“The Collaborative User Experience (CUE) team in IBM Research has spent nearly a decade studying email. Not only has email become one of the most pervasive and successful collaborative tools available, it has also become a key component of IBM’s Lotus Software offerings. In many ways, email can be seen as a victim of its own success — users increasingly suffer from overload and interruptions as well as use email in a manner for which it was not intended. To meet the challenges in researching email, we have taken a multifaceted approach to data collection.”

“David Dickey is director of marketing and communications for direct and new initiatives for Sprint. Susan Goodman leads Goodman and Co. Roger Gray works as VP of plan sponsor communications for Scudder Investments. And Andy Sernovitz is CEO of Gaspedal. Their panel discussion this morning at Ad:Tech 2003 addressed new email ideas to kickstart online marketing programs. Here is a rough transcript of their exchange…”

“With the emergence of the Nimda worm — the latest in a long series to attack Microsoft’s Internet Information Server (IIS) and other software — Gartner believes it’s time for businesses with Web applications to start investigating less vulnerable Web server products.”

“Bombard customers with spam and earn their enmity. Launch a focused, opt-in e-letter and you may just find your business has a fan club.”

“Don’t you simply adore these wonderful lists that spell out the potholes folks typically fall into when they set about accomplishing a task? I do. Especially when I’m about to embark on something as significant as an email campaign. A tidy collection of DONT’s makes it hugely easier to catch yourself before you take an obvious misstep and tumble down some weird rabbit hole just like Alice. Except Alice landed in an interesting place and learned a few things.”

“Quris (pronounced CURE-iss) is the integrated email agency designed to help Fortune 1000 businesses maximize relationships and increase the lifetime value of their customers. As email specialists, we partner with clients to provide strategic planning, creative and product development, data analysis and proprietary technology solutions.”

“Advertisers fare much better when they tell an ongoing story with a common theme over a series of e-mail messages… This methodology, which can best be described as ’serial storytelling,’ has existed for thousands of years in other forms of communication for good reason — it works.”

“In this age of increasing privacy awareness and regulation, the message is finally starting to filter through to the snake-oil salesmen that they actually need your permission before they send you junk by email. This is why you’ll more often than not see an ‘opt-in’ box adjacent to most forms that require you to enter your email address… They provide you with this choice so as to comply with data protection laws, but be warned that their main priority is to get as many email addresses as they can (to use or sell as they wish). Because of this, they use a number of tricks to make you opt-in when you have no intention of doing so. My favourites are listed here for your entertainment and awareness.”

“Though e-mail newsletters consume nowhere near the time and expense required of their print predecessors, one task remains similarly daunting: sourcing and creating quality, compelling content… Too often, alas, the challenge of finding the right balance of promotional and informative material can seem overwhelming. Next time you’re ’stumped’ for content, consult the following list of ideas gleaned from publications we create and manage for our clients.”

“Although Austria, Denmark, Finland, Italy, and Germany have legislatively canned spam, Congress hasn’t. That’s why I’m so pleased to see that ordinary people are beating spammers by using a potent tool — state laws.”

“I used to sneer at email publishers who were only monthly because I thought in this super-speedy age, who’s going to remember or notice you with just one lone email a month? As of today I’m totally reversing my position. If your monthly has true value to the end reader — it’s not just self-promotional we-we-we talk — and you make it clear it’s a monthly (perhaps in the name or subtitle), then even if your subject line sucks I’ll probably open it.”

“Today’s Wall Street Journal features an article by Stacy Forster about marketers trying to ‘polish spam’s rusty image.’ I’m just astonished by the naivete of the article, and scared that it will send the wrong message to honest marketers.”

“This report — available as a PDF download — describes a simple method that will allow any user to cope with increasing amounts of incoming e-mail. Some of the ideas come from author Mark Hurst’s free Good Experience newsletter, which reaches 50,000 subscribers worldwide… Anyone who uses e-mail should read this report. Anyone who manages e-mail users, or works in I.T., should read it twice.”

“You know what it’s like. You leave your office for a day or two and when you come back, there are 200 e-mail messages. If you are being swamped, can you imagine what the freelance client has to deal with? At least with offline mail (a.k.a. ‘terrestrial mail’ or T-mail) it took some amount of effort. Now, anyone and everyone can almost effortlessly market to your clients with e-mail. It’s too easy!”

“What are the elements of a successful viral marketing pitch, and what does the hotel experience [the ‘Yours Is A Very Bad Hotel’ PPT] teach us about customer service? eMarketer found out from Zaaz Director of Internet Strategy Tom Farmer and CEO/Founder Shane Atchison.”