Our Blog

Scenario: A businessman, eager to promote his services, collects the addresses of members of a network he belongs to.   He sends them an electronic message inviting them to check out a new product.  Some recipients take exception to the intrusion, leading to a vigorous debate about the businessman's ethics.

If you follow the email industry in 2011, you may recognize this scenario as the one that played out last month involving a businessman (Douglas Karr, CEO of DK New Media) and an offended recipient (Al Iverson, deliverability expert and anti-spam advocate).   The argument that followed, which began on Twitter and continued in a Magill Report article, was about whether DK New Media's email to Iverson's address--which Karr obtained through their mutual LinkedIn connection--constituted spam.

But theirs was not a new debate.  The question of "what constitutes spam" is older even than the use of the word "spam" to describe unsolicited commercial email, almost as old as the Internet itself.

In 1978, the word "internet" had not yet been made into a proper noun.  It was an adjective, used in technical papers as shorthand for "internetworking."  However, there was such a thing as email, on a network called ARPANET, which was the predecessor to the Internet-with-a-capital-I that we know today.  ARPANET was established by the Advanced Research Projects Agency of the U.S. Department of Defense.  It connected ARPA-sponsored researchers at universities and private corporations.

One corporation connected to ARPANET was Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC).  In 1978, a new model of DEC computer was available, and a DEC marketing executive thought ARPANET users would find it particularly interesting.  All ARPANET-connected persons were listed in a printed(!) directory, so a DEC employee looked up all the West Coast addresses, typed them in, and sent them this message:
DIGITAL WILL BE GIVING A PRODUCT PRESENTATION OF THE NEWEST MEMBERS OF THE
DECSYSTEM-20 FAMILY; THE DECSYSTEM-2020, 2020T, 2060, AND 2060T. THE
DECSYSTEM-20 FAMILY OF COMPUTERS HAS EVOLVED FROM THE TENEX OPERATING SYSTEM
AND THE DECSYSTEM-10 <PDP-10> COMPUTER ARCHITECTURE. BOTH THE DECSYSTEM-2060T
AND 2020T OFFER FULL ARPANET SUPPORT UNDER THE TOPS-20 OPERATING SYSTEM.
THE DECSYSTEM-2060 IS AN UPWARD EXTENSION OF THE CURRENT DECSYSTEM 2040
AND 2050 FAMILY. THE DECSYSTEM-2020 IS A NEW LOW END MEMBER OF THE
DECSYSTEM-20 FAMILY AND FULLY SOFTWARE COMPATIBLE WITH ALL OF THE OTHER
DECSYSTEM-20 MODELS.

WE INVITE YOU TO COME SEE THE 2020 AND HEAR ABOUT THE DECSYSTEM-20 FAMILY
AT THE TWO PRODUCT PRESENTATIONS WE WILL BE GIVING IN CALIFORNIA THIS
MONTH. THE LOCATIONS WILL BE:

TUESDAY, MAY 9, 1978 - 2 PM
HYATT HOUSE (NEAR THE L.A. AIRPORT)
LOS ANGELES, CA

THURSDAY, MAY 11, 1978 - 2 PM
DUNFEY'S ROYAL COACH
SAN MATEO, CA
(4 MILES SOUTH OF S.F. AIRPORT AT BAYSHORE, RT 101 AND RT 92)

A 2020 WILL BE THERE FOR YOU TO VIEW. ALSO TERMINALS ON-LINE TO OTHER
DECSYSTEM-20 SYSTEMS THROUGH THE ARPANET. IF YOU ARE UNABLE TO ATTEND,
PLEASE FEEL FREE TO CONTACT THE NEAREST DEC OFFICE
FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE EXCITING DECSYSTEM-20 FAMILY.
In this retrospective by Brad Templeton, one can see several parallels between the 1978 DEC mailing and the 2011 DK mailing:

• The senders didn't think they were doing anything wrong. The DEC executive thought the ARPANET users would welcome hearing about a product designed with their needs in mind.  Karr believed his LinkedIn network would welcome hearing about goings-on at his company, or else they wouldn't be connected to him.
• The network operators were not amused. A DoD administrator called DEC's message "A FLAGRANT VIOLATION."  One university's system was taken down when the DEC mailing filled up the server's disk (at a time when disk space was much, much more scarce and expensive than today).  Then, as in 2011, system administrators viewed unsolicited commercial email as a serious problem.
• Recipients' reactions were mixed, but tended towards angry. In his Twitter defense of his actions, Karr cited his mailing's high engagement metrics as evidence that not everyone took offense.  And the DEC rep's actions were defended by at least one recipient as being more relevant than some of the birth announcements and other mail sent on ARPANET.  But generally, unsolicited commercial email then, as now, was poorly received.

This last point illustrates a common cause of confusion for marketers: there is not a universally-accepted definition of spam.  Attempts by governments to define spam for legal purposes have fallen short of the practical definitions used every day by ISPs in filtering incoming mail, and by recipients when deciding whether or not to click that "Report Spam" button.

Was Karr's message spam?  Legally, under the CAN-SPAM act, perhaps not.  But whatever you call it, it was a bad idea.  If you have to argue about whether you have permission to send to someone, then for practical purposes, you should assume you don't have permission.

Marketers who only send mail to explicitly opted-in addresses tend not to get drawn into Twitter fights over their practices.  And if your sending practices resemble those of DEC in 1978, then it's worth noting that their DECSYSTEM-20 mailing is widely regarded today as having been "the first spam."  Don't let your mailing be the next spam.

Chris Broshears | Product Development

By now, you've probably seen this video clip from 1994 making the rounds on Internet.  If not, take two minutes and watch it now.  Then scroll down for a question:

It's easy enough to laugh smugly at this now, in 2011, when Internet email is part of our national consciousness, and Bryant Gumbel isn't.

But where were you when you first encountered email? Probably not on camera like Gumbel and Katie Couric, I'm guessing.

In terms of familiarity with email, I had an advantage over the Today Show anchors, because in 1994 I was a college student.  I had discovered Internet email two years earlier, when I learned that my account on the university's VAX/VMS mainframe could be used not only for sending messages on campus, but could also communicate with my high school classmates attending schools in far-flung places like Muncie, IN; Bowling Green, KY; and Knoxville, TN.  And when we found out that my parents' Prodigy online service included email, it became a cheaper alternative for keeping in touch with them than long-distance calling.

HTML email was still unheard of, as the main application for HTML, the World Wide Web, was still a curiosity, even on campus, where Mosaic, the first graphical Web browser, had only been recently introduced to the PCs in the Computer Science department lab.  Obviously, then, we weren't using a Web-based email client, or any client at all; instead, we used terminal emulation programs, or actual dumb terminals, to connect to the server and read plain text emails there.

But outside the university, email wasn't fully mainstream.  When I took my first job out of college in 1996, working tech support for Software Artistry, Inc., our clients included Fortune 500 companies, most of which still didn't issue Internet email accounts to their employees.  When problems occurred, it was not uncommon for customers to fax us a 50-page printed log file that today would just be attached to an email.

That's my "when I met email" story—what's yours?  Were you flummoxed like the Today Show talent?  Was your first email account through school, or work, or your home AOL dial-up service?  Or are you're of the generation that has never known a world without email?  Post your story in the comments section below.

Chris Broshears | Product Development

The Support Team at Delivra thrives on assisting our clients in an accurate and timely manner. That is our primary responsibility and we address each phone call/e-mail with the utmost importance. Another responsibility of the Support Team is not only assisting, but also teaching our clients about the software. Listed below are some of the more commonly asked questions we receive from clients.

1. Where do I find my list name?

A. Your list name is located in the top right hand corner of the Delivra website. The actual name is located next to 'List.'

2. Why does my HTML content look different when pasting into the editor from another program?

A. If you choose to paste the information by using ctrl+v or right clicking and choosing paste, there is a good chance the HTML content may look drastically different. To resolve this, always make sure to choose 'Paste as plain text' in the editor. This will eliminate a lot of those issues with content looking incorrect.

3. I've edited my content and now it's completely incorrect, how can I get it back to how it was?

A. If you've made a numerous amount of changes, there's a good chance you will not be able to click the undo button to resolve every change. Support recommends before making big changes within your content that you create a copy.  The following steps will allow you to do this:

• Click Content
• Click View Content
• Click Copy next to your file name
• Name the content whatever you would like

B. You should now see a copy of your current content. Open that copy and make any changes that you would like and you will still have the original with no changes made.

4. What is the difference between a soft bounce and a hard bounce?

A. Soft is a temporary failure being reported by the recipient's server (example: mailbox full or out of office).

B. Hard is a permanent failure being reported by the recipient's server (example: recipient's mailing address is no longer valid).

• NOTE: If a member hard bounces on 3 consecutive emails, that member will be changed to a held status. That means any future mailings will not be sent to that member.

5. What is the maximum size for images?

A. 600 pixels

If you have any questions or need assistance, please do not ever hesitate to contact us. You can reach us by e-mail at support@delivra.com or by phone at 1-866-915-9465.

Chris Sapp | Support

Recently, we've had the opportunity to welcome Chris Sapp to the Delivra Team. As of November 1st, 2010, Chris is the latest addition to the Delivra Support Team and is working as our new Application Analyst. As such, he is responsible for helping you with your email marketing needs and for answering any questions you may have regarding the software. 

Chris comes to the team with over six years of techinical support experience. Previously to joining Delivra, Chris worked at Conseco, where he worked on their Service Desk for several years. He also graduated with a degree in Computer Information Systems from Indiana University. 

To learn more about Chris, check out thsi short Q & A section: 

Q: Favorite Sports Team? 

A: My favorite sports teams are the Indiana Hoosiers, Indianapolis Colts, and the Chicago Cubs. I grew up on all three of them and have been a fan of all three teams for as long as I can remember. 

Q: What are your hobbies? 

A: I enjoy sports, live music, movies, and anything outdoors. 

Q: What's your favorite music? 

A: I enjoy pretty much all music, but country. I was raised on classic rock and oldies. 

Did you know that Delivra is currently hiring for positions including Forklift Operator, Barista, and Molecular Biologist?

Of course we're not.  But you wouldn't know that from looking at some of the applications for the jobs we actually ARE trying to fill: Software Developer, Application Analyst, and Integration Developer.   The job descriptions on our web site (and cross-posted to CareerBuilder.com and various social networks) have attracted many applicants, including some people who apparently don't like to read job descriptions.

Why else would someone apply for a software development job whose primary skill is driving a fork truck? Why else would someone expect their barista skills to help them land a position in systems integration?  And why on earth would a Ph.D. in molecular biology even want to interview for tech support?

I don't mean to disparage these applicants or their experiences.   Forklift operators are key to Central Indiana's thriving logistics and shipping industry.  I like my Starbucks as well as the next guy.  And while I'm not sure what molecular biologists do, exactly, I'm certain that it's important.  But we just don't have jobs for any of them.

I understand their reasoning, though.  Economic times are tough, so they feel an urgent need to advertise their services as widely as possible.  And applying for jobs is inexpensive, so they have little to lose.  Besides, we invited them to submit applications.  If we don't welcome their applications, we can always just ignore or delete them.

Is that approach going to be effective?  Surely not.  So why do so many email marketers take the same approach? Change a few words in the previous paragraph, and you've summed up the attitude of many in our industry toward their mailing lists:

"Economic times are tough, so we feel an urgent need to advertise our product as widely as possible.  And sending email is inexpensive, so we have little to lose.  Besides, they invited us to send them email [i.e., they opted in].  If they don't welcome our emails, they can always just ignore or delete them."

That's a poor way to find a new job, and a poor way to run an email marketing program.

Here at Delivra, and at many other companies our size, most jobs are still filled through some personal connection, so you'll want to find an angle that helps you stand out from the other applicants in our inbox.   Understand your brand and target the right audience with your resume.  Personalize those cover letters to fit the job.   Use social networks to learn more about who you're selling to.

Marketers, I'm still not just talking about job hunting here, know what I mean?

Chris Broshears | Product Development

In an earlier blog post, we announced the winners of the Infuse Initiative, a business grant program.  In the next couple of blog posts, we'd like to take the time to introduce the winners in more detail for those of you interested in learning more about them!

Today's blog post is highlighting the Indianapolis Early Learning Center, this year's non-profit Infuse Initiative winner.  Indianapolis Early Learning Center, located at 3901 West 30th Street, Indianapolis, is a non-profit preschool that invests in a successful future for all preschool-age children, regardless of their socioeconomic status.  The school accomplishes this by ensuring that all families have access to the best early childhood education programs to prepare their children for school and for life.

The Infuse Initiative business grant also provides them with pro-bono marketing, technology, accounting, legal and sales training services.  Delivra will provide the Indianapolis Early Learning Center a free email software subscription, professional services and technical support for one year to improve their email marketing efforts.

"Recently, I was able to attend the event announcing and congratulating the winners of the Infuse Initiative.  I had the opportunity to sit next to Amanda Byrd, the Founder & Executive Director of the preschool.  She seemed extremely grateful to be receiving the award and has big plans for the future and I can't wait to see what she does!" said Lavon Temple, Marketing Intern at Delivra.

Stay tuned to the Delivra blog for more information on the other Infuse Initiative winner - Professional Conventions & Meetings.

Also, keep a look out for more news as we eventually share a case study and more details on how the Delivra and Indianapolis Early Learning Center teams were able to work together in order to improve their email marketing efforts.

The Tower of Babel, according to the Book of Genesis, was an enormous tower built at the city of Babylon.  According to the biblical account, a united humanity of the generations following the Great Flood, speaking a single language and migrating from the east, participated in the building. The people decided their city should have a tower so immense that it would have "its top in the heavens."

However, the Tower of Babel was not built for the worship and praise of God, but was instead dedicated to the glory of man, to "make a name" for the builders: "And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth." (Genesis 11:4). The Book of Genesis then relates how God, displeased with the builders' intent, came down and confused their languages. The result was that the people of Babylon scattered throughout the earth.

Fast forward to 2010, when technology, aided by a profusion of satellite and fiberoptic communications advances, has brought the world back together with the ability to communicate instantly anywhere on the globe via the Internet.  Has technology enabled man to resurrect another Tower of Babel? Are we to repeat biblical history? My preacher posed this question yesterday at Sunday services.

To quote George Santayana (1863–1952), philosopher and essayist, "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it."  Translation services, hoping to counteract the fragmentation of the world's languages, are error-prone and fail to deal with colloquialisms and nuance.  Meanwhile, the Internet's governing body is advancing a plan to allow domain names in all languages, instead of just using just the English alphabet.  So far, human effort, even in the Internet era, has failed to overcome the confusion of languages attributed to ancient Bablyon.

Therefore, Delivra continues to receive inquiries about support for email content in languages other than English.  Our software is able to send mail using the UTF-8 character set, which represents all of the world's langauges.  Until mankind returns to a universal language, that will have to do!

Neil Berman | CEO & President

With apologies to all who follow this blog hoping to read some perspective on industry trends, or deliverability best practices, or musings on business from our leader...today's post is primarily for Delivra's clients.

Our technical staff (Development + IT) is constantly making improvements to our software. Sometimes these changes are worthy of fanfare such as press releases, webcasts, and the like. Other changes are infrastructure-related: behind-the-scenes things that, if done right, aren't noticed by users but contribute to system scalability and performance.

And then there are changes like the ones we deployed last night--not earth-shattering enough to alert the media, but noticeable enough to our user community that we can't just let the occasion pass without saying SOMETHING:

Starting today, when you access a file in your Delivra HTML content library, you'll see some additional features. The ability to edit the HTML message is familiar, but we've added the ability to specify From: and Subject: lines as well as to edit the text version of the content.

Previously, when setting up a new mailing, you've always had the ability to import HTML content from the Delivra content library. Then, you would fill in your Subject: line, and optionally change the default From: line, as well as the default Text Version of the mailing. Now, however, you can streamline the process of creating a new mailing by associating each of these fields--From, Subject, and Text Message--with your HTML content in advance, so that all can be imported into the mailing with the click of a single button.

But what about your existing content files?  They don't have a From line, or a Subject line, or a Text Message part associated with them.  Will they still work?  Absolutely.  When creating a new mailing, the system will import these fields only if values exist for them.  If any these fields are left blank (which will be the case with all content created before today), then for those fields, the process you're used to does not change at all.

Note that this change also applies to our Enterprise-level features for split-test and triggered mailings, making it possible to use files from your Delivra library when setting up these advanced mailing types (which require that a From: and Subject: line be specified as part of the imported content).

Also, when editing the Text Message field, there is an "HTML to Text" button in the upper right-hand corner.  If you've already built your HTML content, use this button as a shortcut to automatically generate a plain text version of the content without HTML tags.  You can then edit the auto-generated text version, if you want to customize what will be seen by any of your recipients whose email reader isn't HTML-capable.

To all Delivra clients out there, we hope you find these changes helpful!  Contact your account manager or technical support if you have any questions.

And to any non-Delivra clients who made it this far, thanks for your interest.  We now return you to your regularly-scheduled emailchatr programming.

Chris Broshears | Product Development

Images in email marketing are a great way to reinforce your brand and your message, but using images does come with some inherent issues that you can avoid.

First:  Anytime you send an email using images, don't forget to reinforce that message in your text version of the email.  That way if a recipient has their images turned off, or their preferences set to receive text only emails, they still see your intended message.

Second:  Outlook 2007 recently changed its HTML rendering engine to Microsoft Word.  Up to this point, it had always used Internet Explorer.  This change has caused problems with established HTML web standards not being supported.

The most common problem I see is image sizing.  A client uploads large images, then uses the Delivra editor to set height and width.  Outlook 2007 will ignore the re-sizing and display the images at their actual size, causing the email to be distorted.

Fix: Size images appropriately before uploading to the Delivra editor.

Tip: Don't have photo editing software or want something easy to use?  Try this easy to use online editor www.picnik.com.

Have questions or need help, be sure to contact us here at Delivra and I can help you ensure every email campaign you send is a success!

Stephanie Price | Customer Support & Training