Creating Informz Mailings

Communications will commit resources to developing Informz transmissions for any interested campus party. We do ask that guidelines regarding deadline and smooth transfer of information be followed, to ensure efficiency and quality, minimize the potential for mistakes, and provide on-time delivery of your mailing.

We encourage Informz clients to approach the process thoughtfully, to maximize the potential of email marketing and communications.

  • What is my target audience?
  • Does this audience already receive regular Skidmore emails? 
    • If so, is my information unique enough to warrant a separate email, or should it be added to the one they regularly receive?
    • If they receive regular emails, when, and from whom? 
      • How can I schedule mine so that there is no overlap?  Or how can I schedule myself to provide information for the deadline of the already-existing mailing?
  • How effective is my email marketing?
    • How many of my emails were opened? 
    • How many bounced, and were never received (or sent!)?
    • How many were forwarded? 
    • Who clicked on links, and where did they visit?
    • What changes should I make for the next mailing, to increase effectiveness?

The timetable below is a rough outline.  You should also read through the additional materials, and tips and tricks, to understand the best practices that you should be considering with your email campaigns.

 

1-2 months in advance of ideal delivery date
 1)  Determine your target audience(s)

2)  Determine if your target audience is already served by a regular newsletter group (consult with Informz developers), to prevent overlap and duplicate mailings

3)  Select a delivery date which does not conflict with other mailings already scheduled to your target audience (consult with Advancement calendar or Informz developers where appropriate)

4)  Communicate the requested delivery date to your department, the Informz developers, and any other applicable mailing groups (Advancement, etc.)

* Wherever possible Communications will attempt to work with you for your requested delivery date.  If you need to change that delivery date, please communicate that change as early as possible, and understand that the scheduling of other mailings or tasks might result in negotiation for a new delivery date.

5)  If this is a new mailing type, you will need to work with Andy Camp to design a template for your mailings.  This template will include the "From" and "Reply" aspects of your mailing, along with "forward to a friend" and "unsubscribe" links.  It can also include links to your Twitter or Facebook profiles, etc.
1 month prior to requested delivery date

1)  Generate a mailing list consisting of email address, first name and last name (as an excel file, one column for each heading).  There are standard campus lists available in our system already (students, faculty/staff), but any specific-target or outside-Skidmore addresses would have to be provided by you. 
3-4 weeks prior to requested delivery date
 1)  Generate email copy, and have it proofed and approved internally by your department.  This should include selection and tentative placement of photos, photo credits, and web links.

2)  Agree upon a subject line for your email.
2 weeks prior to requested delivery date

3)  Provide fully proofed copy, full-sized images (with captions and photo credits where necessary), web links, mailing list information, subject line, list of requested proofreaders for proofs, and any other helpful information to your Informz developer (Andy Camp or Jenn Crewell).  These should be sent as attachments to email, not embedded inside of the text of an email.

4)  Confirm the requested delivery date with your Informz developer.
5-8 business days before requested delivery date
 1)  Proofs will be circulated between you and your Informz developer, and any other recipients you designate.  You will be responsible for collating requesting changes and communicating them to your Informz developer for the next proof.

2)  Once a version is considered final, the mailing will be scheduled in the system, for delivery on the date requested.
 
1 day after the requested delivery date
 1)  Request the link to the Informz mailing results page from your Informz developer, if it hasn't already been provided.  You can use this link to track the statistics for your mailings, save them to an Excel file for later study, and learn more about how effective your mailing was.  These statistics are only available in full for 30 days, so be sure to check them within that time frame.
 
2 weeks prior to next requested mailing
 1)  Review the excel files of statistics from your last mailing, and work with your Informz developer to remove any recipients with repeated hard bounces, etc.  You will not need to submit an entire new email list for repeated mailings, just a list of additions and deletions.

2)  Make decisions about improvements, based on the statistics in your Excel report.  Consider different subject lines, a different time of day or day of the week for sending out your mailing, changing the "friendly from", etc.

3)  Repeat as above.


Please note:  Requests of changes to a previous step, which has already passed, may result in delays in mailing dates (example: template changes after delivery of copy).