Every so often in marketing, a new trend creeps up that no one is really certain about such as Emojis. For some, jumping on the trend yields great results; for others, not so much. Blogs and articles start to appear for both sides of the argument and, before you know it, the trend has passed! It’s companies that are able to ride these types of short-term waves (before they pass) that have success.
The team here at Remarkety has been monitoring one of these trends closely, and that’s the tendency of many eCommerce sites to use emojis in their marketing email subject lines. Imagine opening your inbox to see a new email that says “Catch our ? sales before they’re gone!” or “We ❤ these new fashions!” A simple little emoji can catch you off guard.
This is actually part of the appeal of emojis, however. Emojis break up the monotony of words and stand out in a sea of text when they’re viewed as subject lines in an inbox. The eye immediately gravitates to an emoji, giving that email a first shot at making a first impression.
Now, as any good marketer will tell you, making an impression is only the first step towards success—if you don’t follow through on that impression, you’ll lose any momentum towards a sale. The question then becomes: are emojis making the right impression? For most eCommerce sites, the answer is “yes” and emojis are something to explore in your marketing messaging.
The case for emojis
Ecommerce shops on Magento, BigCommerce and Shopify platforms have a singular, distinct reason to experiment with them in their email messaging: they exist in a digital space. Customers visiting eCommerce sites generally do so through smartphones and tablets, which are ground-zero for emoji use. This plays a connecting role in internet communication culture, which is where emojis were born and still thrive today.
Also critical to consider is where people are checking their email. For most, it’s through a mail app on their phone, where they can be displayed without error. Similar to a text message, emojis are easily incorporated into word strings to add flair to the message itself. And, because phones can easily interpret the Unicode into emojis, the final message is readily available to the viewer.
It’s also important to consider the abilities of an emoji as a text substitute! Thanks to the widespread use of emojis in today’s text communication, there are literally hundreds of different emoji characters to choose from. This means a likely substitute for words that might otherwise eat up limited text space in preheaders or subject lines. For example, using a dollar emoji saves you all of the characters used to spell “money” or “dollars” or “cash.” The implied meaning of emojis creates association that eliminates the need for words.
Finally, and perhaps most importantly, emojis offer a creative new medium through which to market. Using an emoji combination, for example, can make readers think about your subject line before acting, generating more time focused on your messaging. In addition, the sheer creativity of using emojis to send a message can spark affinity from readers, helping them make a cognitive choice to positively appreciate your messaging.
It’s time to market through emojis
The bottom line is that emoji marketing is a trend and for how long it’ll be here, no one really knows. It could become a staple in digital marketing forever! The important thing for an eCommerce marketer to consider is how it can be leveraged in your email marketing campaigns. Don’t ignore this trend—instead, adopt it and see what it can do for your open and click rates. A remember, like any marketing tactic, experimentation and adjustment go a long way.
If you’re interested in learning more about Remarkety and how we can help you jump start your email marketing campaigns please make sure to schedule your 1-1 demo today!
Every so often in marketing, a new trend creeps up that no one is really certain about such as Emojis. For some, jumping on the trend yields great results; for others, not so much. Blogs and articles start to appear for both sides of the argument and, before you know it, the trend has passed! It’s companies that are able to ride these types of short-term waves (before they pass) that have success.
