Holiday Email - Stay the Same to Be Different

Holiday Email –
Stay The Same To Be Different

Written by Franco Varriano.

1. Overview

The holidays are a hectic time. There are people to see, family visits to prepare for, parties to attend, and of course there are shoppers searching for the perfect gift for each person on their list.

Ecommerce retailers are counting on that last one – and so far this holiday season has delivered. Online sales for Cyber Monday topped $3 billion dollars – a 16% increase over 2014.

2. The Holidays In Data

Here at Rare we have our own data, and while the above numbers are impressive there is room for improvement. We reviewed the total number of emails sent through Rare in November, as well the incremental revenue generated from those emails. Here are the results:

Emails sent: 15,433,555
Revenue: $942,459.31
Revenue per Email = $0.06

On the surface the numbers look pretty decent, but how does November compare with the non-holiday months? Here is the data from February to October – pay particular attention to the revenue per email.

Emails sent: 28,896,796
Revenue: $3,165,388
Revenue per Email = $0.11

The average revenue per email fell by almost half in November. That drop was significant enough to make us look a little further, and we discovered that click through rates dropped by 39% in November.

3. So What Does It All Mean?

It’s tempting to say that it’s simply a volume issue – that not only were over 15 million emails sent through Rare in November, but that every other ecommerce retailer is sending more email, meaning less share of inbox attention for everyone.

Here’s our issue with that logic – what makes people click on an email in June does not change in November. They are still motivated by the same interests, and if anything they may be even more tolerant because they are searching for gifts for a specific event.

We already have seen that more people are turning to the convenience of online shopping, and an email may lead them to a great deal on the perfect gift. The volume argument doesn’t hold up.

4. A False Sense of Urgency

The drop in performance is a direct result of the change in messaging. The rush to compete for share of wallet during the holidays creates the perception that email marketing has to change or you’ll lose out.

Ecommerce retailers seem to forget the old adage “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” They feel as though they have to increase the frequency of email sent, and cast a wider net to reach as many people as possible. This is the exact opposite of what they should be doing, and our numbers back it up.

Treat the holidays in the same manner as the rest of the year when it comes to your email marketing campaigns. What works on a random day in June will work for Black Friday, Cyber Monday, or Christmas Day.

5. Holiday Noise

Blasting out a series of generic offers that you hope will catch the interest of as many people as possible is actually causing customers to tune out. Why else would click through rates and the revenue per email drop so much?

When you stop treating your email as a conversation with someone and instead treat it as though you’re shouting at a crowd with a bullhorn, people start to see your message as noise.

This is not the time to be a noise in the crowd, this is the exact time to be different.

6. The Good News

There is still time to get back to using email to connect as we approach the final shopping weeks before Christmas. You know how to do this, and Rare makes it easy.
Remember, the holidays are a hectic time, and that’s all the more reason to send someone an email that makes them stop, read and take action.

7. Conclusion

If you’re an ecommerce merchant and don’t have automated email marketing campaigns setup for your store, you’re losing money. Right now.

Rare.io makes it easy to start using automated email campaigns for common challenges like: Welcome Series, Abandoned Carts, Order Follow-up emails and more! You can learn more about our powerful email marketing automation features here or go ahead and get started right away by using Rare.io for FREE.

Try Rare.io FREE!

And if you’re one of the thousands of merchants who are already using Rare’s Smart Email Marketing software and want to see how our Customer Success Team can work with your brand to grow your revenue – feel free to book a call at your convenience here.