The Importance of Brand Identity in Email Marketing: Case Study

The reason we started Mail on the Mark was because we felt the major e-newsletter providers were not able to offer fully-branded solutions to our clients. Mail on the Mark is a division of Visible Logic, a graphic design studio that specializes in branding. We recognize that email marketing is an important part of our clients’ marketing strategy, and felt strongly that the brand identity should not be weakened through the use of generic templates.

Why is it important to maintain brand identity when creating e-newsletters?

We are all bombarded with too much email. Therefore, we are all very quickly scanning emails to decide if we should take the time to read them. We do this scan by reviewing the from, the subject line and/or quickly glancing at the body of the email.

If a message is not from someone we recognize, we need even more reason to feel compelled to take the risk and open it. We just don’t have time and we are much more likely to not open an unrecognized email.

Case Study: Portland’s Womens Groups

Our office is located in Portland, Maine. As president, I am involved with several networking groups and attend business networking events around the city. There are quite a few local groups that are focused on women working in Maine. And quite honestly, it’s easy to get them confused.

There is the Maine Women’s Fund, the Maine’s Women’s Network, the Maine Women’s Business Center and the Maine Centers for Women, Work, and Community to just name a few organizations that I’ve had contact with. These are all not-for-profit groups focused on women in business in Maine (in other words, me!).

If you’re not from Maine you should realize that there seems to be an over-abundance of groups focused on business, small business, and entrepreneurship in Maine, and not just focusing on women. I am involved with several of those groups as well. It’s sort of a running joke about the confusion and overlap all these groups have with what they offer.

Whether you are a small business or a non-profit, standing out from your competitors is a critical problem. And a distinct brand identity can help.

The other day, I received this email message:

 

I did a quick glance and couldn’t figure out which group it came from. Now I know from having attended some of the events that these different groups host that some are a worthwhile use of my time, but unfortunately others are not. So I’m left struggling to figure out which group this is.

For me, and for many others, your logo along with other key elements of your brand is what identifies you quickly to your audience. This email lacks any branding. Not even a logo.

A quick aside: this is not a text-only email as there are logo of the sponsors right below where I cropped the email.

Imagine how much more powerful it would be if it included the logo as well as the color scheme from the organization. As people rush through their in boxes they don’t have time to figure out who an email is from. Branding elements such as a logo and colors will increase the open rate of your email marketing because people recognize who the email is from. Help them out by branding your e-newsletter and email marketing campaigns.