The From Line

Trend: With a mean score of 60% professional marketers still have more to learn

Download the quiz results and share with your co-workers

A few weeks ago Trends & Takeaways asked its subscribers to participate in a fun quiz to learn more about professional email marketing topics.  Since this was an advanced quiz, subscribers did better than expected however the mean score was 60%.   The reason why we chose to make this quiz advanced is because advanced email marketing tactics, or any advanced marketing tactics for that matter, are now needed for long-term success.  The pace at which the marketing discipline is evolving has rapidly changed from linear to parabolic requiring constant updating of not only skillsets (as mentioned last week) but also general knowledge.  The mean score indicates that professional marketers still have a way to go in mastering email marketing.  However, you can take comfort in Phil Kotler, distinguished professor of marketing at the Kellogg School of Management words of wisdom, “marketing takes a day to learn and a lifetime to master.”

New laws in the UK governing the use of website cookies go into effect May 26th.  These new laws will cause issues for companies practicing marketing automation linking website behavior to an email address.  The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) in the UK has issued a 9 page document of guidelines about how companies should comply with these new laws.  Similar laws are coming to the U.S. and companies engaged in certain marketing automation practices will need to seriously rethink their tactics.  Permission-based marketing is real and is here to stay.

So you think you know a thing or two about email marketing? Here's your chance to prove it!  Take the email marketing quiz below and post your score on our Facebook Page.  Everyone who posts their score will be eligible to win a $100 Starbucks gift card.  Don't worry if you fail because most people do!

If you're using markting automation that combines web analytics with email marketing get ready to change your game plan.  Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.), head of the Senate Commerce Committee, introduced a new privacy bill Monday that instructs the Federal Trade Commission to craft rules establishing standards for a universal do-not-track mechanism.  If passed, this new legislation could cause logistical headaches for marketers, especially B2B ones, who use web analytics to track and "score" leads (subscriber activity).  If you're thinking about PAYING EXTRA for these types of marketing automation systems, my advice is to hold off a bit to see where this proposed legislation ends up. 

Gold Lasso is noticing that larger big box retailers are responding to current economic conditions by reinstating long forgotten layaway programs just in time for the holiday season.  Since many consumers have reduced credit lines, it will be imperative for pure online retailers that sell larger ticket items to offer similar programs and promote them aggressively to compete effectively for their respective market segments.  With the continued squeeze in the consumer credit markets, layaway will be a lasting trend and one that will need to be embraced by online retailers as well.

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