Special Report: 3 Email Marketing Trends for 2013 and Beyond

In a keynote presentation at eM+C's (sister brand of Retail Online Integration) All About eMail Live! conference earlier this year, David Daniels, CEO and co-founder of The Relevancy Group, a provider of marketing consulting and research services, highlighted five trends that email marketers need to be aware of if they hope to succeed in today's crowded marketplace. Here are three of those trends:
1. Privacy takes on personalization. Collect data that you can actually use; if you're not going to use the data, don't collect it. Furthermore, honor your subscribers’ preferences by updating your terms of service. Lastly, embrace the Online Trust Alliance's Data Protection & Breach Readiness Guide to help you understand the evolving privacy landscape, enhance data security and develop data loss incident plans.

2. Big data vs. real-time data. Email marketers must focus on the content of their messages, determining what's relevant for their subscribers before launching any campaign. It's critical to test the value of including real-time data vs. the cost of integrating historical campaign data. What's been proven most effective should drive future campaigns.

3. Technology tamers wanted. Everyone in your organization should be focused on the same goal-based approach (with the goals mutually agreed upon) when it comes to your email marketing program. Institutionalize behavior by connecting customer-centric practices, data and measurement across department silos. Determine your organization's core competencies and act upon them. It's wise to seek out expert partners when you're lacking skill in certain areas (e.g., database segmentation, mobile design, etc.).