Email marketing continues to be one of the best performing channel for marketers. Year after year, email outperforms other marketing channels in terms of ROI, customer acquisition and retention. Check out some of these recently released stats in our last blog post.
- For every dollar brands invest in email marketing, they get $ 42 in return. (Litmus)
- 77% of marketers say email is one of their two most effective marketing channels, and 78% of marketing executives say email marketing is critical to the overall success of their business. (Litmus, 2020)
- Only 16% of respondents believe that their company measures the ROI of email marketing as good or very good. Additionally, 45% said the ROI measurement of their email marketing efforts is bad, very bad, or nonexistent. (Litmus, 2020)
- According to 80% of professionals, email marketing drives customer acquisition and retention. (eMarketer)
- Customers spend 138% more when marketed via email than customers who don’t receive email offers. (Annoying advertising)
Email Marketing Goals
In a study by DemandMetric and Return Path from Validity, Report on the State of Email Marketing 2021, the respondent stated that communication and brand awareness are the most important goals of email marketing:
- 71% – Communicate with customers
- 69% – build brand awareness
- 64% – Communicate with prospects
These results are consistent with their 2019 research. When asked to list their top three email marketing goals, respondents overall said they were communicating with customers (74%), building brand awareness (64%), and communicating with potential customers (63%).
However, when these results were broken down into B2B and B2C, the goals varied slightly. Communicating with customers was a primary goal for marketers of both groups (78% B2C, 74% B2B). For B2C email marketers, generating revenue was a primary goal (80% B2C, 41% B2B), and for B2B marketers, communicating with prospects was named as a primary goal (73% B2B, 54% B2C) .
In a 2019 study by marketers Convince & Convert, 67% of email marketers said their primary goal is to increase engagement. However, this was also a huge challenge for 50% of marketers.
Competing for attention in the inbox is a primary challenge
While email has great potential, that doesn’t mean it’s without challenges. 42% of the respondents in the DemandMetric study stated that being noticed in overcrowded inboxes is a primary challenge. This was followed by poor email engagement (35%) and email deliverability issues (30%).
According to Litmus, the biggest challenges in a 2019 study included the lack of quality data, poor coordination between other departments and channels, inadequate staffing and limitations of the current email service provider.
Email Marketing Tactics
Unfortunately, compared to last year, email marketers are less sophisticated in their approach to email marketing. In 2019, 63% of marketers were using list management services, compared to 56% in 2020. Other tactics also declined, including optimizing subject lines, performing A / B testing, and optimizing email deliverability.
Marketers need to get back on track and improve in these areas. Failure to do so will only compound the problem of going unnoticed in busy inboxes and keeping revenue on the table.
For example:
- 47% of people open emails based on the subject line. (OptinMonster)
- A study by Experian found that email subject lines with an emoji increased open rates by 56% compared to plain text subject lines. (Campaign monitor)
- Emails with personalized subject lines are 50% more likely to be opened. (Oberlo)
- Segmented email marketing campaigns can lead to sales increases of up to 760%. (Campaign monitor)
Make sure you have some of the basics in place to take your email success to the next level:
Segment your email list
When it comes to sending out more effective email campaigns and increasing email open rates, list segmentation goes a long way. In fact, segmented email marketing campaigns can result in sales increases of up to 760%. (Campaign monitor)
List segmentation is all about creating more personalized content for your email. The segments can be as big or as small as you’d like. The more targeted the segment, the greater the response from your customers. Email segmentation doesn’t have to be a daunting task either – just starting at the time of your last purchase is a start. But the larger your database and the more diverse your product portfolio, the more sophisticated your techniques should become.
The most successful email marketers know the importance of using data for targeted campaigns. Data on each of your customer interactions must be summarized in a consolidated customer view. Any number of segmentation strategies can then be used to create hyper-targeted lists.
For example, a clothing retailer may consider creating segments for women between the ages of 28 and 34 with a combined household income of $ 150,000 who have expressed an interest in fashion. These consumers have purchased over $ 150 total of new items in the past 4 weeks and are ideal candidates for accessory purchase. With these demographics and purchase history insights, a marketer can send emails with personalized offers like, “Hello Mary. Thank you for your last purchase from our summer clothing line. We thought these accessories would go great with your new dress. “Your customer will appreciate the personalized recommendation if you like to cross over their additional products.
Design for Mobile – Always
First and foremost, if you don’t design your email for mobile devices, chances are your message isn’t getting the attention it deserves. Mobile design is one of the most important components of successful mobile email marketing. According to Blue Hornet, 80% of users delete an email when it doesn’t look good on their mobile devices. For those who say email marketing is dead, they are probably not using responsive design.
Take care of your copy. A good subject line can increase the open rate of your emails, but a good rule of thumb is to keep it under 50 characters. Your opening line needs to be relevant and compelling as this will be shown in the preview window on mobile devices.
The copy of the text should also be easy to read on devices of any size. Use sub-headings, short paragraphs, and lots of line breaks. Also, avoid content that requires too much clicking or scrolling. There are plenty of email guides and best practices for adding a mobile-friendly design to your email. So make sure you do your research and implement best practices for mobile-first design.
Automate your email trips
Automated travel management makes it easier for email marketers to incorporate personalization into their email strategies.
Sending triggered emails based on a consumer’s behavior is effective for both acquiring and converting customers into loyal brand advocates.
Check out these statistics on the effectiveness of email marketing automation:
- Automated emails achieve a 119% higher click-through rate than broadcast emails. (Epsilon)
- B2C marketers who connect with customers through automated emails see conversion rates of up to 50%. (eMarketer)
- Relevant email generates 18 times more revenue than broadcast email. (Jupiter Research)
- Retailers who send a series of welcome emails generate 13% more sales than retailers who send just one. (Internet retailer 500)
While many brands are very familiar with welcome emails or order confirmations, email automation and personalization must be holistically integrated throughout the journey to drive conversions and increase customer loyalty.
Consider using a customer data platform to automate email travel. With a CDP, marketers can easily create campaigns that identify whether customers have visited a brand’s website, browsed specific product categories, opened emails, or visited stores.
For email marketers, getting to your email inbox is only half the battle. Attracting the attention of your customers is the real evidence of a well-designed email based on well-directed communication and a well-managed database.
Download the V12 Success Kit at Email Marketing Strategies – Full of blogs, articles, webinars, and resources to help you learn about the latest trends and best practices and increase your email marketing success.
Author: Larisa Bedgood
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As Vice President of Marketing for V12 Data, I have a deep understanding of today’s data-driven marketing environment, including key components such as data integration, personalized travel management, customer experience, third-party data, marketing technology, and analytics. I lead all marketing functions including lead generation goals, content management, marketing strategy, … Show complete profile >