3 Reasons Why the ‘Do You Want to Hear From Us’ Email Should Be Retired

It’s February, and I’m still waiting for my request to opt out of my subscription to 2025 to be approved. Until then, I have to soldier on like a good marketing professional. Are you in the same boat?

In my last column, I talked about a key budget strategy move. This time, I want to vent about a list hygiene practice that just doesn’t work and needs to be abandoned.

Rant mode ON.

Recently, I received an email from a major seasonal retailer:

My initial reaction wasn’t, “Wow, I really need this! Let me click that link!” If you know me, you won’t be surprised to hear that my first thought was, “Why am I receiving this email?”

Two years ago, I made a high-ticket purchase from this company, something I don’t buy frequently. I won’t call out the brand because I’ve seen this same issue with other brands as well. Let’s discuss the problems with these emails and why they are not effective in keeping your email list fresh and friendly to ISPs.

Re-engagement requests have been flooding my inbox lately, and it’s making my marketer’s brain ache. The senders assume that I haven’t been opening their emails, which may not be accurate.

When considering inbox clutter, you must realize that judging the value of your email based on engagement metrics is not the way to go.

Here are three reasons why this type of email is not the solution you think it is.

1. Opens are dead, let them rest in peace

While engagement is important in general, for retailers, especially seasonal ones, engagement fluctuates. It’s not consistent from one quarter to the next or from one campaign to another, so you need to measure it differently.

The open rate is not a reliable metric of intent. We’ve discussed this enough already, haven’t we? (Yes, we have.)

With Apple’s Mail Privacy Protection feature, opens have become even less reliable as a metric for gauging intent or interest.

A high open rate no longer holds much significance. It could be due to various factors like Apple subscribers automatically opening emails or blocking images. Making decisions based on this shaky metric is not wise. If you’re still doing this, it’s time to make a change – preferably this quarter.

That applies to all ecommerce brands, but especially to seasonal retailers. You need to consider other factors like clicks, website visits, and purchases to determine engagement.

If this brand had looked at my purchase history before putting me in a re-engagement program, they would have seen that I made a significant purchase two years ago. By analyzing my website visits, they would have noticed interest in other products, even if I didn’t make a purchase. The buying cycle for that product is long, so it’s reasonable for me not to be in the market now but potentially in a year. This approach seems logical for a seasonal retailer.

Your re-engagement program should have a detailed profile of your buyers, taking into account different personas and consumer types. Consumers are multifaceted. Does your segmentation or definition of engagement reflect this complexity?

2. Your email isn’t that important

Not every email is crucial, and not every subscriber is eager to open them.

Many email marketers believe their emails are masterpieces that every customer should open and read (a misconception exacerbated by MPP). However, the reality is that customers don’t need your products every time you send an email. They won’t open every email unless they genuinely enjoy your content or brand. If they do, they leave a trail of actions like clicks, browsing, and purchases.

Expecting customers to open every email you send is presumptuous, especially for seasonal businesses. I don’t think about this brand in the middle of summer, and I might not even consider it until December. Keep in mind that customers and personas vary. Not everyone fits your strict definition of an active subscriber. This is why your reporting should delve beyond opens and clicks. You need to redefine engagement and look for more reliable signals of intent.

3. I’m not in the mood.

Sending emails to customers early in the morning when they’re not in the mindset to browse products they’re not interested in is ineffective. We haven’t had our coffee, we’re off to the gym, and we’re not ready to engage with marketing emails.

When I receive such emails, these brands are lucky I don’t unsubscribe right away. Inboxes like Google and Yahoo! Mail make it effortless to opt out, whether it’s in the inbox or at the top of the email.

Instead of bombarding customers with irrelevant emails, focus on building a relationship that leads to more valuable content. Take the example of Woot!, the deal-of-the-day site that captured attention with their quirky offers. I open Woot!’s emails daily because of FOMO. But I don’t open every email from every other sender every day, not even from American Airlines, and I’m a sucker for miles.

Inbox clutter can lead to customers easily swiping left to delete an email rather than opening it. This doesn’t mean they dislike your brand or won’t consider it when they’re ready to purchase.

It’s essential for your systems to track customer behavior beyond email opens, especially if you’re unsure whether an email was opened or not.

Do you need to update your re-engagement automation?

The issues faced by this brand could be due to CRM issues or data not being transmitted correctly. It happens, right? Regularly auditing your automations is crucial. They’re not a “set it and forget it” deal. Make sure nothing in your automation relies solely on opens to make decisions.

Wrapping up

We need to rethink what “engagement” truly means and consider inbox competition and the data used to create emails. Sending a generic message to everyone won’t make your email stand out in a crowded inbox.

We need to be realistic in our approach and humble enough to acknowledge that we can only influence how much customers like us, not control it.

Customers need to be in the right mindset to engage with your emails. Asking customers to re-opt into emails indicates a lack of understanding of who they are, which won’t convert non-intent into intent.

Rant mode OFF. On to March and more madness!

Ryan is hosting a Toast my email session and live Q&A at The MarTech Conference. Free registration here.