How to make email marketing re-relevant for a new generation

Last week, a group of passionate and inquisitive marketers gathered at Mintel’s Chicago office for another forward-thinking Big Conversation event. The hot topic of the day was “Email as the Anchor to Your Omnichannel Strategy,” featuring Mintel Comperemedia email and digital marketing experts along with guest speakers from Movable Ink, eDataSource, Havas and Walgreens.

Email marketing is becoming increasingly important for omnichannel marketers. No other channel combines the rigor of traditional data-driven direct marketing with a digital experience that can be adapted for mobile devices. Email, if done well, has the potential to deliver on the 1:1 messages that marketers crave and that consumers increasingly expect according to the Mintel Trend “Make It Mine.” It is perhaps not surprising then that consumers prefer companies to communicate with them via email more than any other channel (DMA).

That being said, the email channel is not without its challenges. Deliverability is an ongoing issue for many marketers and even when you make it into the inbox, being heard above the cacophony of spam emails, work emails, personal emails and marketing emails is an ongoing challenge that requires continuous testing. While millennials have learnt to embrace email, the outlook is less clear for the generation coming after them – the iGeneration. These consumers, currently aged 9-21, are growing up with text, Instagram and Snapchat and see the world of communications through a different lens (see Mintel’s Marketing to the iGeneration US 2016 report). Email marketers need to make email marketing communications re-relevant for a new age.

Email marketing tactics to improve campaigns

Here, the event’s guest speakers share 4 tactics that email marketers can deploy now to improve their email marketing campaigns:

“You only have 2-3 seconds to capture consumer attention, which is ever shrinking and fraying under the onslaught of competitor and channel proliferation. Pay off those few seconds by matching your content to the customer’s context, creating real-time email experiences that build engagement and revenue.”

– Rob Brosnan, VP of Strategy, Movable Ink

“Hit the inbox when consumers are most likely to read and when clutter is at its lowest. This means targeting consumers when they have the most free time, not when they are captive on their computers at work so try weekends and summer months for a read rate boost.”

– Ashley Wall, Research Manager, Email Insights, Mintel Comperemedia 

“If you really want to grow your email program, get real on disciplined targeting. Set a goal of mailing to less than 10% of your master list – all the time – and watch your email open rates climb!”

– Arthur Sweetser, Chief Marketing Officer, eDataSource

“Remove unnecessary barriers, embrace single-click functionality and encourage brand engagement with the email itself. Let it be a portal to your brand’s digital presence.”

– Eric Fahey, Research Manager, Digital Marketing Insights, Mintel Comperemedia

Let’s keep the conversation going! To find out about the next Mintel Big Conversation, email us at bigconversationUS@mintel.com.

Andrew Davidson is SVP/Chief Insights Officer for Mintel Comperemedia. He is an expert in data-driven cross channel marketing intelligence, consumer behavior and global trends. As a thought leader and expert speaker, Andrew has consistently predicted the evolution of payments marketing for the past 23 years. He speaks at high profile industry events and has presented at conferences in the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong and Taiwan. Andrew is passionate about the global role of payments as the first step on the path to financial inclusion.