Just today, a friend of the family (who is starting to apply for colleges) received an email "congratulating" him as being selected as one of their VIP applicants. It went on to tell him that "you seem full of potential" and they "can't wait to review your application!"  Now, the thing is, all the information this college has on him is A) his name and B) his email address. 

Now, it's obvious that the college does not know annnnnnnnnything about this student and yet they are trying to get him to believe that they have a special interest in his future.  Oh, also, the email ended with "P.S. If you've already applied please disregard this email." So they don't even know if he applied already or not and yet they're trying to make him believe that he is special to them?

With all the emails being sent it is important to show the recipient that you have invested time in getting to know them and are giving them information accordingly. After all, why should they invest time in your message if you've clearly invested no time in getting to know them?

And there are simple ways to do this - in the previous example, the college could have at least used "Dear William" and personalized the salutation.  Also, make sure to give them content they will want to learn about.  Again, this college could have put information in about "Since you've indicated an interest in Biology, you might be interested to know about Professor So-and-So."

Of course, if the call-to-action is to get the student to apply, then PLEASE make sure you know if they've done that or not.  Same goes for any industry - before you ask your customer to do something, check to see if they have already done it, how many times, how frequently, etc.

The point is: with every email, personalize the message not only with their name but also with information and content they will care about.  Be up front about why they should care about your email.  Because if you can't think of a reason...THEY sure aren't going to think of it for you. 

By putting in a little time and effort before you send the email, your customer will be sure to spend more time with your message after they receive it.

UPDATE: The "special" VIP application?  Just received a print piece with the same message - with the student's name spelled wrong. The student is supposed to believe the college will treat them like a VIP when they can't even get the name right? Just another example of how personalization can make or break a marketing message.