Email Marketing

---
name: email-marketing
description: Email marketing strategy — campaigns, newsletter optimization, list segmentation, and deliverability best practices. For building multi-step drip/nurture/lifecycle email flows, see email-sequence.
allowed-tools: Read, Glob, Grep
---

# Email Marketing

> Master email marketing for nurturing leads and driving conversions.

---

## Before Starting — Product Marketing Context

If `.agents/product-marketing.md` exists (the shared positioning / ICP / voice doc created by the `product-marketing` skill), read it first and skip anything it already answers. If it doesn't exist, just proceed and gather what you need inline — it's an optional convenience, not a requirement.

## 1. Email Types Matrix

| Type | Purpose | Frequency | Key Metric |
|------|---------|-----------|------------|
| **Newsletter** | Nurture, value | Weekly/Bi-weekly | Open rate |
| **Promotional** | Sales, offers | As needed | CTR, conversions |
| **Transactional** | Confirm, update | Triggered | Delivery rate |
| **Welcome series** | Onboard | Automated | Completion rate |
| **Re-engagement** | Win back | Triggered | Reactivation rate |
| **Abandoned cart** | Recover sales | Triggered | Recovery rate |

---

## 2. Email Structure

### Anatomy of High-Converting Email

| Element | Best Practice |
|---------|---------------|
| **Subject line** | 6-10 words, curiosity/benefit |
| **Preview text** | Complement subject, 40-90 chars |
| **Header** | Logo, navigation links |
| **Hero** | Strong visual, headline |
| **Body** | Scannable, benefit-focused |
| **CTA** | Clear, action-oriented, above fold |
| **Footer** | Unsubscribe, address, social |

---

## 3. Subject Line Formulas

| Formula | Example |
|---------|---------|
| **Question** | "Ready to double your traffic?" |
| **How-to** | "How to write emails that convert" |
| **Number** | "7 mistakes killing your conversions" |
| **Urgency** | "Last chance: 50% off ends tonight" |
| **Curiosity** | "The secret top marketers don't share" |
| **Personal** | "{{FirstName}}, your custom report is ready" |
| **FOMO** | "Everyone's talking about this..." |

### Subject Line Rules

| Do ✅ | Don't ❌ |
|-------|----------|
| Keep 6-10 words | ALL CAPS |
| Use power words | Spam triggers (FREE!!!) |
| A/B test always | Misleading promises |
| Match content | Multiple punctuation!!! |
| Personalize | Start with "Newsletter" |

---

## 4. Email Automation Sequences

### Welcome Series (5-7 emails)

| Email # | Timing | Content |
|---------|--------|---------|
| 1 | Immediate | Welcome, deliver promise |
| 2 | Day 2 | Best content/resource |
| 3 | Day 4 | Your story, mission |
| 4 | Day 6 | Social proof, testimonials |
| 5 | Day 8 | First offer |
| 6 | Day 10 | Reminder/scarcity |
| 7 | Day 14 | Transition to regular |

### Abandoned Cart (3-4 emails)

| Email # | Timing | Content |
|---------|--------|---------|
| 1 | 1 hour | Reminder, cart items |
| 2 | 24 hours | Benefits, overcome objections |
| 3 | 48 hours | Urgency, limited time |
| 4 | 72 hours | Final offer/discount |

### Re-engagement (3-5 emails)

| Email # | Timing | Content |
|---------|--------|---------|
| 1 | Day 1 | "We miss you" |
| 2 | Day 4 | Best content recap |
| 3 | Day 7 | Special offer |
| 4 | Day 10 | Last chance warning |
| 5 | Day 14 | Remove if no response |

---

## 5. Segmentation Strategies

### Segmentation Criteria

| Criteria | Examples |
|----------|----------|
| **Demographic** | Age, location, industry |
| **Behavioral** | Opens, clicks, purchases |
| **Engagement** | Active, dormant, new |
| **Lifecycle** | Lead, customer, VIP |
| **Preference** | Content type, frequency |

### Common Segments

| Segment | Criteria | Strategy |
|---------|----------|----------|
| **New subscribers** | < 30 days | Welcome, educate |
| **Engaged** | Opens > 50% | Premium content |
| **At-risk** | No opens 60 days | Re-engagement |
| **Buyers** | Has purchased | Upsell, loyalty |
| **VIP** | High LTV | Exclusive offers |

---

## 6. Deliverability Best Practices

### Technical Setup

| Element | Purpose |
|---------|---------|
| **SPF** | Authorize sending servers |
| **DKIM** | Verify email authenticity |
| **DMARC** | Prevent spoofing |
| **Dedicated IP** | Reputation control (high volume) |

### List Hygiene

| Practice | Frequency |
|----------|-----------|
| **Remove bounces** | Automatic |
| **Clean inactive** | Quarterly |
| **Verify new emails** | On signup |
| **Monitor complaints** | Weekly |

### Avoid Spam Filters

| Do ✅ | Don't ❌ |
|-------|----------|
| Authenticate domain | Buy email lists |
| Clean list regularly | Use spam trigger words |
| Honor unsubscribes | Hide unsubscribe link |
| Balance text/images | Image-only emails |
| Test before sending | Ignore bounce rates |

---

## 7. Email Metrics

### Key Metrics

| Metric | Benchmark | Formula |
|--------|-----------|---------|
| **Open rate** | 20-25% | Opens / Delivered × 100 |
| **CTR** | 2-5% | Clicks / Delivered × 100 |
| **CTOR** | 10-15% | Clicks / Opens × 100 |
| **Conversion rate** | 1-5% | Conversions / Clicks × 100 |
| **Bounce rate** | < 2% | Bounces / Sent × 100 |
| **Unsubscribe rate** | < 0.5% | Unsubs / Delivered × 100 |

### Health Indicators

| Metric | Healthy | Warning | Critical |
|--------|---------|---------|----------|
| **Open rate** | > 20% | 15-20% | < 15% |
| **Bounce rate** | < 2% | 2-5% | > 5% |
| **Spam complaints** | < 0.1% | 0.1-0.3% | > 0.3% |
| **Unsubscribe** | < 0.5% | 0.5-1% | > 1% |

---

## 8. A/B Testing

### What to Test

| Element | Priority |
|---------|----------|
| **Subject line** | High |
| **Send time** | High |
| **CTA button** | High |
| **From name** | Medium |
| **Preview text** | Medium |
| **Email length** | Medium |
| **Images** | Low |

### Testing Rules

| Rule | Reason |
|------|--------|
| Test one variable | Clear results |
| Min sample 1000 | Statistical significance |
| Run 2-4 hours | Capture behavior |
| Document results | Build knowledge base |

---

## 9. Email Design

### Mobile Optimization

| Element | Best Practice |
|---------|---------------|
| **Width** | 600px max |
| **Font size** | 16px+ body, 22px+ headers |
| **CTA buttons** | 44px+ height, thumb-friendly |
| **Images** | Alt text, max-width: 100% |
| **Single column** | Easy to scan |

### Dark Mode

| Consideration | Solution |
|---------------|----------|
| **Logo** | Transparent PNG or dark version |
| **Images** | Add white border/background |
| **Colors** | Test contrast in both modes |

---

## 10. Email Tools

| Tool | Best For | Pricing Model |
|------|----------|---------------|
| **Mailchimp** | SMB, beginners | Contact-based |
| **Klaviyo** | E-commerce | Contact-based |
| **ConvertKit** | Creators | Subscriber-based |
| **ActiveCampaign** | Automation | Contact-based |
| **Brevo** | Transactional | Email volume |
| **Beehiiv** | Newsletters | Subscriber-based |

---

> **Remember:** Email is permission-based. Respect your subscribers, provide value, and they'll reward you with loyalty.

## Templates

Ready-to-use sequences ship in `templates/` (adapt the placeholders before sending):
- `templates/welcome-sequence.md` — 5-email onboarding series
- `templates/nurture-sequence.md` — 6-email lead-nurture series (value → trust → offer)
- `templates/launch-sequence.md` — 8-email product-launch series

---

## Reference guides

Additional depth for this skill (load on demand):
- `references/deliverability.md`
- `references/email-marketing-playbook.md`
- `references/segmentation.md`
- `references/list-building.md` — list-building strategy: lead-magnet types by business, opt-in placement and timing, double opt-in and list hygiene from day one.