks, and exclusive offers to keep them engaged and excited about attending.   Collaborate with small businesses, industry experts, or organizations that align with your brand values. Co-marketing initiatives, cross-promotions, and shared resources will help expand your event’s reach.   Encourage attendees and participants to share their thoughts and photos on social media using event-specific hashtags. This increases your event’s exposure and creates a sense of community and engagement.   Create buzz before your event by sharing teasers, photos, and exclusive content. During the event, encourage attendees to share their own content. After, follow up with attendees and sponsors to express your gratitude and gather feedback — use this to improve future events and maintain relationships.   Gauge the success of your event marketing efforts by tracking key metrics and analyzing the data collected such as registrations, engagement, social media reach, and post-event surveys. This will help you identify ways to improve future events.   Whether you’re organizing an online webinar or an in-person event, nailing down some best practices can make all the difference in creating a successful and memorable event.   Learn more about events: constantcontact.com/event-marketing ... View more

Have you ever felt like your work doesn’t matter? You’re not appreciated? Someone else can do what you do?   Kim Jones Sneed, owner of Stuff in the Bluff, an award-winning website focused on local news and entertainment in Pine Bluff, Ark., admits to feeling this way often. There have been many times she wanted to throw in the towel.   But what’s kept her going for over 20 years is feeling like she’s serving a purpose greater than just making money.   “It’s people who help you succeed,” Kim says. “Many times, it’s just that faithful customer who will continue to do business with you, who has the faith to take a chance.”   Community has played a key role in Kim’s longevity, and she returns the favor by treating every single customer with the same care, pride, and enthusiasm.   On this episode of the Be a Marketer Podcast, host Dave Charest, Director of Small Business Success at Constant Contact, talks to Kim about persevering through the tough times, uplifting a community through marketing, and sending emails multiple times daily.   👉 Check out the Constant Contact Community   Meet Today’s Guest: Kim Jones Sneed of Stuff in the Bluff   ☕ What she does: Kim owns Stuff in the Bluff, an award-winning website focused on local news and entertainment in Pine Bluff, Ark.   💡 Key quote: “Running a small business can be something that can really reach beyond barriers, walls, limitations.”   👋 Where to find her: LinkedIn   👋 Where to find Stuff in the Bluff: Website | Instagram | Facebook | YouTube | Twitter If you love this show, please leave a review. Go to RateThisPodcast.com/bam and follow the simple instructions. ... View more

Taking an omni-channel approach to your marketing is so important to make sure you’re delivering the right message to the right person at the right time. With the help of automation, you can attract, engage, and grow your customer list through timely marketing messages across the channels that resonate best with your customers. We're taking the most popular questions from our latest New & Next webinar and expanding upon them so you can better understand how to automate your marketing in a way that is impactful for both your business and your customers. If you missed the session with our Chief Product Officer, Russ, and SVP of User Experience, Jerry, watch the full recorded webinar below.     Need some help setting up your own automation paths? Have a question left over from the webinar? Leave your questions or automated path examples on our Automation Help page so our team can help you out!   New & Next, Easier Automation for Your Marketing: Questions and Answers are below!   Automation   Q: Is automation part of the Constant Contact subscription or an additional cost? How do I know if our account level includes Automated Path Builder? A: Automation is part of each plan (Lite, Standard, Premium) with varying levels of capability. Check out our feature comparison page for specifics.   Q: I need help setting up paths with the automated path builder for my business. Do you have any examples or use cases that I can reference? A: Visit our Community to get help with your automation! Our team is ready to help you out, and we’ve provided some helpful best practices and use cases that might inspire your work.   Q: If someone subscribed for both text and email, can you get them to receive both in an automated path? A: Yes! You can set up an automation path to send both a text and email message.    Q: Does this Nurture chain start all at the same time for every contact OR will it be contact specific so that it starts whenever they get added to a group or list to start that trigger? A: Automation events are contact-specific. As a contact performs an action, like joining a list, the automation would then kickoff for that contact individually.    Q: Can you set an end date for an automation (for example, set the automation end to be the date the grand opening event happens)? A: While you can’t set an end date, you can set up time delays to ensure that your messaging starts and stops within a certain time period after a contact enters the automation. Otherwise, we recommend deactivating the automation on the desired end date.   Q: When you set a time delay on your automation, is that delay automatically applied to new subscribers?  A: The time delay will be applied to the contacts who have not passed that point in your workflow. If others join the automation further down your funnel, they will not be affected.    Q: When you create a new automation -  do all of your existing customers that meet the criteria get engaged immediately? A: Existing and new contacts will be added to the automation when they meet the trigger criteria. Let’s say that the automation trigger is "contact added to List A". When an existing or new contact is added to List A, they will enter the automation path.   Q: How can I automatically move a contact from one list (say a welcome series) to another list (like a general newsletter subscriber list) after they finish the welcome series path? A: A contact enters an automation when they meet the trigger criteria. At this time, automation paths do not have the ability to update a contact’s list membership.   Q: I've only seen conditional branching for contact activity as click - will there be updates soon for if a contact opens an email? A: Conditional splits evaluate for email and sms clicks, SMS subscription, and shopping activity such as number of orders placed or total amount spent to date.   Q: In the automated workflow, there was a time delay option. Does that include the option to send out emails at a specified date/time from sign-up, as opposed to hours/days after the action is taken? A: Time delays are relative to the moment the contact enters the automation path and are not set to a specific date/time.   Events   Q: When can I access the new Events tool? A: We’re excited to provide all of our customers with access to the latest Event marketing tool before the end of August!    Q: How does the new Events tool improve on the old one? What does the Events tool allow me to do? A: The new events tool improves your experience for everything you need to create, manage, and promote your event. Check out this knowledge base article for more details.   Q: Does the event tool also have a way to keep track of attendance during a live event? Is there a way I can check people in? A: Coming soon, we will offer the ability to:  View the Registrants report under the “Reporting” tab to view all of your event’s registered guests  Manage an individual or multiple registrants’ order status (Canceled, Registered, Checked-in)  Check-in support using QR code scanner in the CTCT Mobile App Export your reports to see who registered versus who attended an event    Q: How does Constant Contact’s new Events tool compare to Eventbrite? A: Constant Contact’s Event marketing tool is comparable to Eventbrite in the use cases we support and features that are offered that help you Create > Manage > and Promote your event. Use Constant Contact as your all-in-one marketing tool (without the need to pay for and manage multiple platforms) for collecting, managing, growing and connecting with your contact lists. Unlike Eventbrite who charges for every ticket that is purchased, our Event platform and payment processing fees are charged at an order-level, resulting in more revenue for you!    Q: What is the cost to use event payment through Constant Contact? A: Constant Contact charges a usage/platform fee for Event marketing at a competitive 2.9% per paid order transacted using our system. We offer digital payment processing with PayPal and WePay, both of which have their own separate transaction fees that are charged at an order level.   Q: Does the event platform handle USD and CAD currency? A: WePay supports USD payments while our PayPal integration offers support for 20+ currencies, including USD & CAD!    AI   Q: How careful do you need to be when using the AI tool and entering information about your organization to build out a newsletter? Are there any security/safety measures set up with the AI in Constant Contact? A: We have security measures built into how we generate content, but it's still best practice to make sure you don’t include any information in your email content that you don’t want out in the public.   Q: Is the AI content generator available for all users? Is there an additional charge to use the AI content generator? A: AI content Generator is available in all packages at no additional charge.   Q: Using the AI, can it create emails based on templates we have used in the past? A: While we don’t currently offer that feature, we are exploring the best ways to improve our AI technology for email templates.   Q: Can the AI content generator obtain a tone from a previously made content? A: At the moment, our AI content tool only offers the ability to create content using pre-defined tones.   Q: When using the AI Content creator, how can a Constant Contact user ensure a uniquely worded message? A: While we can’t guarantee a completely unique message, the content is generated against billions of other messages so the likelihood of ever seeing a duplicate message is extremely low. Plus, you can always use the AI content generator as a starting point from which to further edit and personalize your content. Q: I am just starting to build lists. How do I send emails asking people to subscribe without their upfront permission to be sent emails? A: Great question! Check out our guide on the best ways to  get permission to email your contacts.   Q: Does Constant Contact integrate with my CRM? A: Check out the Integrations tab on your Constant Contact dashboard to see what software currently integrates with our platform. ... View more

  Starting a pizzeria at age 22 might seem ill-advised — and even though Mike Bausch did it, he frankly wouldn’t advise anyone else to do the same.    But the now-owner of Andolini’s Pizza bases his customer experience on one big concept: “If you’re not impressive, by default, you’re unimpressive.” Process standardization and careful staff training provide a killer customer experience, a core part of Andolini’s brand.    With marketing, Mike wants you to appeal to the individual.    “The number one headline of marketing is connecting to the selfishness of an individual,” he says. “What the value is to them is how you have a value proposition.”   In other words, focus on what you can give the customer and how you can appeal to their why, not why you want them to choose your business. It’s about them — not you.    On this episode of the Constant Contact podcast, Be a Marketer, Mike shares what he’s learned since opening his first pizzeria in 2005 with host Dave Charest, Director of Small Business Success at Constant Contact.    👉 Check out the full recording of the panel discussion featuring Mike Bausch, Candid Conversations: Celebrating Small Business Success   Meet Today’s Guest: Mike Bausch of Andolini’s Pizzeria   ☕ What he does: Mike of Andolini’s Worldwide Restaurant Group is a pizza restaurateur in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He started his first restaurant, Andolini’s Pizzeria, in 2005 at the age of 22.    💡 Key quote: “That’s where the real secret sauce is [in marketing]: automation and connection.”   👋 Where to find him: Book | Instagram | LinkedIn 👋 Where to find Andolini’s Pizzeria: Website | Instagram | Facebook | YouTube ... View more

Evolve Your Marketing   Because digital marketing is constantly evolving and developing, small business marketers are presented with a unique opportunity — the opportunity to level up their marketing game and add new, impactful strategies to the mix. Solid, ongoing email, social, and text messaging strategies can help build relationships and create success — but what’s out there to help you understand your customers, personalize your messaging even further, and reach them in their preferred online locations?   In this three-part series, we’ll be hitting on three big ways small business marketers can take their marketing efforts from status quo to something truly spectacular through automation, personalization, and more.       Make it Easy and Scalable   The work of optimizing and fine-tuning your marketing is never done — after all, your audience is unique and constantly changing. But as a small business owner or marketer, your time is in short supply, making it a challenge to get to all the things you know can make a difference in your marketing.   Digital marketing automation can help take some of the sting (and the time commitment) out of your marketing, of course. But how can you automate something that’s different for each and every customer? The answer is the perfect combo of customization and automation: custom automations for your marketing.   Custom Automated Marketing Paths   What are custom automations and how do they work?   A welcome series is a basic marketing automation that you are likely familiar with — when a contact opts in to hear from a business, they then receive a series of emails, spaced out over a period of time, welcoming them to the mailing or text messaging list and educating them about the company and its goods or services.   With custom automations, automated email flows can be crafted to be more sophisticated and tailored to the customer by using delays, triggers, and conditional splits.   A trigger is a behavior or action a customer takes that kicks off a messaging workflow, such as subscribing to a list, having a birthday, clicking on an email link, or placing an order. A delay is the time between the trigger and when the message is sent. This can be any time period from minutes all the way up to months after the initial trigger. Conditional splits are moments in your digital marketing automation where a contact’s next communications are determined by their actions and information. Based on these splits, your users are segmented and sent down different messaging paths tailored to their activity. Splits can be based on things such as contact details, engagement activity, location, and interests.   When combined, triggers, delays, and splits determine when an email or text messaging series starts, how much time passes before they receive a communication, and how those communications change and personalize in response to their activity.   How does this help me?   Custom automations can help you achieve the best of all worlds, customizing your outreach for your business and its needs while also providing timely, relevant, and personalized content for your customers. This provides a number of benefits, including:   ✓ Time savings ✓ Consistent messaging ✓ Increased engagement ✓ Relationship building   Even in the most finely-tuned marketing plan, there is always room for marketers to improve by paying careful attention to their customers and nurturing those important relationships through evolving, personalized communications.   However, as all small business owners and marketers know, time is the hardest thing to come by when operating your business — which means constantly streamlining, automating, and improving your marketing efforts in order to run efficiently.   Adopting new tools and technologies that allow you to foster your valuable relationships across hundreds or even thousands of customers, prospects, and other supporters can take your current marketing from “good” to “great,” all while delighting your customers and saving you time. ... View more

Opening up about our personal lives via email isn’t easy, especially with people we may not talk to on a daily basis.   Marianne Mernick-Sullivan, President of Consignments Ltd, discovered that when she made a personal declaration in her weekly newsletter, it changed how her audience saw her. She wasn’t just a business, but a person just like you and me.   “I wrote about my reasons for gratitude, and it was totally off-topic,” she says. “I had people crying, saying to me, I’m so glad you shared that. My brother’s a diabetic, or I’ve had a health challenge. It just opens the customer relationship up to something bigger.”    Listen this week to hear Marianne talk about the importance of community connection, why you should have high standards for your business, and how to hire the right people.   ... View more

  Opening up about our personal lives via email isn’t easy, especially with people we may not talk to on a daily basis.    Marianne Mernick-Sullivan, President of Consignments Ltd., had difficulty getting personal in her weekly newsletter. She stuck to interior design and what was on sale in her store. But once she opened up about being a type 1 diabetic, she built a new connection with her customers.   “I wrote about my reasons for gratitude, and it was totally off-topic,” she says. “I had people crying, saying to me, I'm so glad you shared that. My brother's a diabetic, or I've had a health challenge. It just opens the customer relationship up to something bigger.”   Marianne was no longer just a shop owner to her customers—she was a person. She didn’t intend to share openly as a strategy, but it became a great tool to connect her business to her customers.    On this episode of Constant Contact’s Be a Marketer podcast, host Dave Charest, Director of Small Business Success at Constant Contact, talks to Marianne about the importance of community connection, why you should have high standards for your business, and how to hire the right people.   👉 How to create a survey page   Meet Today’s Guest: Marianne Mernick-Sullivan of Consignments Ltd. ☕ What she does: Marianne is the President of Consignments Ltd. Her 6,400-square-foot brick-and-mortar store sells furniture, lighting, china, handbags, and jewelry to customers in Rhode Island.    💡 Key quote: “I was basically told, This is the most stupid idea that a person has ever had, and you're going to lose this money on this. It sounds hokey, but if you believe in it and you're willing to work hard at it, you have to be willing to go for it.”   👋 Where to find her: LinkedIn   👋 Where to find Consignments Ltd.: Website | Facebook | Instagram If you love this show, please leave a review. Go to RateThisPodcast.com/bam and follow the simple instructions. ... View more

Are you working on setting up your automation? Share your questions below and get helpful advice and feedback to get you started.   If you haven't taken the plunge just yet, we've also provided some helpful best practices and use cases that might inspire your work!   Automation can be a helpful tool that saves you time and keeps your marketing on even when you’re off. You don’t have to recreate new emails every time you want to send something out, especially if your message isn’t changing much.    First figure out what you want to say, then figure out the right time to send it. Set up emails to send based on actions like joining a list, taking an action or just simply triggering after a certain amount of time.    Related: Automate to Innovate: Marketing Automation Examples to Inspire   Here’s a couple examples of different use cases for Automation:   Welcome emails   Welcome emails can be short and sweet. You’re greeting your new or prospective customers, setting the tone for your brand, and highlighting next steps.   Click image to enlarge   Related: How to Set Up an Effective Automated Welcome Email Series   Lead nurturing   Lead nurturing helps build confidence with your prospective customer/donor by carefully curating a series of emails based on how they’ve interacted with your brand/company.   Click image to enlarge   Related: How to Automate Your Marketing Like a Pro: A guide to effective email and text marketing automation   When it comes to Automation, the sky's the limit! ... View more

Evolve Your Marketing   Because digital marketing is constantly evolving and developing, small business marketers are presented with a unique opportunity — the opportunity to level up their marketing game and add new, impactful strategies to the mix. Solid, ongoing email, social, and text messaging strategies can help build relationships and create success — but what’s out there to help you understand your customers, personalize your messaging even further, and reach them in their preferred online locations?   In this three-part series, we’ll be hitting on three big ways small business marketers can take their marketing efforts from status quo to something truly spectacular through automation, personalization, and more.     Get on Your Customers' Level   So once you know and understand your customers, what’s next? Understanding them doesn’t matter if you don’t communicate with them in a way that demonstrates that understanding. One-size-fits-all marketing can feel inauthentic and fall flat, but by adding personal touches to your email and text messages, you can build relationships at scale — quickly, easily, and without having to create dozens of custom emails each time you reach out to your audience.   Here are ways to take what you know about your customers and turn it into something that speaks to them personally.   Dynamic Content   What is dynamic content and how does it work in email?   Every business wants its content to be dynamic — that is, energetic, stimulating, and progressive. But in digital marketing, dynamic content is content that changes based on the user before they ever interact with it at all.   This means you can create and send all your contacts a single email, but by adding dynamic content blocks, you can include content that changes based on your contacts’ information stored in standard and custom fields within your database. Depending on what information you set out to gather from your contacts, you can use dynamic content to personalize your email in more refined, more specific ways. Dynamic information can be simple things like name and geographical location all the way up to complex things like product preferences and donor status, depending on your database.   A great example of this would be a gardening center asking users about their preferences when they sign up: Do they plant more flowers or food plants? Do they like houseplants or luscious landscaping? Then they can use a dynamic content block in their newsletter to display a coupon targeted exactly to their users’ preferences. One on-sale orchid, coming right up!   How does this help me take my marketing to the next level?   Ultimately, the success or failure of your marketing hinges on a single factor: whether your audience responds to it. Personalizing your outreach is one way to ensure you’re reaching the right people with the right message, and that they feel the message was fully intended for them.   Search Engine Optimization (SEO)   What is search engine optimization (SEO) and how does it work?   For instance, this could mean the difference between saying “American pub-style restaurant” on your website and sa   ying “Modern pub serving American cuisine, with an expansive menu including burgers, hot wings, steak dinners, and homemade desserts.”   How does this help me take my marketing to the next level?   If you’re not an SEO expert, then it can be difficult to look at your website and see where you can make improvements. But using tools that can assess the copy and content of your website as a whole and create scoring, insights, and recommendations can be a quick, easy way to make certain you see where improvements can be made — and where you can provide your customers the exact information they need to make a decision.   Unlike other forms of content personalization, SEO efforts work to make sure you’re speaking to the right audience before they reach your website, and help you deliver the experience they expect, boosting both their knowledge and their perception of your business.   Ecommerce Segmentation   What is custom segmentation and how does it work?   Custom segmentation is the practice of creating more advanced groups of customers based on their interactions with your business. For ecommerce businesses in particular, this segmentation is based on buyer behavior.   This segmentation works hand-in-hand with your online store provider (like Shopify, WooCommerce, and others), utilizing information generated during the shopping process to create customer segments. These can be basic criteria (like whether a customer has placed an order) or more advanced (like how much a customer has spent, or what specific products they purchased). Some providers even provide individual spending projections, allowing you to segment your digital marketing to that, as well.   Ultimately, how you segment your audience as an ecommerce business is dependent on the amount of information you get — so the more thoroughly you can integrate your shop into your digital marketing (and vice versa), the more sophisticated and impactful your outreach can become.   How does this help me?   Loyal customers are the backbone of any retail business, and ecommerce is no different. By talking to your customers about how they buy, what they want, and what they need not only ensures engagement and future purchases, but also lets your customers know you’re paying attention to their relationship with you, and that how they shop with you matters.   This type of segmentation can help you to create personalized product recommendations, impactful win-back campaigns, and long-lived loyalty programs. Get on your customers’ level and you’ll find they’ll want to stay on yours, too!   Have questions? Let us know below! If you have any experience with dynamic content, SEO, and ecommerce segmentation we'd love to hear your success stories! ... View more

Evolve Your Marketing   Because digital marketing is constantly evolving and developing, small business marketers are presented with a unique opportunity — the opportunity to level up their marketing game and add new, impactful strategies to the mix. Solid, ongoing email, social, and text messaging strategies can help build relationships and create success — but what’s out there to help you understand your customers, personalize your messaging even further, and reach them in their preferred online locations?   In this three-part series, we’ll be hitting on three big ways small business marketers can take their marketing efforts from status quo to something truly spectacular through automation, personalization, and more.     Understand Your Audience   Business owners of all experience levels have one key thing in common: it’s absolutely critical that they understand their audience in order to attract them, engage them, and nurture a valuable relationship with them. Reporting and analytics tools that provide insight into metrics like opens, sends, and clicks allowed marketers to see how their outreach was working, and to improve when it wasn’t.   But understanding the customer has come a long way since then, allowing for deeper insights into customer engagement and behavior. You might be keeping an eye out on basic metrics, but here are helpful tools to dig deeper that you should be using to give your campaigns (and your business) that extra edge.   Heat Map Reporting   What is heat map and how does it work?   Just like a meteorological heat map that shows "hot spots" in the hottest part of the area, a heat map for web or email will show you where users clicked the most.   For emails, this means seeing at a glance the top links that your readers engaged with. With a quick scroll, you can follow your readers' footsteps and see where they stopped to click into your images, calls to action (CTAs), and even footer links.   How does this help me?   Obviously, if you put links in your email, they’re there for your readers to click, right? But not all links are created equally, and understanding what your readers gravitate toward can tell you a lot about your email content and how to improve it.   Are the majority of your clicks somewhere other than where you really wanted them? Your CTAs may not be clear enough or compelling enough. Is there no clear pattern of clicks? You may have too many links in your email, creating confusion, or too few links, driving no action at all. Are all your clicks occurring too early in the email, well above where the real content is? Your copy and design may be too long, making your readers stop scrolling. Are most of your clicks in the footer, on links like “unsubscribe” or “privacy policy”? The content you are sending may not be what your customers expect, or your emails may be occurring too frequently.   Checking these often and comparing them from email to email (in addition to using features like email comparison reporting and A/B testing) can help you to fine-tune your approach to fit what truly delights and engages your customers.   Revenue Reporting   What is revenue reporting and how does it work?   If you run an ecommerce business, you already closely monitor your sales and revenue. But do you know where your sales are coming from? This can be key to understanding customer behavior. With revenue reporting tied to your digital marketing, sales that can be attributed to your campaigns are automatically reflected in your analytics with their respective emails. This attribution accounts for activities like direct clicks to your storefront from a campaign, or purchases in a set time period after communications are opened.   How does this help me?   Greater visibility into your revenue streams is always a good thing for a retailer. But by looking at which campaigns generate revenue, and comparing them to one another, you can begin to see a bigger picture about what communications are effective and how to expand on that success.   By evaluating your campaigns through a revenue reporting lens, you can begin to take a closer look at things like:   Content. Evaluating your copy, photo links, coupons and other content from a revenue lens can help you determine efficacy and improve for the future. Timing. Everything from time of day to time of year can influence shoppers and their wallets. Template and design. As you experiment with templates and designs, you may start to see emergent trends in the revenue generation tied to these aesthetic changes.   Regardless of where you see positive or negative trends, these things can and should inform how you craft and send your sales-driving communications to your customers. Lean into what’s working and try something new for what’s not!   We want to hear from you! What are some takeaways you've gotten from reviewing your reporting? ... View more

Generative AI isn’t Constant Contact’s first foray into the use of AI, but it is our biggest leap yet!   Applying our years of experience to some of the core underlying technology of ChatGPT, our new AI Content Generator channels our ability to train artificial intelligence to save time by creating highly-effective written text and email generation.   “I really think that our innovation team has taken a thoughtful approach to being bot innovative and cutting edge, but also prudent,” says Russ Morton, Chief Product Officer at Constant Contact.   Russ joins the show this week to discuss how to create content that resonates with the click of a button and our company’s vision for the future of AI.   ... View more

  Generative AI is all the rage right now. Tools like ChatGPT and Bard have become content creators’ best friends. But companies like Constant Contact have used AI for many years for tasks like A/B testing email subject lines, send-time optimization, and email subject line suggestions.   Russ Morton, Chief Product Officer at Constant Contact, says generative AI is just a part of what we’re doing in the space.    “We have trained our AI such that if you give us a couple of sentences of what you’re trying to do — it doesn’t even need to be in plain English — we’ll come back to you with a really well-crafted email,” he says.   And early results show that the engagement you can get from working with our AI-generated content will only increase.   On this episode of Constant Contact’s Be a Marketer podcast, host Dave Charest, Director of Small Business Success at Constant Contact, talks to Russ about how we’re taking the guesswork out of email, tips for creating content that resonates with the click of a button, and Constant Contact’s vision for the future of AI.   👉 How to update your business profile in your Constant Contact account 👉 Use a recommended subject line in your Constant Contact email 👉 A/B test an email subject line 👉 Using AI-generated content as a small business marketer   Meet Today’s Guest: Russ Morton of Constant Contact   ☕ What he does: Russ is the Chief Product Officer at Constant Contact.   💡 Key quote: “There's no part of becoming a great marketer that we don’t aspire to take off your shoulders as a small business owner.”   👋 Where to find him: LinkedIn   👋 Where to find Constant Contact: Website | LinkedIn | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | YouTube If you love this show, please leave a review. Go to RateThisPodcast.com/bam and follow the simple instructions. ... View more

  Paul Baik, President of Paul’s Beauty Warehouse, believes in taking a holistic approach to business relationships in the beauty biz. It’s never just about the customer. It’s also about vendors, employees, and the customer’s customers. That’s why he considers his business a “circle of joy.”   “We wanted to focus not on making money, but making people beautiful … We look at everything holistically now,” Paul says. And that means looking at the bigger picture by exploring what parts of the job his team does, what parts of the job his customers do, and what parts of the job his vendors do.    Paul’s Beauty Warehouse serves hairstylists, barbers, and trade schools in the Maryland/D.C./Virginia area. A “Costco for beauty” since 2006, Paul operates out of three locations and educates stylists through the company’s education program. Over the years, as his business has grown, he’s learned a few lessons.   In the early years, Paul ran a lean team consisting of his mother and just one other employee. Now he oversees 45 employees across all locations. One thing he’s learned is that customer service-driven people make the best team members. This rang especially true for Paul during 2020, as his team stepped up to pivot during closures in the hair care industry. With the help of his dedicated team, he was able to quickly begin offering online ordering and curbside pickup.     On this episode of Constant Contact’s Be a Marketer podcast, host Dave Charest, Director of Small Business Success at Constant Contact, talks to Paul about the challenges and victories of serving the haircare industry and why email marketing plays an important role.    Meet Today’s Guest: Paul Baik of Paul’s Beauty Warehouse   ☕ What he does: Founded in 2006, Paul’s Beauty Warehouse serves hairstylists, barbers, and trade schools over three locations in the Maryland/D.C./Virginia area. Paul focuses on providing his customers with the highest quality hair care products.    💡 Key quote: “Just do it. Start it. Email is still very relevant. Get the email out consistently to customers every week. Share anything that your business is all about. It's something that all businesses should do.”   👋 Where to find Paul: LinkedIn 👋 Where to find Paul’s Beauty Warehouse: Website | Instagram | Facebook | YouTube If you love this show, please leave a review. Go to RateThisPodcast.com/bam and follow the simple instructions. ... View more

When you want to create a successful business, it’s important to not just focus on making money. When you focus on all the parts of a business that form the bigger picture, like Paul Baik of Paul’s Beauty Warehouse, success will follow.   It’s never just about the customer. It’s also about vendors, employees, and the customer’s customers. That’s why Paul considers his business a “circle of joy.”   “We wanted to focus not on making money, but making people beautiful… We look at everything holistically now,” Paul says.   Give this week’s episode a listen and hear Paul talk about the challenges and victories of serving the haircare industry and why email marketing plays an important role.   ... View more

Click image to download the guide! Imagine if you could set up a simple marketing system to nurture leads for your business or nonprofit. Now imagine if you could set up this system and know it will continue to work while you focus on other essential business tasks!   We've crafted a fantastic guide: How to Automate Your Marketing Like a Pro. It will help you understand automation, from the different types to the anatomy of an automation workflow, and more!       ... View more

Most small business owners didn’t get into the game to become marketers, but it is still a crucial part of helping your business grow. Nicole Stevenson, CEO and Creative Director of Dear Handmade Life, understands it can be an uncomfortable experience to promote yourself and your work, but it doesn’t have to be.   “I can’t serve my community if nobody knows about me,” she says. Dear Handmade Life curates events, education, and community for creatives and small business owners. Nicole doesn’t believe she’d have a business without putting herself out there and curating a community.   Tune in this week to hear Nicole talk about her business, being open to new technology and systems, and just diving in whether you feel ready or not!   ... View more

Marketing doesn’t have to be an obnoxious task you dread. Many small business owners are uncomfortable talking about themselves and their work with the public. Create an Instagram Reel? With me on camera? No, thank you.   According to Nicole Stevenson, CEO and Creative Director of Dear Handmade Life, it’s not about you. It’s about your message.   “I can’t serve my community if nobody knows about me,” she says.   Dear Handmade Life curates events, education, and community for creatives and small business owners. During her time as CEO, Nicole has done many things that made her uncomfortable. Marketing is one of those things. In her work with other small business owners, she finds this attitude toward marketing is pretty common.    Sharing your story is essential to building a community. And for Nicole, that community is everything.   “I would not have a business without this community that we’ve curated,” she says.   On this episode of Be a Marketer, Nicole and host Dave Charest, Director of Small Business Success at Constant Contact, discuss being more open to new systems and technologies, creating processes to complete your big tasks, and why it’s important to sit back and appreciate yourself once in a while.   👉 Marketing for Makers Summit, July 11 & 12, 2023 👉 How to Create a Custom Landing Page with Constant Contact   Meet Today’s Guest: Nicole Stevenson of Dear Handmade Life ☕ What Nicole does: Nicole is the CEO and creative director of Dear Handmade Life, which helps curate events, education and community for small business owners.   💡 Nicole’s key quote: “Don't wait ‘til you're ready. Just dive in and get started. Just build that list. Do not only rely on Instagram or social media. Just don't do it. You've got to focus on email marketing as well.”   👋 Where to find Nicole: Instagram 👋 Where to find Dear Handmade Life: Website | Podcast | Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest ... View more

  Types of Automation   Email Automation Sends targeted and personalized emails to subscribers based on their behavior, interests, and preferences.   Social Media Marketing Automation Includes scheduling and publishing social media posts in advance, monitoring analytics, or engaging with your audience automatically through messenger chatbots.   Benefits of Marketing Automation Lead Generation Automation Automates the process of identifying and generating new customers. This can include using chatbots, landing pages, and forms to capture leads.   Marketing Analytics and Reporting Automation Streamlines the collection and analysis of customer data to easily optimize your marketing campaigns and track return on investment.   Customer Relationship Management Automates customer data, such as tracking interactions and relationships, sending targeted follow-up messages, and managing data.   E-commerce Marketing Automation Specifically tailored to ecommerce businesses, this automates tasks such as abandoned cart emails, product recommendations, and transactional emails.   Advertising Automation Automates your advertising campaigns, such as retargeting ads and Google Adword campaigns.   For additional information on our automation features, click here. ... View more

Tips for Successful Marketing Automation   Clearly define your goals What do you want to achieve with your marketing automation efforts? Be sure to use SMART goals (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-bound).   Understand your audience Develop a profile of your customer's wants, needs, and behaviors to guide your messaging and ensure you are reaching the right audience.   Choose the right software Make sure you choose software that fits your needs, budget, and business goals. Look for one that integrates with your other marketing tools and can automate the tasks you want to focus on.   Create targeted content Use your customer profile to create content that resonates with your audience's needs and wants, including emails, social media posts, text messages, and landing pages.   Segment your audience Segment your audience based on factors like demographics, behavior, and interests. This allows you to send personalized messages to each segment, which can increase engagement and conversions.   Test and optimize Continually test and optimize your automation by trying different messages, subject lines, and calls to action (CTAs) to see what resonates with your audience best.   Monitor and analyze results Use analytics such as traffic, clicks, bounce rate, engagement, and purchases to track performance, then identify areas for improvement and adjust your strategy as needed.   Keep your data clean and up-to-date Automation relies on accurate data, so be sure to regularly clean out invalid or duplicate data and make sure your contact information is correct.   The list is by no means exhaustive. We want to hear from you! What tips and tricks have worked for you to make your marketing automation a success?   For additional information on our automation features, click here. ... View more

How do you compete with giants? Ed Bernstein, President of 25Score, a loyalty program local to Santa Clarita and Antelope Valley in California, has some ideas.   When some of your biggest competitors are Groupon and LivingSocial, it’s important to hone in on what your program does best, be efficient in your processes, and build a reputation that rallies your community around you.   Despite the aforementioned competitors and a pandemic that saw many of his vendors closed temporarily, Ed’s managed to keep his business up-and-running.   Tune in this week to hear how Ed’s approach to solving problems with abundant thinking helps him compete with the big names by bringing his clients as much value as possible.   ... View more

It’s possible you’re one moment away from that push that will propel you towards your goals. Lisa Hammer and Dave Newman met while working for different companies and bonded over the shared challenges they faced as managers. After establishing a group to discuss handling personnel issues, it was one comment from one of the participants that pushed them to launch their own company: “You two are so passionate about this. Why aren’t you teaching it?”   Thus, Leadership Techniques LLC was born. The company offers courses and consulting to help people become better managers and leaders. What’s the secret? Love what you do, even if what you do isn’t always easy.   Tune in this week to hear about how Lisa and Dave share business responsibilities, how to adapt to change, and why they love email marketing as a tool for growing their business.   ... View more

When Ricky Carruth first got into real estate, it was all about the money. Close the deal and move on. After the market crash in 2008, Ricky had to build himself back up and reevaluate what success meant for him. His new approach? It’s all about the people.   Ricky used email marketing to help build relationships with his customers and stay in touch, long after the sale. He wasn’t satisfied with simply working in real estate, though, and launched the world’s first, free real estate coaching program called Zero to Diamond.   This week, Ricky and Dave talk about his approach to staying top of mind and building relationships through email marketing. Listen to the full conversation to hear the full scoop on how Ricky got into real estate and how he’s managed his success (with a few bumps along the way), as well as his top advice for aspiring real estate agents trying to grow their business.   ... View more