Chapter 13: Improving Your Email Design Strategy

Email marketing is one of the few marketing methods that are as effective today as it was on day one, without being reinvented.

A simple layout, a header image, compelling copy, attractive visuals, a clear call-to-action button, and a footer, are still enough to do the job.

But in 2019 and beyond, everything is getting more colorful, vibrant, and interactive, including email, and the best companies are changing their emails accordingly.

The following are the design changes these big companies are applying to stay on top!

Broken Grids

Broken Grids

The usual email layout is a simple vertical column where you arrange elements like text, images, buttons, and links.

It looks good and familiar, but it can look monotonous, and it doesn’t leave room for much else.

That is why this design trend is changing in favor of broken grids.

Broken grids are made from an asymmetrical layout that allows you to go beyond the restrictive nature of symmetrical grids.

This isn’t an uncommon design choice, mind you, as it is extensively used on modern websites.

An asymmetrical grid allows you to position your design elements in a non-linear way.

This way you can insert elements that mimic cut-out shapes, tilted lines, and overlapping images for a more attractive email that is unique to the content you’re sending.

Embedded Surveys

Embedded Surveys

A growing trend is to insert elements that encourage quick actions such as embedded surveys at the bottom of your email content.

They’re clearly visible and allow you to discover your audience’s pain points and receive feedback without forcing them to leave the email.

Gamification

Gamification

Gamification is a groundbreaking way to make everything more interactive.

Advertisers and paid-to-click websites have been quick to adopt this technology, but it is a design choice that more and more brands are using in their emails to drive more actions.

Gamification simply means using a game to drive an action that would otherwise sit idle in a user’s inbox for a long time.

For example, there are brands that are sending emails with simple games to encourage users to win a reward.

So instead of sending a static coupon code for a discount, you can send an interactive email with a maze game that would reward the recipient with a juicy coupon code if he or she wins.

Accelerated Mobile Pages

AMP

A growing number of email users are adopting mobile as their device of choice, so improving your brand experience for them is a priority.

Accelerated Mobile Pages or “AMP” is a clever design trend that enables you to design dynamic emails that allow the user to stay in the email instead of driving him or her to an external browser.

This will empower the email experience that your brand provides because it updates the information on each email in real-time because the user will simply have to refresh the page.

It’s like visiting your website, but without ever having to leave the email you sent!

Creating “AMP” compliant emails is something new that requires a lot of work, and you’ll need a good mobile developer on your team to make it a reality, but it is the future of email on the go!

Custom Visuals

Custom Visuals

Sending emails with custom visuals and illustrations as background as opposed to simple color combinations that reflect your brand’s identity makes a great difference when it comes to the look and feel of an email, and creates a strong impression on the user.

This design choice will help you increase brand recall and to enhance the email experience.

You don’t have to go far to find inspiration, as the majority of marketing firm websites today are customized in a way that reflects the look and feel of the perfect marketing email.

Live Social Feeds

Live Social Feeds

Embedding your social media feeds into your emails is a really good way to add enhanced dynamics to the email experience that your brand provides.

Not only that, but it also allows you to increase your social media following by giving email leads quick access to your latest social updates.

Leads that are not following your brand yet will start following you at some point, and the ones that already follow you will be able to share your updates more easily.

Video In Mails

Video in Mails

Including marketing videos in your emails helps you to send your message more effectively.

It increases open rates by almost 20% and click-through rates by 50%.

It also increases the time a user spends interacting with your email, improving retention.

Chapter 12: Successful eCommerce Business Stories Conclusion