First impressions matter in email marketing

We all know that first impressions are important and it seems that the same is true when it comes to email marketing.

According to a survey by email marketing company Campaigner 39 percent of marketers say that the first email content new subscribers see from their brand is a thank-you-for-subscribing message. And those messages work, with almost half reporting that 21 percent or more of new subscribers engage with them.

"It takes just seconds within meeting someone to form a lasting impression", says EJ McGowan, general manager of Campaigner. "Unsurprisingly, first impressions for brands are just as critical and time-sensitive. Marketers who quickly deliver engaging welcome emails to new subscribers will see greater success in conversions, while also building brand reputation".

It seems timing is important too, with 62 percent sending their first message from the brand within 24 hours. It's best to send messages early in the day too, 35 percent say that between 8am and 11am is the best time to get responses from new subscribers, while 25 percent report that between 11am and 2pm is most effective.

"Transactional messages such as welcome emails provide unique opportunities for companies to get in front of interested contacts", McGowan adds. "If marketers aren't already using them, now is the time to start".

Among other findings from the survey are that 77 percent of respondents report high or very high pressure on their business to acquire new customers as the economy slows. Over 60 percent of marketers plan to use email marketing as their primary method to acquire customers in the coming year, and 47 percent say that the most damaging email marketing issue is having messages delivered to spam folders.

You can read more about the survey on the Campaigner blog and there's a summary of the findings in infographic form below.

Image Credit: Laurent Renault / Shutterstock