Apple Privacy disrupts Legit Marketers & Could Lead to More Spam
Email continues to be a reliable way to market to customers and to take full advantage of this marketing channel, marketers must know how to measure their campaign’s success. Previously this has been done mainly through open rates and while the historic data is still useful, this may not be the most reliable method going forward. Instead, marketers should focus on increasing engagement with their users in other ways like click rates and conversion rates. The metrics one chooses to use largely depend on the overall goal of the campaign. Regardless of the chosen metric, engagement can be increased by following some basic best practices.
For years email marketers have relied on embedded html tracking pixels to identify contacts that opened their mail. At Startinboxing we have a long history of advising marketers to factor in user engagement into their deployment decisions and to target less mail to contacts that don’t open. Mailbox providers like Gmail essentially reward this type of behavior as it reduces unwanted mail. Apple’s new found commitment to privacy has disrupted the industry and could make it more challenging to get the right content to the best, most engaged audience.
The most important concept to grasp is that of email list segmentation. Segmenting allows marketers to keep their content relevant to consumer wants and needs. The more specific one can be when making a segment the better as this will result in the consumers in those segments receiving meaningful content that they will want to engage with. There are many ways that email list segmentation can be done, some common examples include:
- Geographic
- Demographic
- Previous engagement level
- New subscribers
- Content-specific
- Behavior-specific
Not only can email list segmentation increase one’s engagement with their audience, but it can also improve one’s email reputation. Since segmentation allows for more targeted emails and a naturally engaged audience, a sender’s reputation can greatly be improved as customers begin to want this content in their inbox.
Some other best practices one should implement include the use of social proof, having a simple copy, making use of storytelling. Social proof, such as ratings and reviews, can greatly increase customers’ trust in a company and increase customer engagement with a company’s brand. Having a simple copy makes emails easier for customers to read, which makes them more likely to fully engage with the email. Even if you don’t keep your email copy short and sweet, having an interesting and captivating story keeps readers engaged. Some ways to do this can be through including high-quality images of the brand’s products, showing them behind the scenes, or adding pictures of the customers’ faces with their reviews.