Want to grow your email marketing list and provide a stylish, modern mobile look to your website or blog? You’re literally just a few clicks away. Last year, Google pushed out a quiet product called Google Currents, a mobile reading app that takes blog RSS feeds and other content and places them inside your Android or iOS devices. What’s even better is that becoming a publisher is free, fast, and relatively easy.

Let’s showcase how you might get started. First, head to the Google Currents Producer site. If you aren’t signed in with your Google account, you will need to be. You will also need your website’s RSS feed address (blog feed). If you don’t have that, contact your IT department to get it.

Step 1: Set up the basics. Give your publication a name and fill in your blog feed.

Step 2: Set up an appealing description in the Basic Information section.

Step 3: Add images and include your Google Analytics tag if you want to track mobile stats.

Step 4. Now it’s time to move onto sections. Unlike a standard blog feed, you can include many more types of content in your mobile application. For example, you can include your Google+ page or updates from your Facebook page.

You can do the same with Twitter feeds as well:

Step 5. You can get really advanced if you have some additional publishing channels, such as eBooks. Google Currents Publisher will let you import an entire eBook, so you could give away samples or full texts.

Step 6. Once you’ve got all your content and feeds imported and the previews look like how you want them to look, it’s time to Distribute. You’ll need to verify the ownership of any non-social media feeds you’ve put in (like your blog).

Step 7. Once you’re satisfied, hit Publish and release the app into the world. It becomes immediately available in the Currents search options.

Step 8. Finally, the moment you’ve been waiting for. Once everything is operating, go back to Edition settings and you should see the Email Collection option. Turn on Opt-In and provide either your privacy policy or a link to it.

Then on a regular basis, check and collect for email addresses. If you’ve disclosed and told people you’ll be adding them to your email list, then import this file to your email service provider’s lists.

One note: there have been some reported bugs with Producer that may sometimes not offer the Email Collection option. If that happens to you, either start a new edition or report it with the Send Feedback link at the bottom of Google’s page.

Step 9. As with all things digital, it’s not a question of “build it and they will come”. That’s rarely the case. Instead, offer your Google Currents mobile edition prominently on your website, in your existing newsletters, and anywhere that your mobile readers might expect to search for mobile editions of your content.

Google even provides you with some handy graphics templates you can customize to promote on your website and other digital properties.

Currents is just one of the many ways you can grow your email marketing list, but it’s ideally targeted for mobile users. Try it out today and see if it works for you. Be sure to also sign up for our mobile email marketing strategy webinar on May 3 as well. And of course, we invite you to download and install our edition of Google Currents on your Android or iOS device as well.

Christopher S. Penn
Director of Inbound Marketing, WhatCounts

Learn 18 different ways to find and grow your email marketing and social media ROI! Promote email with social, social with email, learn how to set up a Facebook Page for email subscriptions, and much more. Download the free eBook now.	Lifecycle email marketing is one of the hottest buzzwords in digital marketing, but how can you make it work for you? Download our free eBook and learn 5 lifecycle frameworks plus practical applications to your email marketing program.

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The following is a guest post by Jon-Mikel Bailey. Read more about him at the conclusion.

Mobile is here and it’s growing leaps and bounds every day. Lots of people check their email on their mobile devices – Blackberries, iPhones, Droids, etc. And some are probably checking their email there more than on their desktop. Which brings up one scary thought…what does your email marketing campaign look like on a mobile device?

If you’ve never thought about this you are probably breaking out in a cold sweat right now. If you have, you might not have considered the next part of this thought: Does it convert? It’s OK, we all worry. But luckily there are some fairly simple things you can do to make sure your email marketing campaign is just as effective on a mobile device as it is on a desktop.

It breaks down to the same core principles that apply to most forms of electronic communication, code and design. We have put together a list of 5 simple techniques to apply to your email marketing campaign to ensure it is effective on mobile devices. Let’s start with what they see in their inbox.

1 – Make sure your subject line and preheader are working together…

A preheader is the text that shows you see in a mobile inbox from an email. Mainly this is reserved for things like “Click Here for a Printable Version” or “Having Trouble Viewing This? Click Here”. This is also about as much as the recipient will ever read of your email marketing campaign if you don’t do something creative to grab their attention.

This is because oftentimes, marketers will miss an opportunity here to capture the interest of the reader and get them to open the email. Think about it, most mobile devices will show the subject line and the preheader without any real hook to get the you to open the email.

As they scroll through their inbox this is what they see. If you are creative with your preheader you may be able to cut through the clutter and get them to open the email. Try using this space to grab their attention, think of it as the next part of your subject line, what you would say in the actual subject line if you had the space: The Subject —> The Grab!

There is a great article on this at MediaPost, talking specifically about subject lines and preheaders: Subject Line + Preheader: The Perfect Mobile Pairing

2 – Can they read it?

One of the easiest fixes in mobile email marketing is readability. Devices will all render emails differently. To have the most effective cross platform reach, start with the content, can it be read from any mobile device?

Email marketing services will allow you to create a text only version of your newsletter. Devices that do not support HTML in email will usually automatically revert to this plain text version in the reader (with active links).

I’ve seen it suggested to create a .TXT version of your email campaign and link to that from your HTML email. My problem with this is that the links will not be active, meaning the recipient will need to copy and paste the link into a new browser. This kills the whole idea for me.

Instead try creating a simple HTML version that is designed at a baseline to work in all mobile browsers. Then link to this in the preheader – “View Mobile Version”. When they click this link they will be taken to a mobile version of the email newsletter designed specifically to work in mobile browsers, such as something like this…

As you can see, the text still renders nicely and the links are all still active – driving branding and conversion.

3. With HTML, Design with Mobile in mind…

Now comes the tricky part. How do I design an HTML email that will render correctly in devices that display HTML emails? The main thing to worry about is screen resolution. You are going to be primarily concerned with width, the horizontal display of your email.

Typically the real estate you are working with on a mobile screen is in the neighborhood of 350px X 380px. This varies depending on the device and what menus are present at the top and bottom of the viewing area. So, it is best to design them and then view versions in phone simulators.

iPhones will generally size the HTML email to fit in the screen (see sample below). Some devices will show it full size. So if your HTML email is designed at 600px wide, the reader will need to scroll horizontally to view the content. This is not good. Your best bet is to design for the lowest common denominator – at least for the width.

4. Best practices still apply…

Remember that good design is always backed by responsible coding and effective layout. If you are designing for the user and device in mind, you will be in good shape. So, take certain things into consideration like images, or the layout of your information.

Some phones will not load an image automatically (Outlook does this too, so this tip applies to desktops as well). Use ALT text in your images so if an image is not loaded, the viewer will at least see some text in its place that is relevant instead of phonepic55.jpg. If your email is about roasting turkeys and you have an image of a roasted turkey, use the ALT Text = Roasted Turkey.

And when it comes to links, be smart about placement. Layout here is very important. If you want someone to click on a link, don’t bury it with other links or clutter. Set it apart and make it accessible. This is especially important on touch screens. Some of us fat finger types might click on the wrong thing and get frustrated. Frustration leads to departure, which leads to an ineffective email.

HTML5 is going to play heavily into this in the days ahead, check out our lastest post about HTML5.

5. Mobile is the best place to refine your Call to Action (CTA)…

Think about it – this can be a difficult place to convert. The recipient is on the move and usually very distracted. You have limited visual real estate and multiple compatibility issues to overcome. This is the perfect place to refine your CTAs. What better place than the most difficult one to develop a killer CTA approach?

When you design your HTML email, do some testing on multiple devices. At the very least you can use a device simulator. See what your email will look like on a mobile device. Are your CTAs obvious? Do they draw attention? Is it clear where they will take you? If they are effective here, you can be sure they will be effective on a desktop.

Mobile is here, be ready…

As mobile devices grow in popularity and daily usage, we will see better ways to monitor the effectiveness of these efforts. For now, the stats you have available will tell you a good deal anyway (talk to your provider about their stats or Google Analytics). So, make sure you are tracking what users are on when reading your email newsletters. I guarantee you that mobile will pop up more and more in the coming days and months.

Remember, effective marketing takes planning, testing and flexibility. Be open to different approaches and be aware of what your readers use to access your information. And don’t worry, if you follow these tips you should be in good shape. Good luck!

Image: Flickr – ivyfield

Jon-Mikel Bailey
President, Business Development, Wood Street, Inc.

Jon is President and CMO for Wood Street, Inc., a web and mobile design, development and SEO firm in Maryland. Jon blogs regularly on the Wood Street blog and speaks at area chambers and organizations on SEO, design, web content and Social Media. Jon is also a huge WhatCounts fan! (This is Jon’s second guest post. Check out his first one, 3 Ways to Make Your Landing Page Deliver).

Learn 18 different ways to find and grow your email marketing and social media ROI! Promote email with social, social with email, learn how to set up a Facebook Page for email subscriptions, and much more. Download the free eBook now.	Lifecycle email marketing is one of the hottest buzzwords in digital marketing, but how can you make it work for you? Download our free eBook and learn 5 lifecycle frameworks plus practical applications to your email marketing program.

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The following is a guest post from Justin Mastrangelo, president of JA Interactive, a company that helps organizations manage SMS marketing campaigns through their proprietary JA.TXT software. Justin is a board member and past president of the American Marketing Association in Pittsburgh, and has been involved with digital marketing since “the turn of the century”.  When he’s not helping clients understand new marketing technologies, you can find him at recently-opened restaurants or pretending to be a rock star on the drums.

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SMS, or text messaging, is the most widely used mobile technology today, and it can be a very effective way of gathering email subscribers away from the web. This tactic is especially useful for companies and non-profits that hold events, run traditional media, or have a significant number of visitors passing through their physical location. Below are three scenarios where SMS could make capturing an email address easier for both the audience and the organization.

3 Scenarios for Growing Your Email Database with SMS

1. In-person Events

How it’s done now: “Thanks for coming to our event today. If you would like to receive our free whitepaper and signup for our ongoing email newsletters, please take the time to scribble down your contact information. Sorry, we only have one clipboard, so we hope you’ll wait until it gets passed back to you. Does anyone have another pen we can borrow?”

Problem: Not only is this method very cumbersome for the audience, it requires someone to key in all those email addresses by hand.  How many email addresses will be lost due to bad handwriting?

How it’s done with SMS: “Thanks for coming to our event today. If you’d like to receive our free whitepaper and signup for our ongoing email newsletters, just pull out your phone and text FREE to 12345.” After doing this, the user immediately receives a reply text message asking for their email address. They reply, and the white paper is waiting for them in their inbox when they get back to the office.

Solution: This method is not only much faster and easier for the audience, it nearly eliminates all risk of capturing an incorrect email address.  Also, the information is delivered immediately to the prospect, not a week later when someone has a chance to key in all the data from the clipboard.

Note: WhatCounts’s Publicaster iPhone app allows you to add new subscribers directly to your list from your iPhone. Get more information on WhatCounts’s free Publicaster iPhone application or download it now. You can also set up a mobile QR code, which WhatCounts did using JA Interactive’s system. Find out what steps we took and how you can set this up as well.

2. Traditional Media (television, radio, print, outdoor)

How it’s done now: The radio spot says, “If you’re interested in this product, be sure to visit our website where you can signup for our email list and receive 20% off your first purchase.”

Problem: The ad expects the listener to remember a website address and visit sometime in the near future.  This approach not only makes it easy for the audience to forget, it doesn’t help the company attribute new sign-ups to the media.

Solution: “If you’re interested in this product, signup for our email list and we’ll send you a 20% off coupon for your first purchase.  Text PRODUCT to 12345 now.” The listener texts, responds with their email address, and instantly receives the coupon.  The company can quickly see how many new sign-ups resulted from their media buy.

3. On-Site Signage

How it’s done now: The sign says, “Thanks for coming out today. We hope you enjoyed our facility. Enter to win a $100 gift card for your next visit when you sign up for our email list at the cashier’s desk.”

Problem: Few people are going to go out of their way to ask someone for a sign-up sheet, and the issue of “lost emails due to bad handwriting” still exists.

Solution: “Thanks for coming out today. We hope you enjoyed our facility. For your chance to win a $100 gift card, sign up for our email list by texting WIN to 12345.” The visitor texts in, responds with their email address to be entered into the drawing, and is instantly emailed a listing of the next month’s events.

These are just three ways SMS can be used to help grow an email marketing database. Texting is not only an easier call-to-action for the audience, it’s a more accurate way for an organization to capture an email address. Depending on your offline opportunities and incentives, you can create unlimited ideas for your organization.

Justin Mastrangelo
President, JA Interactive

Learn 18 different ways to find and grow your email marketing and social media ROI! Promote email with social, social with email, learn how to set up a Facebook Page for email subscriptions, and much more. Download the free eBook now.	Lifecycle email marketing is one of the hottest buzzwords in digital marketing, but how can you make it work for you? Download our free eBook and learn 5 lifecycle frameworks plus practical applications to your email marketing program.

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