Email Marketing with AI – Practical Ecommerce

Delivery time optimization was my first experience applying artificial intelligence to email marketing. The concept is to send emails when recipients are likely to engage based on their past opens and clicks. This is a type of machine learning.

Apple's iOS privacy changes have made open rates less reliable, but this was once a solid strategy. Many email platforms offered send time optimization, including Mailchimp, Iterable, and IBM Watson Campaign (now Acoustic).

AI continues to disrupt email marketing. Platforms like Grammarly, ChatSonic, ChatGPT, and Jasper can generate high-quality, personalized content quickly.

For example, I wrote to ChatGPT, “Create a paragraph in your email marketing copy that promotes a new 20% discount on a retail brand and mentions the social responsibility program they have in place to donate a portion of the proceeds to the community. We encouraged them to include the following.

Here is the response:

Exciting news! Save big on all your favorite products with our retail brands. For a limited time, enjoy his 20% discount on all items in-store and online. Plus, with every purchase, you're not only treating yourself, you're also giving back to the community. We are proud to announce a new social responsibility program in which a portion of the proceeds will be donated to local nonprofit organizations. Shop now and rest assured knowing you're making a positive impact while saving money on the highest quality products.

impressive! It took him less than three seconds to respond. It needs a bit of rewriting, but it's a decent foundation.

ChatGPT responded to marketing copy prompts within 3 seconds. Click on the image to enlarge.

ChatSonic's response to the same prompt is even better, adding details like discount codes and informal language.

welcome to [Retail Brand], the place where you can find all the best products to make your life easier. For a limited time, we're happy to announce that you can enjoy 20% off our entire selection. Just use code DISCOUNT20 at checkout. Additionally, to make this deal even better, we have launched a new social responsibility program. With every purchase, a portion of the proceeds go directly to local charities. Come and shop with us today!

ChatSonic's response included additional details such as a discount code and informal language. Click on the image to enlarge.

Advantages and disadvantages

AI is a powerful tool, but it's not perfect. Get the best results by combining AI output with human input. Here are my thoughts on the pros and cons of using AI for email marketing.

Strong Points

• efficiency. AI can analyze data and produce high-quality copies much faster than humans.

• Personalization. AI can personalize content for each recipient.

• optimization. AI can test copy variations and optimize campaigns to increase engagement and conversions.

• Scalability. AI can analyze and automate huge volumes of emails, helping large enterprises and freeing up time for other tasks.

Cons

• Lack of creativity. AI-generated content may lack human creative flair.

• Limited understanding of context. AI does not (yet) have a human understanding of language, tone, and context.

• error. AI-generated copies contain errors and omissions.

• dependence. Companies that rely on AI may struggle to adapt when the technology becomes outdated, limited, or unavailable.

The future of AI

Author and influence marketer Neil Patel believes Google will “kill” ChatGPT. In a LinkedIn post, Patel wrote, “If Google takes the data it collects and starts developing/training its own AI tools, chatGPT will not be able to compete.”

Patel is likely alluding to DeepMind, a subsidiary of Google's parent company Alphabet and one of the world's top artificial intelligence labs. (DeepMind's CEO recently spoke about the platform's ambitions.)

In any case, the quality of content generated by AI in 2023 will be determined by the data used for training. AI is a boon for marketers, but human review is essential to avoid errors and differentiate your brand. The human element is what makes email marketing successful.