When Apple introduced its Mail Privacy Protection (MPP) feature alongside iOS 15 in September 2021, the email marketing landscape slowly evolved rather than revolutionized. For marketers, it was a root shift in how we thought about and tackled measuring engagement, beyond a feature upgrade. As the hitherto dependable metrics of open rates and precise audience segmentation began to crumble, we had to rethink our approaches and devise new, more sustainable ways of connecting with our audience.
We at Kasplo have witnessed firsthand the effects of MPP on our clients’ campaigns. What was previously a transparent, data-driven approach is now an inextricable, frequently insurmountable thicket requiring more user knowledge and more reliance on proxy measures.
The decline of open rates: A false dawn?
The most immediate and self-evident impact of MPP was the inflation of open rates. Apple’s “Protect Mail Activity” feature pre-fetched the content of emails, thereby marking each as opened, independent of whether the user had actually interacted with it. This impact resulted in an inaccurate measurement of campaign performance, with the marketer mistakenly believing that their emails were performing better than they were.
This illusory safety has forced marketers to confront a difficult reality: the open rates, once the mainstay of email marketing metrics, are now a less useful gauge of actual engagement. The focus shifted from simply knowing whether a message was opened to knowing how users interacted with the content.
Beyond the open: Re-evaluating key metrics
The post-MPP landscape calls for a more complex method of measuring email success. We have been challenged to look beyond an open, and instead to examine metrics that provide a more true representation of user actions. Below are a few important metrics that started to shift in prominence:
Click-through rates (CTR): CTR is still an important metric because it measures how the user shared a moment with the message. When the user clicked a link in the message, they showed engagement of this interaction. This is a better measure of interest than simply claiming an inflated open rate. We have seen more focus put on building attention-grabbing calls to action and, most importantly, making sure links are pertinent and valuable to their audience.
Conversion rates: Ultimately, an email campaign is only as good as its ability to convert something; usually a purchase, a registration, a download, etc. Conversion rates allow you to better show the effectiveness of the campaign. When the focus is on getting someone to convert at the end of your campaign, you are talking about an email that demonstrates a true business goal.
Website traffic and behavior: Examining website traffic produced from email campaigns yields unique insights about how users engage with our content. We track bounce rates, time on site, pages viewed, and other metrics to determine how users engage with our content once they click through from the email. This provides us with a fuller picture of campaign effectiveness.
Engagement with embedded content: If an email contains an interactive element, such as a video, poll, or quiz, gauging engagement provides valuable data as well. We can see how many individuals interacted with the content and how long they interacted with the content.
List health and segmentation: Having a healthy email list is increasingly important. We make an effort to segment our audience based on behavioral data, such as purchase data, website activity, and historical email engagement. These additional points of data allow us to deliver more timely and relevant content to our audience, which increases engagement and conversion rates.
Deliverability: Getting emails into the inbox represents an essential priority. It is easy, with the noise created by the inflated open rates, to forget about our fundamental responsibility of determining deliverability or inbox placement. Monitoring deliverability and taking steps to optimize email content and infrastructure have been extremely helpful in assisting us in getting our emails into the inbox.
Attribution modeling: It is important to understand the customer journey and to connect conversion events to specific touchpoints. We utilize attribution modeling to understand how email engages with other channels and how that contributes to the overall conversion objective. This enables us to optimize our email programs with the greatest impact.
The rise of zero-party and first-party data
In a post-MPP world, zero-party and first-party data have great value. Zero-party data is information that users voluntarily give to brands, and first-party data is information we collect from users when they interact with our website, mobile apps, and emails.
By capitalizing on these data sources, we can engineer more tailored and relevant email experiences. Doing so leads to a stronger relationship with users and engagement and builds trust.
- Surveys and quizzes: We employ surveys and quizzes to gather qualitative understanding of user preferences and interests, and to assist in building more targeted, personalized email content.
- Preference centers: We give users preference centers with which they have the ability to opt in or opt out and control the types of email content they receive, and how frequently. This gives the user power and builds trust.
- Website behavior tracking: We track user behavior on our websites to understand their interests and needs. This data is used to personalize email content and deliver relevant offers.
- History of purchases: Looking at purchase history typically affords marketers the opportunity to segment their audiences and provide more relevant and targeted product recommendations and marketing offers.
Adapting strategies for a privacy-first world
The shift towards a privacy-first world has forced marketers to rethink their email strategies. We’ve embraced a more customer-centric approach, focusing on delivering value and building trust.
Content is king: In an environment where open rates are largely underwhelming, engaging and credible content is more important than ever. We think through and create emails that are informative, engaging, and relevant.
Personalization is key: Personalizing email content based on user interests and behavior is crucial for engagement; we use data to provide important and relevant email messages.
Testing and optimization: Reaching elevated acceptance performance for the email and the recipient occurs through constant testing and optimization. We test and optimize content through A/B testing as we have different subject lines or other content approaches.
Establishing trust: In a world with growing privacy concerns, trust is critical. We are open about how we collect data and let users control their information.
Offering alternative options: While email is still a strong marketing approach, we want to offer other marketing alternatives, including social media, SMS text messaging, and push notifications.
Looking ahead: Embracing the evolution
Apple’s MPP has changed the landscape of email marketing, but it has also provided a reason to change and shift to more sustainable and customer-focused practices. Here at Kasplo, the idea is that we can embrace the structures of value, trust, and alternative metrics, we can succeed in the post-MPP email world.
This adjustment to being a privacy-first world is not something to fear; it is an opportunity to find a more ethical, effective email marketing approach. Accepting a change in mindset, adapting to the shift, and building genuine relationships with our audience is the key. If we embrace these principles, then we can shift in silence and come out on top.
