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For the second year in a row, Delivra, an email marketing agency has been recognized as a Best Place to Work in Indiana. Companies on the list are determined through employer reports and comprehensive employee surveys. 

There are a total of 70 companies included.These companies will find out their actual rankings at an awards dinner on May 3rd, 2012. Delivra is exctied to be on the list with such good company, like Slingshot SEO, Fusion Alliance, Indiana CPA Society, and many more! 

For more information about Best Places to Work in Indiana, please click here.

Looking for email marketing consultants to help with your email marketing needs who are as dedicated to their employees as they are to their clients? Check out Delivra today! 

 

Today, we are excited to announce the launch of our new website!  Delivra's new website was designed to embrace the modern demands of managing email marketing campaigns. Check out our new site! 

This Friday, December 9th, at 3p.m. EST, several members of the Delivra Team will be on the Marketing Tech Blog Radio Show.  Neil Berman, CEO; Megan Glover, Director of Marketing; and Lavon Temple, Marketing Coordinator will each be on the show providing their insights into the email marketing industry, as well as tips on how to optimize your email marketing efforts. 

If you would like to join in the fun at the DK New Media office on Friday for the show, you can register here. They are offering 10 tickets, so get yours before it is too late! 

The holidays are quickly approaching!  We want to help you prepare your email marketing campaign to get it in tip-top shape for the season.  Check out this inforgraphic produced by Delivra and The Marketing Technology Blog for email best practices, appropriate open rates, and additional insight into segmenting and testing your emails for the best results.    

Earlier this week, a group of Delivra employees traveled to Lucas Oil Stadium to help package food for Kids Against Hunger's Million Meal Marathon. Kids Against Hunger is a local non-profit organization who raise funds and organizes volunteers to put food packages together to help the hungry domestically as well as internationally. 


Each "table" forms an assembly line to create a fortified soy/rice casserole-style meal specifically formulated to meet the nutritional needs of a starving child in a sealed bag. Amazingly, over a million meals were provided by the end of the event. 


The event turnout was awesome, everyone seemed to be having a great time, and it felt good to be a part of such a great cause. The Delivra Team definitely shared an interest in doing more charitable activities together. And who knows since one of the charities involved with Kids Against Hunger is Peyton Manning's Peyback Foundation - maybe he will help us next year :)

If you are interested in volunteering to package foods, please visit their website. 

You can also help by making a donation now online. 

For more pictures from the event, see below: 

Delivra is excited to announce that we are the Email Marketing sponsor for the Marketing Technology blog. The Marketing Technology blog works hard to provide the best resources and advice on marketing in new media. The Marketing Technology blog is accompanied with a weekly newsletter that offers unique content, monthly spotlight videos on Marketing Technology companies, a Twitter account, and a Facebook page. 

In the next few weeks, Delivra will be offering guest blogs highlighting email marketing tips and best practices. Delivra will also be highlighted on the Marketing Technology Radio Show on November 4th from 3:00pm to 4:30pm. Be sure to tune in!

As an email marketer who continuously creates email marketing campaigns, you may find it difficult to come up with creative, great ideas for your next campaign.  If you are in need of a little extra creative push, take a look at the new Email Gallery presented by Email Institute.  The Email Gallery is free to use and you can search through a database of over 36,000 emails from a variety of different brands. 

Take a look at the Email Gallery. 

We've also recommended Emailium as another great option for searching emails for ideas and inspiration.  

Exciting news released today! Inc. Magazine name Delivra as the nation's 2,424 fastest-growing private company. This is the first time that Delivra has appeared on the Inc. 5000 list. The award recognizes Delivra's ability to generate robust revenue while managing a growing business and developing successful business strategies.

We are thrilled to share this accomplishment with you all!

Read the official press release.

To see the full list, click here!

On June 24th, Delivra relocated to our new building. The new location is in the Precendent office park, 9365 Counselors Row, Indianapolis, IN 46240 and will nearly triple Delivra's square footage. 

Here are some photos of our new space: 

Content marketing can increase the volume and quality of your site traffic, and doesn't require a huge budget. As this company shows, you can build a strategy  from the ground up using mostly free tools and resources on hand.

Check out this MarketingSherpa case study about Delivra using a small-budget inbound strategy to pull in 70% more leads and increase average annual account revenue by nearly 100%. See the key parts of the strategy here!

Transforming abandoned shopping carts into completed sales is a classic conundrum for any e-commerce company, and it's one that had been troubling Rob Schmelz, e-commerce manager for Central Restaurant Products. The company, which sells cooking and serving equipment to restaurants, hospitals, schools and other institutions, was even more frustrated about the problem because, thanks to website and email analytics, it could tell exactly which customers were leaving before completing their sales.

"If you've ordered or [signed up] on the site with an email, we know who you are via Omniture and [Central Restaurant Products' email marketing provider] Delivra," he said.

Hoping to reduce the number of abandoned carts, Schmelz, along with Delivra, implemented a triggered email program that would reach out to anyone who had filled a cart but left the site. The solution, which has been in place for three months, was custom-built for the company's shopping cart, said Carissa Newton , director of marketing for Delivra.

To read more of the B2B article, please click here.

Delivra has been ranked on Website Magazine's list recognizing the top 50 email service providers. Website Magazine focuses exclusively on the business of running a website: tips for successful websites, solutions for enhancing website traffic, the latest Internet industry trends and statistics, as well as news analysis on the Internet industry. In the April 2011 edition, Website Magazine established a top 50 list to recognize some of the top email service providers. 

For more information, please click here to be directed to the official press release. 

I love sharing new resources and inspiration I find in our eMailChatr blog posts.  My most recent find came as a result of reading one of my favorite author's new books.  Just this month, Tim Sanders released his newest book called Today We Are Rich.  I have enjoyed Tim's books for the inspiration he brings, the real-life tips he gives the reader to begin implementing, along with his unique stories.  And as usual, this most recent installment definitely did not disappoint!

As I was reading this book, reflecting on my own thoughts, I read some key points I believe all marketers should keep in mind when communicating to their audience.  The message was clear....Positive Thinking always ends in Positive Results.  In one chapter, Tim talks about the importance of weaving  positivity in your messaging, your communications, and the day-to-day exchanges you have with your audience.  He illustrated how positive words can change the entire outcome of a message.  Now, think for a second about your email programs, are you communicating using positive messaging?  Are you making it easy for others to take in what you have to say in the right way?  Tim's advice is to avoid "weak" words.  Be crisp, directive, and positive to get the results.  It's all in what you convey.

We've all seen it....the doomsday marketing, the act now or you will lose out mentality.  Do you think you get better results using those types of scare tactics?  Or the "soft" sell words like maybe or someday.  I'm thinking not.

The next time you craft an email message, try flipping your call-to-action and your messaging on a more positive slant. I believe you will see much more positive results overall.  Here are just a few quick examples that I have started thinking of:

• Learn more....we are here to help
• Resources you might enjoy
• Our way of thanking you
• Join today

Interested in Tim's approach?  Want to read more?  Here are some of  Tim's other books I have found helpful as well. And while the messages are typically centered around how to conduct business and how to build relationships, I find key nuggets that anyone can use in every book I have read from Tim.  The interesting thing to me is how these philosophies are being lived in companies everywhere to lead to great success.  I see much of this here at Delivra!

I hope you enjoy Tim's newest book Today We Are Rich as much as I have.  I can tell you, I have found his resources apply to my marketing, my career, and my personal relationships.  What a wealth of information in such a small package!

Happy reading!  So what are you reading today?  Share with us how it relates to marketing in our comments section and will will highlight it on our blog.

Carissa Newton | Marketing

I get asked many of the same questions  from business marketers and owners, when I am out and about.  People are always wondering what I would recommend for email marketing to a particular industry.  Or wondering whether they should use Facebook to promote their business.  Or does Twitter really have a relevance in a B2B setting.  With every question like this I hear, I am a bit befuddled.  Not at the question or the topic.  But from the idea that marketing is something that can be cookie cut and repeated anywhere with any audience.  I actually see marketing as anything BUT cookie cutter, here are my top five reasons why:

1. All marketing SHOULD center around a plan and a goal.  Those plans and goals are different business to business and industry to industry.
2. Each audience is unique.  It can be very tough to lump characteristics of one business's audience into that of another.
3. Marketing is dynamic....or at least it should be if you are marketing by the results.  You should have the ability to adapt your plans to get the highest return.  And those plans should be able to turn on a dime.
4. You have to be nimble and flexible to get results.  You can't create a rigid plan that will work for EVERY company.  Nor can you take a custom plan for any one company and never expect it to change.  Change is good for results!
5. Much like audiences are unique and plans should be as well, a marketers toolkit cannot be applied from business to business in the same way.  What works for one, won't always work for another.

With that said, I am always happy to listen and provide advice.  However,  the KEY to building a plan that fits your audience.  Understand your market.  Know your audience.  And build a plan to engage them.  Not to worry, the results will come naturally if you follow that process.

Carissa Newton | Marketing

I'm not sure about you, but often I get so caught up in creating my campaigns and the design behind them that I tend to forget how important compelling copy can be to an email program results.  Are you creating copy that compels your audience to act?  Are you engaging your audience with what you say?  Think about it...the subject line and copy is probably one of the least pored over items in an email campaign.  We worry about the images, the alt tags, the recipient list, but just think if you could create copy that would speak to your audience so deeply they are compelled to act.

I recently read an article on The Big Fat Marketing Blog where the author speaks to this very concept.  She offers examples from Threadless on how to create copy to really grab your recipients attention.

Threadless does a great job hooking me in with subject lines. Discounts? New designs? Sure, they tout that stuff as much as the next marketer. But it is the subject lines that go in a different turn that grab my attention:

• “These birds aren’t angry, they’re furious!”

• “There’s no ‘I’ in Threadless…but there is in free shipping!”

• “Aliens, Vampires and Fire-Fighting Giraffes!”

Click here to read the full article

See what I mean?  Threadless does it well!  So, when you create your next email campaign...be sure to remember the most important component~Copy that Compels!  Here are a couple of additional posts that might help you get started:

The ABC and D's of Email Marketing

Content Marketing...Leave Them Asking for More

Happy reading & writing!  Can't wait to see what you come up with to capture and compel.  Need help with your email marketing?  Contact us today at www.delivra.com, info@delivra.com, or at 866-915-9465.

Carissa Newton | Marketing

I recently found an interesting blog post highlighting 5 business books that may not have gotten their due.  As an avid reader on all topics, I love to find new reading lists.  Especially lists that point out books which may not be on top of my mind.

Three of the larger (and more well-known) business book authors within my tool shed of interest have brand new books hitting the market. Seth Godin recently released his latest, Poke The Box.  Guy Kawasaki also released his new book, Enchantment, and on March 8th, Gary Vaynerchuk unleashed his sophomore effort, The Thank You Economy.  Fortunately, I've had the pleasure of reading all three of these insightful books and they do live up to the hype (I'll give my top pick to Godin's Poke The Box).  It will probably take most Marketing professionals the rest of the year to get through these three popular business book titles, but the truth is I have five other fascinating books sitting right here, up next in the cue, and deserving some attention. Because I have yet to read these books, I've grabbed the descriptions from their respective websites (so, please don't mind some of the Marketing blather)...  Click here to view the full post.

Pick up one of these today and expand your mind, learn new things, and become a better marketer!

Carissa Newton | Marketing

According to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, global corporate assistance for the recent and ongoing crises in Japan has exceeded $183 million.

While some companies have had their hearts in the right places, execution of their humanitarian efforts has not always been well-planned. Consider the company that was taken to task for a Facebook posting saying that it would donate $1 to the Japanese reconstruction effort for every Facebook "like" it got. Tacky.

When planning your company's response to a humanitarian crisis, keep a few common-sense guidelines in mind. To find out what these guidelines are, click here to read the rest of the BtoB Magazine article.

Carissa Newton | Marketing

[Editor's note: this is the second in a series of posts celebrating the history of our company on the anniversary of Delivra's founding. If you missed the first installment, you can read it here.]

Like many American companies, Fred Delivra & Co. played a role in supporting the Allied war effort during World War II, and was profoundly changed by it, suffering both losses and triumphs. 



The first loss occurred even before the U.S. formally joined the fighting. Fred Delivra's right-hand man, Alphonse Jones, suddenly resigned his post in December 1940 to fight alongside the British in North Africa. Jones had formerly been a soldier-of-fortune, and told Fred that he found the life of a deliverability manager too "passive" and "unfulfilling." Jones' adventure was short-lived, though; he disappeared during a German offensive in Libya in April 1941. 

Jones' presumed death haunted Fred Delivra, and cemented his devotion to the Allied cause. When America declared war, he was quick to volunteer his services, but found no takers in Washington, due to suspicions concerning his ambiguous national origin. However, military planners soon found themselves in need of Delivra's legendary skills in pigeon training. The generals' forward-thinking prevailed over the bureaucrats' fears about Delivra's loyalty, and President Roosevelt personally requested Fred's' services, which were gladly given. 




Fred Delivra, Little Freddie VI, and lady admirer at Dickin Medal ceremony, London, 1944

Delivra's pigeons proved unerring in their accuracy and targeting instincts, earning several Dickin Medals for "conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty." The success of the so-called "Minneapolis Project" resolved any questions about Fred's loyalties, and led to Fred Delivra working for the newly-formed Office of Strategic Services. Not everything about his role in the OSS is known, but according to documents declassified by President George H.W. Bush in 1990, we at least know that Delivra worked to secure communications between the Allies and the resistance in France and Holland. Also, British documents show that, near the end of the war, Delivra was working on a system of validating authenticity of messages carried by pigeons. Following the fall of Berlin in May 1945, Fred Delivra's proposed Pigeon Key Identified Message (PKIM) system was no longer seen as necessary, and was never implemented, but his design has been cited as an inspiration for the email authentication technology of today. 



Fred Delivra (back row, 2nd from left) at Yalta Conference, 1945

Fred Delivra also played an important role in the organization of the Yalta Conference in February 1945 to discuss the reconstruction of postwar Europe. Delivra was responsible for supervising messengers, telegrams, and translation, as well as snacks and afternoon tea. This latter role proved most valuable, as Fred's daring introduction of American-style orange soda was well received by Josef Stalin, and led to a softening of the Soviet leader's stance against the inclusion of France in the eventual occupation of Berlin. 



Propaganda Poster produced by Delivra Design Services, March 1945 (click to enlarge)


Meanwhile, back on the homefront in Indianapolis, Delivra's facilities had been quickly converted to wartime production shortly after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, when the nation's electronic mail needs shifted abruptly from commercial to military communication. A contract with the Office of War Information--the company's largest order to date--called for Delivra to establish a Design Services team to create propaganda posters to rally popular support for the war and to encourage conservation, productivity and vigilance. But with the men and pigeons of Delivra serving the cause of freedom overseas, it fell to a workforce of mostly women to keep Delivra's messaging factories in production, breaking a 40-year tradition of chauvinism, because of what Fred Delivra termed "patriotic obligation." Teletype operators worked tirelessly to relay messages between GIs and their loved ones back home, and to publish to the American forces the latest news from the States.

The acceptance of female employees in the work force, the diversification of services to include design, and the exposure of an entire generation of Americans to electronic messaging would lead, in the decade that followed the war, to unprecedented growth and prosperity for Delivra & Co., and for its founder, who returned to Indiana after turning down the ambassadorship to the newly-formed nation of Syria. However, Delivra has never ceased remembering the sacrifice of its employees who gave their lives in World War II: 



Naval aviator and Delivra employee Lt. Arthur Stone, 1920-1945

Army 
Buck Taylor
Christopher Bligh
Christoper Smith
Christopher Thompson
Giuseppe Amato
Patrick Donnelly
Salvador "Sonny" Juarez
Navy
Arthur Stone
Lawrence Douglass
Pigeon Corps
Aphrodite
Millie
Little Freddi IV
Zeke
Other 
Alphonse Jones




Last known photo of Alphonse Jones, N. Africa, 1941.

We have talked about the Email Experience Council a number of times here on eMailChatr, but I have to say they are ONE of my favorite go to resources when I need objective third party email marketing information.  If you have not checked it out already, they are definitely one to add to your favorites list.  There are resources for:

• Blogs
• Email Marketing Stats
• Best Practices
• Industry Research
• Articles from thought leaders in the industry
• Reading lists focused on Email Marketing
• Glossary for Email terminology

The eec, the email marketing arm of the Direct Marketing Association, is a global professional organization that strives to enhance the image of email marketing and communications, while celebrating and actively advocating its critical importance in business, and its ROI value.  Check it out today!

Carissa Newton | Marketing

"To be or not to be: That is the question." This line was made famous more than 400 years ago by Shakespeare's Hamlet; it was at this point in the play that Hamlet meditated on human destiny. The same question is being asked by marketers today as they meditate upon their social media destiny -- and, to many, the answer is a resounding "yes!"

"To post, or not to post" certain content is, perhaps, a more relevant question in the age of social media. It appears that some advice is warranted; a number of companies have recently suffered the slings and arrows of outrageous comments on Facebook, Twitter, and elsewhere.

Kenneth Cole, for example, made light of the unrest in Egypt in a commercial Twitter message. The company posted: "Millions are in uproar in #Cairo. Rumor is they heard of our new spring collection now available online at http://bit.ly/KCairo -KC." The Twitter community thought there was "nothing noble" in the company's blatant piggybacking on the crisis in Cairo to promote its spring collection; followers slammed the company for being insensitive.

So, how can a marketer gauge what content is acceptable for marketing via social media and what is not? Alas, poor marketer, I shall tell you.

To read more of this iMedia Connection article and find out what content is acceptable for marketing via social media, click here!

Carissa Newton | Director of Marketing