Facts Don’t Lie

Here are some compelling facts about why you should optimize your email marketing.

• Margold’s 2024 report states 52% of consumers purchased directly from an in email in a 12-month period.
• Email outperformed banner ads and SMS marketing by 108% in 2023.
• Email outperforms social media posts by 13% and social media ads by 11%.
• Klaviyo states abandoned cart email campaigns have an open rate of 50.50%.

Regardless of Your Budget Start Collecting Emails Right Away

This is a mistake many companies make: they don’t have an email list yet and put off starting one. Before you know it, you are years down the road without a list to market to. You can see from the data above emails sell, so don’t wait to start creating your list(s)!

Optimize for That All Important Open Rate

People won’t buy from your emails if they don’t get to your website. People won’t click on a link in your emails unless they open them, right? Work backwards to optimize for these steps.

Based on surveys, this is how people consider whether to open your emails: first they look at the sender’s name. This is where your social media, site content, blogs and remarketing efforts can constantly refresh your brand awareness with your audience.

Then people look at the subject line. Make it compelling, every time! And make your content very appealing to your readers. By analyzing open rates and click throughs, I know our audience loves strategy above everything else. So I try to provide strategy with our emails.

Preview text is the next thing your recipients look at. This is the text that shows under your Subject line in your audience’s inbox. Preview text must be compelling too and be 100% related to your topic. Don’t try click bate with your readers as they will opt out quickly. Plus your emails are more likely to end up in your readers’ spam folder.

Data on Why People Unsubscribe

Here’s a Constant Contact survey results on why people unsubscribe.

• 69% said they received too many emails from that sender.
• 56% said the content was no longer relevant.
• 51% said the content wasn’t what they expected.

Make Your Mobile Emails Look Great

Over 20% of consumers who open email on a mobile device will open that email again. If an email is read on a mobile device and then again on desktop that person is 65% more likely to click through to your destination.

If your emails are not optimized for mobile, 50% of your readers are likely to opt out. More so if you have a heavy user base on mobile. Check your previews on mobile before sending, especially if you are using a new template.

Track ROI of Your Emails

Always, always, always track the goal you are trying to achieve with your emails. Use Google’s UTM builder to tag your emails or use the individual email tracking tagging in your email platform to see what emails are working for conversions and which ones are not. Over time you will develop a history you can use for strategy planning.

Litmus, a personalization service cites statistics of 10:1 and up to 36:1 for return on investment from emails. This means that for every dollar spent their researched companies were achieving $10 and $36 respectively.

Split Test

A/B test your emails. Email services often provide automated split testing where they send out smaller samples of two emails then send the higher performing email to the rest of your list.

Create Automated Email Journeys That Are Set and Forget

Okay, they aren’t really “forget” campaigns as you want to monitor them and adjust when needed but they are much less work than creating one-off emails constantly.

And the data says “this is the way to go!” Over 300% more revenue is generated from automated email campaigns than from non-automated emails. One reason is they are much less work and hence, they are always sent.

In Closing

Clearly the data is very compelling. Make sure to start collecting emails if you aren’t already. And if you can’t afford an outside agency to help you manage your email marketing, get some training for your staff so you can manage it in house. ROI shows proven results. Make your emails count!

Quick Read Summary

The article emphasizes the high effectiveness of email marketing in driving revenue and customer engagement, backed by strong data such as a 52% purchase rate from email, and email outperforming banner ads and SMS by 108%. It advises businesses to start building email lists immediately and optimize for open rates by focusing on sender name, subject line, and preview text. Mobile optimization is crucial, as poorly formatted emails can lead to a 50% opt-out rate. It highlights that automated email campaigns generate 300% more revenue than non-automated ones, and recommends tracking ROI, A/B testing, and using tools like Google’s UTM builder. The bottom line: email marketing delivers strong, measurable ROI and should be a key focus for businesses.

FAQ

1. Why should I prioritize email marketing?

Email marketing is one of the most effective channels for driving revenue and customer engagement. Data shows it outperforms banner ads, SMS, and social media in both reach and return on investment.

2. How effective is email marketing compared to other channels?

52% of consumers made purchases directly from emails in the past year.

Email outperformed banner ads and SMS by 108%, social media posts by 13%, and social media ads by 11%.

3. What’s the ROI for email marketing?

According to Litmus, email marketing delivers an ROI between 10:1 and 36:1—that’s up to $36 in revenue for every $1 spent.

4. When should I start building my email list?

Immediately. Waiting to start can cost you valuable time and potential revenue. Even with a small budget, begin collecting emails now.

5. How can I improve my email open rates?

• Ensure the sender’s name is recognizable.
• Write a compelling subject line.
• Use relevant and enticing preview text.
• Avoid clickbait—relevance and trust matter.

6. Why do people unsubscribe from email lists?

According to a Constant Contact survey:

• 69%: Too many emails from the sender
• 56%: Content is no longer relevant
• 51%: Content didn’t meet expectations

7. Why is mobile optimization important for emails?

50% of readers will opt out if emails don’t display properly on mobile. A person who reopens an email on desktop after mobile is 65% more likely to click through.

8. How should I track the performance of my emails?

Use tools like Google UTM builder or your email platform’s tracking to monitor open rates, click-throughs, and conversions. Analyzing this data helps guide future email strategy.

9. What is A/B testing and why is it useful?

A/B testing (or split testing) compares two versions of an email to see which performs better. Most email platforms offer this feature and send the winning version to the rest of your audience for better results.

10. What are automated email campaigns and are they effective?

Automated email journeys are pre-set email sequences triggered by user actions. They generate over 300% more revenue than manual one-off emails due to consistency and timely delivery.