Email Marketing Predictions for 2021 to Boost Customer Engagement and Revenue

It is undeniable that the marketing world was violently stirred up post the pandemic. Unsurprisingly, marketers have adapted and made necessary in the digital marketing world. It is speculated that 2021 will see further changes, making it essential for marketers to pay close attention to the altering trends. Therefore, this article intends to shed light on a couple of email marketing predictions that could occur in 2021.

The email marketing world may be over four decades old, but its impact on helping a brand generate leads is immense. It could be argued that the impact is even stronger now to tackle marketing obstacles brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic. Mentioned below are email marketing predictions for 2021 that can help boost revenue and customer engagement.

Six email marketing predictions for 2021 every marketer must know

Personalized emails: Marketers already know that personalized emails get better open rates and transaction rates. However, merely adding a recipient’s name has become the norm, and the majority of the customers receiving the mail may not be wavered by this. Consumers are now looking forward to hyper-personalized emails where the content is so personalized that they believe it was sent to them and only them. Surveys suggest that 20% of subscribers unsubscribe from newsletters if the content doesn’t blend in with their interests.

Luckily, dynamic and segmented content can help your brand send out hyper-personalized emails.
Segmentation is the process where the subscribers are grouped based on specific criteria. The criteria could include location, interests, purchase history, behavior, etc. This method can be used to create specific content for specific segments rather than forwarding the same mail to everybody.
An email marketing service that allows the use of dynamic content can help you with the segmentation process. Here, the email or part of it changes depending on the segments you’ve created. By adding these variables, you can personalize emails beyond merely adding a recipient’s name.

Text-only emails: In 2021, you can expect to see many more emails that only have text as its content. Not to say that you may not send emails with captivating pictures or funny GIFs, but the trend swerves towards text-only mails. This can be a result of customers expecting personalized mails. Think about it! When was the last time you mailed a friend or family with image-heavy content?

It can also be a pleasant change of pace for your customers expecting the always flashy mail. Mix it up with your subscribers. Send your subscribers both text-only emails and designed emails to engage with them optimally.

Interactive mails: Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMP) have given us the ability to add interactive content directly to email. For instance, if you want to showcase a shopping page, you can display a carousel of products with shopping options instead of placing a link to your website.

Your subscribers can now shop directly from your mail rather than having to visit the website. This will make it easier for your customers to place an order.

Flamboyant colors: We predict that many of the designed emails sent out to subscribers will have bright colors. Colors are magical. They arouse emotions and facilitate action. For example, black is associated with luxury or status; yellow is associated with happiness; green is associated with freshness.

Adding bright colors to your mail can, therefore, drive engagement and can increase brand awareness.

Automated emails: While personalized mails are great, they can be labor-intensive. Therefore it doesn’t make sense for a business to invest only in personalized emails. A trend that can pick up in 2021 is the automation of emails.
Concocting analytics with email marketing can generate hyper-personalized emails and yet be automated to a certain extent. For instance, you could create a welcome email series to onboard a subscriber, or you could send an email to your subscribers on their anniversary or birthday. There are countless possibilities you could explore with automated emails.

Importance of privacy: Online privacy has arguably become more important than it ever was. Acknowledging and adhering to privacy policies creates a better experience for your customers. Some guidelines to follow for email marketing are as follows:

  • Get consent before adding users to your mailing lists. Several tools in the market can help you stay compliant with privacy laws.
  • Draft your privacy policy with comprehensive information on how you intend to use the data collected and how you collect this data.
  • Provide access to your newsletters to customers who aren’t your subscribers.
  • Allow a subscriber to revoke the subscription easily. The customer shouldn’t feel like he/she can’t opt-out of receiving emails from you.
  • Avoid deceptive marketing – Honesty is a good virtue to follow when sending out emails to your subscribers. Avoid deceptive marketing and follow ethical business practices.

The pandemic has made it difficult for small businesses to function over the last few months. However, there is a silver lining. Marketers should keep an eye out for new trends and adhere to them to optimize their marketing performance. In 2021, email marketing campaigns should be more people-focused. Brands must be empathetic to the customers and build strong relationships with them. And, we believe email marketing is the best and useful tool to deliver these results. We hope that our predictions for 2021 will help you take on challenges successfully and boost customer engagement and revenue.