E-commerce Insights:Improve Your E-mail Sign-up Process

On the Swiss Colony site, for example, after following a link labeled, “Sign up to receive e-mails about specially priced items; sign up now,” the visitor is left wondering why the next screen provides an “I don’t wish to receive e-mail” option.

7. Offer an immediate benefit. Just six sites (13 percent) offer an incentive for signing up, such as entering each new e-mail in a sweepstakes (Gumps, Neiman Marcus, Crutchfield, REI). A few sites offer discount coupons (Zales offers $5 off a purchase over $25; REI provides 10 percent off next order). But Zales mentions the coupon only after the sign-up, so it doesn’t gain any lift in sign-up rates. REI mentions the 10 percent-off offer before the sign-up, then provides the coupon via e-mail, ensuring the consumer enters a valid address.