Let’s Talk About Email: Sarah Martineau

Today, we talk about email with Sarah Martineau, Co-founder and CEO of Ideta. Sarah tells us how often she checks her inbox, when personalization can be a bad idea, and why she would email Jeff Bezos. What’s more, she tells us what she loves the most about email.

Enjoy the interview!

The best email you received today:

The confirmation of a large corporation that is joining our platform.

The last email you sent:

An email relating to Ideta’s relaunch. We’re completely revamping the platform UX.

Your biggest email pet peeve:

I don’t like emails that want to be personalized but demonstrate only automation. For example, when there is a picture with my name on a cup, I have the impression that I’m taken for a dumb person…

How often do you check your email?

Often, maybe too often, I would say every 15 minutes.

The word or phrase you most use in your emails:

“I hope you are well.”

The best thing about sending a newsletter:

Realizing all the good work the team has done since the last newsletter.

If you emailed any famous person, who would it be – and why?

I would send an email to Jeff Bezos asking him to take me on a trip to Mars.

Who is the person you don’t email enough?

It’s not just one person, but some of my best friends. I think a lot about them but I just keep forgetting to email them and ask them what’s new.

The newsletters you look forward to the most:

Ecotable! It’s a French startup that promotes eco-responsible restaurants.

An email you wish you’d never sent:

One day a prospect answered badly to a commercial email and for the first time, I tried to answer it. It’s a waste of time to discuss with rude people.

An email you’d be happy to get: 

An email from my daughter. Usually, what I get from her are automatic emails sharing the virtual slime she made. She’s six years old. 🙂

To inbox zero or to not inbox zero?

Inbox zero – but it’s difficult to achieve.

No. 1 reason why you unsubscribe:

If the content is boring or the design is ugly, I unsubscribe right away.

The biggest no-no in an email campaign:

Personalization errors. If you can’t clean and update your data and make sure you have people’s correct names and positions, you shouldn’t try to personalize too much. Most likely, you’ll make mistakes and annoy your prospects.

The best way to grow your email list:

Having a good PR agency and, thanks to that, getting good media exposure. Inbound leads are always promising!

One thing that should change about email:

The GDPR. Many people misinterpret the GDPR. When we prospect by email, we often have to justify how we obtain that email, which is quite exhausting. The GDPR should be clarified in the context of email prospection.

A brand email you always open:

Seloger.com! I have a passion for real estate.

What do you most love about email?

I am a shy person. When I was little, I was so afraid to talk to people or call someone. Even as a teenage girl, I couldn’t buy bread on my own. I’m much less shy today but it still feels more comfortable to talk to people through email.

Did you know that ZeroBounce integrates with Ideta?

Ideta’s software allows companies to create chatbots and voice bots easily. With this no-code solution, anybody can access the most powerful language recognition algorithms in the world – and make them work for their business.

Chatbots are great lead generation tools. However, making sure you gather real email addresses through your chatbots is so important. To prevent fake contacts and typos from spoiling your email list, you can integrate ZeroBounce’s API into your Ideta chatbox.

Also, “the new version of Ideta is coming in September!” Sarah told us. “To celebrate, we’ll have an exclusive offer the first month,” the CEO adds. Subscribe to Ideta’s newsletter to be in the know.