How to Use It Effectively [Research + Tools]

Email marketing is integral to any advertising and marketing technique as a result of it’s a good way to generate leads and convert audiences.

Whether or not you’re creating your first technique or seeking to modify your course of, AI electronic mail advertising and marketing instruments will help you save time, optimize your technique, and meet your electronic mail targets.

On this piece, I’ll go over how AI electronic mail advertising and marketing instruments work, new knowledge about how entrepreneurs at the moment use AI for electronic mail advertising and marketing, and a listing of instruments you possibly can leverage in your function.

Desk of Contents

What’s AI electronic mail advertising and marketing?

AI electronic mail advertising and marketing is a machine-learning-powered course of that helps entrepreneurs create electronic mail campaigns that attain the appropriate audiences on the proper time with the appropriate messages.

AI electronic mail advertising and marketing instruments use knowledge (like your historic efficiency knowledge) that can assist you optimize your electronic mail technique, automation that can assist you save time on repetitive duties (like triggering an electronic mail workflow), and generative AI that can assist you create electronic mail content material.

When utilizing AI in electronic mail advertising and marketing, you are able to do issues like:

• Analyze previous electronic mail efficiency to determine how you can optimize your electronic mail methods, like the most effective time to ship your emails or the topic traces that get essentially the most clicks.
• Compile email analytics so that you perceive the well being of your campaigns.
• Set off electronic mail workflows after folks take a particular motion.
• Clear up your electronic mail lists to enhance deliverability.
• Write compelling copy that speaks to your viewers.
• Personalize electronic mail content material to particular viewers segments.

Some instruments have one particular operate, like a generative AI electronic mail instrument, whereas others supply a number of options.

Why do you have to use AI in electronic mail advertising and marketing?

I’ve discovered that essentially the most vital advantage of utilizing AI in electronic mail advertising and marketing is that it saves time whereas bettering efficiency. The routine processes you spend time on can occur immediately, and you may launch your optimized campaigns quicker.

Most AI electronic mail advertising and marketing instruments are additionally powered by machine studying, which means that they use knowledge factors (from your small business and generally your business) that can assist you optimize your electronic mail technique.

You gained’t be left to guess what works greatest as a result of the AI can take a look at your previous emails, and you may benchmark your efficiency towards rivals to see the place you possibly can enhance.

In the event you’re taken with studying extra concerning the influence of AI on advertising and marketing, try this Marketing Against The Grain episode about advertising and marketing alternatives that AI unlocks for enterprise.

Click here to listen to the full episode.

What are the challenges with AI in electronic mail advertising and marketing?

After all, utilizing AI in electronic mail advertising and marketing isn’t with out its challenges. AI instruments are nonetheless comparatively new by way of know-how, in order that they’re not good.

Listed below are a number of challenges entrepreneurs face when utilizing AI in electronic mail advertising and marketing and the way they remedy these points.

Tone

Anybody who’s requested ChatGPT to jot down an electronic mail for them is aware of the primary output will normally sound formal. Tone is undoubtedly the largest problem entrepreneurs face when utilizing generative AI for electronic mail advertising and marketing.

Most AI instruments must be skilled to match your model’s voice and tone, and even then, you’ll most likely nonetheless have to edit it to sound precisely the way you need.

Meg O’Neill, co-founder of Intuitive Marketing Collective, will get round this problem through the use of clear and specific prompts.

“I need [my emails] to sound like I’m speaking to a buddy,” says O’Neill. “I’ve added this requirement to my immediate, and it’s helped lots. Typically, I’ll give [the AI tool] the identify of a well-known enterprise particular person and ask it to jot down in the same tone.”

High quality

Whether or not you employ AI to jot down the physique copy of your electronic mail, generate topic line concepts, or define an electronic mail funnel construction, the standard of the general content material isn’t going to be good the primary time round.

“The standard isn’t all the time there,” says Jeanne Jennings, Founder and Chief Strategist for Email Optimization Shop, an electronic mail advertising and marketing consultancy.

To beat this problem, Jennings takes a collaborative strategy by “micro-managing the AI instrument at every stage to get the standard content material I would like. With out my collaborative strategy, the output is normally junk,” she states.

Knowledge Accuracy

Ben Schreiber, Head of ecommerce at Latico Leathers, says the largest problem he’s confronted utilizing AI in electronic mail advertising and marketing is knowledge accuracy and integration.

“Good high quality knowledge is paramount to the success of utilizing AI techniques since any inaccuracies might result in flawed output outcomes,” says Schreiber.

“We’ve got had points with outdated or incomplete knowledge, which instantly impacts how nicely or poorly our campaigns carry out.”

How Entrepreneurs Are Utilizing AI in Electronic mail Advertising [New Research]

Our State of AI in Marketing report surveyed 1,062 U.S. advertising and marketing and promoting professionals about how they’re at the moment utilizing AI.

For starters, AI usage for marketing has elevated considerably since 2023.

74% of entrepreneurs who responded to the survey mentioned they use a minimum of one AI advertising and marketing instrument.

Whereas chatbots are the preferred advertising and marketing instrument utilized by entrepreneurs, 25% of entrepreneurs use AI by current CRM and advertising and marketing instruments with AI-enhanced options.

Listed below are a number of particular methods entrepreneurs are utilizing AI for electronic mail advertising and marketing.

Content material Creation

By far, the commonest use case for AI instruments amongst entrepreneurs is content material creation. Of respondents who report utilizing AI, 43% say they use it for content material creation.

Whereas entrepreneurs use AI for the whole lot from creating photos to creating outlines, the preferred sort of content material to create is written content material.

There’s no denying AI’s capability to generate textual content — each long-form and short-form — right away, making it an excellent instrument for electronic mail campaigns.

In truth, 47% of entrepreneurs use AI to create electronic mail advertising and marketing content material resembling newsletters or campaigns.

Testing

From topic traces to physique copy to design components, testing is crucial to extend engagement and finally enhance your electronic mail advertising and marketing efficiency.

Of entrepreneurs, 27% say they use AI instruments for brainstorming, and it’s protected to say testing electronic mail content material falls into that class.

Unsure how you can use AI for experimenting or brainstorming?

“Ask AI to give you particular testing concepts so that you all the time have a unbelievable listing to select from to proceed bettering your electronic mail efficiency,” recommends electronic mail marketer Bethany Fiocchi Root, CEO and founding father of Oceanview Marketing.

Knowledge Assortment

Electronic mail advertising and marketing depends on knowledge, however knowledge assortment is usually a time-consuming course of for busy entrepreneurs. That’s the place AI is available in.

Not solely can AI instruments assist automate knowledge assortment — reducing time spent on these duties considerably — they are often extra exact with the data.

A majority of entrepreneurs (together with those that don’t at the moment use AI) agree that AI will help their organizations share knowledge extra successfully.

From a management standpoint, 39% of promoting administrators agree that AI and automation instruments assist workers make data-driven selections.

And the extra knowledge you might have, the extra you possibly can personalize your electronic mail advertising and marketing.

In truth, 69% of entrepreneurs agree that AI instruments will help them personalize the expertise their prospects get.

Automation

Lastly, entrepreneurs use generative AI to automate their processes. With AI, the whole lot from scheduling electronic mail campaigns to electronic mail knowledge entry is taken care of.

Of the entrepreneurs surveyed, 75% say utilizing AI for automation helps them cut back time spent on handbook duties and extra time on crucial or inventive duties.

In different phrases, AI helps them deal with the facets of the job they get pleasure from quite than on administrative duties.

15 AI Electronic mail Advertising Instruments

1. HubSpot AI Tools

Click here to learn more about HubSpot AI tools.

HubSpot has a number of electronic mail advertising and marketing instruments and options to leverage to drive clicks and conversions.

AI Options

• Email Marketing Software that helps you simply create electronic mail workflows and triggers to achieve your goal audiences with the appropriate messages in any respect levels of their journey.
• Inbox automation instrument that scans your emails and recommends duties primarily based on electronic mail content material and might auto-populate contact properties (like identify and cellphone quantity) from each first-time electronic mail to create a buyer profile.
• Content assistant makes use of generative AI that can assist you write high-quality electronic mail content material, and you may ask ChatSpot to rapidly write issues like skilled follow-up emails or thanks notes to prospects.

Worth: Free instruments can be found. Starter plans price $20 monthly. Skilled plans price $890 monthly. Enterprise plans price $3,600 monthly.

2. Mailchimp

Mailchimp’s electronic mail automation software program helps ecommerce companies create automated electronic mail workflows that attain audiences at the very best time.

AI Options

• Its Content material Optimizer compares your electronic mail knowledge to business benchmarks to offer you suggestions for optimizing your campaigns and electronic mail content material.
• You possibly can select from totally different variations of AI-generated content material that match your intent and model tone.
• Its Artistic Assistant leverages your model property to create distinctive electronic mail designs you possibly can personalize to totally different contacts.

Worth: Free perpetually plans can be found. Important plans price $13 monthly. Customary plans price $20 monthly. Premium plans price $350 monthly.

3. Sendgrid

Sendgrid helps you create an automatic electronic mail advertising and marketing course of with customized workflows and triggers.

AI Options

• Its real-time API scans your electronic mail lists and removes junk or undeliverable electronic mail addresses to decrease your bounce price and make sure you attain extra folks.
• Get data-driven insights and suggestions for enchancment primarily based in your historic metrics and electronic mail efficiency.
• AI paces your electronic mail ship and displays your popularity with ISPs.

Worth: Free trials can be found. Primary plans price $15 monthly. Superior plans price $60 monthly.

4. Phrasee

Phrasee makes use of AI that can assist you create efficient electronic mail campaigns and content material to share together with your viewers.

AI Options

• Its deep studying mannequin and language insights leverage your historic knowledge to let you know what works greatest together with your viewers and what evokes clicks for an optimized marketing campaign.
• The Magic Button helps you generate electronic mail content material (like topic traces or in-email CTAs) that may resonate together with your viewers.
• It all the time makes use of your customized tips and messaging to make sure the whole lot you create is on-brand.

Worth: Contact for pricing.

5. Drift

Drift gives an AI-powered inbox administration instrument that helps you clear up your electronic mail lists and enhance deliverability.

AI Options

• Its Electronic mail Bots leverage machine studying to interpret emails and show you how to reply with partaking, conversational emails that encourage responses.
• AI can qualify a lead as prepared for gross sales and robotically introduce the prospect to the appropriate salesperson for seamless marketing to sales handoff.
• Use totally different Electronic mail Bots to your distinctive enterprise want, just like the follow-up electronic mail bot, deserted chat electronic mail bot, and webinar electronic mail bot.

Worth: $2,500 monthly.

6. GetResponse

Use Get Response to design behavior-based electronic mail workflows to interact with audiences at key moments with content material customized to their wants.

AI Options

• Share key phrases or phrases, electronic mail targets, and tone with the GPT-powered electronic mail generator that leverages business knowledge to provide emails most probably to extend your conversions.
• Show totally different photos, textual content, or AI-driven product suggestions in every electronic mail.
• The AI topic line generator helps you take a look at topic traces and be taught what stands out in your subscribers’ inboxes.

Worth: A free 30-day trial is out there; paid plans begin at $19 monthly.

7. Levity

Levity’s software program helps you handle your inbox, perceive your electronic mail well being, and save time.

AI Options

• Construct an AI instrument distinctive to your small business by importing your knowledge that it’ll be taught from and use to make human-level selections.
• Create totally different AI blocks for each electronic mail workflow you wish to run (like a workflow for responding to emails).
• Share distinctive categorization standards together with your AI to robotically type emails as quickly as you obtain them.

Worth: A 30-day free trial is out there. Startup plans price $49 monthly. Enterprise plans price $139 monthly.

8. Superhuman

Superhuman is an AI-powered inbox administration instrument that helps you streamline your processes. Greatest for groups that use Gmail or Outlook.

AI Options

• Instantly type incoming emails right into a cut up inbox primarily based in your customized guidelines so you possibly can type spam from real people and deal with what wants consideration.
• Use its Snippets instrument to create pre-built templates for phrases, paragraphs, or complete emails you could rapidly add to emails to automate responses.
• Set reminders for electronic mail duties, like following up on unanswered emails or a reminder to answer a message you snoozed for later.

Worth: Starter plans price $30 monthly. Progress plans price $45 monthly. Enterprise pricing is out there.

A lot of the instruments listed above have a number of AI options, like electronic mail writing assist to automated inbox sorting. Under, we’ll go over AI electronic mail advertising and marketing instruments that solely supply generative options.

9. Hive

Hive gives an easy-to-use and time-saving instrument to your electronic mail advertising and marketing. Merely share a short immediate of what you’re in search of with its Notes AI, and it’ll show you how to generate an ideal response.

Worth: There’s a free perpetually plan. Groups plans price $12 per person a month. Enterprise pricing is out there.

10. ChatGPT

ChatGPT is a generative AI instrument that you should utilize to jot down your advertising and marketing emails, and all it’s important to do is enter a descriptive immediate into the chat. It’s a conversational instrument, so you possibly can ask it to rewrite the e-mail till you’re glad.

Worth: There’s a free analysis preview. ChatGPT Plus prices $20 monthly.

11. Zapier

Zapier runs on Zaps, automated workflows you possibly can customise to your wants. You possibly can create an email-based Zap to generate electronic mail copy with an API key from OpenAI.

Everytime you obtain an electronic mail matching your Zaps guidelines, it’ll immediate GPT-3 to jot down an applicable response.

Worth: A free perpetually plan is out there. Skilled plans price $19.99 monthly. Group plans price $69 monthly. Contact Zapier for Enterprise pricing.

12. Copy.ai

Copy.ai is an electronic mail copywriting instrument you should utilize to create high-converting emails. It will probably write electronic mail content material for you, recommend topic traces, and show you how to keep on monitor with strategies to enhance electronic mail high quality.

Worth: A free perpetually plan is out there. Starter plans price $36 monthly. Superior plans price $186 monthly. Enterprise pricing is out there.

13. Compose.ai

Compose.ai is powered by GPT-3 and helps you write customized and on-brand emails.

Its autocomplete characteristic suggests how one can end what you’re writing, and its strategies and generations are all the time tone- and brand-relevant as a result of it learns your distinctive model voice.

It’s an always-free Chrome extension, so you possibly can simply apply it to your favourite websites.

Worth: A free perpetually plan is out there. Premium plans price $9.99 monthly. Final plans price $29.99 monthly. Enterprise pricing is out there.

14. Grammarly

Grammarly’s machine-learning copy-editing instrument acknowledges in-text errors and suggests how you can repair them. I take advantage of this characteristic on a regular basis to help in my content material writing.

GrammarlyGo extracts the context from brief prompts and helps you immediately generate applicable electronic mail replies. Leverage the instruments on its web site, as a Chrome extension, or inside your favourite electronic mail shopper.

Worth: A free perpetually plan is out there. Premium plans price $12 monthly. Enterprise plans price $15 monthly.

15. Jasper

Jasper Instructions helps you create efficient advertising and marketing emails rapidly with machine studying algorithms.

Use it to jot down complete emails or electronic mail topic traces, and its outputs all the time match your small business’ distinctive writing type and tone for model consistency.

Worth: Free trial is out there. Creator plans price $39 monthly. Professional plans price $59 monthly. Customized enterprise pricing is out there.

Leveling Up Your Emails With AI

From writing copy to producing topic traces and even gathering and organizing knowledge to enhance personalization, a majority of entrepreneurs agree that utilizing AI for electronic mail advertising and marketing makes their job simpler.

When AI instruments are used as simply that — instruments — they’ll enhance your electronic mail advertising and marketing campaigns and offer you extra time to spend on inventive duties that make you higher at your job.