6 Best Practices for Standing Out in the Inbox in 2021 - Enhance Your Email Personalization - Sailthru
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Enhance Your Email Personalization 6 Best Practices for Standing Out in the Inbox in 2021
It also foreshadowed the incredible potential of email, which
is still the most lucrative marketing channel more than 40
years later. And a strong email marketing strategy is now more
important than ever. When the coronavirus pandemic arrived
in the U.S., it changed just about every aspect of our lives
overnight. With the majority of the U.S. under stay-at-home
orders at various times, brick-and-mortar foot traffic came
to a halt. On Black Friday, in-store shopping plummeted 48%
according to RetailMeNot. And yet, Black Friday sales increased
22% to a record $9 billion.
People are shopping. They’re just doing far more of it online and
email marketing is the most effective way to drive those sales.
Retail marketers are increasing their email volume and in turn,
When Gary Thuerk was marketing manager of
consumers are engaging more. Last March, when the pandemic
Digital Equipment Corporation, a computer
initially took over the country, Sailthru’s commerce clients
company eventually acquired by Compaq, experienced a 2.5% increase in email open rates over February.
he decided to try something new. He sent an
unsolicited email to 400 ARPAnet users, which That’s not to say email marketing is a lay-up. Consumers
constituted mass communications at the time; did are engaging more with email, but they still receive an
overwhelming amount of marketing messages, deleting more
you have an email address in 1978? Some people,
than half without even opening them. The most surefire way to
including the network’s administrators, were angry,
ensure those eliminated emails aren’t yours? Personalization.
but others were intrigued. It was the very first
promotional email ever sent and it resulted in $13 There’s no shortage of strategies and tactics for taking your
million in sales and a new nickname for Thuerk, email personalization to the next level. We’ve identified six
who is remembered as “The Father of Spam.” of them, looking to personalization powerhouses like Thrive
Market, Bloomingdale’s, Best Buy, Ulta, Target and TechStyle
Fashion Group.
Deep Dive Thrive Market, Bloomingdale’s, Best Buy, Ulta, Target and TechStyle
Fashion Group. Those brands don’t have much in common, except
into the Data that they all had strong performances in the email category on
Sailthru and Liveclicker’s fourth annual Retail Personalization Index.
Of a possible 32 points in the email category, the average score was
12.9. Among these brands, the average score was nearly double at
24.5. What set the email personalization experts apart?
Start Strong
45%
of brands include
You only get one chance to make a first impression and if you’re an email
people’s names
marketer, the subject line is it. For an email campaign to achieve relevance,
in emails
the message must be about the customer. Sailthru sent 83 billion emails
over the course of 2019 and when we looked at the subject lines of those
with the highest open rates, one thing immediately jumped out: the frequent
65%
of brands
appearances of “you” and “your.” Of the 500 top performing subject lines,
embrace lifecycle
27% included one of those two words. Though personalized subject lines out-
optimization
perform their generic counterparts, 37% of the retailers we evaluated tailor
their subject lines to individual customers while 45% include people’s names
in email. The top 25 scoring retailers made much stronger first impressions.
35%
of brands include
More than two-thirds (67%) send personalized subject lines and 83% of their
personalized product
messages address customers by name.
recommendations
post-purchase
Look to the Lifecycle The best email marketing programs are lifecycle-centric with different In this guide, we call out six retailers, touches along the customer journey. Nearly two-thirds (65%) of the retailers but plenty of others’ scores reflect we evaluated this year embrace lifecycle optimization, but it was nearly an expertise at personalized emails. unanimous among the top performers. Of the top 25 retailers, 96% send Honorable mention goes to: emails reflecting every individual person’s activity and tenure as a customer. Within the lifecycle are different triggered messages, which are largely behavior-based, making them inherently personalized. Triggered messages highlight just how much lifecycle optimization separates the best from the rest. While 55% of the brands we evaluated send abandoned cart emails, 80% of those in the top quartile deploy this tactic. Meanwhile, 72% of the top 25 send winback messages to re-engage lapsed customers compared with 39% of brands overall. Perfect Your Post-Purchase Streams Post-purchase messages are the email triggers that ultimately serve as the litmus test for strong email personalization. Sending an email to follow up about purchase satisfaction is a nice gesture that improves the customer experience and a brand’s personalization. Less than half (41%) of the retailers we evaluated send these emails, but 71% of the top performers do. Similarly, 79% of the top 25 include personalization product recommendations in post-purchase messaging, compared with just 35% of all brands. However, not even the personalization pros are taking advantage of the valuable real estate in confirmation emails. Confirmation emails have sky high open rates relative to the average marketing message and yet only 27% of retailers personalize theirs. Even among the top 25, it’s only 50%.
Set a Foundation for Need inspiration?
Personalization Check out Thrive Market. Overall, Thrive Market has a
strong welcome series, which includes a breakdown of
Like Thrive Market its brand values, the benefits of membership and usually
a discount. But a strong foundation of personalization
MarketingSherpa found that on average, welcome emails have a 50% is its biggest strength. “Healthy living made easy” is
open rate, which is 86% higher than a typical marketing message. The Thrive Market’s slogan, but that means different things to
customer just signed up for your list or made their first purchase, so of different people. The online grocery retailer gives all new
course this is when they’re most engaged. It’s your job to strike while customers a thorough onboarding quiz: who they shop
the iron is hot. While customers at their most engaged, stoke that for, their typical shopping lists and dietary restrictions
engagement by encouraging high-value behaviors. to name a few. These questions help Thrive Market learn
enough about people to personalize emails from the very
First, you have to determine what those high-value behaviors are. These
beginning while facilitating pivots to account for changes
may have evolved over the past year as people’s shopping behaviors
in consumer behavior.
have changed in response to the pandemic; perhaps your curbside
pickup shoppers have become among the most valuable customers. In
that case, be sure to highlight that in the welcome series. Many brands
find that loyalty members tend to be more loyal customers and as a
result, the program and its benefits are featured prominently as well.
Other examples include downloading a brand’s app, signing up for a
credit card or even something as simple as an Instagram follow.
While these high-value behaviors differ from brand to brand, they’re all
cut from the same cloth. For the customer, they’re additional ways to
connect with your brand. For you, they’re an opportunity to increase
connectivity and with that data to fuel future personalization and create
an optimal customer experience down the line, laying the foundation for
a long, profitable relationship.
Personalize Everything Need inspiration?
You Can Like TechStyle Check out TechStyle Fashion Group. Of the five retailers
that scored highest in the email category this year, four
Fashion Group are TechStyle Fashion Group brands: Fabletics, JustFab,
Savage X Fenty and ShoeDazzle. TechStyle brands
Using the recipient’s first name in a subject line increases an email’s all maintain data-rich profiles of all their customers,
chances of being opened by 14.68%, according to research from enabling them to personalize every aspect of their
our sister brand Campaign Monitor. And that’s just their name, the emails, from subject lines and send times to the products
lowest-hanging fruit of personalization that can be achieved by simply promoted. Using dynamic categories in email messages,
pasting {{first_name}}. Even more effective, mentioning a personalized customizing the hero image to reflect customers’ favorite
product recommendation can increase opens by 41%. This tells us that product categories, helped JustFab increase revenue per
personalization is quite versatile, able to improve upon every aspect of
thousand emails by 11%.
the email.
Think about the body. If name-checking a personalized product
recommendation has such an effect on open rates, imagine the impact
of incorporating them throughout the message. Every message. Post-
purchase emails should include recommendations for complementary
items, while a return confirmation provides the perfect opportunity to
suggest something that may be a better fit.
You can take it even further with dynamic categories, ensuring that your
templates reflect individual customers’ shopping behaviors, especially
given how many of them have changed this year. If someone purchases
shirts more frequently than shoes, lead with them and feature shirts
in the hero image. Tie it all together by personalizing send time. You
already know what time a customer typically opens your email; that’s
when you should message them. Personalized send time helps retailers
stand out amid the sea of batch-and-blast messages, especially when
you consider how much people’s typical open times, like shopping
behaviors, have changed.
Mix Up Your Triggers Need inspiration?
Check out Bloomingdale’s. The retailer’s email personalization
Like Bloomingdale’s is solid, encompassing the entire customer lifecycle,
which reflects each person’s activity and tenure as a
For many brands, triggered messages are one of the first shopper. That means personalized post-purchase and cart
marketing initiatives to engage customers as individuals. abandonment messages, and welcome streams promoting
These emails often consist of a flow of messages sent in direct high-value activities such as downloading the app and
response to behaviors along the entire customer lifecycle, joining the Loyallist program, for example. Those emails are
from welcoming new customers to winning back lapsed ones. crucial for any retailer, but they’re also reactive by nature.
In between, there are also post-purchase and abandonment Bloomingdale’s also mixes in proactive triggers, such as
messages. Accounting for more than three-quarters of email birthday discounts and back in stock notifications. The
revenue, triggered messages are a must for any retail marketer. retailer even sends emails that are proactive and reactive
at the same time, like a price drop message that doubles as
To rank on the Retail Personalization Index, you should diversify browse abandonment.
them. Welcome and abandonment emails are undeniably
valuable, but they’re also highly reactive. Triggered messages
can also be proactive, engaging customers based on more
passive actions and milestones. Examples include birthday
discounts and back in stock notifications, or even contextual
triggers based on the weather.
As more retailers understand how to go beyond the hype and
use artificial intelligence to its full potential, we expect to see
more brands take these proactive triggers to the next level.
With predictive analytics, you can see who’s predicted to buy
in the next 30 days and send them a pre-purchase series.
Instead of winback messaging for lapsed customers, predictive
analytics can help identify the customers on the verge of
disengaging and engaging them before it happens.
Integrate Your Loyalty Need inspiration?
Program Like Ulta Check out Ulta. More than 90% of Ulta’s sales come from
Ultamate Rewards members, a program that is naturally
present in all the brand’s emails. Members’ current points
If there’s any doubt that loyal customers are the best
balance are displayed along the top of every message,
customers, look no further than Prime Day. Amazon invented
while non-members see, “[Name], earn points with every
a whole new holiday for its loyalty program members, one
purchase!” Ulta takes it even further, using the loyalty
that has become a shopping event on par with Black Friday
program as a triggered message with monthly statements
and Cyber Monday. According to Accenture research, brands’
updating members about their points and upcoming
loyalty program members generate 12 to 18% more revenue
milestones. Featuring an animated progress bar and real-
per year than non-members.
time elements, this email updated dynamically to reflect
Danielle’s most up-to-date loyalty information — including
With their sky-high open rates, your welcome series should
any purchase she made during the period in between Ulta
incorporate your loyalty program, introducing it to new
sending this email and it being opened.
customers and subscribers when they’re most engaged. It
should also be… everywhere else. Make sure the customers’
name and points balance are on display in every email you
send them, even if it’s in a smaller font along the top of your
template.
Displaying loyalty points in email communications is
low-hanging fruit. Put the balance on display on order
confirmation emails. You can also use loyalty program perks
to nurture the next sale in post-purchase emails. Or you can
combine loyalty and email in a more proactive way. Instead of
simply noting how close a customer is to her next reward, try
using that as a trigger.
Use Email to Promote Need inspiration?
Pickup Like Target Check out Target. While the pandemic has had a negative
impact on many retailers, Target managed to have a
milestone year. In August, Target reported its greatest-ever
Everything about 2020 was different, which means we had
percentage increase in quarterly sales, largely thanks to
to update the Retail Personalization Index methodology
BOPIS and curbside pickup. In fact, curbside pickup orders
accordingly. Buying online, picking up in-store (BOPIS) and
increased 734% year-over-year during Q2. Target nails the
curbside pickup had been steadily growing in popularity, though
pickup experience, maximizing its email marketing at every
last year, these options became less of a convenience and
step. The retailer sends emails with order confirmations,
more of a necessity. Surveying 5,000 consumers as part of the
crystal clear instructions outlining the process and keeping
Index, we found that 31% have used BOPIS or curbside pickup.
the customers updated on their order status in real time.
It certainly doesn’t hurt that Target promotes curbside
Because email is where most people want to hear from
pickup and BOPIS in every email’s preview text.
brands — 70.8% according to Infogroup — it’s the perfect
channel to promote pickup options. This is especially true
right now. So many brands are offering BOPIS and curbside
PUSH EMAIL APP
pickup for the first time. Assessing the top 500 North American
retailers, Digital Commerce 360 found that 43.7% were offering
curbside pickup compared with 6.9% in December 2019. Email
is instrumental in getting the word out while also allowing
brands to promote safety. We’re increasingly seeing retailers
incentivizing BOPIS and curbside pickup, offering a discount for
contactless shopping.
BOPIS and curbside pickup also naturally enhance the
personalized customer experience since these options let
people decide how they want to receive their purchases.
Advanced personalization in particular shines in this case, with
moment-of-open technology ensuring customers see the most
up-to-date information when they open an email.
Embrace Advanced Need inspiration?
Personalization Check out Best Buy. There are about 1,000 Best Buy stores
around the U.S. and the electronics retailer uses advanced
Like Best Buy personalization to ensure that each customer’s emails
center on the location closest to them. That means store
information, such as directions and a localized Geek
Email is by far the most lucrative of any digital marketing channel
Squad schedule, is relevant. It’s worth noting that Best Buy
with an ROI of 3800% as of 2018. Advanced personalization can add
another $20 for every dollar spent — and it requires far less customer
also sends real-time updates on mobile while customers
data than many realize. Advanced personalization leverages real-time are parked for curbside pickup, then sends an email
data, allowing marketers to adjust their messages constantly based on confirmation including product recommendations based
changing context. on recent buyer behavior after pickup, making their
real-time experience truly cross-channel.
Flexibility is a must during pandemic times. Plus, content based on real-
time data increases email sales by 21%, according to research from the
Relevancy Group. Segmenting customers by where they are rather than
where they live, brands can show the closest store at the moment of
open. Similarly, marketers can use local forecast data and recommend
products based on the weather. Large national retailers have customers
in Miami and Minneapolis, who are likely to have very different
shopping habits in January. Whatever they’re browsing, inventory levels
present another way advanced personalization enhances emails.
Connecting emails with store inventory data, marketers can, say, avoid
recommending sold out items during a flash sale or highlighting the
most popular products, which can change at a moment’s notice.
Advanced personalization can also elevate regular personalization. For
example, a loyalty program recap that changes dynamically to display
the most up-to-date information when the customer opens the email,
regardless of when you sent it.The fastest-growing internet retailers About Liveclicker trust Liveclicker and Sailthru Founded in 2008, Liveclicker, a CM Group brand, is a global provider of real- time email personalization solutions for B2C marketers. Since the release of its VideoEmail platform in 2009, marketers have used Liveclicker to captivate consumers and drive program performance. Today, top brands such as Chico’s, Torrid, AT&T, Kroger and Trusted Housesitters rely on the company’s market-leading RealTime Email solution to deliver engaging, personalized messages simply and at scale. For more information, visit www.liveclicker.com or email sales@liveclicker.com. About Sailthru Sailthru, a CM Group brand, helps modern marketers drive higher revenue, improve customer lifetime value and reduce churn by using its powerful suite of connected capabilities. Sailthru’s high-performance email, website personalization, mobile marketing automation, and unique integrations power new customer acquisition by leveraging machine learning and first-party data to easily deliver relevant, personalized engagement across all channels. The world’s most innovative publishers, including Business Insider, Refinery29 and Food52, and the world’s fastest growing ecommerce companies, including Everlane, JustFab and Thrive Market, trust Sailthru to help them succeed. For more information, please visit www.sailthru.com.
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