Email Marketing Trends & Tips in 2023. What’s In The Inbox?

We can all look at it differently, but facts are facts: 2023 might not be the easiest year. Brands worldwide are preparing for uncertainty, with economists forecasting a global recession this year. Due to the looming risks, marketers are hard at work exploring the tools and strategies to stay competitive.

If you’re trying to figure out how to move forward with your marketing efforts, we’ve got some good news for you. According to recent digital communication reports, email marketing comes out on top as the channel providing the biggest ROI during a recession. Strong communication can mitigate the effects of price increases and hesitant consumers. Let’s look closer at the email marketing trends that can help you stay afloat in 2023.

It’s no secret that most of us are bombarded with emails on the daily. But how exactly can you prevent your emails from ending up in someone’s spam folder? Let’s take a look!

User-generated content (UGC) is any content created by the brand’s customers. Reviews, social media posts, videos – anything there’s to share with the world. Incorporating UGC into email marketing campaigns can help you build trust with your audience and increase engagement. It also makes email campaigns feel more personalized and authentic. Feature customer reviews or testimonials in your emails. That is social proof that your products or services are valuable and trustworthy, which will encourage users to take action.

Here are a few examples:

• Marketing wizards at Glossier frequently include testimonials in their email campaigns. Designed unobtrusive and friendly, these reviews are good as they come. Who wouldn’t fall for a joy-packed testimonial? It’s informative, impactful, and quick to read.

• Another example is Airbnb. They include user-generated travel stories in their emails to inspire subscribers to book trips and explore new destinations. This way, they’re making their messages more relatable and engaging, leading to higher open and click-through rates.

In 2022, 87% of people used Google to research local businesses and read reviews. So why not manage what they see through your emails?

Want to engage your users? Invite them to participate.

Here’s why interactive content can be a game-changer for email marketing. Have you ever received an email that was just blocks of text or dull images? It’s not very exciting, right? But with interactive content like quizzes, surveys, and videos, you can make their emails more engaging and memorable.

Say you run a coffee shop and want to promote a new line of specialty drinks. You could send an email listing the different beverages, but that’s not the most exciting thing to offer your subscribers. But what if you created a quiz that asks users about their flavor preferences and then recommends a drink based on their answers? That would be much more engaging and personalized.

This can be applied to numerous industries. Clothing stores and furniture companies can offer interactive lookbooks or customized interior layouts. This would not only be more engaging but also help subscribers visualize their choices.

With up to 85% of mobile device users checking their emails through smartphones, it’s no longer just about laptops. To keep your emails relevant, you have to make them mobile-friendly.

However, the bad news is that around 88% of companies still fail to optimize their emails for mobile device use. As a result, customers get frustrated, and three-quarters of them end up deleting an email that doesn’t display correctly on mobile devices. For CEOs, that’s countless lost sales. In 2023, mobile optimization is no longer an option; it’s a must. So, start adopting UI or UX design to make your emails readable for all on-the-go customers.

We, humans, are limited in processing vast amounts of data. That’s where AI comes in. In 2023, AI will play an even more critical role in marketing by leveraging customer data.
And if you’re wondering, here’s what AI can help you with:

• Identifying the best time to send an email to maximize open rates and engagement;
• Generating compelling subject lines;
• Identifying optimal send times;
• Personalizing newsletters and content;
• Updating address list;
• Tracking customer responses;
• Tailoring suggestions to feature in emails based on customers’ past behavior and preferences.

In summary, AI’s ability to streamline and automate various aspects of email marketing allows marketers to create more effective, personalized, and engaging campaigns that drive higher ROI and revenue.

In 2022, we learned that looking at how many users opened an email isn’t always the best way to measure email marketing success. New privacy features make it hard to tell if a person actually opened an email or if it was a bot. Although ESPs have attempted to filter out bot activity and automatic engagement from open metrics, the growing popularity of these privacy settings has prompted email marketers to reconsider what they’re measuring.

In 2023, companies should use more efficient tracking techniques to measure the impact of each email in achieving marketing objectives. How? Establish clear attribution models and utilize UTMs to track what occurs after an email is opened.

Email marketing used to be simple, with basic personal greetings like “Hi there, Kate.” Now, we receive dozens of emails daily, so basic personalization no longer works. Users want personalized experiences that add value throughout their journey. Customizing messages while still respecting customer privacy has become increasingly difficult. With scarcer and harder-to-obtain customer data, how can marketers make messages more relevant?

In 2023 and beyond, email marketing will rely on hyper-segmentation and hyper-personalization while still respecting customer privacy. This will involve using zero-party data. That is data that customers freely share with the company – or the questions you ask the users directly.

Don’t make assumptions about customers’ preferences. For example, asking for gender to show relevant apparel products may not be as helpful as asking for specific clothing interests.
It’s important to update preferences over time since people’s interests change. A beginner photographer will have different interests than a pro, but that beginner’s interests will change as they advance. Therefore, periodically ask subscribers about their preferences to keep data up-to-date.

Ultimately, this approach elicits a feeling of being listened to more than it indicates intrusiveness.

Each customer device connected to the Internet is a marketer’s opportunity to connect with their audience. In 2023, sending an email alone won’t cut it. What you need is an omnichannel strategy that includes messengers and chatbots, social media, online and print ads, and good old SEO. Think of it like building a marketing dream team – you need all the players on your side to win the game.

Don’t be afraid to connect with other digital channels. Throw in some clickable links to your social media pages, or give customers the option to receive SMS notifications. The more ways you can reach your customers, the better chance you have of making a sale.

The internet constantly presents us with new threats, despite our efforts to overcome them. In the past, we were targeted with email scams offering fake money or free devices, but now phishing attacks have become more complex, and our bank accounts, healthcare providers, and even online shopping accounts are at risk. Unfortunately, phishing attacks have become more sophisticated over time, and no company is immune to being both the target and the decoy.

While technical teams prioritize safeguarding customer data, it’s not uncommon for customers to fall prey to phishing scams even if their data isn’t stolen. These attacks can significantly impact brand trust, even if the company did nothing wrong. 81% of organizations worldwide have experienced an increase in email phishing attacks since March 2020, and the trend doesn’t seem to slow down.

In 2023, prioritizing email security is a new norm. Brands should continue to seek ways to help customers recognize fraudulent emails, whether through proactive messaging or trust indicators like BIMI.

By embracing email marketing trends such as personalization, segmentation, and automation, brands can stay afloat and continue to engage with their audiences. With the right tools and strategies in place, you’ll be able to weather the challenges of 2023 and come out stronger on the other side.