Optimize for Mobile for Better Email Marketing Results

Once a rarity, smart phones are now everywhere. According to the Pew Research Center, a whopping 56 percent of American adults now have smartphones, up from 35 percent just two years ago. And those smartphone adopters are doing more than playing Angry Birds and streaming music-they’re checking email, too.

For many email marketers, that means it’s time to start investigating designing for the mobile audience. But is optimizing for mobile really worth it? According to “CareerBuilder’s Responsive Email Design Results,” a client success story from ExactTarget, designing for the mobile audience can definitely improve your email marketing results.

In the client example, ExactTarget reveals that, by implementing mobile optimization techniques using responsive design, job search giant CareerBuilder was able to increase open rates by 15-17 percent and click-through rates by 21-24 percent. And it wasn’t just engaged subscribers who were taking action; in CareerBuilder’s case, responsive design had a positive effect on every type of subscriber, from new to unengaged.

“An email with a sleek user experience on any device is no longer a luxury; it’s a necessity,” ExactTarget says. “With a large percentage of subscribers now opening emails on a mobile device, CareerBuilder understood the need to implement a mobile optimization strategy in its email messaging.”

Benefits of Designing for the Mobile Audience

Aside from increased open and click-through rates, CareerBuilder experienced a number of benefits by designing for the mobile audience.

• Fewer “Tap Errors”: When designing for a mobile audience, email marketers think in terms of swaps instead of taps. Just think about it: Your finger is significantly larger and less precise than a cursor, so elements like buttons and text links need to be large enough so the user doesn’t accidentally tap the wrong link. According to Chief Marketer, nearly one-third of all mobile click-throughs are actually tap errors, which can dramatically change the ROI of your email marketing campaigns.
• Increased Long-Term Loyalty: Emails designed with the mobile audience in mind are more legible, which creates a pleasant user experience for mobile users. “The superiority of this to a cramped illegible email is marked,” ExactTarget says, “and will increase loyalty (and desire to read brand emails) over time.”
• Re-engage Inactive Subscribers: As mentioned above, by implementing responsive design, CareerBuilder experienced an increased response from previously unengaged subscribers. By designing for the mobile audience, you, too, can re-engage subscribers you were thinking of scrubbing from your list.

Our whitepapers and eBooks offer even more valuable email marketing tips and advice you can use to improve email marketing ROI. Check them out on our Resources page today!

photo credit: blakespot