Go too early and you risk giving away margin, overwhelming your audience, or prompting unsubscribes. Wait too long and your competitors may have already captured attention and sales. There’s real pressure in getting this timing right, that’s where data can make all the difference.

Because all kinds of brands send campaigns through the Dotdigital platform every year, we can see exactly when marketers begin referencing key holidays in their subject lines.

We’ve analyzed the last three years of holiday email sends to see how early brands are starting their campaigns. See how this differs by region, looking at the UK and Europe, the United States, and Australia and how this behavior is changing year-on-year. The result is a clear, numbers-led guide you can use to time your holiday emails with precision.

Valentine’s Day email marketing stats

Valentine’s Day has one of the shortest run-ups of any major holiday in this list, and it’s getting shorter each year. In 2025, brands began referencing Valentine’s Day in subject lines an average of 9 days before.

When to send

That short window also creates an opportunity. Because most brands move late, you don’t need weeks of build-up to be competitive, but you do need to be ready. If you can get into inboxes a few days earlier than the pack, you give yourself more room to influence buying decisions before the noise peaks.

What to send

Valentine’s is a perfect excuse to show some love to your subscribers. Take the opportunity to offer something just for them like:

• Early access to your Valentine’s Day sale
• A stackable discount to layer onto your website offers
• Free shipping or a free gift

Perks like this reinforce that being subscribed has real value and builds loyalty long after the holiday has passed.

With a short promotional window, urgency-led messaging and promotions like flash sales or free next-day delivery will encourage conversions in the moment.

Valentine’s Day marketing email marketing campaign statistics

The number of days before Valentine’s Day that brands begin referencing the holiday in subject lines.

2023

• Global average: 11
• APAC: 13
• EMEA: 10
• Americas: 12

2024

• Global average: 10
• APAC: 11
• EMEA: 10
• Americas: 9

2025

• Global average: 9
• APAC: 10
• EMEA: 10
• Americas: 8

Halloween email marketing stats

Falling on the last day of the month, October is the official spooky season. Europe and America both begin sending around 23-28 days before Halloween, and this is consistent over recent years. However, Australia has changed how early Halloween campaigns are sent, with a steady year-on-year decline and 2025 seeing a much shorter lead-up of around 13 days.

When to send

Your audience, your product, and the offers you have to share will all influence when to start sending, but you won’t be creating jump scares in your audience’s inbox if you send any time within October.

What to send

Halloween gives you tons of room to have fun with your email design. There are lots of ways to lean into a Halloween styling, even if you don’t have Halloween product imagery. Get five frightfully good Halloween email campaign ideas in this blog. We share how to make your campaigns captivating, no matter what industry you’re in.

Halloween email marketing campaign statistics

The number of days before Halloween that brands begin referencing the holiday in subject lines.

2023

• Global average: 26
• APAC: 28
• EMEA: 25
• Americas: 28

2024

• Global average: 23
• APAC: 17
• EMEA: 24
• Americas: 26

2025

• Global average: 23
• APAC: 13
• EMEA: 23
• Americas: 28

Black Friday email marketing stats

Black Friday originally began as an in-store discount event in the US, marking the day after Thanksgiving. Now, it’s a worldwide sales holiday that is very much online, blurring the lines with Cyber Monday. This overspill of the day has led to terms like ‘The cyber five’ and even ‘Black Friday month’.

The data shows that around two weeks before is the sweet spot for brands. This is consistent across the three regions studied, proving that Black Friday is cemented as a global sales holiday.

When to send

Aim for two weeks before Black Friday itself, and use the lead-up to encourage people to subscribe to mobile marketing channels like SMS, MMS and WhatsApp. This gives you another direct line to your audience on one of the busiest weeks for email inboxes.

What to send

Get inspiration for Black Friday campaigns with this lookbook full of inspiration and tips from the 2025 season.

Black Friday email marketing campaign statistics

The number of days before Black Friday that brands begin referencing the holiday in subject lines.

2023

• Global average: 9
• APAC: 8
• EMEA: 8
• Americas: 15

2024

• Global average: 12
• APAC: 9
• EMEA: 12
• Americas: 16

2025

• Global average: 12
• APAC: 14
• EMEA: 11
• Americas: 16

Cyber Monday email marketing stats

Cyber Monday was the online equivalent of Black Friday, bookending the holiday weekend. It’s now simply a continuation of the sales weekend. Cyber Monday has a much shorter lead-up than Black Friday, with 3 days being the average lead-up. This tracks as you don’t want to cannibalize your Black Friday traffic by jumping ahead to Cyber Monday.

When to send

As soon as the clock strikes midnight and Black Friday ends, it’s Cyber Monday lead-up time. In the US, brands tend to start earlier than in other regions. Use this window to warm up shoppers ahead of the peak. Set expectations for what’s coming, and encourage customers to follow you on social media or sign up for mobile marketing so they’re first to know when Cyber Monday offers go live.

What to send

Mix up your promotions and messaging so that it doesn’t feel like a diluted version of Black Friday. For design, brands often lean into a silver color palette to evoke the ‘cyber’ theme of the sales event.

Cyber Monday email marketing campaign statistics

The number of days before Cyber Monday that brands begin referencing the holiday in subject lines.

2023

• Global average: 3
• APAC: 3
• EMEA: 3
• Americas: 4

2024

• Global average: 4
• APAC: 2
• EMEA: 3
• Americas: 10

2025

• Global average: 3
• APAC: 1
• EMEA: 2
• Americas: 7

Christmas email marketing stats

Christmas is the biggest moment in the retail calendar, so it’s no surprise it has the longest build-up of any holiday in this blog. What’s interesting is how consistent this pattern is year-on-year, the timing barely changes. That tells us this isn’t a one-off trend, it’s become an industry norm.

In 2025, the global average time brands began referencing Christmas in email subject lines was 65 days before December 25. In 2026, that puts the starting line at Wednesday, October 21. Meaning, many brands are talking about Christmas before Halloween has even happened.

When to send

If you wait until November to think about Christmas, you’re already behind a large part of the market. Even if you don’t go full festive in October, this is the moment to start warming up your audience with early access, wish lists, or “coming soon” messaging, so you’re not playing catch-up when the peak hits.

What to send

Christmas campaigns work best when they build momentum over time. Start with low-pressure messages like gift guides, wish lists, or early-access collections to help shoppers plan ahead. As the season progresses, layer in urgency with delivery cut-offs, limited stock reminders, and last-chance messaging.

Segment where you can, tailor recommendations, and use clear, helpful messaging to make decision-making easier during the busiest shopping period of the year.

Christmas email marketing campaign statistics

The number of days before Christmas Day that brands begin referencing the holiday in subject lines.

2023

• Global average: 58
• APAC: 41
• EMEA: 59
• Americas: 69

2024

• Global average: 58
• APAC: 46
• EMEA: 59
• Americas: 64

2025

• Global average: 65
• APAC: 43
• EMEA: 67
• Americas: 68

Conclusion

Holidays and sales events are great opportunities to grab engagement and orders, as consumers are often in the mood to shop and are actively looking for discounts. The data in this blog gives you a clear view of when most brands ramp up their sending so that you can plan your promotional email calendar with confidence to time it perfectly. Use this data as your baseline, then test around it to find what works best for your audience.

If you want more exclusive email performance data, check out our Global benchmark report 2026 to add insight to your planning and see how your competition performs.

Not only are marketers grappling with tight budgets and leaner teams, we’re also getting less information from our audience. Zero-click behavior is rising and privacy changes like Apple’s Mail Privacy Protection mean some metrics are less reliable than they used to be.

At Dotdigital, we are all about making marketers’ lives easier. Data is something we all need more of. Each year, we create our Global benchmark report, full of marketing data, sourced from our platform, that you can use straight away. In this blog, we’ll outline four ways you can put these benchmarks to work.

How to use marketing benchmarks

Benchmarks are more than ‘nice to know’ numbers. Used well, they become:

• Your closest source of competitor insight
• A guide for smarter strategy
• A tool for setting realistic goals
• Evidence for business cases, budget, and headcount
• Proof of impact at review time

Now let’s explore some simple, practical ways to use benchmarks to drive better results for your business and boost your own career.

1: Use benchmarks to set expectations

Whether you’re launching a new channel or refreshing the strategy for an existing one, benchmarks answer a crucial question: “What’s realistic here?”

The Dotdigital Global benchmark report can tell you:

• See what “good” looks like in your industry and region
• Understand the typical performance of each channel
• Set goals that are ambitious but achievable

In 2026, we know that email continues to be a strong, reliable channel. However, the data also tells us that while opens are rising, click-to-open rates are falling year over year. So we know that engagement is still there, but other channels are often better placed when you have important calls to action.

This is where mobile marketing channels come in. SMS and WhatsApp drive dramatically higher click-through rates, 7x and 14x email, respectively, making them ideal for driving action.

What changes when you use benchmarks this way

You stop planning in the dark and begin every project with valuable context. Accurate and achievable goal-setting means you‘ll have more confidence in your strategy and there will be fewer surprises in your results. Your work gets the time it needs to perform, without pressure to panic and pivot if initial numbers aren’t as strong as you’d hoped.

2: Use benchmarks to prioritize your strategy

Most marketing teams are stretched, and you can’t do everything at once. Benchmarks help you decide what’s worth doing next.

The Dotdigital Global benchmark report can show you:

• Which channels are underutilized in your mix
• Where the biggest performance gaps are
• Which improvements are likely to deliver the biggest returns

You can see where the biggest opportunities lie for your business and focus there first. For example, you might see that your email open rates are below average and that working on subject line optimization could improve them – hopefully adding a knock-on effect of better click rates too.

Or, you might see that your email engagement rates are above average across the board, indicating that you should look to strengthen elsewhere by adding WhatsApp to your marketing mix to get more conversions.

What changes when you use benchmarks this way

Your roadmap becomes evidence-led, based on tangible potential, and you can be confident in your approach. You’ll have clearer justification for every decision and see results quicker as you’re able to direct your attention to the biggest opportunities first.

3: Use benchmarks to win buy-in

Starting a new channel or investing in new technology can feel risky, especially to people outside marketing. Benchmarks remove the guesswork and give a tangible outcome before you make the leap.

Instead of saying, “We want to try X as we think this could work, ” you can say, “Here’s what brands like ours are achieving today.”

With industry-specific data, you can:

• Show what’s possible before you invest
• Reduce perceived risk
• Frame marketing as predictable, not experimental
• Build stronger business cases

This data makes it far easier for people outside marketing to understand the potential return on investment and weigh it against the risk. Whether you’re asking for more budget, additional headcount, or smarter marketing technology, benchmarks give your ideas credibility.

If you’re considering Dotdigital for the first time, our report is especially powerful: every benchmark comes from real Dotdigital customers, so you’re not seeing what might be possible, you’re seeing what’s already being achieved.

Appeal to C-Suite and Senior Leaders

You can take this a step further by translating benchmarks into revenue. Calculate the uplift you could generate by hitting higher targets and tie that directly to business goals. Our survey of 1,500 marketers found that the C-suite’s top priority this year is more qualified leads, while senior leaders are most focused on improving profitability. Adding these benchmarks and the impact they’ll have to your business case helps you speak their language.

What changes when you use benchmarks this way

Our survey also found that HR, IT, and Finance are the teams marketers feel have the least understanding of the value of marketing. They’re also the departments many find hardest to collaborate with.

By adding in solid numbers, relationships and understanding between these teams will improve, making approvals easier and creating more trust in marketing as a business function moving forward.

4: Use benchmarks to prove your marketing impact

Many marketers know they’re doing good work, but struggle to prove it – especially as tech companies restrict tracking and customers are interacting less. Benchmarks give your performance meaning.

They allow you to say:

• “We’re outperforming our industry”
• “We’ve closed the gap by X% in six months”
• “We’re now in the top quartile for engagement”

That’s powerful in:

• Monthly and quarterly reports
• Budget discussions
• Performance reviews
• Bonus and appraisal conversations

You’re no longer just reporting numbers without context, but showing progress, impact, and value. You can show your own growth month-on-month and year-on-year, and also give a powerful view of how your performance compares to competitors. Speaking marketer to marketer, they’re also a great reference point to add to job applications.

What changes when you use benchmarks this way

Your work becomes visible, grounded in evidence, and easier to understand. Benchmarks turn your results into something the wider business can clearly see and trust. Not just your team, but the C-suite, HR, and Finance too.

That visibility brings recognition, credibility, and leverage. It helps the people who influence promotions, bonuses, and pay increases understand the real impact of your work, and the value you bring to the business.

Turning numbers into an advantage

Benchmarks aren’t about chasing averages or copying what everyone else is doing. They’re about giving you a clearer picture of where you are, what’s possible, and where your effort will matter most. Used well, they help you make better decisions and tell a more confident story about the impact of your work.

The data is available now and hopefully you’ve identified a few new ways to use it. If you’d like to explore the numbers for your industry, your region, and every major channel, you can download the 2026 Global benchmark report here.

What is a data firehose?

Imagine every open, click, and purchase from a campaign as tiny droplets of water. Now, picture trying to collect those droplets one bucket at a time. It’s slow, labor‑intensive, and by the time the data reaches your analytics, the moment has gone. 

If you want your data while it’s still relevant, you need it flowing in a fast, continuous stream. That’s exactly what a data firehose does.

A data firehose is a direct line that sends all your campaign data straight to wherever you need it, whether that’s your cloud storage, data warehouse, or analytics tool. No waiting or chasing.

Why your data team will thank you

For data and analytics teams, a firehose means efficiency; less busywork and more impact. They set up a connection to your cloud storage once, and the data will keep flowing, reliably and securely, at a scale that can handle millions of events without breaking a sweat. 

A good firehose plugs neatly into all major cloud systems, like:

• Google Cloud Storage
• Azure Blob Storage
• Amazon S3
• SFTP

Paired with an API, data can move in and out automatically without any unnecessary headaches or time delays.

Why marketers should care

For marketing teams, the biggest win is speed. When engagement data flows directly into your single source of truth alongside sales, customer behavior, and other key data, you can see what actually resonates while there’s time to do something about it. 

That means you can:

• Adjust and improve campaigns while they’re live
• Target smarter using the most up‑to‑date information
• Prove campaign ROI more easily

With a firehose, tech teams get dependable, scalable data delivery. Marketers get insights they can act on right now. Nobody’s wasting hours passing files back and forth, and the whole business moves faster because decisions keep pace with customer actions.

The big picture for your business

When the team brings in new technologies, leadership will want to know how it connects with existing tech. 

That’s where a data firehose shifts from a “nice to have” to a non-negotiable. It helps teams work from the same up-to-date view of customer actions, so leaders can:  

• Make confident decisions faster
• Spot opportunities before competitors do
• Respond to risks before they escalate

By breaking down silos across marketing, sales, customer service, data, and operations, a firehose creates real agility. This lets you act on a trend instead of watching a competitor run away with it. And because it connects to your existing infrastructure, you get that agility without costly re‑platforming or disruptive process changes.

Closing the data loop with your data warehouse 

A data firehose is brilliant at getting raw engagement data out of Dotdigital and into storage, but that’s only half the story. 

Once the data’s in your warehouse, teams can combine it with sales history, website behaviour, product usage, and support calls. And here’s where the loop closes.

When your marketing tech integrates with your data warehouse like Snowflake or BigQuery, those richer insights can flow back in. Suddenly, marketers have smarter segments, sharper targeting, and the data to create personalization that actually feels relevant. 

Imagine your campaign data streams into Snowflake via Firehose. Analysts connect to purchase frequency and product preferences, then send those segments back into your marketing automation platform. From there, you launch ultra‑timely, hyper‑relevant campaigns.

In short, Firehose gets data out fast for deeper analysis. Warehouse integrations like Snowflake bring insights back so you can act. It’s a closed loop between marketing and data with benefits for the whole business.

Send firehose data anywhere with Dotdigital

Dotdigital’s data firehose streams marketing engagement data straight to Google Cloud Storage, Azure Blob Storage, Amazon S3, or SFTP without needing special workarounds. And to close the loop, Dotdigital integrates with Snowflake and BigQuery so insights don’t get stuck on one side. Since Snowflake uses these storage options, centralizing your data has never been easier. 

The bottom line is simple: your campaign data shouldn’t sit around waiting to be discovered. A data firehose moves it quickly to where it’s needed, when it’s needed, helping marketing and technical teams work in perfect sync. 

Marketers need data that‘s complete, current, and immediately usable. When it’s fragmented, decisions slow down — for your marketing team and for your business as a whole. Opportunities pass by, results plateau, and manual data exports create more chaos than clarity.

And when you could outperform your peers by 26% using real-time data, a single, connected data stream is the difference between reacting and staying ahead. It gives marketing, tech, and operations teams a shared, live view of every customer, ready to power the right message at the right time.

Dotdigital and Snowflake

Snowflake already gives businesses a secure, unified place to store and govern their data. So, when we launched our Snowflake integration in July 2025, it was a chance to bring marketers the seamless data flow to turn data into unforgettable customer experiences. Combined with Dotdigital, your data stops sitting in storage and starts driving meaningful moments across:

• Email
• SMS
• WhatsApp
• Web
• Push
• Social and more

Our integration leaves no gap between knowing and doing. Information in Snowflake flows straight into Dotdigital to fuel your campaigns, while engagement results from Dotdigital return to Snowflake for deeper insight.  Your data keeps moving, your marketing keeps learning, and nothing has time to go stale.

Reducing friction between marketing and tech teams

Marketers move fast. You can’t wait three days for the latest results to be downloaded, then uploaded to your email automation platform. With Snowflake data feeding directly into Dotdigital, you can:

• Adjust journeys mid‑flow
• Launch segments in minutes
• Deliver hyper‑relevant content based on the latest customer behaviors

At the same time, data and tech teams need precision and control. This integration:

• Meets governance standards
• Keeps sensitive data securely housed
• Removes duplicate storage and risky sharing practices

When everyone works from the same source, the friction disappears. Plans move faster, creativity gets sharper, and everyone’s working toward the same goal with the same information.

The ripple effect on your business

Connected data isn’t just a time‑saver; it’s a performance multiplier:

• Campaigns land because they’re timed and relevant
• Teams stop wasting hours on avoidable data exchanges
• Compliance becomes simpler because the governance sits inside the integration

As marketing execution speeds up, you see a direct impact: quicker campaign launches, higher conversion rates, and engagement that doesn’t plateau six weeks later. 

What does it look like in real life?

Real impact comes from the way this integration changes everyday marketing operations. Here‘s how Dotdigital and Snowflake work together to impact marketers:

Capitalizing on sudden spikes in interest

Snowflake shows an unexpected surge around a product. Dotdigital then pinpoints customers who’ve shown interest and sends timely promotions without waiting for a data upload.

Personalized product recommendation journeys

Snowflake reveals the product categories customers explore most. Dotdigital turns that insight into personalized emails, push messages, and social ads with product recommendations based on what’s trending.

Back‑in‑stock and new‑arrival alerts

When product availability changes in Snowflake, whether an out‑of‑stock favorite is replenished or a new item lands, Dotdigital instantly sends a personalized alert. 

Churn‑prevention journeys in real time

When Snowflake data indicates a premium subscriber is overdue for a repeat purchase, Dotdigital enrolls them into an automated cross-channel retention sequence. Once they buy, that transaction flows back into Snowflake, closing the loop and keeping their profile up to date. 

Ready to push, pull, and personalize?

Dotdigital’s Snowflake connection avoids compromises, like finding clunky workarounds or having to duplicate data at the expense of accuracy. It’s built for marketers and data teams alike. 

It’s not just an integration; it’s your data and your marketing finally working in real time, together. One source of truth with endless opportunities to turn data into meaningful moments.

For example, in ecommerce, you can’t see reactions to products on the shelf. And in B2B or not-for-profit, you miss the cues you’d get in meetings. A website visit takes far less commitment than a physical interaction, so understanding interest and intent is key to turning casual visitors into engaged customers.

In this guide, we’ll show you how to measure customer interest, spot high-intent behavior, and engage your audience effectively, so you can use smarter targeting in your campaigns smarter and boost conversions.

Contact scoring

Contact scoring let’s you score and rank your contacts with two key metrics (scored between 0-100):

• Engagement: scored on contacts’ interaction and behaviors (such as campaign opens, link clicks, and visits to your website)

• Suitability: scored on a contacts’ profile (such as their job title, industry sector, and location)

These metrics combine to produce a third metric – an overall contact score. As a result, you and your brand can manage and prioritize your most promising prospects. 

The level of contact scoring allows you to understand  who each customer is, and how interested they are in your brand and products. It’s possible to tell:

• How many emails and social posts they’ve engaged with
• How long they’ve spent on your site
• What they’ve bought from you
• How much they’ve spent
• If they engage with your content on multiple channels

You can then use this information to work out how you should connect with your audience next.

Using contact scoring

Once you know who your high and low-interest contacts are, you can use these insights to connect with them more effectively:

1. Map messages to each segment:

High-scoring contacts might receive loyalty offers or exclusive updates, while lower-scoring contacts could enter a re-engagement program or nurture workflow.

2. Automate workflows based on scores:

Use your platform to trigger automations when contacts reach certain scores. For example, send a welcome email series when someone’s engagement score hits a threshold, or alert your team to follow up with high-potential leads.

3. Monitor, adjust, and refine:

Review how each segment responds. If high-score contacts aren’t converting, revisit your scoring criteria or messaging. Scores should evolve with your data and customer behavior.

Modern signals to include

In addition to using traditional metrics like email opens and clicks, you should also consider first-party signals from across your channels, such as:

• Website interactions (time on key pages, product views, downloads)
• Mobile app engagement
• SMS or push notification responses
• Webinar attendance or form submissions

Tracking these signals ensures your scoring reflects real intent, even as privacy rules reduce the reliability of third-party tracking.

eRFM

If you’re in the ecommerce space, eRFM (Recency, Frequency, and Monetary) is another great tool available to you. eRFM is an ecommerce behavioral model designed to help you better understand the potential of your contacts. It’s a combination of the RFM model that looks at a contact’s purchasing behavior, and our engagement model that looks at the engagement of a contact. For example, their:

• Email opens and clicks
• Web sessions
• Abandoned carts

Dotdigital combines these models, to help you better understand and detect purchase intent across various customer types – from inactive contacts to champions.

You can use eRFM groups within your audience segment building stages to make highly accurate segments based on the customer’s likelihood to purchase. You can then continue the use through your marketing automation programs to target customers with the right message, at the right time.

What content should you consider for your customer engagement strategy?

To score your customers’ engagements effectively, as well as your website and product pages, you need content to track against. This is especially useful for new customers that haven’t made a purchase yet, or if your product or service is something people tend to think about for a while before committing. 

Here’s five types of content to consider for your strategy and why:

Blog posts:

Blog articles are liked by most audiences because they’re topical, digestible, and consistent. Many brands will post blogs at least a couple of times a week, typically to distribute via multiple channels to drive engagement. 

This type of content is a great way to measure someone’s level of interest in your company. For example, if they’re frequently reading your posts and clicking through to your site, then you’ll want to consider allocating a good proportion of points to these actions.

Emails:

Marketing emails are a great way to measure your customers’ interest in your brand. You can see when they’ve clicked through and converted, or haven’t, as the case may be. Each time they do or don’t engage with your emails, the more points you’ll reward or deduct.

Webpages:

You want customers to get to your site but you want them to spend time there, navigating through it, and not just bouncing after viewing one page. The more pages a customer views on your site (and the longer they spend on it), the more points you should give them.

Landing pages with forms:

Customers who’ve landed on your page and completed a form are making contact. They’ve taken the time to complete the fields, which means they’re interested in your brand. You should therefore consider giving this type of engagement a sizable weighting in your overall score, and follow up while they’re still warm.

Social media:

Prospects and customers who follow you on social media are likely to be engaged with your brand. By recording this information, you can use it to target customers on a platform they already use, with content they’ve shown interest in.

How to implement customer interest scoring (step-by-step)

If you’re new to measuring customer engagement, here’s a simple way to get started:

1. Decide what“interest”actually looks like for your business:

Start by listing the actions that signal intent. That might be email clicks, product views, form submissions, checkout activity, or time spent on key pages. Pick the signals that matter most to your goals.

2. Group actions by level of intent:

Categorize each signal as low, medium, or high interest. For example, opening an email might be low, while viewing a pricing page or adding an item to cart is high.

3. Assign weights to each action:

Turn those groups into a scoring model. Give high-intent actions more points and low-intent actions fewer. This doesn’t need to be complex — even a simple model will give you a clearer picture of engaged vs passive contacts.

4. Connect your data sources:

Make sure engagement signals from your CRM, ecommerce platform, website, and email tools feed into one place. The more complete your picture, the more accurate your scoring.

5. Create segments based on score ranges:

Build dynamic segments like “high-intent customers,” “warm leads,” or “at-risk contacts.” These help you tailor your messaging based on where someone is in their journey.

6. Test and refine your model:

Monitor how people move between segments. If your “high-intent” group isn’t converting as expected, revisit your weights and criteria. These models are meant to evolve with your data.

What to watch-out for when measuring customer engagement and interest

Even the strongest scoring model has blind spots. Here’s some of these points to keep in mind:

Not all engagement signals mean intent: 

A click doesn’t always equal interest. Sometimes people are curious, distracted, or mis-clicking.

Scores decay over time:

Someone who was hot last quarter may be cold today. Make sure your model includes time-based decay so scores stay relevant.

Don’t over-score single-channel behaviour:

If a customer only engages on email or only browses your site, you might be missing the bigger picture. Multi-channel data gives you a more balanced view.

Watch for data gaps:

Missing ecommerce or CRM data can lead to inaccurate scoring. Make sure the foundational data is clean, synced, and complete.

Keeping these in check helps prevent overestimating or underestimating customers’ true interest.

The impact of privacy changes and new engagement signals

Customer behavior is shifting and so is what you’re able to track. With cookie restrictions, increased privacy controls, and changes from platforms like Apple and Google, traditional signals (such as email opens or third-party cookies) aren’t as reliable as they used to be.

• In-app behavior
• Event attendance
• Onsite search
• Mobile app interactions
• Zero-party data customers willingly share
• Product views and browsing patterns
• Preferences captured through forms or surveys

These signals give you a clearer, privacy-friendly view of customer interest. They also help you build trust because customers know how their data is being used.

Final thoughts

When selling and building relationships online, brands need to work harder to gauge the interest of browsers and customers. Luckily, technology allows you to track this reliably, perhaps even more accurately than in person, as someone behind a screen feels no societal pressure to be polite.

Make sure you’re tracking your customers and potential customers, and have segmentation and automation set up to react to changes. When you’re acting on customer engagement and activity, you’ll be offering super reactive, relevant customer service, at scale.

Let’s dive into the awesome new updates in our latest release.

AI updates for greater impact

AI is now the backbone of modern marketing operations, and at Dotdigital, we’re committed to making every marketer’s day easier, faster, and more impactful. WinstonAI, our marketing intelligence engine, is infused into every part of your workflow, streamlining everything from campaign creation to analytics and segmentation.

What’s new with WinstonAI

Intelligent segment templates

Quickly create powerful segments using AI-driven insights like eRFM (engagement, recency, frequency, and monetary value) and predictive analytics such as the next likely order date. Say goodbye to the days of building complicated segments and create highly targeted, relevant campaigns in minutes.

AI-powered image search

Finding the perfect image for your campaign is now effortless. Our AI-powered search lets you surface images from your library by simply typing keywords like “Christmas” or “summer sale.” Save time, avoid duplication, and keep your campaigns visually on point, all without leaving your campaign builder.

Instant campaign translation

Expand your reach with WinstonAI’s new translation agent. Instantly translate campaigns into multiple languages, so your regional teams can focus on fine-tuning messaging, not manual translation.

Survey & forms AI summary

Get instant, actionable insights from open-text survey and form responses. WinstonAI summarizes answers into clear topics and subtopics, so you can identify trends and take action faster, without wading through hundreds of responses.

AI-generated email templates

And we’re not stopping there. Register your interest in testing our upcoming AI-generated email template builder, so you can get campaigns up and running faster and ensure every message is on-brand.

Enhanced mobile marketing experiences

We believe mobile marketing should be just as simple and just as powerful as email. That’s why we continually raise the bar in mobile marketing. After our successful WhatsApp launch in April, more brands are looking beyond the inbox to connect with customers where they spend their time. If you’re looking to boost engagement, now’s the perfect moment to get started.

What’s new for mobile marketers

WhatsApp, upgraded

We’ve made it even easier to create impact with WhatsApp. Enjoy smoother testing, smarter segmentation, and clearer reporting. See your subscribers, sync contacts, test visuals and messages before sending, and segment audiences based on WhatsApp engagement.

New reporting features help you track clicks and spot failed sends so you can optimize and improve deliverability. Automated alerts, reminders, and notifications help you deliver useful information, exactly when customers need it. It really is the perfect marketing channel.

Native contact cards in MMS

Marketers in North America can now add easy-to-manage contact cards to MMS campaigns. Especially impactful when used in welcome and re-engagement flows, it’s a simple way to boost brand recognition and stand out from the crowd.

SMS data syncing

SMS consent in NetSuite is now a two-way sync, so you can send mobile messages with confidence. Plus, Microsoft Dynamics users can also sync and validate mobile numbers, making mobile marketing more reliable than ever.

Enterprise data syncs made seamless

We’re committed to making data-driven marketing easy by connecting Dotdigital with the tools you already use. This means you can build richer customer profiles and take action faster. Our customers love our approach to making data insights accessible, as evidenced by our spot in the top 5 global customer data platforms on G2, as voted by marketers. So, to give you more of what you want, here are our latest data integration updates.

What’s new for data-driven teams

Firehose data into your warehouse

Exporting your marketing engagement data just got a whole lot easier. Firehose is now available to all customers on our CXDP plan, enabling seamless, automated syncing of key metrics like email sends, opens, and clicks, directly into your data warehouse. With a few simple steps, you can set up continuous data syncs that help your business analyse data, spot trends, and make decisions faster.

Twilio Segment data syncing

If you use Twilio Segment, you can now add or remove contacts from marketing lists and enroll them in automation flows directly from the platform. This opens up new ways to trigger campaigns based on live customer behavior, with two-way syncing on the horizon.

Snowflake data integration

Our new Snowflake integration lets you sync contact data, including subscription status, straight into Dotdigital. For two-way syncing, you can use our Firehose alongside the Snowflake integration, so your data can flow both in and out of Dotdigital.

Custom IDs

You can now add your own unique identifiers, like CRM IDs or sales numbers, to any contact. This means you can update or delete records confidently, even if an email address changes, and avoid duplicate contacts and messy customer experiences.

Integrations that keep marketers moving

Helping you unify your tech stack and simplify your workflow is another one of our core goals. Put simply, we want to make your lives easier, so you can focus on what matters: delivering standout campaigns.

What’s new in integrations

Bynder

Seamlessly connect with Bynder to share and reuse digital assets across every channel. No more manual downloading or uploading, just quick access to all your marketing assets. This new integration will help keep your brand consistent, campaigns compliant, and creative teams happy.

Google Ad lead forms

Our new Google integration lets you instantly sync leads from Google Ad lead forms into your marketing lists and nurture flows. You can now capture and convert new leads without missing a beat. Plus, with the option to sync additional data beyond email address, you can segment and personalize your messaging so every follow-up is more relevant.

Vtex

Vtex merchants can now sync contacts, opt-in status, product catalogs, and orders with Dotdigital. Plus, additional support for web tracking and abandoned cart journeys helps you reach shoppers at just the right moment.

Adobe product catalog

You can now sync category price rules (e.g., all Extra Long Bootcut Jeans have 10% off) and tier pricing (e.g., buy 3 for $40) straight from Adobe Commerce, so your offers and pricing are always accurate and dynamic. This allows you to use Liquid Script in your campaigns to ensure all pricing and promos are up-to-date.

Adobe Commerce as a Cloud (ACCS)

Also known as App Builder, Dotdigital’s new integration with Adobe’s latest offering lets you sync new contacts, products, and orders. As Adobe expands this platform, your integration options will only get better.

Smarter ways to collect insights from customers

Whether you’re collecting marketing consent, shaping products, improving service, or just getting closer to your customers, the quality of your data matters. Our latest updates make it easier and safer to collect the insights you need.

What’s new for pages and forms

Age gating with action button logic

For brands in regulated industries, compliance just got simpler. You can now automatically hide action buttons in forms and surveys based on answers like date of birth, so if someone doesn’t meet your set age criteria, they can’t submit the form. This logic isn’t just for age; you can use it for eligibility, location, or any custom criteria.

File uploads

You can now collect file uploads directly through your surveys and forms, making it easier to gather richer, more meaningful submissions. Supported file types include:

• DOC/DOCX
• HEIC
• JPG/JPEG
• PDF
• PNG

With drag-and-drop upload, simple file deletion, and GDPR-compliant handling, it’s ideal for ID checks or running competitions that require content uploads. For example, a sports brand might give fans the chance to submit their kit designs or submit content for community spotlights.

More opportunities for hyper-personalization

Personalization doesn’t need to be complicated. We’re focused on making it easier for every marketer to create relevant, one-to-one experiences.

What’s new in hyper-personalization

Smarter, simpler, and seamless connections

We have a new, unified Dotdigital tag, which will help streamline setup between Dotdigital and Fresh Relevance by removing duplicate tasks. With a single installation, you can track multiple events from the first page visit to purchase completion and access insights in Dotdigital and Fresh Relevance. Signals feed directly into the Dotdigital activity timeline, making it easier than ever to build timely, relevant journeys.

Custom SmartBlocks

Build dynamic content in real time, tailored to each customer. Whether you’re personalizing with dynamic pricing or pulling in loyalty offers by point status, custom SmartBlocks give you the flexibility to deliver what matters, when it matters.

Hi-res product images

You know better than anyone that first impressions count. That’s why you can now select high-resolution images for your product recommendation blocks. Whether it’s viewed on desktop, tablet, or mobile, your products will always appear crisp, polished, and ready to convert.

Understanding the Data Protection and Digital Information Bill

The DPDI Bill is a comprehensive piece of legislation designed to modernize the UK’s data protection regulations. It aims to strike a balance between protecting individual privacy and enabling businesses to leverage data responsibly for legitimate purposes, including marketing. Here are some of the key aspects of the bill that are particularly relevant to you as a marketer.

1. Clarifying legitimate interest

Currently, using customer data for marketing purposes under legitimate interest requires a complex balancing test. The DPDI Bill simplifies this by making it easier to demonstrate that direct marketing is “necessary” for your business. With these guidelines, you can use customer data more confidently for targeted campaigns, as long as they prioritize user privacy.

2. Transparency over consent

While consent remains an important element of data collection, the DPDI Bill recognizes that transparency is equally important. This means providing users with clear and easily accessible information about how their data is collected, stored, and used. By building trust through transparency, you can still achieve successful marketing outcomes even if a user doesn’t explicitly opt-in for every communication.

The benefits of the DPDI Bill for marketers

The DPDI Bill might seem like another layer of complexity to navigate. But here’s the good news: while it emphasizes stricter data regulations, the DPDI Bill also offers some significant advantages for you as a marketer operating in the UK. Let’s break down how the DPDI Bill can work in your favor:

• Build trust and get results: By prioritizing user privacy and control over their data, the DPDI Bill can help you build a more trusting relationship with your customers. This translates to greater engagement and a willingness to listen to your marketing messages. After all, people are more receptive to brands they feel respect their privacy.
• Clear data regulations: The current data landscape can feel like a labyrinth of regulations. The DPDI Bill aims to streamline things, providing you with a more transparent and predictable legal environment. This clarity makes it easier to ensure compliance and avoid costly mistakes. You can focus on crafting compelling campaigns instead of untangling data regulations.
• Quality over quantity: Stricter data collection rules will likely lead to a greater emphasis on obtaining high-quality, opt-in consent from users. This shift is a good thing. It ensures you’re targeting the right audience with relevant messaging, which can significantly improve the effectiveness of your campaigns. No more wasted resources on reaching the wrong people.
• A level playing field: The DPDI Bill aims to create a consistent data protection standard across the UK. This translates to a simpler business environment for you. No more needing to navigate different regulations depending on location within the UK. You can focus on your marketing strategy without regional red tape.

The full impact of the DPDI Bill is still unfolding. But by understanding the potential benefits, you can proactively adapt your strategies to thrive in this evolving data privacy landscape. After all, a focus on trust, clear rules, quality data, and innovation can only strengthen your marketing efforts in the long run.

How marketers can adapt and thrive in the DPDI Bill landscape

The DPDI Bill presents an opportunity for you to move beyond a purely compliance-driven approach and embrace a customer-centric strategy that prioritizes transparency and responsible data use. Here are some actionable steps you can take to adapt and thrive in the new regulatory environment:

1. Conduct a data audit: Start by identifying the types of data you collect, how it’s stored, and how it’s used for marketing purposes. Ensure you have a lawful basis (consent or legitimate interest) for collecting and using customer data. This will help you move towards compliance.
2. Review consent: Your consent should be clear, concise, and easy to understand. Users should be able to easily understand what they’re consenting to and how their data will be used.
3. Develop a data privacy policy: Create a clear and accessible data privacy policy that outlines your data collection practices, storage procedures, and user rights. This policy should be readily available on your website and within all marketing communications.
4. Invest in team training: Equip your marketing team with the knowledge and skills needed to navigate the evolving data protection landscape. Training programs should cover topics such as the DPDI Bill, data security, and responsible data use in marketing campaigns.
5. Leverage technology: Take advantage of an all-in-one marketing automation platform that incorporates data privacy best practices. Dotdigital helps you manage consent effectively and personalize your marketing communications while remaining compliant.
6. Focus on building trust: Transparency is key to building trust. Communicate your data practices in all marketing materials and be readily available to respond to customer inquiries. By prioritizing transparency and responsible data use, you can adapt and thrive in the DPDI Bill landscape.
7. Focus on customer value to drive loyalty: Use the data you collect to understand your audience’s needs and deliver personalized experiences that resonate with them. By focusing on delivering relevant content and offers, you demonstrate that you value their data and their business. This builds trust and loyalty, fostering long-term customer relationships.

By taking these steps, you can not only ensure compliance with the DPDI Bill but also position yourself for success in the evolving world of data-driven marketing.

The future of marketing lies in embracing change

The marketing landscape is a constant churn. New technologies emerge, consumer expectations shift, and regulations like the DPDI Bill reshape the playing field. While specifics are still being finalized, staying agile is key.

Industry associations like the Data and Marketing Association (DMA) are your allies, offering updates and guidance. But the DPDI Bill isn’t just about compliance. It’s a catalyst for building stronger customer relationships through responsible data practices.

By embracing these changes, you can leverage the new data landscape to your advantage. You can position yourself as a leader in the future of data-driven marketing – a future built on trust and transparency.

This is where the principles of responsible marketing come into play. Customers need to trust your brand will treat their data with respect, and crucially, won’t sell it on to third parties. Big players in the digital world such as Apple and Google have taken steps to enhance user privacy and security. Apple’s iOS 17 introduced a new privacy feature called link-tracking protection, which has altered the way marketers use customer data. Google has also announced its plans to phase out third-party cookies by 2024.

With data privacy such a hot topic for consumers, how can you adjust your email marketing to meet this need? Enter preference centers.

What is a preference center?

A preference center is an online portal where your customers can manage their communication preferences. This may include updating their email address, opting in or out of various communication channels (e.g., email, SMS, push notifications), and letting you know how often they’d like to be contacted. 

You may have heard us talking about human-to-human marketing, this is because we need to remember there’s a person on the other side of our communications, and the easiest way to find out what they want, and therefore will respond to, is to ask them. It’s that simple.

Benefits of preference centers

Preference centers are essential tools for providing personalized experiences to your customers, which significantly contribute to the growth of your marketing. Let’s explore some key advantages of implementing preference centers in your marketing strategy.

Enhanced customer engagement and retention

By allowing customers to choose their preferred communication methods and tailor the content they receive, you can improve customer satisfaction levels and boost engagement. Customers feel more in control and valued as their unique needs are being catered to, which increases the likelihood of retention and brand loyalty.

Better quality customer data

Using preference centers, you can collect accurate zero-party data about preferences which will enhance your understanding of the customer. The ability to segment customers based on their preferences can lead to more success in targeting demographics with customized marketing efforts.

Improved deliverability and open rates

Customers who opt-in to receive content from you through their preferred channels are more likely to open and engage with those messages. Consequently, you can expect improved email open rates and better deliverability with fewer spam-related issues.

Reduced unsubscribe rates

Many customers unsubscribe from email lists for several reasons, including receiving too many emails or irrelevant content. A preference center allows customers to change their subscription without completely opting out, reducing overall unsubscribe rates.

Greater compliance with data protection regulations

Preference centers help you to comply with data protection regulations like the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) more easily. They provide greater control to customers over their data and clarify consent, ensuring that your marketing strategy adheres to legal requirements.

What makes a good preference center?

Like a one-to-one with thousands of subscribers, a good preference center shows that you’re a brand that cares about your customers’ experience. You want to get to know them so that you can take that data and work to ensure their experience is a positive one.

Most unsubscribes are due to email frequency or irrelevant content. By allowing your subscribers to determine this themselves you can be sure to drastically reduce your unsubscribes. When implementing a preference center, be sure to show it to consumers at the point of sign up, and have it visible in your emails. Allowing subscribers to reduce and tailor the emails they receive from you will cut down on those blanket unsubscribes.

By discovering what your customers want, you can easily tailor your marketing efforts to meet their needs. The more you meet their needs, the more likely they are to convert. And the more they convert, the healthier your bottom line is.

What should a preference center allow subscribers to do?

• Share the frequency they are most comfortable with e.g. daily, weekly, or monthly
• Inform brands about areas of interest such as departments, e.g. dresses and knitwear
• Identify the channel they prefer to hear from brands on, e.g. email, SMS, or WhatsApp

A smart preference center is a massive data-gathering tool. So, while you’re letting customers tailor their experience, don’t forget to collect the data you need to create personalized email perfection.

How to utilize your customer’s preferences

Once you have this valuable insight into your customers’ preferences, utilize what you know to segment your content. There’s no point asking people what they’re interested in, only to ignore it. Utilize segmentation to make this easier. Segments allow you to create segments of people in your database based on criteria you choose, in this case, their preferences.

You can then easily create content that responds to these preferences and split your content sends accordingly. You can also use dynamic content to show customers who have expressed an interest in dresses and show others who have expressed an interest in knitwear different blocks in your email.

4 preference center best practices with examples

Preference centers offer a variety of opportunities for data collection, whether it’s during newsletter sign-up, in welcome emails, or as part of account set-up. These email preference examples and best practices will inspire creative ways to incorporate preference centers into your marketing strategy.

1. Offer incentives during sign-up

Sports nutrition brand, Science in Sport, starts its preference collection simply. Using a sign-up incentive, it makes it clear that shoppers will benefit right from the beginning of this relationship. The brand also uses the opportunity to gather its first preference from customers. By asking “What is your preferred sport?”, the brand can use this information to send products specifically associated with running, cycling, or triathlons.

You don’t always need to collect every piece of information immediately. By gradually collecting customer information in the same way as Science in Sport, you don’t risk overwhelming your audience and potentially ruining their experience.

2. Empower subscribers to control their content

Spotify, on the other hand, allows customers to control the content they receive on an account level.

Once an account has successfully been created, customers can choose what they hear about. For each topic, listeners can also choose whether these communications come in the form of an email or a push notification. By diversifying its marketing channels, Spotify is increasing its chances of successfully engaging customers.

3. Enhance personalization in your email preference center

To ensure customers don’t miss their chance to build customer experience, MATCHESFASHION uses its welcome program to push preferences to be submitted.

This preference center not only outlines what each newsletter covers but also states the day that it’ll land in customers’ inboxes. This helps build anticipation for the latest announcements and product launches. It also allows shoppers to follow their favorite fashion designers. This information can then be used to deliver personalized edits every Monday and Friday as part of the ‘WOMENSWEAR JUST IN’ subscription.

MATCHESFASHION also goes on to confirm whether customers would be interested in receiving marketing via phone and post, as well as membership to its loyalty program.

The overall result: endless opportunities for shoppers to personalize their experience.

4. Retain customers with triggered popovers

Don’t miss a single chance to let customers tell you what they want. J. Crew doesn’t.

When customers click ‘unsubscribe’ in email, J. Crew gives shoppers a final opportunity to tailor its communications. This offers a chance to save the relationship. Customers can either choose to adjust the frequency of their emails or specify the products they would rather hear about.

It’s what you do with the data that counts

The secret to successful marketing is all about the quality of the data you have. The better the data you have, the better the experience you can build with your customers. By creating intelligent, personalized journeys for customers and putting the customer first, you’re creating an engaged fanbase, dedicated to your brand.

In this blog, we’ll explore the top five platform changes that have made the most significant impact on marketers like yourself across the globe. We’ll also discuss how they provide you with the tools to elevate and enhance your marketing in 2024 and beyond.

1. Revolutionizing marketing with WinstonAI

WinstonAI, Dotdigital’s cutting-edge marketing intelligence engine, has been a game-changer for marketers in 2023. We launched it in May and have been adding new functionality throughout the year. WinstonAI provides you with usable AI-driven insights, letting you make data-driven decisions and optimize your campaigns in seconds.

By integrating generative AI into Dotdigital, we’ve made it accessible in your day-to-day work by providing you with personalized inspiration when creating email and SMS campaigns, that will save you a whole heap of time and keep you focused.

It offers tips on improving email tone, identifying areas that need more detail, and highlights opportunities to make your campaigns even more engaging. WinstonAI can even help you create better subject lines and increase open rates, by providing three alternative suggestions based on data from your most recent 25 email sends to figure out what’s most appealing to your audience.

WinstonAI also includes grammar and spell check, streamlining the campaign creation process. This feature, built into the campaign builder, scans content across email, SMS, surveys, and pages and forms, identifying errors and offering suggestions. By reducing time spent proofing campaigns, you can focus on being more creative and strategic.

Another innovative feature of WinstonAI is the one-click email to SMS conversion which helps you adhere to the 160-character limit for SMS. It analyzes text and provides a shortened version of your email campaign. This allows you to easily convert content to SMS, aligning the copy and keeping the core message front and center. This cross-channel approach is essential for driving engagement and delivering seamless experiences.

The latest release in November included the ability to ask WinstonAI to rewrite messages based on tone, shortening or expanding text, rephrasing, and including emojis. This helps you tailor your message and tone to your audience, ultimately improving campaign performance.

WinstonAI is seamlessly integrated into the Dotdigital platform making it an indispensable tool for busy marketers as we move swiftly into 2024.

2. Streamlining data management with unified contact data

In today’s data-filled world, marketers are always on the lookout for ways to bring everything together to better understand their customers and deliver the most personalized experience possible. That’s why we rolled out unified contact data in September this year, which helps you combine all your customer data into one spot so you can create more joined up and relevant experiences for your customers.

Unified contact data makes life easier by bringing all data together into a single record, offering a comprehensive 360-degree view of each customer. With all your contact data in one place, you’ll save time and effort, waving goodbye to manual data syncs or juggling multiple variations of customer data.

With a complete view of customer data, you can create seamless cross-channel experiences, engaging customers on their preferred channels and ensuring a consistent brand presence throughout their journey.

Let’s dive into some key use cases of unified contact data:

• Engage with your customers on their preferred channel: unified contact data helps you pinpoint your customers’ preferred channel (whether this is email, SMS, or another channel), so you can reach out to them in the most effective way possible.
• Ensure your customers get a tailored experience: with unified contact data, you can ensure automations you create in the program builder cater to your customer’s preferences, which could be email, SMS, or a combination of both.
• Create segments that include both email and SMS engagement data: unified contact data allows you to create segments that take into account both email and SMS engagement data, giving you a more accurate picture of your customers’ behavior.

As your business grows and evolves, your customer data sources will grow with it. Unified contact data ensures that Dotdigital remains a future-proof platform, capable of adapting to the changing needs of you and your organization. By providing a single source of truth for contact data, we’ve enabled you to build deeper connections with your audience and deliver campaigns that resonate on a personal level.

3. Expanding communication channels with SMS and MMS

With its high engagement rates, SMS is an indispensable part of a successful cross-channel marketing strategy.

On top of our already extensive SMS offering, this year, we’ve added even more functionality that will help you get even more out of engaging with your customers on SMS. We’ve added advanced revenue attribution for SMS, which will give you valuable insights into campaign performance by tracking both direct and assisted campaign revenue. This comprehensive understanding of each customer’s journey and individual campaign impact is crucial for optimizing campaigns and planning future marketing efforts.

We’ve also added the ability to capture SMS opt in during the checkout process to allow you to capitalize on mobile shopping habits. By offering your customers the option to provide their mobile numbers during checkout, you can acquire more opted-in contacts to send them tailored mobile offers, discounts, and keep customers informed throughout the entire purchase process. This leads to higher customer satisfaction and stronger brand loyalty.

In addition, we’ve introduced advanced personalization which allows you to create highly targeted and personalized SMS content using liquid, a flexible and dynamic markup language. This results in better engagement, improved conversion rates, and a more seamless customer experience.

For North American audiences, we’ve introduced MMS (Multimedia Messaging Service). MMS enables you to send visual messages, such as images and gifs, to your customers and is proven to enhance mobile engagement and conversions by 41%.

The importance of SMS and MMS in marketing can‘t be overstated. As mobile devices continue to dominate the way consumers shop, marketers must embrace these channels to stay connected with their customers and deliver personalized and engaging messages.

Dotdigital’s latest functionalities and improvements in SMS and MMS offer you the tools you need to elevate your marketing strategies and drive success well into the future.

4. Enhancing customer experiences through UI, UX, and API improvements

Throughout 2023, we introduced significant visual enhancements to the Dotdigital platform aimed at saving you time and making your life easier. These improvements were driven by your feedback and designed to streamline the platform, making it more efficient and user-friendly.

Our updated navigation offers you a more seamless experience, with all channels now consolidated under one campaign section and a new audience area for managing contacts, segments, personas, and more. The analytics section has been revamped for easier access to reporting, while the new connect area caters to all your data requirements.

Additionally, campaign management tools have been improved to simplify day-to-day tasks, such as campaign replies, sign-off processes, and campaign tags management. These changes enable you to save time and focus on creating engaging campaigns.

One of our customers’ favorite features we’ve introduced is the campaign heat maps, which provides a visual representation of email engagement. By using a traffic light system to indicate click rates, you can optimize your email content placement to maximize engagement. This valuable insight helps you to refine your emails and drive better future results.

The acquisition of Fresh Relevance in September further enhanced the platform’s capabilities, and to support our joint customers, we developed the ability to switch between accounts seamlessly. This integration streamlines the user experience and promotes efficient workflows.

These enhancements to our platform are important for you to adapt to the ever-changing marketing landscape. By providing a more efficient, user-friendly platform, we’re empowering you to create more effective campaigns and drive better results, both now and in the future.

5. Strengthening integrations and partnerships

Having data together in one place is one of the most important priorities for marketers. When all your data is in one spot, it can be easily combined to create powerful and actionable insights that you wouldn’t have had if your data were siloed. That’s why, this year we’ve continued to add more integrations into our platform to let you connect as easily as possible, so you can have far more ‘aha’ moments.

In September, we introduced our new Connect area so you can easily manage your data and integrations in one convenient location, ensuring you’re set up for success. The Connect area houses all of your data including insight and commerce data and lets you connect digital marketing channels, and a vast array of integrations, including both self-serve and verified partner-built ones.

Over the past year, we’ve added more than 30 in-house integrations including eStar, Marketplacer, Commercetools, Gorgias, and Netsuite Oracle, bringing the total number of integrations to over 150.

This year, we also introduced the ability to create more engaging and personalized campaigns through the use of branded dynamic app blocks. These new blocks are available as drag and drop in EasyEditor and allow you to easily incorporate third-party content into your emails and landing pages without any coding required.

This not only helps you get more out of their existing martech stack but also reduces unsubscribe rates from your customers, as they’ll receive more relevant and personalized content.

These top 5 release elements from 2023 are just the tip of the iceberg of what was released to Dotdigital customers in February, May, September, and November. These advancements empower you to elevate your marketing strategies and achieve better results in 2024 and beyond.

To make the most of these innovations and enhance your marketing efforts, log in to your Dotdigital account and explore the new features today. Alternatively, get in touch with your Customer Success Manager to see how you can enhance your marketing in 2024 and beyond.

If you’re not a Dotdigital customer yet, you can discover how Dotdigital’s cutting-edge marketing technology can transform your business. Request a demo and experience the power of Dotdigital’s platform for yourself.

Craig Federighi, Apple’s Senior Vice President of Software Engineering, has emphasized that this update shows that Apple is committed to keeping users in the driver’s seat when it comes to their data. This is great news for user privacy. However, you may have some questions regarding how your data usage may change.

In this guide, we’ll take a closer look at how iOS 17’s link tracking protection works, assess its impact on marketing strategies, and give tips on how you can adapt to these privacy-focused changes.

Apple’s iOS 17 link tracking protection update

Link tracking protection limits the use of cookies and tracking of user behavior across Apple’s Mail app, Messages, and Safari’s Private Browsing mode.

Link tracking protection removes user-identifiable tracking parameters that are used in URLs. These parameters, also known as tracking parameters or UTM parameters, are special codes added to the end of URLs. 

They are generally used to track various aspects of a user’s interaction with a digital marketing campaign, such as the source of traffic, the medium through which users arrive, and specific campaign details.

By removing these parameters, link tracking protection makes it harder for companies to track your online behavior. Therefore, it significantly enhances your privacy. 

As an example, a campaign tracking URL on Dotdigital might look like this: 

How does link tracking protection affect marketers

You’ve likely been utilizing data to create successful campaigns for some time. However, with the introduction of Apple’s link tracking protection, these techniques now face notable limitations. To gain a better understanding of how to adjust your marketing strategies, let’s explore the impact of iOS 17’s link tracking protection on marketers and how to adjust to these changes.

Third-party cookies and retargeting

Third-party cookies are commonly used to monitor user activity across different websites, capture preferences, behaviors, and interests. However, with the introduction of iOS 17’s link tracking protection, these cookies are prevented from functioning properly, making it harder for you to create targeted ads based on user activity.

Also, retargeting campaigns, which depend on third-party cookies to show ads to users who have previously interacted with your website, are also affected by iOS 17’s link tracking protection. This reduction in trackable user data can reduce your ability to deliver retargeting ads, ultimately impacting the conversion rates.

To overcome this challenge, you should focus on collecting and utilizing zero and first-party data. You can use tools such as preference centers, surveys, and on-site behavior tracking to gather valuable user data. This data can then be used to create better-targeted campaigns that are more likely to resonate with users.

Opt-in tracking requirements

Apple’s recent update highlights the significance of obtaining user consent for tracking. It has made it mandatory for apps to seek the user’s permission before tracking them. This change implies that you cannot presume user participation in tracking. Consequently, this limits your data collection opportunities which can make it more difficult to track users and measure your campaign performance.

To adapt to this new requirement, you need to prioritize opt-in tracking. Make sure that your users understand the value of tracking and the benefits it provides to enhance their customer experience. By doing so, you can increase the likelihood of users opting in and consenting to tracking.

Difficulty in conversion attribution

Conversion attribution can be a big challenge in marketing. It’s important to accurately identify which marketing campaigns and channels are driving results. But with iOS 17 limiting tracking abilities, you may find it more difficult to measure marketing metrics like ROI. 

To overcome this challenge, you should prioritize developing a marketing attribution model that considers various data sources and takes into account alternative metrics such as engagement and customer loyalty to gauge campaign success.

An attribution model is a framework that helps you understand how different touchpoints in a customer journey contribute to a sale or conversion. By analyzing data from multiple sources such as social media, email marketing, and website analytics, you can create a more accurate picture of how customers interact with your brand and what drives them to make a purchase.

In addition to traditional metrics such as clicks and conversions, you should also consider alternative metrics such as engagement and customer loyalty. Engagement metrics such as time spent on the site, shares, and comments can provide insights into how customers are interacting with your brand and what content resonates with them.

Similarly, customer loyalty metrics such as repeat purchases, referrals, and customer lifetime value can provide a more comprehensive understanding of the impact of a marketing campaign on your brand’s bottom line.

Preparing for a privacy-centric future

Apple’s iOS 17 link tracking protection sets a precedent for a future where data privacy takes center stage. This change serves as a reminder that data-driven strategies must adjust to accommodate growing concerns about privacy and data protection.

As technology continues to revolutionize the marketing industry, you must stay ahead of the curve and adapt to the changing landscape. By shifting your focus to first-party data collection and adopting privacy-focused and responsible marketing practices, you can effectively navigate the challenges of iOS 17 and beyond.