Yesterday I passed a collection of beautifully bright buildings–it was a children's science center–and I got to thinking about the feeling that those bright colors in the concrete jungle imparted. 

Fast forward to today and, completely unbidden, I remembered how in ancient Greece, those pristine marble statues we so admire, were actually quite colorful. 

Turns out that as children, as adults and as a species, we like bright colors on a plain surface. 

So, here's a simple design tip:

A white inner background and a light gray outer background with some bright colors in your heading and sub-heading is a powerful color scheme. Us humans seem to like it.

Cheers,

Dean

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So, you're at a party, refilling on snacks when the guy next to you dives into conversation. There's a moment of hesitation. Do you know this person, or do you introduce yourself? Then he makes a reference–you met at Genevieve's party last winter. Of course! 

Sometimes reminders are helpful :) Think of the same scenario in your inbox. Reminding your readers why they're receiving your emails can set their minds at ease! Particularly if you're an infrequent emailer.

Add a simple "You are receiving this because...." at the top of your promotions. It helps retain readers and prevent mistaken spam reports! Some ISPs will even look for this line as one sign that your email is inbox friendly. So, it helps your delivery all around.

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Need to find your Clickthrough Rates? Here's how in Mimi 2:

The overall clickthrough rate for a promotion is that smaller slice of the engaged percentage here:

You want details! I know :) To find the specific click percentage for any single mailing, click the engaged stat and select the mailing on the next page.

You'll find the numbers for views, shares and clicks here. Just click the % button to convert!

Ah, percentages for easy comparision :-)

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A new integration! If you've thought about implementing a referral program for your business, Ambassador can help :-) 

The integration links your Ambassador account with Mad Mimi. So, you can easily keep ambassadors updated with your lovely Mimi promotions. Check out the details here!

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Yes, Picnik is officially gone. No need to panic! The smart folks at Mashable came up with this list of alternatives: http://mashable.com/2012/04/19/picnik-alternatives/

We also think Aviary is great!

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The second artist seemed to write all her posts and news updates herself. Everything was in the first person and imparted pride and love in the news, the songs and the updates. There was personality peppering the posts.

I know which one I prefer to see in my news feed and which one's emails I prefer to read. Hint: It's not the first artist.

By being human in online communication, you remove the mystique and the barriers to interaction. When emailing, it's so easy to inform, add value and connect at the same time and by letting your personality shine through, you make it even easier.

Cheers
Dean

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We've said it before, when it comes to great emails, content is key! If you want to increase your view rates and click-through rates–focus on quality content. 

So, what if you're not sure how to start? Check out these examples from Mashable. It all applies to your emails, too! 

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So, you've seen the button in Mimi 2, but what exactly can you compare with this tool? I'll show you!

If you're trying to measure the effectiveness of different promotion types, select the promotions you'd like to compare on the right and click the Compare button.

Mimi plots the stats for all selected promotions on a bar graph on the next page. With the promotions below, you're comparing engaged rates. The clicks are that lighter shade of green and the overall engaged is the darker shade of green. This makes viewing clicks for each promotion simple–nice, right?

So, how can you compare those click rates on an even playing field? Select the "View as percentage ratios" button:

Here, we're no longer looking at the number of clicks made on a promotion (as in 10 clicks out of 100) but rather, the percentages. This makes it easy to compare promotions of different sized sends.

Some extra notes:

If you ever want to check out individual promotion stats, just click the stats image next to that promotion. Toggle back and forth as needed!

You can also use the Compare Stats tool to compare different mailings of the same promotion. The stats on your main promotion page show the overall stats for all mailings of that single promotion. 

If you click on any stat type and you've sent the promotion more than once, you'll land on the compare page:

Here you'll see the mailing history for the promotion and how each send contributed to the overall stats.

We'll be elaborating on this over the next few weeks. Reach out if you have questions!

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Do you find yourself wondering where to focus marketing efforts beyond your emails? Let the infographic be your guide:

Infographic by MDG Advertising

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The title of this book review pulled me in. Yes, it's a book for art teachers, but really a collection of essays on creativity. 

Maybe you're not molding a new generation of artists with your emails each day, but you are working in a creative medium! We can all benefit from thinking about the email space with an artistic perspective.

So, skim the review and contemplate some of the assignments. Then take a new risk in your email :) The creative shift keeps your emails vibrant and who knows, you might even stumble upon your next big idea this way.

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So, you've got your webforms in place and new subscribers are rolling in. What to do before that first regular email goes out?

Say hello!

It's easy to customize your double opt in confirmation email with a short welcome, or set up a drip campaign for new signups. Creating a custom landing page works too. Whatever you choose, make your readers feel welcome from the start. You'll get more authentic feedback this way and create a true community that extends beyond your regular newsletter :)

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Wondering how Gary and Mad Mimi got started? Read all about it in Fortune's latest David Vs. Goliath feature!

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A stunning image captures your readers attention. If you have the perfect image, use it early in your email! Looking for inspiration? Here are a few examples from the Mimi community:

Picada y Vino effectively uses a new vinyard photo in each newsletter as the banner. It works beautifully. Don't you feel instantly connected to the full winemaking process? 

Bebabe doesn't replace the banner with an image, but it's the first thing I'm drawn to when I open the email. The kids are having so much fun with their product and that joy carries through the full newsletter.

Davina's promotions are all about family adventure. This image perfectly captures that moment early each day when anything is possible.

Notice how these promotions feel. The right image sets the tone for the rest of your email and pulls your readers happily through to the very end :)

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We get to know you all through your emails. So, when we see one of your businesses thriving in new ways. Well, like proud parents, we have to share it! 

Kelly Lester creator and owner of EasyLunchboxes is a long time Mimi user and expert emailer.

Our own Vicki was clicking over to Amazon the other day and what was featured on the main page? Kelly and EasyLunchboxes! Check out her story here.

We love you Kelly!

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Have you thought about creating your own Wordpress site, but don't know where to begin? Let our friends at bundlelytic.com help!

Starting today, bundlelytic.com is offering a limited run (300 copies only!) of their "Getting Started with Wordpress" bundle. It has everything you need to dive into Wordpress for the first time at a great discount–premium themes, hosting and even email marketing–yep, that's us :) 

100% of the proceeds will go to UNICEF's Silent Emergencies Appeal. The Silent Emergencies fund is used for those emergencies the world might not hear about, but require urgent aid.

Check out more details here: http://bundlelytic.com/ and get the bundle while it's fresh! 

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With the equinox weeks away, it's time to focus on warmer weather, sunshine and new growth!

We all have our emailing habits, but there's likely something we keep putting off. Maybe a new webform is in order, or you've always wanted to start a drip campaign. Perhaps you've wanted to try the RSS to email option, or create a customer survey.

Use the springtime energy and pick something new!

–Sally H

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If your emails tend toward the dense and informational, try something short and fun on your next send. Like your favorite apéritif, the friendly mix of content helps your readers truly enjoy the main course. Besides, sometimes it's fun just to say hello.

(hello!)

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While I'm in the business of pointing out the hidden (or not so hidden!) gems of Mimi 2, I thought I'd step back into the land of list creation for a moment. 

Here's a major change: You can now import directly to your suppression list–without adding anything extra to your csv!

Click on your Add Contacts button and select your audience file.

Then choose the suppression list from your existing lists dropdown menu.

Select Add Contacts. Then click on the Suppressed List to check your fine work!

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Here at Mad Mimi we're pretty big Pinterest fans. Stop by our page and see what we find cool, fun and inspirational. Because we're email-centric, the team here has been looking at Pinterest through an email tinted lens and we discovered a neat little trick to use Pinterest to archive your gorgeous Mad Mimi promotions. 

Just a heads up, it works best if you're in Mad Mimi 2.

1.Start on your main promotions page and grab the mad.ly url for the promotion you'd like to pin first.

2. Click the 'Pin It' button in your browser bar. 

3. On the next page, Pinterest will offer you a choice of all the thumbnails on your promotions page. Select the one you want :)

4. Select the board you need from the dopdown menu, add a nice description and click Pin It!

5. Click the 'See your pin' button.

6. On the next Pinterest page, click on the edit button

8. That's it! Repeat for each promotion in your list :)

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