While this sounds conclusive, in practice, email marketing remains a hotbed of discussion with marketers divided on one question: Is the content or design more important?

The first email was sent in 1971. Back then, content ruled supreme. But over 37 years, emails have evolved to offering greater scope for marketers. Today, we want to focus on design. This isn’t just about finding the right images and colors for the message, but rather the opportunity to be fully interactive, enhance product engagement and have the look and feel of an app.

So how do marketers achieve that? It is by understanding that neither content nor design is more important. The performance of both is intrinsically linked to data. Only informative, relevant content together with engaging design will keep a customer’s attention. And whether it be an image change, text change or module change, data can now determine exactly how the customer interaction takes place.

Making the Leap

In 2018, email design is all about dynamic content.

Imagine an email campaign that automatically adapts based on the known interests of each subscriber. That is dynamic content. It is an advanced personalization technique, which uses data held within each subscriber’s profile to automatically display content more closely aligned with their known interests or preferences.

The key is aggregated data that can be pulled from email sign-up preferences, profiling subscribers or behavioral data. And dynamic content can be used in a wide range of applications. Either data-based design, including a CTA offering based on previous interactions, or using the nearest store location information or gender specific information. Or you could provide contextual content pulled from custom feeds, social networks, and website behavior. This information includes recent interactions, weather feeds, location, and customer persona.

Putting it into Action

This is all well and good, but you might be thinking, "We just don’t have time to create great designs and tap into dynamic content. We are always working to extremely tight deadlines.” The answer is templates and planning.

Modular email templates are the key to successful use of dynamic content. The template is a framework that includes a header and footer with several content modules. These content modules can be stacked and then removed, rearranged, and repeated in numerous configurations. Most importantly, they allow for design freedom without the need for extensive HTML knowledge.

As a first step, marketers should conduct an audit of previous email campaigns to see what works and how consumers reacted to design. Then, template the most commonly used modules and template dynamic content rules.

Ultimately, brands and marketers don’t have to compromise on email design to send a relevant, data-driven email. Why? Data drives design. It ensures that content is shown in the best possible way to different audiences. Relevant content increases familiarity and loyalty, which in turn, improves click through and conversion rates.

Want more?

Watch the webinar, Bridging the Gap: How to Orchestrate and Personalize the Entire Customer Experience, to learn how your organization can unify email and web orchestration with a strategy that will keep communications relevant and audiences engaged.

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