Debunking old truths in email marketing

Email marketing continues to thrive in the digital marketing toolbox, yet the strategies that worked before are quietly losing their effectiveness. Many long-held beliefs are becoming outdated, and clinging to these can hinder the effectiveness of campaigns.

This article explores five such outdated truths and offers modern strategies to enhance email marketing efforts. By understanding and adapting to these changes, marketers can create more impactful and resonant campaigns that truly connect with today’s audiences.

1. The fold-concept

In newspaper days, the standard was to keep key headlines in the upper part of the front page, above the “fold” of the newspaper, so that when the papers were folded and stacked on top of each other in stores, the most interesting information would be visible on the top of the page. This idea transitioned to digital screens, with experts long having recommended fitting key content within one screen length to capture impatient readers’ attention.

However, new research has shown that with the rise of mobile phones, user behaviors have changed. People today are so accustomed to casually scrolling through their feeds that many automatically also scroll when reading emails. According to the Nielsen Norman Group, while most time is still spent on the first screenful of information, a significant 43% of email viewing time is dedicated to content further down the page. This suggests that longer emails can sometimes be an effective strategy.

2. Layout templates

When an email is processed by a reader, it can be done in a multitude of fashions. The reader can do everything from lightly skimming the text to a full reading. Of course, every marketer’s dream is that recipients read their emails in full and based on this, several layout templates have been created, such as the zigzag and the inverted pyramid, to guide the readers’ eyes.

However, email marketing experts at Curamando can reveal that following layout templates may not be the most important factor for success. Josefin Hellstrand, our senior CRM consultant, explains that all email recipients choose to read their emails differently based on both previous experience and specific contexts. Therefore, rather than following specific layouts, the focus should be on increasing coherence and clarity. Josefin elaborates: “A clear and rational email guides scan-prone readers toward your target areas and makes the email more engaging, thereby encouraging a switch to the full reading pattern”.

3. Email width

In the earlier days, most screens were of similar sizes and types, with computers being the most common device for reading emails. Therefore, the golden rule was to have an email width of 600 pixels to ensure compatibility across most screens.

However, people nowadays seamlessly switch devices, alternating between their computers and mobile phones for reading emails. 53% of emails are actually opened on mobile devices with smaller screens. Therefore, a fixed pixel width is no longer optimal. Instead, techniques such as responsive and hybrid email design are more appropriate to use, adapting email width to the type of screen that it is being viewed on, ensuring a high-quality user experience.

4. Open rate

To measure the effectiveness of an email marketing campaign, establishing the right KPIs to monitor is essential. One of the most classic email marketing KPIs is the open rate, i.e. the percentage of email recipients who open an email.

Since 2021, Apple Mail’s Privacy Protection preloads email content to protect user privacy, continuously inflating open rates. With Apple Mail claiming over 50% market share, this makes the open rate unreliable. Nowadays, the open rate should mainly be used to compare different email campaigns while other KPIs such as click-through rate and conversion rate provide more accurate estimations of success for individual campaigns.

5. Timing

One of the most common questions marketers ask is what the best time is to send an email, and there are a multitude of theories regarding this. For example, a common suggestion is that peak email-reading occurs between 9 AM and 12 PM on weekdays.

However, there is no one-size-fits-all solution in email marketing. Each business has unique customers and preferences, so what’s effective for one may not work for another. A/B testing helps identify the best approach for your specific context. For instance, if you usually send newsletters on Monday, try Tuesday at the same time, or shift from 9 AM to 2 PM to see the impact.

Conclusion

Adapting to the evolving landscape of digital marketing is essential for effective email campaigns. By moving beyond outdated beliefs about the fold, layout templates, email width, open rates, and timing, marketers can enhance their email strategies. Embracing modern techniques such as responsive design, alternative KPIs, and A/B testing allows for more effective and engaging campaigns. By staying flexible and data-driven, marketers can ensure their emails resonate with today’s audiences, driving better results and deeper connections.

How Curamando Assists in Digital Marketing

Curamando offers extensive solutions to help businesses navigate the complexities of modern CRM and digital marketing efforts. As a part of Eidra, our consultancy collective, we do this in collaboration with our partner companies, leveraging the expertise of professionals within business development, marketing and technology across the group. Our CRM team delivers comprehensive consulting services, encompassing the entire spectrum from crafting CRM strategies and concepts to their full implementation and value realization.

Written by Julia Stopner, Business Consultant at Eidra Consultancy.

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