What would you call a blog that uses machine learning to optimize its content and marketing campaigns? An AI influencer.

Let’s now explore the use of AI in email marketing. This article will discuss AI, its possible applications, and — what you’re all waiting for! The question is whether a neural net can replace an expert in marketing.

What is AI email marketing?

You probably think of machines creating content because technologies like Midjourney, which involve AI, cause heated debates. Although it is one of the possible use cases, and we will return to it later on, the question itself is more complex. Ask ChatGPT for fun.

Prompt: What AI is in email marketing

Output AI in email marketing is the use of machine-learning algorithms to analyze large amounts of data and make predictions about how subscribers interact with emails they receive. These data can be used to create personalized and targeted email campaigns tailored to the preferences and behaviors of individual subscribers.

It’s not correct. The writing style is still too verbose. Before we go into all the possible use cases, it’s important to clarify that not all neural networks are created equal.

There are different types of AI

A neural network is a mathematical function designed to recognize patterns within data. What happens to these patterns? We won’t go into the details of technology, but there are several types of algorithms. We would explain it in the following way to a child:

• Detectors simply give you the information that patterns are present. These algorithms are like smoke detectors. They only sound when someone lights up a cigarette. Speech and image recognition algorithms are good examples.

• Predictors extracts patterns from historical data to give you information on the future. Netflix algorithms, for example, see that you like “Black Mirror”, ‘Stranger Things’ and ‘Doctor Who’ — and suggest more science fiction series to watch.

• Creators use patterns that they have recognized and combine them to create new things. They are called algorithms that create outputs based on input. ChatGPT, Midjourney, and many other examples are popular.

All three types of algorithms can be used for email marketing. Let’s look at some examples.

AI for email marketing

Not all neural networks can be generative, but every algorithm has a place in email marketing. Get ready for an exciting ride!

Email drafts

Will AI replace copywriters in the future? No, not yet — it may be better to avoid sending AI outputs directly to your contact list. If you are short on time and uninspired, using an AI to draft a piece of copy can be a good starting point. The key is to draft — this example from ChatGPT 4.0, for instance, needs some editing.

PromptWrite an email to welcome a mobile meditation app called ZenMedit, which features funny guided mediations recorded by celebrities. This app is aimed at people who suffer from anxiety. Ask them to read the guide for new users. Style: informal, friendly

Output: Subject: ZenMedit is a meditation app that makes you laugh!Dear [User]ZenMedit is an app that promises to make your meditation practice fun and enjoyable. You’ve come to a good place if you suffer from anxiety.ZenMedit believes that laughter is the most effective medicine. That’s why we have teamed up with celebrities and comedians to create guided meditations which are both funny and effective. Our teachers will lead you through breathing techniques, visualizations, and introspective mediations while making jokes.Don’t worry. We’ve got your back. Our guide for new users will provide you with all the information needed to get started. The guide is easy to use and covers everything, from account setup to meditation sessions. The guided tour is available at any time from your profile.We’re excited to welcome you and look forward to you trying out our meditation sessions. Keep an open mind and prepare to laugh yourself calmer.We appreciate you choosing ZenMedit. Let’s spread positivity and meditate together.Peace and serenityThe ZenMedit Team

This newsletter copy for an AI is solid. It’s a bit long for an email welcome, but it contains important information about how to use the application. The learning data of the algorithms cannot be used to write about new products because they only have information on existing items.

ChatGPT isn’t the only AI that generates. There are even algorithms that have been designed for email marketing, like Hoppy Copy.

After you fill out the form, you will receive five slightly different copies (and disturbingly great) and bonus subject lines to use for future A/B tests.

This copy could use some editing, such as adding more links and being more specific with the blog content. But, in general, this is a decent email to welcome an AI. No matter what tool you choose, an AI-generated first draft will help speed up the writing process.

Write catchy subject lines

Hoppy Copy, as we have already mentioned, also creates multiple versions of the email subject line. Here’s the result of our algorithm.

These variants are a bit cringeworthy and old-fashioned. The subject lines are too long, the title case is too large, and there are too many emojis. They look like throwbacks to the decade of the 2010s. You don’t need to use them exactly as they are. Even if the AI output you receive is not impressive, it can be a great place to begin brainstorming if you are out of ideas. But drafting isn’t the only way that algorithms can assist you in creating email subject lines.

Phrasee, and other AI-powered tools, don’t only write content for you. They can learn about your brand guidelines, identify whether your content is in line with the tone of voice, analyze your subscribers’ behaviors, and study the subject lines that you created.

These features will help you create subject lines that are effective and get more opens and clicks. If you’re still skeptical, Phrasee will run A/B testing for AI-generated subject lines vs. those created by humans so that you can see what the difference is.

Generating visuals

Midjourney, despite its problems with human hands and text on images, is currently the best AI “painter”. It can save marketing teams who don’t have an illustrator on staff. You can use the algorithm to create email headers and illustrations that will spice up your copy.

It’s not the only use of AI in email design. Sarbacane lets you create email templates from your website. These templates not only save you time when compared with manually designing every email, but they also ensure that your brand is consistent on all channels.

Segmentation

List Segmentation divides the subscriber list into different groups, and sends them different newsletters depending on their characteristics. You can segment your contact list by location, time zone, gender, age, and behavior. Manually segmenting your contacts is possible, but has some drawbacks.

• It is time-consuming to do, especially when you have a large number of subscribers and a complex set of behavioral criteria.

• You can send the wrong email to the wrong person.

• You can create large groups of subscribers using superficial criteria without big data analysis. This is still better than nothing, but there’s room for improvement.

The neural networks excel at quickly recognizing patterns, and extracting insights from huge datasets. They can create groups of subscribers based on complex criteria within seconds when they have access to all your behavioral data. This AI tool from Emarsys, for example, allows you to create segments based on predictions with customers that are likely to drop or move down in the sales funnel over some time.

Lead Nurturing is now at the next level with technologies like these. You can use predictive segmentation to send reactivation emails to customers who are about to leave. This will increase your chances of regaining them. You can also fine-tune your nurturing campaigns to ensure that warm customers receive a gentle push at the right moment. This will increase your conversions.

Send times optimized

No one agrees on the best time to send an email. We conducted our research and a review to determine the optimal time to send emails. None of these numbers is a sure-fire recipe for success. Send times optimization is difficult to achieve without AI, whether it’s manual or automated.

• If your subscribers are using VPNs, the time zone information is automatically derived from their IP addresses. This data does not reveal where your subscribers live or what their schedule is.

• The time zone of a subscriber to your newsletter cannot be changed. If they were away at the time, your emails will be sent at incorrect times.

• Even if you set up time zone-based groups of subscribers, they won’t all be checking their email at the same time.

This is where AI can be useful. Machines can detect data patterns better than humans. They’ll optimize sending times based on your subscribers’ email browsing behavior. Seventh Sense’s Smart Sent was created by Hubspot as a great example.

Email lists can be cleaned up

List Hygiene is essential for email delivery. You may trigger spam filters if you leave unengaged subscribers on your list. This can also damage the reputation of your sender’s IP. Some ESPs offer a feature to remove inactive subscribers.

The automated non-AI filter is coarser. It’s like a sieve with a fine mesh that allows you to strain the water from pasta, but rice grains will still pass through. AI filters can detect subtler patterns in subscriber behavior. It’s like a fine-mesh sieve to sift the flour. Some ESPs have already implemented the AI-powered feature for list cleaning. If yours does not, you can still use a separate app for this — such as Listclean. This tool will remove spam traps and contact list investments such as temporary emails. This tool also uses AI to verify that you are only sending promotional newsletters to actual people.

Email Retargeting

By targeting ads or emails, you can show promotional content to people who may not know much about you but are interested in what you have to offer. Retargeting shows data-driven content to people who are interested in your offer but haven’t purchased anything yet.

Content is adapted to the customer’s browsing history in retargeted emails.

AI can be used to track user behavior in this instance and tailor the email content for every user – both browsing items and recommendations. This can be achieved by integrating third-party AI features with your ESPs and using in-built ESP features. Mailchimp, for example, has a tool that predicts the customer lifetime value potential of all your subscribers. It then suggests special promotions to send them based on this prediction.

Recommendations for certain products

Netflix is an example of AI-powered recommendations. This AI marketing use case is one of the oldest on our list. It is used by many retailers to recommend products.

• Buy together frequently — such as batteries or lenses to fit a camera.
• Purchased by people who have similar purchasing histories
• People who like the same product buy it
• Alternatives to the product
• For a certain product

AI-powered email recommendations take personalization to a new level. Without it, you’re limited to selecting the most popular products from your store. Machine learning can help you deliver more relevant content to your subscribers, and increase upsells more effectively.

AI-based email marketing: Benefits

Let’s talk about how machine learning can benefit your business.

High ROI

McKinsey survey shows that AI implementation in marketing and sales leads to cost savings of 20%. Even better, AI marketing leads to revenue increases of 5% or more, which equates to a higher ROI.

How it works

• AI optimizes campaigns to increase customer engagement and sales.
• You can also send less ineffective and irrelevant email content with AI optimization, allowing you to burn less budget on marketing without recouping it.

Here’s how machine learning can help you achieve a higher return on investment!

Personalization is easy

Email marketing statistics show that customers don’t want to be treated like walking ATMs. According to Wunderkind, 73% of US consumers expect customized communication — and 90% are loyal to brands that are good at adapting messages to their specific needs. Personalization will be a necessity in 2023.

Email Personalization can be done without AI. For example, using a merge tag you can address recipients by first name. AI allows you to go deeper, and include or refer to many customer data points in your emails. This personalization results in incremental revenue increases. GlassesUSA, a retailer of eyewear, increased its revenue by up to 88 after implementing AI-powered recommendations. You can even go beyond email! AI-powered personalized push notifications and homepage content will increase your revenue and make customers happier.

You can also find out more about Automated Vehicles by clicking here.

Imagine waking up every morning to a cup of coffee that has been brewed using a cezve. You need to get up 20 minutes early to prepare the cezve with water and coffee. Then, place it on the stove and watch it closely to ensure it doesn’t spill. What if you could have a machine that would make you a cup of coffee minutes after you awake? Instead of watching the cezve, you could sleep or do other pleasant things.

Imagine that each email in your bulk mailing has to be manually configured. In this situation, automating sequences that work as long as desired will save you hundreds of hours. AI can save you time, especially when designing complex behavior-based sequences. Instead of boring but necessary work, you could refine your email strategy.

Can AI replace email marketing?

Not really. AI can analyze marketing data more efficiently than humans, saving you time and money. Even the most advanced neural networks can’t completely replace email marketers today. Here’s why:

• The button must be pushed by someone. Is it possible to automate the writing of content? Someone must write the prompts for ChatGPT, or whatever GAN is being used. You hired a neural net for data analysis. Someone must come up with an AI-friendly task, create a dataset and interpret the results. These are not autonomous entities. They are just apps that require human input.

• AIs cannot “think” in a strategic way. Marketing is much more than narrow, specific tasks that AI can do. Human email marketers are responsible for defining a UVP and building a brand. They also have to come up with long-term strategies.

• AIs do not have soft skills. Even if the majority of tasks are outsourced to AI, including content creation and marketing, it is still necessary for humans to manage a team.

• AI content creation is still not very good. You can use generative algorithms to speed up writing or create illustrations, but all AI output needs human supervision and editing.

Even though AI can be a useful tool for campaign optimization, and for saving time to do more laborious tasks, instead of being buried in the mundane, no existing algorithm can replace an entire email marketing department. The good news is that marketers who are worried about losing their job will not be affected!

Final Thoughts

AI cannot replace email marketers, but it can automate their work and increase the effectiveness of marketing campaigns. Machine learning algorithms come in many different types. Some algorithms are designed to detect patterns while others can be taught to create new things. Here’s how to use them for email marketing:

• Drafting emails – they need to be edited, but this is a good starting point.
• How to write catchy subject lines – both creating and optimizing ideas for maximum efficiency.
• Restructuring Email Campaigns — Finding the best structures for automating sequences using historical data.
• Segmentation – a deeper look at your subscribers’ behavior.
• Eliminating inactive email subscribers is a good way to improve your domain’s reputation.
• Email Retargeting — creating personalized messages for sales.
• Sending data-driven recommendations – send out products that your subscribers will enjoy.