Published on: 2022-11-03
Updated on: 2024-06-10
Once the subject of our imagination, artificial intelligence (AI) is now increasingly used by businesses to automate, scale, and customize the processes that would consume thousands of more resources if performed manually by a human.
Email marketing has benefited immensely from robotic machine learning, computer vision, and other manifestations of artificial intelligence. AI has improved the design and execution of email campaigns and enabled predictive modeling to understand the risk-reward ratio of any email marketing endeavor.
As global marketing becomes more connected and interdependent, the value of automation, scaling, and customization – all three largely facilitated by AI – continues to grow exponentially, leaving behind those unable to adapt to the new reality of the semi-automated – and soon-to-be fully automated – business environment.
But how can AI immediately boost your email marketing? Without further ado, let’s dig into AI’s impact on the future of email marketing.
AI-driven Email Marketing in a Nutshell
AI software does exactly what email marketers have been doing for decades, albeit incomparably faster. It collects data – for example, by analyzing thousands of inboxes – and interprets it to drive a multitude of improvements across the board:
- Segmentation: who your customers are (demographics, psychographics, budget, etc.).
- Personalization: what content works for a particular segment of your audience.
- Automation: how to automate processes to achieve the best efficiency.
- Timing: determining when it is best to send certain emails to specific recipients.
- Customer journey: how to satisfy more customers at each cycle stage.
A machine can perform accurate, lightning-fast data collection and analysis, but this does not mean email marketing doesn’t require supervision. On the contrary, the synergy of machine-driven and human decisions works much better than campaigns led solely by AI.
Segmentation and Personalization
It’s no secret that the depth of personalization means a lot to the success of a marketing message. But first, you have to collect and interpret your customers’ data – location, age, gender, budget, preferences, purchase history, education, employment, stage in the marketing cycle, etc. In other words, you have to segment your customers’ data.
- Segmented email campaigns have 14% higher open rates and are 760% more profitable.
As your customers browse your website, add products to their cart, and complete a purchase, they inevitably share personal information that AI collects and analyzes to give you an idea of how you can personalize your emails. Additionally, you can send quizzes, polls, and other interactive content in exchange for a discount, freebie, or some other type of perk to gain deeper insight into your prospects, leads, and customers.
Personalization works well for any customer at any sales funnel stage, be it awareness, discovery, evaluation, intent, purchase, or loyalty. For example, a personalized email for cart abandoners can reactivate up to 70% of the total number of your customers.
Source: Elastic Email
Likewise, segmentation and personalization can help you avoid generic emails that do more harm than good.
Automation
Not only can AI help experts analyze data, but it can perform routine tasks incredibly fast. Sending a batch-and-blast email to all your subscribers used to take hours. Today, it takes seconds, as AI can automatically reach all your customers with tailor-made emails customized for every subgroup of recipients.
However, automation isn’t limited to sending thousands of personalized emails. AI can do more than that, including
- Adjust subject lines to increase the open rate.
- Compile the most effective email structure based on the performance of previous copies.
- Improve the email content — correct spelling and logical mistakes.
As a result, you can engage users how you want and when you want without spending any resources.
Timing
Around half the subscribers are eager to receive promotional emails from their favorite brand weekly, but this doesn’t mean they will react to all emails similarly. The response will largely depend on the email send time.
Emails are believed to be most effective when sent on workdays around 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. within the last 50 minutes of an hour. Your case may differ, however. Imagine you could outrun your competitors by implementing an unpopular strategy – for example, reaching out to your customers on weekends when inboxes are the least busy. Artificial intelligence can research similar opportunities for you and send emails without you being in the office.
Customer Journey
The ease at which customers can get what they want makes a huge difference. You have about eight seconds to interest a recipient – 4.25 seconds less than in 2000 – before they close your email.
This is why AI-powered interactive emails are all the rage now. By allowing subscribers to get what they want within an email – buy a product, schedule a consultation, or check available seats for their flight – interactive emails reduce the sales cycle to ‘Sent-> Opened-> Conversion,’ the shortest and most appreciated form it can take.
Source: HTML Email
Without a doubt, AMP – the technology allowing email marketers to embed interactive elements like purchase buttons, carousels, and accordions directly into the body of an email letter – is the future of email marketing. Soon more and more marketers will realize the power of AI-driven segmentation, automation, and optimization. Meanwhile, you have a chance to embrace AI-powered emails to great success.
Meet the Best in the Industry at MailCon Events
The transition from theory to practice may seem intimidating, but not so much if you can get practical advice from the best in email and omnichannel marketing. Book your tickets to the upcoming MailCon Last Vegas 2023 and prepare for enlightening sessions filled with tailored content and unique first-hand experience.
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