Why Retailers Should Be Using Personalized Emails

You spend a lot of time hearing about the fall of retail on the news, but retailers have more opportunities to connect with customers than ever. 

One of the best avenues for doing that is through email. Email campaigns provide a direct approach to reaching customers anytime, anywhere. And, great emails can get customers to take real action, not only through opens and clicks but also by increasing conversion rates and even foot traffic. 

The key is using email in the right way. For retailers, that means going all-in on personalization. 

Here’s why you need to do it. 

Customers want personalized content

Ever heard the phrase ‘give the people what they want?’ Well, when it comes to today’s consumers, what they want is content that is specifically tailored to them. If something doesn’t speak to their needs, hopes, or wants then they probably aren’t going to be very interested. 

And you know what happens to uninspired customers, right? They become former customers. That’s not a great way to boost your revenue.

To stop that trend, you need to make your content as personalized as possible. Before you start getting nervous that you don’t have the ability to do that, think again. 

Even the smallest mom-and-pop shops can excel at personalizing email. And we’ve got some tools to help.

All it takes is data

As a retailer, you’ve got all sorts of customer data available to you. There’s email, location, past purchase history, abandoned cart data, loyalty rewards, and even browser history. 

That’s a lot of stuff you can tap into to reach your customers and engage them with personalized emails. 

Customers that get personalized emails from retailers are more likely to open, click, and buy. They’re also more likely to stay happy repeat customers for the long haul, buying again and again. 

Those loyal customers are the dream of every retail shop, so you need to take steps to ensure that happens.

That’s where your data comes into play. 

With your data, you can send all sorts of personalized emails that actively engage your customers and get them interested. And Smart Banners™ make it really easy to personalize any email. 

Here’s how it works. Once you’re in the Zembula platform, hook up your key data sources, pick your favorite template, and add a snippet of code to your email. Our Campaign Decision Engine takes care of the rest, going through the data parameters you set and choosing the best personalized banner to display at the top of your email.

In less than a second, your customer will get personalized content, regardless of what kind of email you’re sending. Customers can see abandoned cart, package tracking, and product recommendation Smart Banners™ in their inboxes.

That helps ensure you’re always sending messages that meet the moment. Rather than relying on the same old boring messaging that may not have the same punch it used to, you’ll always send relevant personalized messages.

Retailers getting personal

Here are a few examples of how retailers are using personalization to stand out in a crowded inbox.

In this email, Uniqlo uses geolocation data to create a weather focused email. This is a great approach for a lot of retailers because the weather has been shown to impact consumer’s buying behavior. 

Using geolocation information, something as simple as a zip code, you can target your customers with customized campaigns that focus on something that’s super personal to them, the weather.

This type of email can be used for all sorts of campaigns, from tapping into weather-based FOMO to highlighting a special sale, or driving signups for in-person events happening in local stores.

In this email, you’ll see a personalized newsletter that also features a Smart Banner™ showing a price change on a product the customer previously browsed. 

This email shows the exact item the customer was interested in. Then, using an added layer of personalization, the email recommends additional products that might be of interest to the customer. 

You can find recommended products by looking at browser data and seeing what customers have shopped before. Or, look at what they’ve previously purchased from you and recommend related products. 

And, if you want to keep featuring recommended products to customers, use a Smart Banner™. Banners can highlight a specific featured product and include ratings and reviews too. That’s a great way to increase conversions.

Retailers can also look to loyalty campaigns to personalize emails too. This email is a really simple example from Dunkin Donuts that can be used for both loyalty type programs and regular gift cards. 

What’s great here is that this personalized loyalty email is doing two things that are helping the customer out.

First, it’s letting them know that their card is running low. It’s a subtle reminder that they need to put more money on the card. Then, it makes reloading really easy; all the customer has to do is click that call to action button.

Ready to give it a try?

Now that you see the potential of how retailers can dig into personalizing emails, the sky is the limit. 

There are all sorts of strategies and campaigns you can use to personalize your emails in a way that gets your customers engaged, and more importantly, ready to buy from you. 

It’s an opportunity you don’t want to pass up and what’s more, your customers expect it. Get in touch and we’ll set you up with a demo to test the Zembula platform out for yourself.