For many consumer packaged goods (CPG) brands, ecommerce is out of reach. Not because they can't figure it out, but because they have chosen not to participate in this channel -- most often, to avoid conflicts with resellers. When the ecommerce channel is not available, chances are the brand has no direct ties between most digital marketing activities and sales. While brands can theoretically buy all sorts of data about their customers and where they shop, realistically such data is too costly for many brands' already-stretched budgets. This divide -- the separation between digital marketing and sales -- poses a …

In July, my family celebrated the Serbian Orthodox holiday Slava. As we prepared for dinner, the priest came to our house and blessed the food and our home. The preparation for his arrival typically includes a candle, red wine, a list of residents in the house and the traditional bread that my mother-in-law makes and decorates. This year, as I handed him all the "tools," he asked for one more thing" my email address. Wait? What? Why? Feeling put on the spot and not entirely sure I could really say "no," I obliged.

Back to school time is the usual signal to marketers that the remaining year is about to get busy with planning and execution of holiday marketing plans. I thought it would be nice to reflect a little on all that happened in 2011 before getting lost in the busy season.

Web-safe fonts have always been major components of the email designer's tool kit. With the proliferation of disabled images, using Web-safe fonts ensures subscribers can understand the message without the help of graphics.

Earlier this year, AWeber offered a scholarship to the high school or undergraduate college student who best described what they think will happen to email now that social media is demanding so much attention. We wanted to know where email marketing may be headed, and what better way to find out than asking the up-and-coming generation? Some of their thoughts may surprise you; others just make sense. Overall, 44% believe email has its place and will stick around, 41% are more inclined to think social media will overtake email and 15% just aren't sure yet.

It wasn't exactly "Stranger in a Strange Land," but I found my email marketing background gave me a unique perspective on the topics that social media marketers were talking about at MediaPost's recent in Lake Tahoe.

What accounts for the delta that some companies see between the people whose email addresses they have, and the people whose attention they have? Here are some thoughts...

I believe customer acquisition will be an oxymoron in the future. We will have all the customers available to us through some form of data that we own or have rights to. Acquisition will not be front of the funnel solely as it is seen today or measured as such.

As we look at how email marketing programs have evolved over time, we often stop, scratch our heads and wonder, "Are we still talking about the same best practices we were seven years ago?" And the answer is mostly... yes. The directionality of the best practices may change over time, but the fundamentals are still the same. So I started thinking -- the one thing we often overlook when assessing program performance and best practice application is, well... you. If you are running or involved in email marketing programs for your brand, then there is some semblance (or stamp) of …

Smartphones are having a profound impact on email use. Smartphone sales are surging, and email is one of the most common items people use their smartphone to access. Only calling and texting are more common smartphone activities.Given these realities, it is no surprise that the topic of mobile email comes up in nearly every conversation about email marketing strategy and/or design. So I thought it was finally discuss how (or if you should) to mobilize your email program.