Research coming from the US shows that around half of all emails are now read on mobile devices. There’s no reason to think it’s any different here, as – surprisingly to some – the UK is even quicker to pick up on new technology than North America. So just think about that. Half of all emails are opened on mobile phones and tablets.
Now, you’re probably thinking: “Yes, but not in the case of my customers. They’re all based in offices and will deal with their emails on their desktop PCs.” You probably visualise them all coming into the office first thing in the morning, grabbing a cup of coffee from the machine and going through their inbox, where they’ll see your latest email newsletter or whatever. But is that really the case? Are you saying that your customers are all people who never get out? If that’s the case, why do you have stands at exhibitions?
We all thought that electronic communication would reduce the need for people to leave the office. What’s happened is that it’s allowed them to leave the office more, if they wish, because they can stay in touch so much more easily. I’d bet most of your customers now have access to their work emails on their mobile phones, and I’d bet most of them use that facility. A lot.
So you know the next question I’m going to ask. How do your promotional emails look on mobile phones? Because a lot of the ones I see are just awful, with tiny, completely illegible text.
Don’t forget that it’s not the device which dictates how an email looks, it’s the application. So, for example, when some companies format their emails with a nice “mobile version”, it looks terrific on my iPhone …if I’m using the Mail app. But if I use the GMail app, which disregards special mobile formatting, it’s horrible.
Have you checked how your emails look in various applications, on desktop PCs and mobile devices?