Mobile Messages in an Email World

As the mobile phone continues to become the main communications device, email rendering on mobile devices have become a serious issue.  Since many mobile devices only display text emails, email marketers have a challenging time separating their mobile users from their traditional email client recipients. 

This segmentation will be necessary to ensure proper rendering of their messages to non-HTML friendly email clients.  It will also be difficult for email marketers to determine the true open rate of their campaigns because of this growing user base.

What can marketers do to combat some of these issues?  Mobile marketing messages need to be designed for text so that it can be read by a Blackberry or other device. This might bring people back a decade, but some of the same tactics will yield successful results.  Marketers should use uncommon characters such as asterisks, equal signs, etc. to make the message more visually appealing. These symbols can also be used to segment paragraphs, and call attention to certain headlines that would normally be bold.  

Headlines become highly important to attract attention.  A clear and exciting subject line needs to drive the same readership as sophisticated graphics.  Also, since the screen of a Blackberry or other mobile devise is about 320 pixels, messages should have a column of text that is no more than 50 characters for the easiest reading. 

Many times when an email marketing campaign is not yielding results, the first area a marketer will look at is the list.  In the case of mobile marketing, it might not be the list itself but the way people are accessing or not accessing your message.  Keep in mind that the majority of those reading mobile messages are business people with a Blackberry or other device.  If a B2B marketer starts to see declining open rates, deliverability might not be the culprit but rather format and mobile access.  It is a good idea to survey your list with a text message asking if they are using mobile devices.  Users can opt-in for mobile versions of the message, and marketers can segment their list for best results.

Improvements in mobile communications are rapid, and issues related to message design and segmentation will quickly change.  In the meantime, a few easy steps can increase your email marketing’s effectiveness and get your message to the right people.  Whether your campaigns are intended for the traditional email client or mobile device, customizing the message format is tantamount to engaging your audience.