Executive Summary. Q4 Benchmark Report: A Marketer s Guide to 2018

Transcription

1 Q4 Benchmark Report: A Marketer s Guide to 2018 Executive Summary 2017 was a tumultuous year for retail with a number of store closings and bankruptcies, resulting from a much-discussed shift in consumer behavior towards e-commerce and mobile commerce. Many brands struggled, or were unable to pivot to address the shift. As more people turned to online shopping and Amazon in particular, 1 many marketers were not ready to implement long-talked-about digital-forward strategies that would help them adapt to the changing landscape and cater to their audience s preferences. Throughout 2017, remained a tried-and-true revenue-driver generating more than 50 times its return on investment. 2 Over the same period however, open, click and click-to-open (CTO) rates continued on a steep decline, revealing a sizeable gap that marketers need to close immediately. This report, based on analysis of almost 9 billion s sent in Q and over 30 billion sent in 2017 will focus on concrete, achievable goals marketers can set for 2018 in order to grow revenue by staying attuned to their audience s preferences and behaviors marketing@yeslifecyclemarketing.com yeslifecyclemarketing.com pg. 1

2 With mobile opens and clicks making up 53% of all events over the last two years, adoption on mobile has plateaued Goal: Implement responsive design for 100% of messages. Mobile events (opens & clicks) overtook desktop ones as early as 2013 and since then that ratio has remained the same, implying that adoption of mobile has reached a saturation point. Proportion of Mobile and Desktop Events (Opens & Clicks) 55.0% 60% 52.6% 50.6% 52.9% 52.9% 55% 47.4% 49.4% 47.1% 47.1% 50% 45.0% 45% 40% Q Q Q Q Q Mobile Events Desktop Events This is part of a larger trend in mobile adoption; according to Wired the smartphone market has gone flat with the lowestever annual growth of smartphone shipments and an ever-shrinking number of first-time buyers. 3 In other words, the people in North America who could interact with on their mobile devices, most likely already do so. What this means is that communications between brands and consumers will continue to happen on a combination of desktop and mobile, which puts further emphasis on the importance of offering a consistent experience across different messages and platforms. And this starts with responsive design marketing@yeslifecyclemarketing.com yeslifecyclemarketing.com pg. 2

3 ! A quick refresher: Responsive design allows s to automatically adapt to a consumer s screen size and provide an optimal viewing and interaction experience. It ensures readability and preserves the visual appeal of s by stacking sections in accordance with the dimensions of a consumer s device. While it stands to reason that responsive design (or lack thereof) would not impact consumers who view s on a desktop, the data begs to differ. Surprisingly, both desktop and mobile click-to-open (CTO) rates are highest for brands that only send responsive messages. Desktop CTO Mobile CTO Brands with all responsive s 13.1% Brands with no responsive s 9.7% Brands with all responsive s 13.2% Brands with no responsive s 9.7% This means that responsive design does not just enhance the mobile experience but also the desktop one, especially considering how many consumers switch between platforms when interacting with s. While brands that optimize all of their messages enjoy a minimum of 13.1% CTO, the ones sending only non-responsive s garner significantly lower CTO at 9.7%. In other words, marketers who are yet to optimize their messages only capture 75% of the engagement generated by their responsive counterparts, thus missing out on significant opportunities for conversion. But what if a brand sends a mix of responsive and non-responsive messages? Remarkably, marketers who send a mix of responsive and non-responsive messages generate the lowest overall open rates which implies that a consistent experience is key to capturing and maintaining subscribers attention. Message Category Open Rate Unique Click Rate All responsive 15.0% 1.4% Some responsive 13.5% 1.1% None responsive 14.9% 1.1% marketing@yeslifecyclemarketing.com yeslifecyclemarketing.com pg. 3

4 At the same time, less than a quarter (24%) of marketers have optimized all of their messages to be responsive, and therefore enjoy higher open and click rates. Share of Marketers with Message Category All Responsive 24.2% A B None Responsive 14.8% C Some Responsive 60.9% One reason for this low number could be that many marketers still design their campaigns as a one-off or adjust previously deployed messages as opposed to using a flexible template system that includes sections for all their current and future marketing communication needs.! This is a huge opportunity to prioritize mobile optimization and significantly improve response rates. Prep for Q4 2018: Marketers must update all of their messages to responsive before Q4 in order to put their best foot forward for the most important time of the year. In addition, Q4 is when consumers hybrid activity (the behavior of using both desktop and mobile to interact with ) goes up. As noted above, having all responsive messages translates into better open, click, and CTO rates which means higher conversion on either device over the crucial holiday season marketing@yeslifecyclemarketing.com yeslifecyclemarketing.com pg. 4

5 In 2017, at 3.3%, mobile conversion rate reached desktop for the first time Goal: Equalize desktop and mobile average order value (AOV) In 2018, the smartphone will continue to be king not just in terms of opens and clicks but also in terms of orders and revenue. In 2017, smartphone orders accounted for 46% of all -driven orders, registering an increase of 33% year-over-year (YoY). In addition, mobile conversion rate (orders per click) reached a new level in 2017, arriving at an average of 3.3% the same as desktop conversion. Over the same period, tablet and desktop orders declined by 14% and 18%, respectively. While technological advances made the shift from desktop to mobile possible, marketers have also worked hard to create parity between the desktop and mobile experience. Share of -driven Orders 60% 55.4% 50% 45.9% 45.5% 40% 30% 34.6% -14% YOY 20% 10% +33% YOY -18% YOY 10.0% 8.6% 0% 2016 Average 2017 Average 2016 Average 2017 Average 2016 Average 2017 Average Smartphone Desktop Tablet However, the story about the growth of mobile is incomplete without considering the average order value (AOV) of mobile and desktop purchases. As mobile started growing rapidly in the early 2010s, the overall AOV for -driven purchases declined; consumers were spending significantly less on their mobile devices because the purchase experience diverged substantially from that of desktop. The mobile path-to-purchase was initially plagued by poorly formatted and hard to read s, long load times, lack of security, and much more. As marketers made efforts to close the gaps between the desktop and mobile purchase experiences, consumers started buying consistently on mobile, but remained reluctant to spend big. In fact, in 2017 mobile AOV was still 40% lower than desktop AOV ($96 vs $58) and that ratio hadn t changed over the last 3 years marketing@yeslifecyclemarketing.com yeslifecyclemarketing.com pg. 5

6 Average Order Value $150 $100 $69.10 $ $62.9 $103.7 $57.9 $96.1 $50 $ Average 2016 Average 2017 Average Mobile AOV Desktop AOV This is a major opportunity for marketers to improve in 2018 by bridging the gap between mobile and desktop AOV, as mobile continues to drive over half of -driven orders.! If marketers succeed in tackling this challenge, they stand to earn 40% more revenue in # Goals The key to closing the gap between mobile and desktop AOV, is continual improvement of the mobile shopping experience. One important purchase driver for big ticket items is having the necessary information easily available and accessible. Often customers put off clicking the PURCHASE button on their mobile device because they think they might be missing something they would not overlook if they re looking at a larger screen. In other words, consumers believe that desktop functionality can better validate larger purchases. By providing access to critical product information marketers can encourage consumers to make a purchase decision on their mobile. This often starts with an optimized , but continues with a consistently seamless experience on a brand s website or mobile app. For example, marketers can create s that showroom different products by featuring multiple product images from various angles (or a 360-degree product view gif), highlighting customer ratings and reviews of the product, and including key product specs such as size, dimension, other options, etc. If a brand has a mobile app that provides these kinds of functionality, they should consider linking their to the app to create a seamless experience. Marketers should also remind customers of the key benefits of shopping with their brand (like free shipping, free returns, lifetime warranty) throughout the mobile experience to alleviate any doubt about making the purchase on-the-go. Meet Mila marketing@yeslifecyclemarketing.com yeslifecyclemarketing.com pg. 6

7 2018 # Goals In a nutshell, s ability to drive conversion is still not fully tapped, especially on mobile. Take this example from Nest. The brand s Black Friday campaign significantly shortens the purchase path by integrating cart functionality directly into their , thus eliminating steps and page loads. Last chance to save big. Nest Black Friday ends soon. One Item Added Three Items Added In this , which may have been a follow-up to a desktop browse session, Nest provides the means to make the final decision on the go. Testing this type of innovative tactic can pay off in a big way and help equalize mobile and desktop AOV. It can also help streamline the mobile path to conversion, especially for browse abandon or abandoned cart triggers which are sent exclusively to subscribers who already know about a brand s product and are far down the path to conversion. Prep for Q4 2018: Design marketing strategies that address the purposeful shopping phenomenon. Purposeful shopping is unique because it s goal-oriented and not motivated by impulse or necessity. It is most common in Q4 due to the holiday season and entails a change in consumer behavior consumers tend to set time aside to complete the goal of purchasing gifts. In order to support this behavior, marketers should focus on facilitating gift-giving decisions. Gift guides, interactive gift selection tools (such as quizzes), and lists of most popular/highest rated/ recently released gift items can simplify and accelerate gift purchase decisions. Marketers can incorporate those aides into their s and websites to address purposeful shopping and the unique Q4 purchase process marketing@yeslifecyclemarketing.com yeslifecyclemarketing.com pg. 7

8 With volume growing by 18% YoY, the inbox continues to overflow, affecting long-term subscriber engagement Goal: Practice purposeful marketing through triggers and value added communications. The number of s active subscribers receive continues to grow; in Q it increased by 18% YoY (since Q4 2016). The number of opens and clicks per subscriber is also growing but at a considerably slower pace which means that engagement is not keeping up with volume. For example, opens per opener have increased by 8.4% YoY while clicks per clicker have only improved by 3.3% YoY. This tapered growth in engagement, particularly in clicks per clicker is a clear indication that marketers do not cater well enough to their audiences interests, behaviors and preferences. Another sign pointing to marketers need to deliver better communications, informed by consumer data, is the growing share of inactive subscribers in marketers databases.! In Q4, a fifth of brands mailable audience was made up of subscribers whose last open was over a year ago. That constitutes a 22.5% YoY increase in inactive subscribers. Unfortunately for marketers, as more subscribers were becoming inactive, fewer were opting into their programs. In fact, throughout 2017, the share of new subscribers in marketers databases consistently declined, falling to its lowest point in Q4 when new subscribers accounted for just 3.5% of marketers mailable audience. 7% 6% 5% 6.1% Share of recent subscribers (opted in within 90 days) 5.1% 4.3% 4% 3.5% 3% 2% 1% 0% Q Q Q Q marketing@yeslifecyclemarketing.com yeslifecyclemarketing.com pg. 8

9 These two metrics suggest that marketers failed to engage subscribers consistently and that consumers have become less likely to opt into programs they re not already subscribed to. These findings present a great opportunity for marketers to improve in 2018 by: 1) Improving the relevance of their communications in order to prevent both new and existing subscribers from falling into inactivity. 2) Providing compelling reasons for consumers to opt into their programs and remain engaged in order to grow the size of their audience as well as its engaged segment # Goals Lucky for marketers, there are specific actions they can take in order to achieve these two major goals. First off, one of the most effective ways to drive continuous engagement and improve relevance is implementing triggered programs. Triggered messages are the most relevant and timely communications marketers can deliver to their subscribers because they are informed by specific consumer behaviors, milestones and events and deployed within a set timeframe. They are designed to elicit an immediate response and they do in Q4 2017, triggered s generated more than double the open rate of standard messages, more than triple their unique click rates and almost double their CTO. Performance of Standard vs Triggered s 30% 27.3% 6% 18% 25% 5% 15% 14.6% 20% 4% 4.0% 12% 15% 13.4% 3% 9% 8.3% 10% 2% 1.1% 6% 5% 1% 3% 0% 0% 0% Open Rate Unique Click CTO Standard s Triggered s Triggers are equally important to ensuring new subscribers remain subscribed and engaged. Marketers should use welcome series to remind consumers of the special benefits (perks/discounts/gifts) of joining their community and reinforce their choice to subscribe. This is a golden window of opportunity to drive first purchases and set the stage for a strong relationship marketing@yeslifecyclemarketing.com yeslifecyclemarketing.com pg. 9

10 At the same time, marketers should use activation triggers to bring back subscribers who have recently opted into a brand s mailing program but have not interacted with any or most of the messages they ve received. Activation programs aim to recapture these subscribers attention and reintroduce them to the benefits of a brand s mailing program through a combination of offer incentives, playful and cheeky copy, and message personalization. For example, the activation series by Save-a-Lot aims to capture subscribers attention with a generous offer a $100 gift card that can be theirs if they engage further with the brand by filling out a survey. At the same time, Save-a-Lot uses the creative to remind consumers of the value the brand brings to them every day through savings on many staples as well as the quality of their products. Save with Affordable Fresh Produce & Win a $100 Gift Card! Last chance to win a $100 Gift Card + savings on National Brands It s Been Awhile... Win a Gift Card for Your Thoughts Prep for Q4 2018: Historically, the share of new subscribers in marketers databases increases between Q3 and Q4. Last year marked a U-turn with the share of new subscribers declining by 19% between Q3 and Q4. This translates into a decline not only in overall audience size but also in its engaged segment, ultimately affecting a brand s bottom line over the holiday season. That s why it is critical for marketers to reverse this trend in 2018 by ensuring their subscription/registration process is on point. This means optimizing landing pages, registration forms, welcome series and preference centers to create a seamless opt-in experience that encourages conversion across channels. For detailed visual examples of effective registration processes, check out our lookbook Registration Programs that Convert marketing@yeslifecyclemarketing.com yeslifecyclemarketing.com pg. 10

11 On average, just 2% of volume in 2017 came from triggers, demonstrating continuously low trigger adoption despite excellent engagement and conversion metrics Goal: Expand lifecycle and behavior-based triggers. In the previous section, we briefly discussed the importance of triggers and their substantial impact on subscriber engagement. Here, we go into marketers adoption of triggers and where they stand to improve in With the increasingly crowded consumer inbox, there is even more incentive to send triggered campaigns and meet customers where they are and when they are paying attention. Yet only 2.3% of all s sent in 2017 were triggers and that number has remained the same quarter-over-quarter. The fact that there has been no sustained growth of trigger adoption over the last year presents an enormous opportunity for marketers to grow and diversify their campaign portfolio while improving content relevance, engagement and conversion. Every type of trigger drives a better open, unique click and CTO rate than standard, non-triggered messages. Even reactivation s, which are sent exclusively to subscribers who have not engaged with a brand for months (and even years), rival the performance of standard messages in terms of CTO and conversion rate. Trigger Type Share of Marketers Open Unique Click Click-to-Open Conversion with Trigger Type Rate Rate Rate Rate* Activation 4% 17.0% 1.4% 8.5% 7.7% Anniversary 4% 17.7% 1.8% 10.2% 8.5% Birthday 15% 17.7% 2.1% 12.0% 8.2% Reactivation 20% 5.3% 0.5% 8.6% 4.8% Welcome 71% 29.1% 4.7% 16.2% 5.3% STANDARD (non-trigger) 13.4% 1.1% 8.3% 4.8% *Conversion is defined as number of orders per click. In addition, even though lifecycle messaging is considered a basic building block of a robust program, most marketers stop after implementing a welcome or series. Only a few develop other lifecycle cornerstones such as activation, reactivation, birthday and anniversary triggers despite their outstanding performance both in terms of engagement and conversion marketing@yeslifecyclemarketing.com yeslifecyclemarketing.com pg. 11

12 ! For example in Q4, anniversary campaigns (messages that acknowledge a milestone in the relationship between a brand and its customer) garnered a 32% higher open rate, 45% higher CTO rate, and almost double the click and conversion rates of standard campaigns. That is not only a massive increase in engagement, but also a huge uptick in revenue. Another category of underutilized triggers is remarketing triggers, which are dictated by consumers browse behavior. Less than a quarter of marketers have implemented abandoned cart triggers, and only 8% send browse abandon messages. Trigger Type Share of Marketers Open Unique Click Click-to-Open Conversion with Trigger Type Rate Rate Rate Rate Abandoned Cart 23% 33.1% 8.4% 25.4% 11.8% Browse No Buy 8% 26.1% 3.7% 14.1% 7.9% STANDARD (non-trigger) 13.4% 1.1% 8.3% 4.8% Not only are these campaigns proven conversion drivers but they also generate high engagement rates and outperform business-as-usual s across the board. While abandoned cart and browse abandon triggers may not make sense for every business model, there is still an opportunity for marketers to engage, entice and convert using consumer behavior. Regardless of industry, products or services, brands need to identify behaviors that lead to the desired action and design triggers to encourage those behaviors. For instance, who says marketers job is done after a subscriber makes a purchase? There are plenty of opportunities to upsell and cross-sell additional products or services based on consumers most recent purchases or purchase history. For example, in its post-purchase series, Lands End does a great job of recommending products that complement subscribers recent orders while also incentivizing purchases with a subtly advertised 30% off discount. In addition, the use of a Top 5 list is an innovative tactic that instantly sets the message apart. Much appreciated! Handpicked just for you! We found you something! marketing@yeslifecyclemarketing.com yeslifecyclemarketing.com pg. 12

13 ! If a recommendation engine is still many moons away for some marketers, they can still develop a limited number of triggers which send cross-sell/up-sell messages only to customers who purchased any of their top 5 best-selling products, for example. Prep for Q4 2018: Goal #1 The volume of browse abandon s increased by 47% from Q3 to Q and their conversion rate grew from 5.5% to 7.9% over the same period. In short, make sure you have a browse abandon program before Q4 since it helps marketers stay top-of-mind during a trafficheavy shopping season. This type of trigger may mean the difference between a lost customer and a purchase. Prep for Q4 2018: Goal #2 Avoid sending reactivation s to a larger portion of your inactive audience and instead, implement consistent reactivation triggers that work year-round to bring back lapsed subscribers. In Q4 2017, the number of reactivation s marketers sent increased by 11% even though fewer brands were sending them. This means that marketers sent reactivation messages to larger portions of their inactive audience which tripled the bounce rates of reactivation campaigns sent in Q4 compared to those sent in Q3 (5.7% vs 1.9%). Higher bounce rates often result in major deliverability issues and high risk of getting blocked by ISPs, which negatively affects revenue. To learn more about deliverability best practices and achieve optimal inboxing rates, download our Deliverability Guide marketing@yeslifecyclemarketing.com yeslifecyclemarketing.com pg. 13

14 While s with offers in the subject line boast 4X the conversion rate, they drive considerably lower engagement than messages without offers Goal: Equalize engagement between messages with offers and those without. On average, 23% of all s sent in 2017 contained an offer in the subject line such as free shipping, specific percent or dollar discount, buy one/get one free, and more. The most popular type of offer was % off which accounted for over half (54%) of all offers promoted in subject lines in However and perhaps due to its ubiquity, % off is the lowest converter among s with offers in the subject line. Offer Type % of s Open Unique Click Click-to-Open Conversion with Offers* Rate Rate Rate Rate (click) $ Off 27% 11.7% 0.6% 8.0% 10.2% % Off 54% 12.4% 0.9% 10.2% 7.5% BOGO 4% 12.8% 0.8% 9.1% 8.9% Free Shipping 9% 10.7% 0.6% 8.4% 7.7% Loyalty Incentives 5% 19.3% 1.8% 12.3% 10.8% *The sum of these numbers does not add up to 100% due to fractions In contrast, loyalty offers are the best converters with 10.8% of clicks resulting in a purchase. This stands to reason, considering that loyalty offers are typically sent to members of a brand s rewards program so that audience segment tends to be more engaged and invested. But the true bar for both engagement and conversion is set by standard s that do not contain any offers in the subject line. Those s drive considerably higher engagement than messages with offers; in fact, they generate 35% higher open rate, 50% higher CTO and double the unique click rate. At the same time, however, standard messages generate an average conversion rate of just 2% while s with offers garner an 8.4% conversion rate. Type Open Unique Click Click-to-Open Conversion Rate Rate Rate Rate (click) All Offers 12.2% 0.8% 9.4% 8.4% Standard (no offer) 16.5% 1.7% 15.0% 2.0% These metrics suggest that there is a sizeable opportunity to improve engagement for offers and thus grow their revenue. A higher number of opens generally leads to a higher number of clicks, which leads to a higher number of purchases, ultimately generating more revenue. Since s with offers drive significantly better conversion, an incremental increase in clicks can easily translate into more revenue marketing@yeslifecyclemarketing.com yeslifecyclemarketing.com pg. 14

15 2018 # Goals One way to achieve better open rates for offers is subject line personalization. Like we reported in our recent Subject Line Benchmark Report, s with personalized subject lines generate at least 50% higher open rates and, at a minimum, double the unique click rates of s without subject line personalization. Type of Subject Line Open Unique Click Click-to-Open Personalization Rate Rate Rate Other 22.0% 3.8% 17.5% Name 21.2% 2.9% 13.8% None 14.1% 1.2% 8.7% These metrics are based on analysis of over 7 billion s sent in Q off of s cross-channel platform Yesmail360i This means that marketers stand to significantly improve engagement for s with offers by simply incorporating a subscriber s name into the subject line. For even better results, marketers can implement additional subject line personalization based on purchase history, browse behavior, location, recommendation engine data or preference center data. Personalized subject line: Ivy, $5 off your next HIIT class! Original subject line: $5 off! Subscriber s name Type of fitness class she took Personalized subject line: Marie, $5 off your next yoga class! Prep for Q4 2018: Since online shopping has become the norm, marketers who are able to offer free shipping in Q4 will get an edge over their competition. In Q4, the conversion rate for s advertising free shipping reached 9.6% - an increase of 36% over the 2017 average. This signals an important consumer preference that can affect the bottom line over the holiday season. It also means that marketers should highlight free shipping offers in their messaging and not assume subscribers would read the header or footer of their s for this critical detail. In addition, touting free shipping as a secondary subject line offer might be a good decision for marketers since multi-offer subject lines drive the highest conversion rates in Q marketing@yeslifecyclemarketing.com yeslifecyclemarketing.com pg. 15

16 7% of marketing campaigns boast seasonal themes and while they generate higher conversion rates than standard campaigns, their engagement rates are consistently lower Goal: Close the engagement gap between themed and non-themed s to drive revenue. Themed s use different holidays and events in their subject lines to enhance relevance and invite more opens. Some of the most popular themes include Christmas, Valentine s Day, Black Friday, summer, Memorial Day, the Super Bowl, and many more. In theory, themed campaigns are a great way for marketers to stand out and drive engagement. It stands to reason that incorporating an upcoming holiday or event into a subject line or creative will help brands appear more relevant. In reality, however, most marketers do not have a truly integrated approach to using themes and this is evidenced by the fact that themed s generate significantly lower open, click, and CTO rates Average Open Unique Click Click-to-Open Conversion Rate Rate Rate Rate (click) Non-themed s 14.9% 1.3% 8.8% 3.8% Themed s 10.9% 0.8% 7.6% 5.1% So, even though themed campaigns tend to drive better conversion rates than their non-themed counterparts, there is a great opportunity for marketers to improve their bottom line even more. A higher number of opens generally leads to a higher number of clicks, which leads to a higher number of purchases, ultimately generating more revenue. In short, an incremental increase in clicks for themed s, given their high conversion rate, can mean sizeable revenue growth. 4% Click rate (400 people) 3% Conversion rate (12 people) $50 Average spend $600 Generated revenue Campaign sent to 10,000 people 2% Click rate (200 people) 5% Conversion rate (10 people) $50 Average spend $500 Generated revenue marketing@yeslifecyclemarketing.com yeslifecyclemarketing.com pg. 16

17 2018 # Goals Like we mentioned in the beginning of this section, most marketers do not have an integrated approach to using themes which results in lower-than-average engagement rates. One of the main culprits is that when marketers use themes, they do not necessarily try to connect their brand to their customers through the theme. Instead, the use of themes becomes a defacto decision with little real relevance to their customers. Without that connection, consumers will quickly move on to the next message in their overflowing inbox without engaging. The two campaigns below illustrate the different approaches to holiday themes. Macaroni Grill incorporates the inviting subject line Come to our home for Christmas Eve into their campaign but once a subscriber opens it, the message falls short of the expectation it has set; it s simply a reminder that the restaurant is open in Christmas Eve and not a way to create a unique experience or communicate unique value. Season 52 also opens with an attention-grabbing subject line that includes a celebratory emoji You survived the holiday. But after opening the , subscribers are welcomed by a highly relevant offer and cheeky copy that perfectly tie back into the subject line and the theme of relief that the holidays are over. Come to our home for Christmas Eve You survived the holiday marketing@yeslifecyclemarketing.com yeslifecyclemarketing.com pg. 17

18 Prep for Q4 2018: As expected, Black Friday and Cyber Monday themes drove strong conversion rates but attempting to extend those events did not pay off. Cyber Week, which was introduced in the last couple of years to promote more sales, garnered lower conversion rates than non-themed campaigns. Theme/Event Open Unique Click Click-to-Open Conversion Rate Rate Rate Rate (click) Black Friday 14.0% 1.3% 9.2% 6.4% Christmas 14.8% 1.2% 8.2% 3.8% Columbus Day 13.0% 0.9% 6.7% 7.6% Cyber Monday 12.0% 1.1% 9.5% 8.9% Cyber Week 12.7% 1.2% 9.1% 3.6% Green Monday 13.2% 0.8% 6.2% 6.5% Halloween 6.9% 0.4% 5.4% 5.4% Thanksgiving 9.1% 0.8% 8.3% 3.9% Non-themed s 14.2% 1.2% 8.7% 4.8% The unexpected outcomes in Q4 belonged to Green Monday and Columbus Day which outperformed Black Friday by driving conversion rates of 6.5% and 7.6%, respectively. This suggests that there are plenty of energy moments in Q4 for marketers to leverage without having to extend any particular promotion beyond its shelf-life. Green Monday, in particular, presents a big opportunity since only 7% of brands incorporated the event into their s in marketing@yeslifecyclemarketing.com yeslifecyclemarketing.com pg. 18

19 CONCLUSION: Based on the comprehensive analysis of data as well as year-over-year trends, volume will only continue to increase. That s why developing effective strategies that combat the decline of engagement that goes hand in hand with larger volume is more important than ever. Marketers need to focus on creating balanced communication programs that incorporate well-timed offers, value-add messaging, relevant themes, and well-placed products informed by consumers preferences and history. Equally as important, marketers must ensure those communication programs lead consumers along a fully optimized mobile path-to-purchase that mirrors (and even improves upon!) the desktop experience. All in all, there are a lot of opportunities for marketers to improve their initiatives in 2018 and to significantly increase their -driven revenue. Take a look at the data from 2017 and follow the # Goals we set in this report to develop winning tactics for Sources: 1 According to Business Insider, Amazon captured 4% of all US retail sales in 2017 and 44% of US e-commerce sales. 2 This number is a Q average calculated across all brands mailing off of s cross-channel platform. 3 About generates superior results by turning data into action through its cross-channel marketing platform Yesmail360i and expert agency services. By combining technology and professional expertise, we transform brands into true insights-driven businesses and empower them to make better, smarter, and faster decisions. To learn more, call or marketing@yeslifecyclemarketing.com marketing@yeslifecyclemarketing.com yeslifecyclemarketing.com