First Webs Demos; A resource for WSIFIRSTWEBS.COM; Rockford, IL

Using Voloper eMarketer (VeM) Lesson 07

Topics in This Lesson . . .

The Reporting Functions
Tracking Campaigns using Click-Through
Opt-in Messages and Unsubscribe

The Reporting Functions

The REPORTING functions of the VeM include Emails Sent Out, Subscriber Growth, and Monthly Totals. The ADMIN DETAILS menu includes Click Through and Invalid Emails menu, which for all practical purposes are reporting functions. We will include Click Through in this lesson. Invalid Emails were covered in Lesson 06.

First, let us cover the Reporting function sub-menus. As with most VeM applications, clicking on the blue titles of the sub-menus allows you to sort the list according to ascending or descending order.

The Emails Sent Out Menu: Step 1, L7: Open the VeM and go to the Reporting menu. Click on Emails Sent Out. The screen at right should appear. As you can see by the dates, this list is for emails sent from 9/04/2004 to 10/04/2005. Clicking on the Campaign Name will bring up a screen which shows who the recipients of the email were.
Step 2, L7: Now adjust the from date back to April 4. The list will be updated with all emails sent from 4/04/2005 to 10/04/2005. Again, clicking on the Campaign Name will bring up a screen of recipients. Using the date functions, data for any period may be reviewed.
The Subscriber Growth Menu: Step 3, L7: This menu lets you track who is signing up through the eMarketer from by month. Click on Subscriber Growth and the screen at right will appear. As you can see when observing the enlarged view, all the fields are 0. That is because FUMC has not made the eMarketer public to it's members and has not had any visitors opt-in through the web site.
The Monthly Totals Menu: Step 4, L7: This menu is another view of growth. The data for all email campaigns is summarized by Emails Sent Out, New Subscribers, Double Opt-In, Unsubscribe, and Removed. There is a handy link in the red title block which brings up a summary screen Year-to-Date.

Tracking Campaigns Using Click Through

The Emails Sent Out menu lets you see how many recipients have opened their mail, and how many emails are invalid. Clicking on the Invalid Emails menu further identifies each invalid email.

Unfortunately, VeM version 5 only lets you see how many emails were opened - not who specifically opened the emails.

The VeM does allow you to associate a URL with your email sends to see how recipients actually were interested enough in your message to "click thru". This is accomplished by using the Click Through menu.

The Click Through Menu:

Step 5, L7: Click on Click Through. The screen at right should appear. A list of the Click Through Name, Category, Click Count, and whether it is Active or not is displayed. The screen capture at right is blank because theClick Through function has not yet been used.

Step 6, L7: To establish a Click Through tracking program, from Step 5, L7 above, click on Add Info. A screen similar to the one at right will appear. You will need to associate a Click Through Tracking Name with each URL (or Link) you want to measure. if you embed 3 URLs in your email send to 250 recipients, and you want to track all 3 for Click Through, then you will need 3 Click Through Names. Read the example which follows.

For example, FUMC wishes to have 4 Adult Bible Study programs. They are Disciple I, Disciple II, Disciple III, and Disciple IV. FUMC has web pages for the 4 Disciple Study programs, but there is a different page for each study. In the body of the emails message to 500 recipients, FUMC would say "if interested in Bible Study Disciple I, click here to see more info: http://www.fumcbelvidere.org/DiscipleI.html. Similarly, for Disciple II, the URL Link would be: http://www.fumcbelvider.org/DiscipleII.html. The Click Through Name for each Bible Study would be Disciple I CT, Disciple II CT, and so on. FUMC's Staff could then look at the degree of interest in each Bible Study program, and compare that interest with the actual number who finally sign-up.

While this type of monitoring may not be that critical for a Church, it is very valid for businesses who need to measure facts and interest in Products or Services. Of churches who are promoting marketing themselves (evangelism) would also find it this analysis useful as to whether some programs have good response and others do not.

Opt-in Messages and Unsubscribe

Spam compliance laws require that you must have a way for recipients to Unsubscribe from your emails. It is also good practice to continue reminding recipients why they are getting your email. Both of these purposes can be accomplished by placing a simple message at either the start or the end of your email. Of course you could put the Opt-in reminder message at the start, and the Unsubscribe message at the end if you wish to use 2 messages. It doesn't matter as long as both are present.

You are receiving this email because you . . . (state the reason). If you no longer wish to receive emails, please go to http://www.yoursite.com/youreMarketerpage.html. Enter your email in the email field and click on Unsubscribe. You will be removed from future mailings.

It is unlawful to gather email lists by automated means for the purpose of sending notices. It is not unlawful to say "by the way, "we met at a mixer, your in my small class, I know you from the Chamber, etc". - as long as you provide a means for the recipient to Unsubscribe. However, you must decide for yourself how ethical such mailings are.

Congratulations on finishing this lesson. I encourage you to complete the Lesson Feedback form before moving on.

Respectfully,
Vernon Wanner
Internet Consultant