Click to Open – Unraveling Email 2.0, the secret power behind customer success in E-commerce

By Chaitanya Chinta, Global Head – Email Business, Netcore Cloud

Today, successful email campaigns are built on relatable and personalised content, backed by strategic and intelligent data regarding buying and browsing habits. More marketers are adopting AI to master the email channel and create tailored experiences for their customers through their email marketing programs which are conversion-rich and a cost-effective strategy. We call this new avatar of the traditional email, Email 2.0.

AI-driven email strategies help brands tailor their campaigns for success, with features like Subject Line Optimisation (SLO) that help create ideal subject lines for customer emails to AI-powered email delivery for better inbox placement. The sector is focused on building better interactivity for customers through the adoption of Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMP).

AMP allows customers to perform actions within the email eliminating the need for them to navigate to a different page. This increased interactivity increases dwell time on the email, improves engagement significantly, and reduces cybersecurity threats that may occur due to multiple-page navigation.

Let’s look at how AI-driven interactive emails have helped e-commerce companies ramp up their email marketing strategies.

Easing the purchase process for customers

Customers can look at multiple views of the product, internal and external features, colour variants, and more in a series of images that keep revolving, using a feature called the carousel. Within the carousel, the Stock Keeping Units (SKUs) can also be dynamically updated to show only those that are available in stock.

Enabling product search within the inbox

Companies can make emails interactive by providing a mini web store-like experience in emails. This will help customers to search, compare, choose, and buy through the mail. These emails can also enable navigating through different product options based on price, user reviews, purchases, etc.

Tackling cart abandonment

When a customer is able to see product images, read descriptions, view specifications, and browse reviews for the products in their abandoned cart, they tend to take quick action. Moving products from the abandoned cart to order placement becomes quicker and easier when it happens within the email.

Driving interactive engagement within the email

Interactive emails help brands engage their customers in a variety of ways. Adding elements which help customers to post comments, reply to comments, share opinions, discuss views, and give feedback within the mail, improves brand and customer engagement.

Enabling In-mail gamification

There is no doubt that games attract people. Everyone likes to play a simple game and get rewarded for it. For e-commerce, gamification means making gifts, discounts, and price markdowns so much more exciting when the customer wins them from within the email.

Creating compelling teasers for campaigns

Whether it’s sales, discounts, deals or special event promotions, interactive emails can liven up the entire shopping experience for customers. With their colours and movements, engaging communications hold the attention of the recipients and make them want to engage and click through.

Brands that are keen on market success should focus on revitalising their email campaigns by adding intelligence and interactivity.  Adoption of these tools will help brands achieve success in a saturated market, ride the new big wave, and build strong customer connections – all with a simple click of an email.