Email marketing best practices have changed more in the last 6 months than in the last 6 years.

Pre-pandemic best practices aren’t best practices anymore.

With everyone either out of work or working from home and kids distance learning, we spend more time checking email.

The result is an email marketing renaissance, says Direct Marketing Association Board Member and Worldata CEO Jay Schwedelson.

I attended Jay's breakout at INBOUND and it was one of the most talked about sessions. He's an email marketing master.

We spoke at length about how the coronavirus has changed B2C and B2B email marketing best practices. He’s been in email marketing for 20 years and has a wealth of practical knowledge.

And let’s face it. Even before the pandemic, when you consider all the media channels content agencies used for digital marketing-- organic search, paid search, social media, referral links and email marketing -- email remains the least understood owned media channel.

The irony is it’s also one of the most effective conversion channels in the B2C and B2B customer journey, so it’s worth taking the time to get it right.

That under-utilization stems from email marketing being more labor-intensive than social media marketing. It takes longer, so it’s under-utilized, particularly by small and medium-sized B2B marketing agencies, despite small business owners being among the most accessible.

In fact, since small business owners are forced to wear so many hats, they are among the most avid downloaders of lead magnet content like white papers, checklists, and cheat sheets.

I connected with Jay for a special episode of the Earned Media Podcast to drill down on specifically how the pandemic is changing email marketing best practices.

Our conversation was so riveting I was inspired to share the highlights of this blog post.

If you want to listen to it, use the player at the top of this post to play the audio recording. Or you can watch the video clips embedded in this post and subscribe to the podcast for more digital marketing tips from newsmakers, journalists, and subject matter experts.

So now, without further ado, I am pleased to present my Email Marketing Guide, with answers inspired by my interview with Jay.

How has the pandemic impacted email marketing best practices?

https://youtu.be/ximA9oaIq_s

Inbox activity is up about 20% since January, which means people are spending more time in their inbox. 

The other reason email activity is up is that social networks have become more confrontational because of the election. So social media is more contentious, and not really the most significant opportunity for marketing at this moment. 

Your inbox is a safer place where people don't go to argue. It’s the place we go to look for offers, opportunities, and information. Which is why email is flourishing.

What is the top email performance driver these days?

https://youtu.be/N46Fs1FfjQY

What's working right now, more than anything is creating a sense of urgency, especially in that subject line. 

Create offers that expire. If you offer free shipping, it should end in 24 or 48 hours. 

Whatever your offer is, B2C or B2B,