Do you know that email is about to turn 51 years old this year?
The first email was sent in 1971. As time passed by, the importance of emails hasn’t declined. Despite the growing popularity of social media and instant messaging apps, email has remained a central part of people's everyday lives, serving both business and private purposes.
We’ve selected 13 stats to help you gain a better understanding of global email usage and email marketing effectiveness in general. We categorize these stats into the following 4 topics:
- Global Email Usage Stats
- Email Marketing and Consumer Behavior Stats
- Email Marketing Effectiveness Stats
- Why Is Now The Time For Email Marketing?
Sound interesting? Let’s dive right in!
Global Email Usage Stats
1. According to the latest Email Statistics Report 2020-2024 by The Radicati Group, the number of worldwide email users reached the 4 billion mark last year and is expected to grow to 4.48 billion in 2024.
2. As presented in the chart below, the total number of emails sent and received each day is forecast to rise to over 361 billion by the end of 2024, a significant jump from the 306 billion sent in 2020.
3. Real-time data from February 2021 shows that Apple mail on iPhones account for 39% of all email opens, followed by Gmail with 29%. Together, they make up 68% of the email client market share.
Email Marketing and Consumer Behavior Stats
4. Checking email is the first thing that 58% of adults do in the morning. In comparison, only 14% check social media first.
5. According to Adobe’s Consumer Email Survey, smartphones have become the primary device for checking emails for 85% of users. The rate is even higher – at 90% – for the age group of 25 to 34.
6. Think With Google discovered that mobile users are likely to check their emails 3x more throughout the day because they have access to their inbox at the tip of their fingers.
💡The above two stats point to our previous article on the rise of mobile commerce (m-commerce). You can read more about what big m-commerce data trends you should consider in 2021 here.
Based on Optinmonster’s recent study, email remains the top-runner among communication channels between brands and consumers. In fact, 60% of consumers subscribe to a brands email list to receive promotional messages, while only 20% of consumers follow brands on social media to get deals.
Based on the 7 stats above, it's evident that email still plays a central role in individuals' and organizations' everyday communication, and email marketing shows no sign of slowing down!
Email Marketing Effectiveness Stats
Email marketing has been hyped for years. So naturally, people have recently been questioning: “Is email marketing dying or even already dead?”
The answer is no. Email marketing is not dead and is still one of the most effective ways to acquire and retain customers, as well as enhance ROI and sales.
The proof?
8. Recent data indicates that email marketing generates an ROI of 4,400%, as it yields $44 for every $1 spent. For comparison, the average ROI for Google Ads is around 200%. Therefore, email is proven to be the most cost-efficient digital marketing channel.
9. According to McKinsey, email is 40x more effective at acquiring customers than Facebook and Twitter.
10. As exhibited in Optin Monster’s figure below, email reaches about 85% of the people you sent it to (known as 'the inbox placement rate'). Specifically, email has an open rate of almost 23% and a CTR of 3.71%. In comparison, social media (like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter) only have an engagement rate of merely 0.58%.
But… After promotional emails reach consumers, do they really turn into actual sales?
The answer is YES!
11. 60% of consumers reported that they have made a purchase after receiving a marketing email.
Why is Now the Time for Email Marketing? The Impact of COVID-19
As we discussed before, the COVID-19 pandemic is reshaping e-commerce businesses. Lockdowns have made many brands shift to digital channels to connect and communicate with their customers, especially email.
12. According to HubSpot’s recent research, marketers sent 27% more emails than they did pre-COVID.
13. Based on Omnisend’s Impact of COVID-19 on Email Marketing Performance research, email marketing conversion rates in 2020 increased 17% over those in 2019. Moreover, the year-over-year open rates for the post-COVID period (Mar.16-Apr.26) were up 31.54%.
After reading all these promising stats, I hope you’ve gotten as excited as us about the magic of email marketing 😉.
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