Best Time to Send Out Your E-News -- An Aha Moment

This is in the "why didn't I think of that" category, and I had to share it with you pronto.

Like me, you've probably heard 10 or more definitive takes on the best time to get e-mail readers (of your alerts, e-news, online fundraising, surveys....) to open and digest your missives.

For the bi-monthly Getting Attention e-news (subscribe here), I've always had success in late morning sends to make it easy for readers from coast to coast. I send the e-news out on Tuesday or Wednesday, figuring those are the days when 1)there's time on either side; 2)no Friday pressure to get stuff done before the week's over, and none of Monday's to push through an overflowing in-box; and 3) (I hope) the desire for something different than the work readers have been doing week to date.

How about this for a brainstorm? Look at when folks subscribe to your email list for the best time to reach them. Hat's off to the folks at Marketing Sherpa for researching this phenomenon (in a more specific context of how to get the most opt-ins in response to your e-news confirmation email).

Better yet, extrapolate this to figure out when is the best time for an e-campaign for online donations to a specific campaigns, post new blog entries and so on. Those are the times your people are doing what you want them to do. Make it easy for them to do it. Meet them on their time.

Aha.

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Fresh Takes Goes to Paris

This new bridge is refreshing, delightful and a definite destination for me next time I'm in Paris. The photo alone made me do a double take.

This fantastically imaginative design pushes the envelope -- hard. Pedestrian and auto traffic move up and down, in addition to from one side to the other, creating an absolutely new shape for a bridge.

Your Takeaway -- How can you change what you've been doing the same way forever, to make it absolutely intriguing for your audiences?

Bridge alert thanks to the NY Times.

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Introducing Fresh Takes -- Coming to you when they come my way

Welcome to Fresh Takes, my as-available picks of great resources, fresh ideas and inspiring models. I promise you this read will be as nourishing and satisfying as that delicious salad you had last summer.

Here goes --
1) Marketing adventurer Katya Andresen shares two nonprofit case studies on the value of ad hoc, informal focus groups (she calls it "conversational marketing"). With a modest effort and minimal cost, your organization can build a one-time or (even better) ongoing audience advisory group (or two, or three), and get their vital perspective as needed. They've volunteered so it'll reinforce their loyalty, while you get immediate insights from the field. Win, win, score.

I just executed an online survey for members of a client organization, and asked participants to share their contact info if they were interested in serving on an informal advisory board. More than 40% of participants (a self-selected group, of course) said yes!

2) Boston cause marketer Joe Waters gives his take on how to refresh tired marketing and programming, like MS' Jerry Lewis Telethon. Joe's recommendations:

• Intermingle the new with the old -- build from the brand equity (aka bread and butter) of what your audiences know, but innovate from there.
• Go beyond cutting edge to cut to the bone -- show audiences that your vision and passion goes beyond your marketing, and is core to your organization's work. Here's Joe's hard-hitting example:
• "At my own job, I often combine talk about cause marketing with education on some of the the unique, creative things the hospital does to live up to its mission of delivering "exceptional care without exception.Things like a new cancer care facility that consolidates our cancer services in one building so patients have access to the best care without a three-block hike from radiology to their doctor's office.  Things like we're the only hospital in the country to have an on-site food pantry because we found that being sick is only one of the problems affecting our patients."

BTW, I'd love to hear your fresh takes. Email them to me and I'll share them with Getting Attention readers.

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