Marketers know that it’s a good idea to keep an eye on and analyze your competitor’s email marketing strategy…but it’s a time-consuming task at best. The amount of time it takes to actually collect the emails, analyze them, and create meaningful reports is time that’s taken away from other (seemingly) higher-ROI projects.
Unfortunately, neglecting competitor research can hide opportunities to stand out in your industry and niche.
That’s why today, we’re diving into an efficient, tactical approach to analyzing your competitor’s email marketing strategy…
1. Identify Your Competitors
Who are your competitors? And more importantly: why are they your competitors?
The second part of that question is extremely important when it’s time to analyze your research.
Typically, I like to create a spreadsheet with the competitors’ names, websites, top strengths, top weaknesses, as well as how your product or business stands out.
On this spreadsheet, you’ll want to identify direct competitors, who target the same audience and offer similar products or services, as well as indirect competitors who have significant overlap with your business’ key value adds.
2. Collect and Organize Competitor Emails
If you’re anything like me, you might have already subscribed to a bunch of competitors’ emails with a fake email address, and now have an inbox or folder stuffed full of emails that you will literally never read.
There’s a better way to go about it:
- Set Up a Competitor Tracking Tool: Sign up for a free tool like Spotmar (where you can follow competitor brands and see their email campaigns) can help you stay organized by automatically gathering and categorizing emails from your chosen brands.
- Use the Brand Tracking Feature: Spotmar has a brand tracking feature that you can use to “subscribe” to any company or brand’s email list…and sit back as their their past and future emails are delivered directly in your Spotmar account. The Brand Tracking feature also gives you at-a-glance stats that can be valuable when it comes to
- Use Brand Tracking Lists: Get smart and create different lists (“Direct” and “Indirect,” perhaps?) for your competitor tracking, to make it easier when you reach the analysis stage of the research process.
Pro Tip: You can easily clean out your inbox and transfer all of those older competitor emails to your Spotmar account with the Spotmar Chrome Plugin.
3. Analyze Emails
Data analysis for email marketers can be a tricky and subjective effort. It’s important to know what you want to track—and why it will help with your own email marketing strategy—rather than simply collect data for data’s sake.
Here are a few areas you might want to pay attention to—and why.
Email Frequency and Timing
Are you worried about bothering your audience? Wondering whether you should test sending at a different time? Then you might want to pay attention to the frequency & timing of your competition:
- Frequency: Note how many emails they send per week, month, or during specific campaigns. Frequent emails might suggest an aggressive strategy aimed at staying top-of-mind, while less frequent emails might indicate a selective or targeted approach.
- Timing: Track the days and times they send emails. Knowing their schedule can help you identify optimal times if they target a similar audience, or provide insights into how your timing differs from theirs.
Review Email Design and Layout
Evaluate the look and feel of each email, paying attention to elements like:
- Visual Style: Is your competitor’s email design clean and minimalistic, image-heavy, or text-dominant? This can reveal their brand positioning and audience preferences.
- Responsive Design: Use the mobile view in Spotmar to see if they’re optimized for mobile. Mobile responsiveness is a must, and seeing how they handle it can provide ideas or highlight areas for improvement in your own emails.
- Use of CTAs (Calls-to-Action): Observe the placement, style, and wording of their CTAs. Competitors may use large, colorful buttons or embed links within the text—each approach tells you something about their focus, whether it’s driving engagement or traffic.
Break Down the Content Strategy
The content in an email often reveals the goals behind it. Take notes on the following:
- Value Proposition: Are they focused on discounts, education, or entertainment? This can help you understand the kind of value they aim to provide and how they appeal to their audience.
- Content Themes: Watch for recurring themes, such as product promotions, case studies, or tutorials. If you notice a competitor emphasizing a particular theme, it might indicate an area of high ROI.
- Personalization: Look for personalized elements, like the subscriber’s name or product recommendations based on behavior. This level of personalization can help you see whether they’re leveraging customer data to build stronger connections.
Evaluate Subject Lines and Preview Text
Subject lines and preview text are the first elements subscribers see. Some of the nuances to note:
- Style and Tone: Do they use formal language or a more conversational tone? The style can reveal a lot about their branding and audience preferences.
- Length and Structure: Subject lines that are short and direct may target busy readers, while longer, descriptive lines could appeal to a more engaged audience.
- Use of Emojis and Power Words: Emojis and attention-grabbing words can help boost open rates when used intelligently and with the right audience.
4. Study Their Landing Pages
As you begin to formulate the results of your analysis, it’s worth spending some time clicking over to the competitor’s landing pages and website as well, which can deliver some additional insight behind their marketing strategy.
A few things to look for:
- Alignment with Email Content: Good campaigns align the email and landing page themes. A strong email should flow seamlessly into the landing page, reinforcing the CTA.
- Conversion Focus: Is the page designed to convert visitors? Look for lead forms, buy-now buttons, or free trial sign-ups to understand their primary goals.
5. Monitor Special Campaigns and Seasonal Promotions
Many brands have different strategies for special promotions or seasonal events. Tracking these can help you identify trends in your industry and learn from effective tactics:
- Seasonal Themes: Look for recurring annual themes, like holiday promotions or back-to-school campaigns, to see if competitors capitalize on specific seasons.
- Limited-Time Offers: Analyze how they promote urgency through countdown timers or limited-stock announcements. These tactics can show how they create FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) among their audience.
- Product Releases: Most products are announced via email, which can be especially helpful if you’re looking for ways to uplevel your own approach to product marketing.
Key Takeaways for Your Strategy
Analyzing your competitors’ email strategies can inform your own by revealing what works (and doesn’t work) in your industry. Be sure to:
- Build on their strengths: If they have strong points in certain areas, like design or personalization, consider incorporating similar elements.
- Capitalize on weaknesses: If you see gaps—like a lack of mobile optimization or infrequent emails—use these as opportunities to differentiate.
- Use insights to stay ahead: With consistent tracking and analysis, you’ll be able to adapt your strategy and refine your approach to capture your audience’s attention better.
By consistently analyzing your competitors’ email marketing strategies, you’ll be in a strong position to adapt and grow your own email campaigns. Embrace the insights you gather, stay responsive to industry trends, and let your competitors’ strengths and weaknesses guide you toward crafting more impactful, engaging emails.
