why email blasts are a thing of the past

Every email marketer knows what email blasts are.

And that’s probably because everyone’s been guilty of sending them.

It’s a well-known fact: Sending one message to your entire list is impersonal and, in this era of content explosion, doesn’t generate much engagement.

Truth is, segmenting your email lists—by gender, age or interest—means you’re sending a message that speaks directly to the people you want to reach the most. The proof is out there: segmenting your email lists will get you better open, click and conversion rates.

With that in mind, we’re sharing 3 examples of holiday emails clearly using segmentation. They prove email blasts are a thing of the past and targeted messaging is the way of the future.

#1 – for the girls

One of the most popular ways to segment your list and target your messaging is by gender. While a lot of companies still don’t take advantage of this relatively straightforward email marketing tactic, the minimal effort is worth the large gains.

Just take a look at Frank Body’s email promoting its personal care gift set.

Notice the feminine colors and typography. It’s obvious the company only sent this message to its female subscribers. This ensures these subscribers don’t see irrelevant products aimed at the opposite sex and receive hyper-personalized content focused on their needs.

#2 – for pet lovers

What content, products or services will passionate pet lovers enjoy from your company? Now is the perfect time of the year to cash in on your subscribers’ devotion to their animals through email marketing segmentation.

Petplan is a pet-focused company that segmented its list by type of pet owner. Thus, the feline-friendly message it recently sent to subscribers’ inboxes. Most likely, the company sent a variation on this email to other segments of its list with the appropriate type of pet in the spotlight.

Even if you’re not a solely pet-focused company, you can still take advantage of this segmentation tactic. Just promote the things you offer that are appropriate for these subscribers. Pet lovers will do almost anything for their fur babies, so finding a way to market to them through email could earn you some serious holiday ROI.

#3 – for the non-converters

The holidays offer an opportunity to encourage action for those on your list who haven’t converted yet or haven’t converted in a while.

Check out this email from Detour for an idea of what this looks like. Aimed at users who’ve been latent in the system, this message offers a season-appropriate gift to encourage booking with the app again. The brand earns social points, too, since users are asked to share on their favorite news feeds about the deal.

Segmenting your list by non-converters and sending them a freebie is a no-brainer for your holiday emails. There’s no downside, as you’ll re-engage with subscribers, increase the use of your product or service, and realize revenue you may have otherwise missed out on.

conclusion: ditch email blasts in favor of segmentation

While email blasts may be the easiest way to get your messages out this holiday season, they may not be the most efficient for driving that coveted ROI.

We encourage you to take the time to segment your lists by attributes, such as gender, pet-lovers, non-converters or any other targeted profile. There’s no doubt you’ll see a spike in engagement and dollars earned.

If you need help segmenting your lists or creating templates to go along with them, our strategy and design teams are at your beck and call. We’ve got years of experience executing holiday email campaigns for our clients, and would be happy to do the same for you. Just reach out.