Make sense of the jargon
3GPP
3rd Generation Partnership Project.Current standard for mobile network technology.
A Sizes
A1 dimensions 840mm x 594mm
A2 dimensions 594mm x 420mm
A3 dimensions 420mm x 297mm
A4 dimensions 297mm x 210mm
A5 dimensions 210mm x 148mm
A6 dimensions 148mm x 105mm
A7 dimensions 105mmx 74mm
Above-the-fold
The part of an email or web page that is visible without scrolling.
Auto Preview
The view email software provides an individual to see without fully opening the message.
Bleed
Usually an additional 2mm on the height and width of artwork to ensure even in the unlikely event that the printer’s guillotine is a fraction of a mm out when trimming up your printed materials, the colour continues a little further to ensure you don’t have an unplanned and irregular white border to your printed items.
Blocking
Emails that are blocked are not processed through the ISP or firewall and are essentially prevented from reaching their addressed destination.
Bounce – Hard/Soft Bounce
A hard bounce is the failed delivery of an email due to a permanent reason, like a non-existent address. A soft bounce is the failed delivery of an email due to a temporary issue, like a full mailbox or an unavailable server.
Cell Testing
When the list is divided into a number of discrete cells to allow for a robust test across multiple variables. To determine optimum response, response rates are measured for each cell.
Click-Through Rate (CTR)
The number of people per 100 (expressed in percentage terms), who click through to a URL embedded in an email, banner ad, text or graphic, to view a specific web page. Click-through rates can be reported against the total number of click-throughs (allowing multiple click-throughs from one IP address), or against the number of unique users who click through.
CMYK
Another term for four colour process print. C=Cyan (blue), M=Magenta (red), Y=Yellow, K=Black
Colour Bars
A strip of colour along one side of every printed sheet, outside the trim area to confirm to the printer that the ink used is to the correct density or strength.
Consent
Any freely given specific and informed indication of an individual’s wishes by which, the individual signifies their agreement.
Conversion Rate
The key metric to evaluate the effectiveness of a call to action (often sales), reflecting the percentage of people converted into buyers (or whatever action is desired), out of the total population exposed to the conversion effort. For websites, the conversion rate is the number of visitors who took the desired action divided by the total number of visitors in a given time period (typically, per month). For email marketing, the conversion rate is the percentage of people who take an action out of the total number of people who received the mail.
CPA (Cost per Acquisition)
A payment model in which payment is based solely on qualifying actions, such as sales or registrations.
CPC (Cost per Click)
Rather than paying a cost per 1,000 emails delivered, or a cost per response, some suppliers charge a sum for all the recipients that click through on a marketing message.
CPM (Cost per Thousand)
In email marketing, CPM commonly refers to the cost per 1,000 names on a given rental list.
CPR (Cost per Response)
This term is used to track responses, where the desired result is not purchase, click-through or cost per number of emails for the campaign.
Data User
An organisation making use of either its own data, or of data obtained from other sources for any direct marketing purpose.
Digital Print
Digital print uses an electronic means of creating a printed image as opposed to using printing plates. Ideal for short runs as very cost effective. Also ideal for personalised print, when combining a database with the printed item to ensure it is personalised to the recipient. This is not something that can be done very cost effectively at all with litho print.
Distribution (Gross)
The total number of emails sent as part of a single campaign/distribution to all (SMTP) addresses on the distribution list.
Distribution (Net)
The total number of emails sent and successfully delivered as part of a single campaign/distribution to all (SMTP) addresses on the distribution list.
Dynamic Content
Variable content within an email message, including images and text that is displayed based upon information held in a database.
Envelope Sizes
C4 dimensions 324mm 229mm for A4 items
C5 dimensions 162mm x 229mm for A5 items
DL dimensions110mm x 220mm for A4 folded into 3
C6 dimensions 114mm x 162mm for A4 folded into 4
Firewall
A firewall is a method of stopping spam, unwanted content, viruses etc. from reaching a users inbox. Usually used in a corporate context, however personal firewalls are becoming more popular.
HTML (hypertext markup language)
The language which gives a web browser specific instructions on how to display a formatted document in the browser window. HTML has a specific group of standards that make it universal to all computer platforms.
HTML Email
An HTML email is one that is graphically rich with colour and images and is emerging as the standard for email marketing. Marketers have to keep in mind that some recipients do not want to receive their emails in HTML. However, HTML messages often pull a higher response than plain-text messages.
Landing Page
The page on a website where the visitor arrives (which may or may not be the home page). In terms of an email campaign, one can think of the landing page as the page to which the email directs the prospect via a link.
Links
Text links, hyperlinks, graphics or images which, when clicked or when pasted into the browser, direct the prospect to another online location. To be most effective in motivating action, links must be obvious to the visitor or recipient.
LTE
3GPP Long Term Evolution – the latest standard in the mobile technology that began with GSM, moving up to the current 3G. Basically makes 3G bandwidth 10x fatter for quicker uploads and downlaods.
Open Rate
The percentage of emails opened in any given email marketing campaign, or the percentage opened of the total number of emails delivered.
Opt-in (or Subscribe)
Where an individual has positively indicated that he or she wants to receive email marketing.
Opt-out (or Unsubscribe)
Where an individual requests not to be included on an email list at the point of data collection or with subsequent communications.
Pantone
Pantone is a company that produces individual ‘spot’ colours. Also referred to as PMS colours. These are produced because sometimes it is not always possible to reproduce an exact colour out of the most common four colour process. Actually only around 60% of all visible colours are achievable through four colour process, hence the need for spot colours.
Paper Types
Coated
Silk
Gloss
Matt
Uncoated
Personalisation
The practice of writing the email to make the recipient feel that it is more personal and was sent with him or her in mind. This might include using the recipient’s name in the salutation or subject line, referring to previous purchases or correspondence, or offering recommendations based on previous buying patterns.
PMS
Another term for Pantone spot colours.
PP or Printed Pages
The number of sides of paper that will be printed on.
Print Methods
Four colour process – cmyk
Lithographic
Gravure
Flexography
Screen Printing
Privacy Policy
A clear description of a website or Data User’s policy on the use of information collected from and about website visitors and what they do/do not do with the data.
Process Colour
The alternative name for four colour process print.
QR Codes
Or ‘Quick Response’ codes. These are the black and white blocks of pixels, now being found on business cards, on brochures or posters which contain a message; usually all of the contact details including social media and website details for a business contact, which can be picked up by a smart phone.
Registration Marks
This mark is used to make sure that every colour, once printed onto the sheet, is being printed in exactly the right place, or ‘in register’.
Segmentation
Segmentation is the act of taking your email list and separating it so that recipients get different content based on their demographics, buying patterns, areas of interest etc.
Soft Opt-in
Where an individual is considered to have opted-in, on the basis that they have provided their email address during a sale or during the negotiation of a sale and other conditions are met, including that the individual was informed of how the information they provided would be used and were provided with an opportunity to opt out.
Solicited email or UCE (Unsolicited Commercial Email)
Where an individual has actively invited the Data User to send the individual a commercial email.
Solid to Process
The pantone reference book that shows the spot Pantone colours equivalent when reproduced out of four colour process.
Spam
Spam is the name given to a random, untargeted bulk commercial email, where the recipient did not request the communication.
Targeting
Selecting a target audience or group of individuals likely to be interested in a certain product or service. Targeting is very important to an email marketer as a targeted and relevant email campaign yields a higher response and results in fewer unsubscribes.
TLD – Top Level Domain
New for 2011
will be new domain endings like .sport .eco .music in addition to the current 21 generic domains like .com .co.uk and .biz.
Tracking
Collecting and evaluating the statistics from which one can measure the effectiveness of an email, or an email campaign.
Trim Marks
The marks at the corner of the artwork or printed sheet to indicate where the page need to be trimmed / cut once printed, or possibly showing where to fold.
Unsubscribe
Where an individual requests not to be included on an email list to which they had subscribed, with subsequent communications. This is also referred to as an opt-out.
URL
A Uniform Resource Locator (URL, or less formally, Web address) is a sequence of characters conforming to a standardised format, used for referring to resources (such as documents and images on the Internet) by their location, which is usually shown in the address bar at the top of a browser.
Viral Marketing
A type of marketing that is carried out voluntarily by a company’s customers. It is often referred to as word-of-mouth advertising. Email has made this type of marketing very prevalent. Tools such as ‘send this page, article or website to a friend’ encourage people to refer or recommend your newsletter, company, product, or special offer to others.
