Validity and Demand Metric Report Proves Email Optimization Key for Revenue Growth

80% of marketers report email marketing effectiveness is holding steady or increasing, according to 2019 State of Email Marketing Report

BOSTON, Sept. 24, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — For the second year in a row, Validity, the most trusted name in data quality, has partnered with Demand Metric, a global marketing research and advisory firm, to publish The 2019 State of Email Marketing report. Based on research conducted among B2C, B2B, and nonprofit marketing organizations, this year’s results show that email continues to be the most effective and widely used marketing channel available today. The report uncovers which email tactics are being used and their performance, as well as the challenges email marketers are facing to improve email effectiveness.

“It’s no surprise that email continues to be a key indicator for high performance across marketing teams,” Demand Metric co-founder and researcher John Follett said of the findings. “Marketers who tie email objectives to revenue and actively work to understand subscriber preferences will see above average results and the highest level of effectiveness from email.”

The report reveals several ways email marketers are the most effective, including:

Email marketers with the right objectives are seeing better email effectiveness:  
A much higher percentage of organizations that report increasing email effectiveness cite having all the email objectives listed in the study, such as capturing data, brand awareness, communicating with customers, communicating with prospects, and revenue growth. When generating revenue is one of the objectives for email marketing, the average open rates are better. However, average open rates are the worst when the objective is only communicating with prospects.

Email effectiveness correlates to revenue growth: 
While managing an effective email marketing program isn’t a guarantee for higher revenue, the results show that it is a strong factor in driving growth. Email marketers that are intentional about optimizing their email program are far more likely to experience revenue growth as a result. Those reporting an increase in revenue were four times more likely to report email effectiveness was also increasing. Conversely, those reporting a significant decline in email effectiveness were nearly six times more likely to see revenue decline.

Email deliverability is becoming more challenging:  
The biggest challenge email marketers face this year is competition for attention in the inbox (45%), but only if their emails are reaching the inbox in the first place. Email deliverability ranked third on the list of marketers’ lists of challenges and saw a 12% increase compared to the 2018 study – the largest increase in this year’s study.

The right email marketing tactics can drive more opens:  
The study shows that using most of the tactics listed in the survey will have at least some positive impact on email effectiveness. Specifically, email deliverability optimization, A/B testing, and reactivation campaigns show to be the most successful at driving higher open rates. Email personalization (72%), list management (63%), and subject line optimization (52%) are the top tactics used by marketers with above average open rates. Tactics seeing the sharpest increase of usage when compared to last year include email deliverability optimization (51%), A/B testing (50%), and reactivation campaigns (36%).

The Bottom Line? Email continues to drive results 
For the second year in a row, 80% of study participants report email marketing effectiveness is holding steady or increasing. While less marketers reported a “slight increase” in email effectiveness this year (36% versus 28% last year), more are now reporting that their email effectiveness is holding steady (43% versus 37% in 2018). To continue improving email effectiveness, marketers have shown a sharp increase in the use of outsourced resources this year.

“Marketers today understand that email is the most effective marketing channel, but their success hinges on having access to the most accurate and useful data. This study shows that marketers who rely on clean lists and reaching the inbox will experience higher email open rates, revenue, and increasing email effectiveness” said Tom Sather, Sr. Director of Research at Validity. “As email marketing continues to evolve, marketers must use the right mix of tactics and technology like list validation, inbox monitoring, and certification to continually improve results.”

Download the report today: https://go.validity.com/The-State-of-Email-Marketing/

About Validity 
Businesses run better and grow faster with trustworthy data. Tens of thousands of organizations rely on Validity solutions – including DemandTools, BriteVerify, Trust Assessments, Return Path, and GridBuddy – to target, contact, engage, and retain customers effectively. Marketing, sales, and customer success teams worldwide trust Validity solutions to help them create smarter campaigns, generate leads, drive response, and increase revenue. For more information, visit validity.com, and connect with us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

About Demand Metric 
Demand Metric is a global marketing research & advisory firm serving a membership community of 100,000+ senior marketers with primary research & benchmark reports, technology research & advice, consulting services, training, events, productivity apps, and a library of 500+ practical tools and templates. Demand Metric’s core focus is to help B2B marketing organizations improve internal capabilities and connect their activities to revenue growth.

Media Contacts 
Finn Partners for Validity:
Shelby Armstrong
validity@finnpartners.com