E-mail Marketing: What Works Now

Upgrading e-mail messages could help drive business to other channels. Kathryn Grant, a spokesperson for The Sharper Image, says some of her company’s e-mail incentives are intended to encourage those who have bought from the Web site to visit a retail location. Take the company’s Valentine’s Day incentive as an example (see screenshot on opposite page). HTML, or rich media, allows The Sharper Image to send an offer that would lose its punch in a text-only message as there would be no visual of the products nor a coupon. Customers receive the discount only if they print out the e-mail and take it to a store.