Electronic Direct Mail for e-commerce businesses

What is Electronic Direct Mail (EDM) Marketing?

EDM marketing is a digital strategy that allows businesses to promote products or services efficiently by reaching large groups of customers and prospects who have opted in to receive emails.

The strategy is designed to build relationships with clients, generate new leads, and increase sales. Companies can use EDM marketing combined with cross-channel marketing to target customers using a variety of different channels.

Email marketing versus EDM marketing

While email marketing often includes softer, brand-focused communications, such as welcome emails and regular newsletters to keep customers engaged, EDM marketing is more direct and sales-driven, as the name suggests. its primary goal is to promote products to a list of opted-in subscribers via email.

To run an effective EDM campaign, you need an established database of opted-in contacts.

Another key difference is that EDM marketing typically integrates with multiple channels, whereas traditional email marketing usually relies on email as the main communication channel.

Writing an EDM marketing email: a checklist

Here are some basics to keep in mind, for when you’re writing and designing a sales-oriented email. Of course, you’ll need to adapt these depending on the context of the email.

1. Use an engaging subject line to increase the chances of your email being opened – but it must be relevant to the content of the email or you’ll be guilty of misleading your customers.
2. As most emails are opened on mobile phones nowadays, use pre-header text to support the subject line to further tease the recipient’s interest.
3. Use high quality, relevant images in your emails.
4. Use a design that’s consistent with your brand.
5. Keep your email copy concise and consistent with your brand’s tone of voice.
6. Make sure you have your email reviewed internally before it’s sent out.
7. Include a strong call-to-action (CTA), such as visiting the website or arranging a call with a representative. 

Alternatively, you could hire a professional copywriter, who will bring a whole new level of expertise into play – there are freelancers out there who specialize in email copywriting.

EDM marketing: top tips

To whom, when and how do you send your EDM marketing emails to try to maximize sales? Here are some tips.

Segment your list

It’s ineffective and wasteful to spam your customers with irrelevant emails and it will probably be bad for business in the long run. A much better idea is to segment your list and target them accordingly.

There are many ways to segment your email list: age, gender, interest, location, monthly spend, and behavior on your website are just a few you can combine. The key here is to know your customer and how they behave.

Once you have created your segments, you can send your audiences relevant, targeted offers via email – and even use other channels to reach them.

You can also use segmentation to group together VIP customers, based on sales frequency, or recent or lifetime spend. Then you know which group of customers to focus your retention efforts on. You could even create an exclusive loyalty program for them.

Go as personalized as possible

Customer data gives you valuable insight into individual preferences and behaviors. If a customer regularly buys new products as soon as they launch, consider offering them an exclusive early-access or VIP pre-order code. This not only rewards their loyalty but also strengthens their connection to your brand.

You can also use key moments like birthdays and anniversaries to engage customers, send a discount code, free sample, or small gift to make the occasion feel special and memorable.

Track all your emails

Monitor your email performance by tracking open rates and click-through rates to understand what resonates with your audience. A/B testing elements such as subject lines can help optimize engagement.

It’s equally important to track conversions, including sales and purchases, to identify which emails deliver the best results. These insights will help you continuously refine and improve your campaigns over time.

Make EDM marketing part of a larger campaign

When you’re launching a new product, for example, or you’ve replenished stocks of one of your best-sellers, use other channels in conjunction with your email campaign to ensure your message lands powerfully.

Social media, promotion, and offline events can all be combined with email to surround the customer with your sales message.

Abandoned cart and abandoned browse emails

If your web tracking shows that an online shopper abandons their cart, all is not necessarily lost. You can remind them of what they’ve left in their cart and invite them to check out. You could also use a time-related offer or a low-stock message, to encourage them to move quickly, or offer them alternative products related to what they abandoned.

You can send several emails following cart abandonment and test different approaches, but always make sure you send the first one within the hour, while the products are still fresh in the customer’s mind.

Likewise, if a customer has been browsing your site and then leaves, tempt them back with similar messages to those recommended for abandoned cart emails. Again, it’s important to act fast though.

Make the most of after-sales emails

After-sales emails are often used to keep customers engaged, but they can also be a powerful tool for cross-selling. For example, if a customer has purchased sunglasses, you could recommend a complementary product like a beach bag, perhaps with a small discount as a thank-you.

Whether you’re sending an order confirmation, payment receipt, or delivery update, ensure the tone and design remain consistent with your brand. These touchpoints are also a great opportunity to encourage customers to opt in to your marketing emails.

Use lapsed customer emails

If a customer hasn’t made a purchase in a while, re-engage them with a “missed you” or special offer email. Identifying the right audience starts with analyzing your data, particularly the time since their last purchase.

To win back lapsed customers, consider offering incentives such as discounts, sharing personalized recommendations based on past purchases, or asking for feedback to understand why they disengaged.

Email automation makes it all happen

An effective email marketing strategy relies on automation. Setting up triggered, sequential messages based on user behavior helps nurture customers over time and increases the chances of conversion.

Automation also allows you to test and refine your offers - whether it’s discounts, free shipping, or exclusive deals - so you can find what resonates best with each customer and continuously improve performance.

EDM Marketing Campaign Benefits

Email marketing campaigns have a host of benefits and advantages over other forms of marketing. Here are our top seven. 

 1. A great return on investment

Email marketing involves a relatively low initial investment, especially compared to influencer marketing, for example. However, it can make a huge difference to sales, especially with EDM marketing, when you’re targeting a list who have opted in, so are interested in your business. In fact, the return on investment of email marketing has been calculated as up to 45 US dollars for every dollar spent³.

2. More traffic for your website

Include compelling offers and strong calls-to-action in all your communications, along with a direct link to your website or your web address when combining with offline channels. This helps drive more traffic to your site and increases your chances of generating sales.

3. Stronger customer relationships

Targeted, personalized emails are an effective way to build stronger relationships with your customers. The more familiar people become with your brand and the more they feel understood the more trust you will earn. Over time, this trust translates into increased customer loyalty and higher sales.

4. Keep your brand top of mind

While EDM marketing is primarily focused on driving sales, it also helps keep your brand visible to your audience. Even if customers don’t purchase immediately, consistent engagement ensures your brand stays top of mind—making them more likely to buy in the future.

5. Improved engagement on social

As well as generating web traffic, EDM marketing can increase engagement with your brand on social platforms. For example, in your emails you can encourage people to find out more about your brand and follow it on social. Using a variety of channels alongside email is one of the strengths of EDM marketing.

6. Saving time using automation

By automating messages that don’t need to be personalized, you can save yourself time to spend on other aspects of your business. This is a more efficient way of reaching more people too.

7. Discover what your customers really want

It’s easier to sell to customers, if you know what they want. Email marketing enables you to get feedback in the form of satisfaction surveys, for example. As well as building loyalty, because customers can see that you care about their opinion, this can help you improve the product and experience you offer – leading to yet more sales.

EDM Marketing FAQs

What is an EDM in marketing?

EDM is an acronym for Electronic Direct Mail. The term ‘direct’ here implies a more sales-orientated form of email.

Is EDM marketing the same as email marketing?

Not quite. While some people use the terms interchangeably, EDM marketing is more sales-oriented, whereas email marketing covers ‘softer’ communications too. Plus, EDM marketing usually involves a more complex, multi-channel strategy.

What is the difference between EDM marketing and email marketing?

While EDM marketing is more ‘direct’ and sales-oriented, email marketing includes less sales-focused communications such as newsletters and welcome emails. Also EDM marketing is usually aimed at people who have opted in for email, and are already interested in a brand, whereas email marketing can be less focused. Finally, EDM marketing is more often used in conjunction with other marketing channels, such as social media, whereas email marketing is more likely to use email alone.