email marketing analysis: apparel and personal objects 2013

The apparel and

personal objects industry in 2013

A newsletter analysis on frequency, timing, addresses & subjects

In 2013, in what way did brands in the

apparel/personal objects industry

communicate through their newsletters?

Thanks to NewsletterMonitor*, in 2013 we

monitored and analyzed over 1,900 newsletters sent by international brands and

a grand total of 165,000 emails in English to

find out!

*NewsletterMonitor watches more than 17,000 brands in English, French, Italian, German, Spanish across

25 different industries and contains over 6,000,000 emails collected since 2007

Apparel and personal objects industry - 2013

A newsletter analysis

• In 2013, 165,000 English language emails were sent by over 1,900 brands in the apparel and personal object industry.

• On average, each brand sent 114 emails per year (9.5 emails per month). 14.5% sent just one email per month while most of the brands (80%) sent between 1 and

15 emails per month. The highest frequency was 91.5 emails per month.

• Emails are sent every day of the week; only 1 email out of 5 is sent out during

weekends.

• The approach of Christmas is a good occasion to communicate: at the end of the

year (starting from October) there was an increase in frequency. Week number 49 registered the peak of weekly email sending.

• 67% of emails were sent between 11:00 gmt+1 and 20:00 gmt+1 and 9.5% of the emails are sent while users are sleeping! (between 00:00 gmt+1 and 07:00 gmt+1).

• Emails are sent at every hour of the day. The first minutes of each hour are

generally preferred. We can also see hourly peaks at :15, :30 and :45. Peak time is

15:01 gmt+1.


Executive summary

• 9% of emails use a “noreply@” for the mail-from address and only 1% of email omits a mail-from name.

• Each subject line, on average, uses 49.3 characters. Most of the subject lines (81.5%) use between 20 and 69 characters. The longest subject line uses 304

characters.

• For each subject line 8.9 words are used on average. Most subject lines (80.1%) use

between 4 and 12 words. The highest number of words used in a subject was 48.

• More than 40,000 different words have been used in subject lines. The most used

words belong to 4 main word domains: savings, urgency, seasonality, exclusivity.

• The most frequently used words include “off”, “sale”, “new”, “free”, “save”. “off” is

the most used word in subject lines in every month of the year.

• Special characters are used in subjects: ★ was used 1,539 times, ♥ was used 820 times, ☀ was used 226 times.

• Other special characters include stars, hearts, seasons, weather, arrows, pointers.


Executive summary


The 1,900 brands we monitored in 2013

0%

2%

4%

6%

8%

10%

12%

14%

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

27

28

29

30

31

32

33

34

35

36

37

38

39

40

41

42

43

44

45

46

47

48

49

50

50+

% of brands by average emails per month


Frequency: emails per month

165,000 emails

sent in 2013 by

1,900 brands

114 emails per year

and per brand

on average

9.5 emails

per month, per

brand on

average

80% of brands

sent(on avg.)

between 1 and 15

emails per month.

14.5% of brands sent

(on avg.)

one email per month.

one of these brands sent

1,098 in a single year!

91.5 per month!

50% of brands

sent(on avg.)

between 1 and 6

emails per month.

Emails are sent every day of the week,

with peaks on Thursday (16.5%) and Friday (16.8%)

14.8% 15.4% 15.4% 16.5% 16.8%

9.7% 11.5%

Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun

Day of the week

Only 1 email out of 5 is sent out during weekends

78.8% 21.2%

Weekday Weekend


Timing: day of the week

Emails are sent out every month, but especially at the end

of the year: in November (9.9%) and December (11.6%)

7.4% 7.2% 7.9% 7.6%

8.2% 7.6% 8.0% 7.9% 8.0%

8.8% 9.9%

11.6%

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

% email sent by month of the year


Timing: month of the year

0%

1%

2%

3%

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52

% of email sent by week Number

Christmas is coming…

week 49 registered the highest number of sent emails


Timing: weeks of the year

Moreover, fall is the season with the highest number of

emails sent, with 29% of total sent emails in the year

Peak is in Week 49 (2013.12.01 - 2013.12.07)

with 3% of emails

67% of emails are sent between 11:00* and 20:00*


Timing: time of day

0%

2%

4%

6%

8%

10%

12%

emails sent by time of the day (hours)

* GMT+1

9.5% of emails are sent while users are sleeping!

(assuming users sleep between 00:00* and 07:00*)


Timing: time of day

emails sent by time of day (minutes)

Emails are sent at all hours of the day

The first minutes of each hour are generally preferred

* GMT+1

Hint: to avoid overcrowding, it’s best send a few minutes

before/after the exact hour

Peak is at 15:01*, with

0.7% of all emails (avg.

is 0.07% per minute).


Timing: time of day

11:01

11:32

12:02

12:16 12:33

13:02

13:09

13:30

14:03

14:11 14:32

15:01

15:10

15:17 15:31

16:02

16:15 16:31

16:46

17:01

17:15 17:30

18:01

18:15 18:31

19:01

19:16 19:31

Email sent by time of the day (minutes between 11:00 and 20:00)

Focusing on the minutes between 11:00 and 20:00 (time slot

with the highest number of email sent), we also see peaks

around minutes :15, :30 and :45

* GMT+1

Best practice: avoid using “no-reply” addresses in the mail-

from field (especially if you want to build a relationship!!!)

91%

9% Still 9% of emails uses “no-reply” in

sender addresses.

Only 1% of emails in this industry omit a

mail from name! 99%

1%


Addresses: mail from and reply-to

Best practice : use a mail from name (not only the mail

from email address)

0%

2%

4%

6%

8%

10%

12%% of email sent by subject length

Each subject contains on average 49.3 characters.

21 emails were sent without a subject (maybe there was nothing to say…)


Subject lines: length

4.9% 81.5% 13.6%

298 emails had a lot to

say and they used more

than 200 characters!

One of the longest subjects was the following: «French Luxury Handbags: Chanel, Givenchy and More, Christian Dior Ties, Movado and Charriol Watches, French Spring

Apparel by L33, C-Label Women's Shoes, Almarei Handbags Made in Italy, Sexy Diva Dresses, Plus Size Fashions for Her,

Fiarino and Ted Lapidus for Him, YAY Apparel and Accessories, and More!»

0%

2%

4%

6%

8%

10%

12%

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 30+

% of email sent by words count in subject

Each subject contains on average 8.9 words


Subject lines: number of words

80.1% of all emails

subjects are between

4 and 12 words.

One of the subjects with most words was: «Sneaker Freaker News - Six kicks with Kyrie Irving, New Air Max prints by Matt Stevens, Soleheaven SF x LCS 'Summer Bay'

Euro launch recap, Inside New Balance's Flimby factory, Win a Rastaclat prize pack, New Nike Air Max 1 and BW releases,

Lil Wayne x Supra Chimera (Acid Yellow)»

80.1% 5.2% 14.7%

40,000 different words have been used in subjects*


Subject lines: most used words

Words are used to express Savings, Urgency, Exclusivity, Seasonality

* without considering words with less than 3 characters and common words

The 20 most frequently used words each month*


Subject lines: words by month

* without considering words with less than 3 characters and common words

Savings, Urgency, Exclusivity, Seasonality

Special characters have been used in subjects.

About 13,000 special characters have appeared in subject

lines.

★ ♥


Subject lines: special characters

It appears in 852 subjects,

1,539 times!

★50% OFF ★ FREE Shipping ★

Summer Super Stars...★★★★★

★★★ WOW ★★★

S★LE!

★ Merry Christmas ★ Now 20% OFF

They are used to make subject lines more appealing,

attract attention, refer to special occasions, substitute

letters or words

☀ ♥♥ MUST-HAVES ♥♥

♥♥ Happy Mother’s Day! ♥♥

Dresses we ♥

♥ 48 Hours Left ♥ 70% Off Sale! ♥

♥ Just in time for Valentine's Day ♥


820 times!


226 times!

Here's What to Pack for Hawaii ☀

Shop it like it's hot! ☀

W☀W!

☀ Summer Clearance is Here! ☀

The ☀ Is Out And NEW Arrivals Are Here!

stars and hearts symbols used to indicate and to hurry

symbols for nature, weather, seasons numbers and letters



Other special characters that are used in subjects are...

❤ ☆ ❥ ✰

✩ ✭ ❣ ✪

✯ ♡ ✶ ✮

☀ ❀ ❄ ❃ ❊

☾ ♒ ☁ ☂ ✿

☃ ❆ ❅ ☼

☛ ⌛ ⇩ ➚ ▶

➽ ➠ ➨ ➜

☜ ➤ ⌚ ➳

➊ ❷ ❸

Ⓦ Ⓞ ⓦ

Ⓢ Ⓐ Ⓛ Ⓔ

stars and hearts

❤ 2/14 ❤ is coming! Order in time with free shipping.

Overnight Sale ☆ Take 10% Off Tonight Only!

❥❥Want Valentine’s Day Gift Ideas?❥❥

✰✰ It’s a Big Sale ✰✰

3 Days! ✩28 Hot Deals ✩ Lowest Prices of the Year

50% OFF top items ✭ Black Friday Deals

Omg ❣ Hundreds of new sale items added!

✪ 4th of July Shipping Specials! You choose. ✪

✯ YOUNGSTARS! The Coolest Styles for Kids & Teens ✯

✶ Let's Celebrate! ✶ The Holiday Lookbook is here!

✮✮✮ Sunday BestSellers ✮✮✮

symbols used to indicate and to hurry

4 HOUR FLASH SALE ☛Up to 70% off online ☚

⌛ Hurry Before It's All Gone!

⇩Below Cost⇩ $129.99 Diamond Bracelet | Today Only!

▶▶Under $50: Our 50 Most Popular Styles◀◀ ➽ Free shipping special ends tonight!

$6.99 (86% Off) ➨ Golden Bicycle Necklace

➜➜Last 12 Hours | 20% Off SiteWide | Happy Labor Day!

☞You☜ Get More (Coupons)

Last Chance ➤ Pick your Mystery Box

⌚ 4 Hours Only: 30% Off Your Online Purchase

Into the Wild ➳ Shop NEW Arrivals + Crop Tops!

symbols for nature, weather, seasons

☀ Brighten up Your Panty Drawer ☀

❀ 67% Off ❀ Spring Break Sale ❀ 67% Off ❀

❄ ❄ It’s Cold For Real ❄ ❄

❃25% OFF + Your gift of GLAMOUR❃

❊ Email-exclusive free shipping special ends tonight! ❊

High-Shine Stilettos for a Haute Halloween ☾

♒ Jump right into savings of up to 50% ♒

Denim Daydreams ☁

Let it Rain! Stay Dry in Style ☂

New Arrivals for the New Season ✿ Shop Now

Snow way, it’s a snow day! ☃

❆❆ Merry Christmas ❆❆ Here's A Gift

numbers and letters

New sitewide sale: Buy ➊, get ➊ 50% off! Free shipping

special, too.

Score Big with Savings! ❷ DAYS ONLY!

❸ Hour SALE: Up to 50% OFF Best Selling Styles!

❸ ❷ ❶ 70% Savings Start NOW!

Fall Sample Sale Deets + ⓝ ⓔ ⓦ Arrivals!

ⒷⓄⒼⓄ SAVINGS on all Ulla tops

ⓌⓄⓌ 20% OFF + FREE shipping

Columbus Day ⓈⒶⓁⒺ - 25% OFF $125



Examples of subjects with special characters

Valerio Verde – Product manager [email protected]

Always passionate about new media and new technologies, he began his professional career in 1995.

Has a degree in marketing and communications, and a master's degree in business administration.

Over the years has managed various activities, from digital marketing to the development of

communication strategies, from the creation of new software products to email marketing.

Francesca Borgonovo – Product specialist [email protected]

She has a degree in marketing and global markets and has always been passionate about advertising

and communication.

She started working in a research institute where she has deepened her analytical skills and her interest

in new media.

About the authors

mailto:[email protected]


NewsletterMonitor is a free benchmarking platform to monitor, analyze and compare

over 6 million emails sent by more than 17,000 brands in 25 industries including: Agencies and creative services, Apparel and personal objects, Art, Automotive, Beauty and wellness, Construction

industry & real estate, Dating and social networks, Education and training, Energy, Entertainment and events, Finance

and insurance, Food and beverage, Games, Home and office, Institutions and organizations, Internet and web services,

Mass market distribution, Media and publishing, Non profit, Professional services, Sports, Technology, Telecommunications,

Travel and tourism.

With a wealth of features, NewsletterMonitor lets you discover all the best email

marketing practices and be inspired.

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email marketing analysis: apparel and personal objects 2013

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