Does Email Marketing Still Work? How to Get Opened and Reach the Inbox

Admin Cream · · upskilling
Does Email Marketing Still Work? How to Get Opened and Reach the Inbox

Email remains a channel your brand owns. This guide covers building a consented list, writing emails people read, and staying out of the spam folder.

The owner of a skincare brand relied mainly on reach from her page. One day posts that used to be seen widely went quiet, even though the content hadn't changed. What she learned is that channels driven by another platform's algorithm are hard to control. That is why many businesses are looking at email again: your email list belongs to your brand and reaches people who agreed to hear from you directly.

Does email marketing still work?

Yes, if you use it in the right role. Email isn't ideal for acquiring large numbers of new customers, but it is well suited to nurturing relationships with people who already know your brand: welcoming new subscribers, announcing restocks, ongoing education, and bringing past customers back to buy again. You control the timing, content and audience yourself.

Build a consented list

Collecting and using personal data must comply with Thailand's Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA). This article is general information; consult a legal professional to design consent that fits your business.

Segment your audience

One email sent to everyone usually performs poorly. Start with simple segments:

  1. New subscribers who haven't bought yet
  2. One-time customers
  3. Regular customers
  4. People who haven't clicked an email in a long time

Each group needs a different message. New subscribers want to get to know the brand; regulars want perks. See more on keeping customers in Retention Marketing.

Write emails people read

Subject line

State the benefit clearly and briefly. "Three ways to care for your skin on high-dust days" beats "Newsletter issue 12". Avoid all caps and multiple exclamation marks.

Body

A good email is one the recipient is glad to get, not one sent to the most people.

A sample three email welcome series

  1. Email one, sent right after sign-up: say thank you, deliver what you promised, such as a guide or discount code, and explain what emails come next
  2. Email two, a few days later: tell the brand story, or share knowledge that solves a problem this audience often faces
  3. Email three: introduce popular products with reviews from real customers and invite replies if they have questions

This sequence gives before it sells, so subscribers get familiar with your sender name and are more likely to open future emails.

Reach the inbox

Google's Email sender guidelines state that mail sent to Gmail accounts must be authenticated with SPF and DKIM, have a DMARC record, and that marketing emails must offer one-click unsubscribe. For bulk senders, Google recommends keeping the reported spam rate below 0.1%. In practice, ask your technical team or email service provider to configure your domain, and clean out unresponsive contacts regularly.

Measure the right things

Open rates are less reliable than they used to be. Mailchimp explains that Apple Mail Privacy Protection preloads tracking pixels, so emails are counted as opened even when the recipient hasn't opened them. Focus on these metrics instead:

How to start

  1. Add a sign-up form that states the benefit and frequency
  2. Set up SPF, DKIM and DMARC for your domain
  3. Write a three email welcome series for new subscribers
  4. Send newsletters at the frequency you promised and review click rates monthly

Once the basics are in place, try automated emails triggered by customer behaviour; read Marketing Automation basics. If you want to learn digital marketing systematically, browse partner courses on the courses page.