Your Email List – Keep it Clean!
Successful email marketing requires a clean email list. The size of your list is not as important as is the quality of the email addresses in your database. Important emails are sent out each day on behalf of your dealership. Service Reminders, Special Order Parts, Vehicle Ready, Surveys (to name a few) all require valid email addresses to ensure delivery to your customer. Listed below are a few simple ways to keep your email list clean:
- Enter only valid email addresses – Avoid entering bogus email addresses into your database. Invalid email addresses like na@aol.com, noemail@yahoo.com, abc@abc.com, or emails made up by the dealership should be deleted from your name file. Bogus email addresses affect delivery rates and reputation. If you have to enter an email address, use na@na.com or none@none.com. CIMA Systems will filter out these email addresses from loading into CIMA.
- Delete bounced emails from your name file. CIMA Systems will delete bounced email addresses from your CIMA System instantly. However if you do not remove bounced email addresses from your database, those emails will reload into CIMA once we run another import from your DMS. This is important because big ISP’s such as Yahoo or AOL, will label you as a spammer if you repeatedly try sending emails to non-existing (expired, mistyped, etc) addresses. This is because it may appear to them as typical spammer practice.
- Flag customers who have opted out of email as “do not email” in your database. Please contact your DMS support center for instructions on how to flag opt-outs.
- Actively seek email addresses from your clients. Opt-in email lists achieve higher open/click-thru/retention rates. Customers who are willing to opt-in to receive your email messages are more likely to open, read, and purchase products and services. Customer facing associates should ask for emails addresses and educate customers on the benefits of giving their email address. On the service drive or in the cashier’s office, associates should not only ask for email addresses but they should also verify the email address on file is still active.