The world of email marketing is always evolving, as are email clients (e.g. Apple Mail Privacy Protection and Gmail and Yahoo’s requirements for bulk senders). The latest changes? Apple recently released iOS 18, which introduced updates to Apple Mail.
What does iOS 18 mean for your email marketing strategy? And how can email marketers adapt to these changes and continue to engage contacts effectively?
This article will delve into the key iOS 18 features that affect email marketing and share suggestions for how to adapt. So, whether you’re an email marketer or just interested in digital marketing trends, read on.
Let’s explore what iOS 18 could mean for email marketing together.
You might be wondering, how many people iOS 18 really impact? And are these changes actually going to affect my emails and audience?
And that’s my cue to point out that current data shows that over half of email recipients use Apple Mail. Apple holds the largest market share, with a significant lead over other email clients – even Gmail.
When it comes to which users will be affected: iOS 18 can affect anyone using Apple Mail on their iPhone, iPad, or Mac, regardless of email domain – that includes recipients with Gmail, Yahoo, or other email addresses who open those emails in Apple Mail.
So, you should definitely have some awareness of the iOS 18 changes and think about the ways you might want to adjust your email marketing strategy.
How is iOS 18 affecting email inboxes? The biggest changes to Apple Mail (as of this writing) went into effect with the release of 18.2 in December 2024. The changes that impact email marketers are:
These features may necessitate changes in your email marketing tactics to maintain effectiveness.
So what should you DO about all this? How can you adjust your email marketing to adapt to iOS18?
To safeguard your email marketing success, crafting emails actually engage your recipients is going to be even more vital. Your content must be relevant and compelling enough to motivate users to act. Respecting user privacy while delivering personalized experiences will also be a key component of successful campaigns.
Overall, you should also watch your email metrics for changes. The more in sync with your email performance you are, the more quickly you can adjust if you see a decline in email engagement.
This is nothing new, but it becomes more important with the release of iOS 18: stop blasting everyone with everything. Your email quality and the personalized value you provide to different audience segments goes a long way toward capturing attention and engagement. Large-volume generic emails are only going to hurt you – not just because individual blasted emails will perform poorly but because the overall lack of engagement with those emails will increase the likelihood that your emails end up sorted out of the primary inbox.
We keep saying it, but that’s because it’s important: personalized content strengthens engagement. Knowing your audience – and targeting your messages based on what you know is key. Users value relevant, meaningful messages over frequent, generic emails. Crafting content that resonates builds trust and engagement. Tailored content speaks directly to user needs, driving higher interaction, which increases the chances that your messages end up in that primary inbox.
Strong email deliverability and open rates remain key. If your messages are bouncing or not getting engagement, that increases the chances they’ll be filtered out in the future.
Following these practices can help sustain open rates and maintain a good sender reputation.
AI and machine learning are revolutionizing email marketing tools – both in the way we create these messages as marketers and in the way recipients can manage their inboxes.
While AI can help you gain invaluable insights, improve efficiency, and power up personalization, it will inevitably also be used by consumers (email recipients, members, customers, etc.) to help them avoid being bombarded by promotional content they don’t feel is relevant.
Make sure you’re using the tools at your disposal – including AI, automation, and analysis of your data, to continuously improve your engagement strategies.
A/B testing will also be helpful for testing new strategies with the iOS 18 changes and beyond. They allow you to explore the effectiveness of different approaches and refine your strategy.
Experiment with content, layout, and timing to discover what resonates best. Use the insights you gain from your tests to guide future campaigns.
And remember to look at analytics beyond open rates to get a deeper understanding of what’s working and what’s not. Focus on metrics like clicks, conversions, and user engagement.
Relying on a single channel – like ONLY using email – isn’t viable in today’s digital landscape. It’s important to diversify your communication tactics to ensure you reach users across various platforms.
Explore integrating social media, a private online community, and even a mobile app to reach your audience where they are. These can complement email and enhance user engagement.
Plus, cross-channel messaging and consistency build awareness and loyalty for your organization. When your messaging aligns across different platforms you get maximum impact, because people are getting multiple reminders about the value your organization offers without feeling bombarded by constant emails.
As iOS 18 and other email changes reshape the email marketing terrain, marketers must keep up with industry trends and be ready to adapt. Incorporate contingency plans and be prepared for disruptions so you can maintain your email marketing momentum. Follow industry news to identify emerging trends. Engage with experts and peers to see what other people are doing and learn from innovative approaches.
It’s also never a bad idea to review how you’re segmenting and personalizing your email messages to provide real value. Any effort you can make to preemptively respect recipients’ privacy and digital boundaries will go a long way to building trust with your audience and keeping them engaged with your communications.
Things are changing too fast to be stuck in “the way you’ve always done things” – things. Regularly assess and refine your strategy. Ongoing evaluation ensures alignment with both your audience’s needs and technological advances. And embracing change will lead to more effective marketing practices that will help you thrive.