Email Marketing is a Complex and Challenging Science

Email marketing—like its paper cousin, direct mail marketing—is a complex process requiring several elements in order to be used effectively.

As with direct mail, an email campaign's chances for success depend almost entirely on whether or not recipients view the contents of the message. From the subject line to the main body of the message, the copy used in all aspects of an email campaign plays an important role in making the message as attractive as possible.

More than anything, the relevance of an email message to its recipients will determine how many of them view the message (referred to as the "open rate"). In order to ensure message relevance, email marketing companies offer services to clients such as database management, content creation tools, list segmentation ability and performance reports of sent messages. Integrating these tools into the email marketing workflow allows users to test the results of different message strategies used with different segments of their audience, allowing them to make informed decisions in the ongoing management of their email program.

Effective email marketing is a science, and the design, targeting and composition of a message can be the difference between an email that drives sales, and an email that never gets read.