A Step-by-Step Guide to Checking Competitor Email Marketing

Ken Morgan | Posted on November 6, 2024 |

Understanding your competitors’ email marketing strategies can reveal powerful insights. From email content and design to the timing and frequency of campaigns, learning how to check competitors’ email marketing can help you identify trends, discover what resonates with audiences, and find areas for improvement. To achieve a successful competitive email marketing analysis, you need to know the important steps on how to do it and why you need it.

Gain Insights About Competitor Email Marketing Analysis

Competitor Email Marketing Analysis is a way to understand what other companies in your industry are doing with their email marketing. By examining their emails, you can learn which strategies are working for them and what might appeal to your shared audience. It Involves:

Content and Messaging
Frequency and Timing
Design and Visuals
Subject Lines and Calls to Action (CTAs)
Offers and Promotions.

Why Check Competitors’ Email Marketing?

In 2022, 69% of marketers used email marketing to share their content. Conducting a competitive email marketing analysis helps you see what other brands are doing to engage their audiences. You’ll be able to find ideas on:

Identify what types of content—like newsletters, product announcements, or discounts—perform well.
Learn techniques competitors use to connect with subscribers.
Discover what’s missing in your market so you can fill the gap.
Refine your email approach by using strategies that work and avoiding mistakes.

How to Check Competitors Email Marketing

Here are the steps on how to check competitors email marketing campaigns:

Step 1: Sign Up for Competitors’ Email Lists

One of the easiest ways to check competitors’ email marketing campaigns is by subscribing to their lists. Here’s how:

To get a comprehensive view, sign up for your competitors’ email lists using multiple email addresses to simulate different audience types, as many brands customize their emails based on user behavior or preferences.
Organize these competitor emails into a dedicated folder, making it easy to track and compare campaigns over time.

With this approach, you’ll get a firsthand look at their email style, layout, and offers, which will help guide your own strategy.

Step 2: Review the Email Content

To conduct a competitive email marketing analysis, focus on the main elements of each email:

Pay close attention to subject lines, observing their language and style. Do they include questions, emojis, or “power words”?
For email tone, determine if they lean towards a formal, friendly, or humorous approach, as this can guide you in choosing a style that fits your audience.
Examine the design and visuals, noting layout, colors, and images, since a well-designed email leaves a strong impression.
Look closely at calls-to-action (CTAs) to see if they’re persuasive and easy to follow, as impactful CTAs lead to higher conversions.
Check for personalization elements, like using the recipient’s name or custom content, since a personal touch can greatly enhance engagement.

This step lets you analyze competitors’ style, structure, and engagement tactics in detail.

Step 3: Track the Timing and Frequency of Their Emails

Knowing how often competitors send emails and when they send them can help you refine your strategy. Here’s how:

Observe the frequency of competitor emails—whether they’re sent daily, weekly, or monthly. You may notice an increase around holidays or special events.
Pay attention to the times they send emails, such as in the morning, afternoon, or evening, as understanding these timing patterns can help you optimize your own email scheduling.

Keeping a record of these details will give you insights into competitors’ timing strategies, which can improve your reach.

Step 4: Use Tools for Email Marketing Analysis

Several tools can help you conduct a thorough competitive email marketing analysis. Here are a few to consider:

Mailcharts offers examples of email campaigns from top brands, helping you stay up-to-date on industry trends.
Moosend allows you to track key email marketing metrics, such as open rates, to determine which strategies are most effective.
Owletter monitors competitor emails and highlights trends over time.
SimilarWeb provides insight into digital trends, showing how email marketing fits within broader marketing strategies.

These tools can save time and streamline your competitive analysis process.

Step 5: Monitor Competitors’ Offers and Promotions

To see how competitors attract customers, pay attention to the offers and promotions they send:

Keep track of the types of promotions competitors use, such as discounts, buy one get one (BOGO) deals, or limited-time offers.
Take note of any special campaigns they run around major holidays or sales events.
Some brands also provide exclusive offers for email subscribers, which can encourage more people to sign up for their mailing lists.

This information can inspire your promotional emails and help you create offers that stand out.

Step 6: Observe Automation and Triggered Emails

To fully understand competitors’ email strategies, it’s helpful to look at their automated messages. Here’s how to check competitors’ email marketing for automations:

Sign up for competitor mailing lists to observe how they welcome new subscribers through their welcome emails. A well-crafted welcome email series can establish a positive tone for the customer relationship.
Consider adding items to your cart on competitors’ websites and then leaving without completing the purchase. Many companies will follow up with abandoned cart emails, often including discounts to encourage you to return.
If you remain inactive on their email list, some brands will send re-engagement emails to draw you back in.

Automation insights will help you improve customer journeys, from welcoming new subscribers to bringing back inactive ones.

Step 7: Compare Metrics (Where Possible)

If you have access to email marketing benchmarks, use them to compare your results with competitors. These can provide important insights into your email performance:

Check your open rates to see if they align with industry averages; if they’re lower, consider using more engaging subject lines.
A high click-through rate (CTR) suggests that your calls-to-action are effective.
While it can be challenging to directly measure competitors’ conversion rates, observing their promotions can offer valuable insights into what might work for your own campaigns.

Using benchmark metrics will show how you measure up in the industry.

Step 8: Examine Unsubscribe Tactics

It’s helpful to observe how competitors handle unsubscribes. Retaining subscribers is important, and some companies use techniques to keep them on board:

Some brands use exit surveys to ask users why they are unsubscribing, providing valuable feedback that can help improve future email campaigns.
Some companies offer frequency options, allowing subscribers to select a lower email frequency instead of opting out completely. This approach can help retain subscribers who may feel overwhelmed by too many emails.

Understanding how to manage unsubscribes will help you reduce list attrition and improve overall engagement.

Step 9: Look at Engagement Across Channels

Finally, check how competitors use other digital channels to boost email engagement. Here’s how to check competitors’ email marketing alongside other marketing channels:

Examine whether competitors promote email sign-ups on their social media profiles, as this can help attract new subscribers.
Observe the placement of their email sign-up forms on their websites, noting whether they use pop-ups, footers, or banners.
Check if they offer downloadable resources, such as guides or eBooks, to entice users to subscribe to their email lists.

Understanding the relationship between email and other channels can help you build a comprehensive strategy.

Boost Your Campaigns Through Competitors’ Email Marketing Analysis

By learning how to check competitors’ email marketing, you can gather valuable insights that enhance your campaigns. Following these steps to conduct a competitive email marketing analysis can improve your approach, keeping your brand fresh and relevant.

Checking competitors’ email strategies is an ongoing process. Regularly analyze their email efforts to ensure you’re staying ahead in your industry. With this guide, you’re ready to start your analysis and build a successful email marketing strategy.