What are Common Retail Email Marketing Strategies?

Introduction

Email marketing is a crucial strategy for retail businesses looking to drive sales, engage customers, and build loyalty. Studies show that email generates $42 for every $1 spent, delivering the highest ROI of any marketing channel. With consumers increasingly reliant on mobile devices, email has become even more important for retail marketers.

This article will provide an overview of the most effective email marketing strategies used by top retailers. We’ll cover promotional emails like sales and coupons, cart abandonment reminders, customer re-engagement campaigns, and more. You’ll learn tactics to increase conversions, recover lost sales, retain customers, and maximize every phase of the buyer’s journey. With the right email marketing approach, retailers can develop more personalized customer relationships, boost brand loyalty, and see tangible improvements to their bottom line.

Promotional Emails

Promotional emails are a key strategy for retail businesses to advertise sales, share coupons and discounts, and announce new product arrivals. These are some of the most common types of promotional emails:

Sales Promotions

Announcing sales through email is an effective way to generate traffic and purchases. Retailers can promote sitewide sales, category sales like “20% off dresses”, or sales on specific brands or products. Using attention-grabbing subject lines that indicate the savings percentage or dollar amounts is a good tactic. The email copy should highlight the top deals, any applicable discounts codes, and the urgency of the sale timeframe.

Coupons

Sending coupon codes and special discount offers through email is another proven way to incentivize purchases. Coupons can be sent as dedicated emails focused just on that promotion or included as part of broader sales announcements and newsletters. To make the most impact, coupon emails should highlight the type of discount like 25% off or $10 off along with any important details like exclusions. Visual callouts of the coupon code help ensure customers notice and use it.

New Arrivals

Email is a useful channel for showcasing new products and inventory to customers. Retailers can feature new arrivals in dedicated emails or product spotlights sent on a regular schedule like weekly or monthly. These emails allow highlighting collections of new items by category, brand, or season. Using eye-catching product imagery is key. The copy should emphasize any unique or compelling products and details like limited quantities. Calls to action to view or shop new arrivals help convert readers.

Cart Abandonment Emails

Abandoned shopping carts are a huge missed revenue opportunity for ecommerce businesses. Studies show that the average cart abandonment rate is around 70%. However, sending targeted cart abandonment emails can help recover many of these lost sales.

The key is to send timely and relevant reminders to nudge customers to complete their purchase. Ideally, the first cart abandonment email should go out within 1-2 hours after a cart has been left idle. The email copy should be personalized and conversational, gently reminding the customer of the items left in their cart.

For example:

“Hi [First Name], I noticed you left a few items in your cart on our site. I wanted to remind you that we have those great items waiting for you whenever you’re ready to complete your purchase.”

Follow-up emails can be sent after 24 hours, 3 days, and up to 7 days. The messaging should become more promotional over time, with incentives like discounts, free shipping etc. The goal is to encourage the customer back without being overly aggressive.

A/B testing subject lines and email copy is key to optimizing cart abandonment campaigns. The time delay, number of follow-ups, and offers can be refined based on open and conversion rates. When done right, these emails can generate 5-10% of overall online revenue.

Customer Win-Back Emails

Winning back customers who have not purchased in a while is crucial for retail businesses. Sending targeted emails to re-engage these inactive contacts can help bring them back into the sales funnel.

Some effective strategies for customer win-back emails include:

• Offering a special discount or coupon code valid for returning customers only. For example, send an email with a 20% off coupon if they make a purchase within the next week. This provides a strong incentive to buy again.
• Highlighting new arrivals or products specifically relevant to their previous purchases. Remind them what they bought before and show related items they may be interested in.
• Promoting limited-time sales or flash deals for lapsed customers. The urgency can prompt them to re-engage and shop with you again.
• Segmenting by time since their last purchase. Customers inactive for 3-6 months may get different offers than those inactive 9-12 months.
• Personalizing the subject line and content with their name and past purchases. This shows you value them and want to reconnect.
• Sending a “We miss you” email summarizing their purchase history and inviting them back.
• Making the offer email-exclusive and noting it’s reserved for valued returning shoppers. This makes customers feel special.
• Following up with non-responders to see if they have feedback on why they haven’t returned. Their input can help improve.

With thoughtful win-back offers and personalization, retailers can successfully turn inactive contacts into repeat, loyal buyers once again.

Personalization

Personalization is a key email marketing strategy for retail businesses. By customizing email content for each subscriber, retailers can provide a more tailored experience that resonates with customers.

The most effective way to personalize emails is by using merge tags to dynamically insert the recipient’s first name, last name, location, order history, and other attributes into the email copy and subject line. For example, an email subject line could include the subscriber’s first name:

Hi [FirstName], here are items we think you'll love

The email body copy can also leverage the subscriber’s purchase history or behaviors to recommend specific products they may be interested in based on past interactions.

Retailers can take personalization even further by creating highly segmented email campaigns targeted to different customer groups. For instance, sending new product alerts to customers who purchased related items recently, or promoting a seasonal sale to repeat shoppers from last year’s event.

Advanced personalization has been shown to boost open, click through, and conversion rates. According to Salesforce, 63% of consumers are more likely to shop with a retailer who personalizes communications. The more relevant the messaging, the better chance it will resonate.