COVID has established itself as one of the realities that we can’t deny. Its advent has made individuals and businesses suffer a lot; nearly every industry has been impacted by the pandemic. Obviously, a few have witnessed a positive trend like staple food industry, while the others have shown decreasing sales.
But what about email marketing? With mass lockdowns in place, people were forced to live at home with limited activities available to spend time. In such a situation, the data analysis of the email marketing campaigns of the businesses has shown some unusual trends, which were significantly different from the previous years’.
In this article, we’ll cover these trends backed by statistics, providing you with the take-home lessons you can rely on.
Timeline of COVID impact:
The impact of COVID-19 on email marketing can be seen in the changes in engagement levels, email marketing trends based on business size, preference for emails, engagement rates, and an increase in online subscriptions. At the beginning of the pandemic, the email engagement levels increased due to the lockdown when people had limited activities for spending time, and this led to an increase in email interaction from January 2019 to April 2020. However, in March – April 2020, a peak in engagement, both open rates and click rates, was seen
Did all industries see an impact?
Although most industries saw an increase in engagement, only a few industries like e-commerce, marketing, manufacturing, etc. remained quite close to their historical averages and did not change much. The industries that had the highest positive impact on their email marketing strategies were restaurants and non-profit organizations because they played a relevant role during the crisis. People were offered cooked meals from the restaurants through online delivery, and restaurants and non-profit organizations had online setups and easy delivery/collection options.
Email Marketing Trends based on business size:
Traditionally, it had been the large businesses that were used to convince the potential reader of their credibility using the emails. But during the pandemic, a positive engagement trend had been seen with smaller or local businesses. The small businesses showed an increase in the click rate of 60% as compared to their past performances. This could probably be because of the reason that people wanted to support the small businesses as compared to the conglomerates.
Preference for emails:
The analysis of the email marketing campaigns carried on by businesses during this period has also indicated that the potential customers or the audience of the brands were willing to hear more from the brands, especially if the emails were sent after a week’s gap. Even the open rates and email frequency showed a significant correlation.
Engagement rates:
During the pandemic, businesses who relied on giving more information about the diseases and took some time to take care of the reader’s health, advising them about the safety and ways to be together while being separate earned more credibility. The customers did not want to hear much from the brands who presented themselves as greedy and wanted to cash in on the pandemic. After the establishment of credibility and a strong reputation, the customers became more loyal to the “caring” brands, providing them with sales and long-term commitment.
With the lockdowns being imposed in the European region, the email open rates increased by 60% as compared to last year. Not only can the open rates, but an increase in the click rate also be seen with an average of 30% increase during this period.
With money in hand and nowhere else to go, consumers find it convenient to shop online from the businesses that had been putting their efforts to bring in value for the customers.
Keywords targeted in the emails:
During the pandemic, the businesses who relied on giving more information about the diseases, and took some time to take care of the reader’s health, advising them about the safety and ways to be together while being separate earned more credibility. The engagement statistics and the interaction of customers with these brands have been significantly high.
The customers did not want to hear much from the brands who presented themselves as greedy and wanted to cash on the pandemic. After the establishment of credibility and strong reputation, with time, the customers have become more loyal to the “caring” brands, providing them with sales and long-term commitment.
Increase in online subscription:
Another important metric that can determine the increase in the engagement level during the COVID time is the increase in the subscription rates. A 250% increase in the subscription was witnessed by different industries within the COVID crisis.
It highlighted that people have willingly involved themselves in receiving more emails from businesses.
Summing up:
In conclusion, a positive impact of the email marketing strategy has been observed on the customers for most of the businesses. During the pandemic, people have relied on this reliable medium to understand what businesses had been doing and how they had been a help for everyone around. The businesses that invested their time and resources in this marketing strategy during COVID have seen a significant improvement in their engagement levels, and with the increase in online subscriptions, people have willingly involved themselves in receiving more emails from businesses.
