Direct Mail Tutorial for Editors Extension Key: auth_direct_mail_tutorial Copyright 2000-2007, Bernie Pfister, <bernie@pixelsound.com> This document is published under the Open Content License available from http://www.opencontent.org/opl.shtml The content of this document is related to TYPO3 - a GNU/GPL CMS/Framework available from www.typo3.com Table of Contents Direct Mail Tutorial for Editors... 1 1 Introduction... 1 1 What does it do?... 1 2 Send and create mass emails... 2 1 Overview... 2 2 Access the DirectMail module... 2 3 Create Page... 3 4 Compile Email... 4 5 Send out... 5 6 Mail out status... 6 7 Statistics... 7 8 Spam prevention, rules, format... 8 9 SpamCheck Special Tips (from www.sitesell.com)... 8 3 Subscribers... 9 1 Import Subscribers... 9 4 Send a quick mail to subscribers...10 1 Introduction 1 What does it do? Provide an easy overview over the process of creating, sending and administrate email newsletters using the direct mail module of Typo3. Direct Mail Tutorial for Editors - 1
2 Send and create mass emails 1 Overview 1. Create Page Create a normal page just like Email Newsletter No 1. This is the page that we will email later. You can copy/paste an existing page to speed up the process. Edit the content just like any other page. 2. Compile Email After you're finished editing, the page needs to be compiled into an email. This means all the files (images, style sheets etc) are collected and compiled into an email. 3. Send out Finally the email is sent out to the users 4. Statistics After the email is sent out you can view the statistics for the email (opening rate, click rate, returned emails etc). 2 Access the DirectMail module 1. Click on Direct Mail module in the far left column 2. Click on the page that you would like to send, or create a new page inside the Newsletter Facility. To speed up the process, simply copy an existing one and edit it like any other Typo3 page. 3. Choose Newsletters from drop down menu 4. Categorise the content (multiple selections allowed) Scroll down and click Update category settings 5. You can also a) View the page b) Edit the page title c) When you're finished and ready for mailout: Create new direct mail based on this page Direct Mail Tutorial for Editors - 2
3 Create Page 1. Create a normal page just like enews #4 How I gained.... This is the page that we will email later. 2. You can copy/paste an existing page to speed up the process. 3. The page title (in Page Properties ) will become the subject of the email later. This is important, as it is the first thing people will see in their email INBOX. Content Edit the content just like any other page. You can include images, text, links, tables and lists. Remember to use links to pages on your website. The click rate of these links will be recorded and we can then see what stories people are interested in. Do not... Do not use JavaScript. Click enlarge on images will not work in most email clients. Direct Mail Tutorial for Editors - 3
4 Compile Email After you're finished editing, the page needs to be compiled into an email. This means all the files (images, style sheets etc) are collected and compiled into an email. 1. Click Create new direct mail based on this page 2. Choose Fetch and compile mail content from drop down menu 3. Confirm and click Fetch and Compile content Direct Mail Tutorial for Editors - 4
5 Send out After the mail has been compiled, we now can choose between: 1. Send a testmail - OR 2. Mass-send mail to all subscribers Direct Mail Tutorial for Editors - 5
6 Mail out status Finished: the server should be configured to automatically invoke the mailer engine and send out all emails. 1. Check status by selecting Mailer Engine Status in top right hand corner If the system is NOT configured correctly: However, if the server is NOT configured to send out emails automatically, you need to invoke the mailer engine manually: 1. Click Invoke Mailer Engine 2. After the mail is sent, the following screen is presented Direct Mail Tutorial for Editors - 6
7 Statistics After the email is sent out you can view the statistics for the email (opening rate, click rate, returned emails etc). 1. Choose Mailer Engine Status 2. Click on the mail you want to see the statistics for: 3. Select See statistics of this mail in second pull down menu Direct Mail Tutorial for Editors - 7
8 Spam prevention, rules, format To prevent being filtered out by spam filters, you must make yourself familiar with a few rules: DO NOT use all UPPERCASE in the page title Use genuine titles, no terms that could be suspicious or that are used a lot in spam emails (eg Viagra etc). There are online resources where you can send emails to test the results in average spam filters: eg http://spamcheck.sitesell.com/ 9 SpamCheck Special Tips (from www.sitesell.com) Positive Things to Do and Say... and a Very Special Thing NOT to Do! The SpamCheck Report reports ONLY on mistakes you're making. Use the Report to eliminate that bad stuff... Avoid any of the "telltale" triggers that might label your mailing as spam. Some of the most obvious negatives to avoid in your e-mails... The excessive use of ALL CAPS in the subject line and message body of your e-mail. The use of trigger words like "free" (used alone, or in combination with any number of words like "trial," "money," "quote," "sample," "membership," "access," and so on), "sex," "XXX," "spam," "$$$," "checks," "money orders," "extra income," "as seen on TV," and so on. Even using seemingly harmless words like "search engine listings," "cable converter", and "reverses aging" will penalize your e-mail, so you must be exceptionally vigilant in the analysis of your SpamCheck report. The excessive use of punctuation "!!!"... and finally, a very special thing NOT to do... If you think of using a trick to avoid detection (like putting a * in certain words to disguise them or adding 50 spaces in your subject to push a code out of sight), it's only a matter of time until you are ESPECIALLY determined to be a spammer. Because "normal business people" don't use tricks -- they just do business. On the other hand, there are certain elements of an e-mail that qualify it as being "bona fide" correspondence. With that said... Here are some tips for staying on the "good" side of the various spam checkers, filters, etc. that stand between your e-mail and your reader's INBOX. Use as many of these "good triggers" as possible, to prove that yours is a real, justifiable mailing... Use of the words "news", "newsletter", or "list" in your subject line Indication of publishing frequency in the subject line -- weekly, daily, monthly Inclusion of date of newsletter in the subject Inclusion of the issue number in the subject line Make sure your newsletter has some substance -- when was the last time you saw spam that had more than a few lines of text? Above and beyond that, use your own common sense. You know what spam looks like -- do not make your e-zine look like spam. And you know what a "VALID, GOOD" e-zine looks like -- that should be your role model! And especially...... NO TRICKS. Just do your business and keep it real. Direct Mail Tutorial for Editors - 8
3 Subscribers You can administrate (edit, add, delete) subscribers easily using the List tool that comes standard with Typo3. If it's not available to you, contact the administrator/webmaster of your Typo3 site. 1 Import Subscribers 1. Within the DirectMail navigation, go to Recipient Lists 2. Click Click here to import CSV Direct Mail Tutorial for Editors - 9
4 Send a quick mail to subscribers If you want to send a quick email to all subscribers, using the Quick Mail tool is very useful (eg ASX announcements notification etc). 1. Navigate to Quick Mail in top right navigation 2. Choose a recipient list. Direct Mail Tutorial for Editors - 10