Q&A with Richard Casson, Email Marketing Manager

What is the role of an email marketing manager at Torchbox?

I work with our clients to help grow their email lists and to use email to increase engagement with supporters who’ve already subscribed.

How did you get to where you are today?

Before Torchbox I spent 15 years working in digital roles in the charity sector, with six years at Oxfam and, most recently, eight years at Greenpeace UK, delivering an email fundraising strategy that pushed Greenpeace’s donor recruitment emails to over 400% above income targets!

What do you love about your role?

Spending my time focusing on email. It's a digital channel that’s often overlooked. So it’s really rewarding working with our clients to take an in-depth look at the emails they send and finding opportunities to tap into the channel’s potential.

What current projects are you working on?

Right now I’m working on an audit for a humanitarian aid organisation. I’m taking a look at all the emails they’ve sent in the past 12 months, then making recommendations for how they could be tweaked and optimised to increase engagement.

What top tip would you give to charities managing their email lists?

Send more emails. There’s a lot of research out there that shows UK nonprofits don’t send enough — like the M+R Benchmarks report indicated that UK nonprofits send half the amount US nonprofits do. So, as long as you’re keeping an eye on unsubscribes, you could probably email your list a whole lot more.

Tell us a bit about you.

About 10 years ago, I travelled from Tokyo back home to London without flying. It took a whole month! And involved a mix of boats, buses, hitch-hiking, and about 140 hours sat on a train travelling through Siberia. It was meant to be a holiday, but I arrived home more exhausted than when I left.

Are you looking for support with your charity’s email marketing strategy?

Our email marketing support offering has gone from strength to strength, and our client base now includes Great Ormond Street Hospital Charity, Islamic Relief UK, Practical Action, Wharton Interactive and more.