Some of the UK’s largest online and offline retailers are neglecting key areas of the email marketing process and failing to comply with best practice guidelines, according to a new retail benchmark study from dotMailer
Almost half of the retailers (46%) failed to comply with basic legal requirements, according to the ‘Hitting the Mark’ study, which evaluates 46 retailers’ email campaigns against 20 criteria, awarding each email campaign an Email Effectiveness rating out of 100.
Topshop heads the index of UK retailers with a score of 86.5 but is one of only eight to score over 80%. STA Travel, ASDA and M&S were close behind with 85.5, 84.5 and 83.5 respectively.
At the other end, shoe retailer Office came in last place (54) just behind Lidl and H&M (both 57). Overall an alarming 35% failed to score more than 70.
Key failings identified by the study included minimal or ineffective design, inappropriate landing pages and non-existent targeting.
Worryingly, the average score for effective targeting was a lowly 16%, with only five brands in the study using information about customer preferences to tailor email content. Just 15% asked for any information about customer preferences during the sign-up process.
The study also revealed that retailers are not investing in email specific design skills. By failing to understand the unique technical requirements of email design, communications are failing to render correctly across inboxes leading to a less than satisfactory customer experience.
Only 30% of retailers invested in campaign specific designs and 40% of retailers failed to design relevant landing pages with consistent branding and a clearly visible offer or call to action.
| Top Five Performers | Index | Worst Five Performers | Index |
| Topshop | 86.5 | Office | 54 |
| STA Travel | 85.5 | H&M | 57 |
| ASDA | 84.5 | Lidl | 57 |
| Marks & Spencer | 83.5 | Expedia | 59.5 |
| Thomson | 81.5 | Somerfield | 61 |
dotMailer’s Business Development Director and a member of the Direct Marketing Association’s Email Marketing Council, Tink Taylor, said that many retailers were failing to realise the full potential of email as a sophisticated direct marketing channel, offering vast scope for targeted and measurable communications.
He added, “There is a long way to go in understanding that email requires specific skills and expertise that offline designers and website developers do not always possess or are not actually aware of.
“These key elements are essential to ensuring that email marketing activity engages customers, encourages them to interact with brands, and ultimately, impact sales.”
Taylor said, “With spam accounting for 85-95% of all emails sent, it is now more crucial than ever for marketers to get their message across.
“Email marketing is a complex marketing method and if we simply ignore the best practice guidelines or not aware