“Email marketing in increasingly critical to business success. There’s no question: Email has always been important. But now? It’s essential,” writes Litmus in their 2021 State of Email Report. Email marketing is one of the industries the pandemic happened to assist. Will that positive effect last? Here’s a glimpse into the future of email.

Email Marketing is Booming

By the end of 2021, email marketing is projected to generate $8.49 billion in marketing revenue, says Litmus. This is due, in great part, to the COVID-​19 pandemic. To stay relevant during lockdowns and social distancing, brands had to make their presence known online. While consumers were driven to online shopping because they couldn’t shop in person, many have found they enjoy the convenience. It’s unlikely that the popularity of online shopping is going to dramatically decrease anytime soon. Litmus says that this digital demand is fueled by email marketing.

“More than 90% of survey respondents [marketing professionals] say that email marketing is at least somewhat critical to the overall success of their company,” reports Litmus. “41% says it’s very critical –up nearly 30% since before the pandemic in 2019.” Why is email marketing so successful now? Litmus quotes Tabish Bhimani, Founder and Principal Strategist at Mastrat Digital:

• Easy Attention: With many consumers shopping online for the first time, or increasing their online shopping, their inboxes are previously untapped opportunities. If consumers haven’t made a habit of shopping online before, they likely haven’t given out their email addresses to many businesses. So, that makes your client’s emails stand out.
• Customer Retention: You probably know that a loyal customer is worth more to a business than any other type of customer. They will keep coming back for more and can be swayed to spend more at businesses they love. An easy, cost-​effective way to stay relevant to customers is with relevant email marketing outreach.

How to Stand Out

Now, the pandemic has been going on for a while. So, your clients are not the only ones vying for attention in consumers’ inboxes, no matter how limited the competition may be. It’s always important for email marketing efforts to stand out. But how can you do that for your clients?

Litmus reports that the most effective way for your client’s emails to stand out is personalization. “80% of customers are more likely to make a purchase from a brand that provides personalized experiences.” Not only that, “76% of buyers expect more personalized attention from marketers to develop an intimate relationship with your brand.” The top ways to customize your client’s email marketing outreach is to:

• Include the recipient’s name, company name or other profile data
• Send out different email versions based on customer segment
• Reference past email interactions
• Create email versions based on location
• Reference past purchases or donations

Personalized content provides better value to customers than a generic email for the masses. When your client’s email marketing provides value, customers are more likely to open and take action based on the email. Make sure you’re A/​B testing your client’s emails to see what types of subject lines and content are working versus what isn’t.

Use this data to up your client’s email marketing effectiveness and squash any potential doubts that email is worth the cost. Need more data to convince a doubtful client? Check out their target audience’s profiles on AudienceSCAN on AdMall by SalesFuel to get data on how effective email marketing is on that particular demographic.

Want to learn more about how the pandemic-​affected media sales? Download our free white paper: 2020 State of Media Sales: COVID-​19 Special Report from AdMall.

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