Get Better E-mail Results by Adapting for All Devices

With e-mail now viewed on desktops and smartphones, marketers must adapt content to optimize for all device users, and a recent Direct Marketing News magazine article suggests four strategies for success. While mobile e-mail viewing has surged, desktop e-mail has not gone away. In fact, the article notes, Movable Ink's "U.S. Consumer Device Preference Report" for the second quarter of 2015 found that desktop conversions actually increased to 52.6% of total e-mail conversion in the quarter. Nasty winter weather may be a factor (keeping e-mail recipients close to desktops), but it is still a reminder that e-mail needs to be device-agnostic. This is especially true because device preferences differ by market vertical, per Movable Ink data. For example, 49.4% of nonprofit e-mail opens occur on desktops, but 62.5% of apparel marketing e-mails are opened on a smartphone. The article draws on advice from Vivek Sharma, CEO of Movable Ink, to highlight four strategies for adapting e-mail to all device users. First, adjust content for customer e-mail habits that differ by device, by time of day, and even by geographic location (Californians prefer smartphone e-mail but Virginians lean toward desktop viewing). Second, note that post-click behavior also can vary by device. For example, ask a smartphone nonprofit e-mail opener to text to donate but send a publication subscriber opening a desktop e-mail to an online page. Third, avoid a silo mentality and integrate e-mail strategy for all devices with social, direct mail, and other channels. Finally, measure beyond opens and clicks--tracking click-stream and time on site for example--to tailor content more effectively across devices. For more details: http://www.dmnews.com/email-marketing/four-ways-to-make-email-content-adaptable-for-any-device/article/433149/