EMAIL: THE WAY ITS REACHES US

Internet is catching on and the people who were deprived of it are finally coming online. Increased online usage will definitely result in email usage.

Email as a channel is growing at a steady rate of 23% year on year. By 2022, the number of emails sent and received per day will rise to 333B. And email marketing market is expected to reach $1.3B by 2022.

It was not always this big.

History the way it begins:

Before the proper email system was invented, people used to send mail to only others who used the same computer. The US computer programmer Ray Tomlinson’s came up with the idea of electronic messages that could be sent from one network to another in 1971.

Ray Tomlinson’s email could not send an email across different networks. His Email was just limited to the SAME NETWORK. For example, if you wanted to send an email to different universities in the US, let’s say, between MIT and Stanford — it was not possible using Tomlinson’s invention.

In 1978 a 14-year old Indian immigrant Shiva Ayyadurai wrote email software program for the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey (UMDNJ). It was a decent email system that allowed the university staff to send electronic messages. Later in 1981, he registered the copyright on this program called EMAIL.

He claims that it was him who introduced proper formatting to an email like To, From, CC, BCC, Subject, Body, Attachments, and Others.

Ray Tomlinson defined the term and standards, Shiva Ayyadurai claims to give it a face, shape, and body.

Interesting Facts

In 1978, Thuerk sent an email promoting DEC machines to 400 users via ARPANET. What would have then been a complete novelty for recipients (receiving a sales/marketing message direct to their computer’s inbox) resulted in $13 million worth of sales for DEC machines (and a few complaints!). From the beginning, email started off as an effective channel for direct marketing.

In 1991, the introduction of the Internet revolutionised everything about how live, work and play. For marketers across the world it opened the door to a new way of mass communication. When Hotmail launched as the free web-based email service it gave marketers a whole new way to reach customers. Previously email was only available to students or employees. The introduction of personal email addresses (free and available to all) transformed direct marketing.

During 1998-2003 period the volume of marketing emails being delivered started to rise considerably, as did the volume of virus laden or pharmaceutical spam, turning the email environment into a virtual battleground between the senders and the receivers of email.

By late 2007 the internet had over 100,000 business pages, allowing companies to attract potential customers. Consumers could now interact with a brand through multiple channels; online, in-store, Twitter, Facebook, email and mobile phones.

Today, marketing automation systems enabling advanced segmentation allow companies to send highly targeted email communication. Practices such as dynamic content have been introduced to create a near 1-to-1 experience between the user and the brand; and with more emphasis on relevance and engagement in order to achieve a good email reputation, quality is replacing quantity as a strategic approach to email marketing.

Email marketing turns 41: The first mass marketing email was sent on May 3, 1978. It may be 41 years old, but email is still pulling in numbers. In fact, according to Campaign Monitor, email marketing drives 173% more conversions than social media. So it’s not hard to see why people are still utilising it in their digital marketing plans.

Email has matured and evolved over the years. Given the amount of revenue email generates, it’s no surprise that email marketing has become a highly sophisticated practice. Today’s email marketers use strategic segmentation, personalization and content development strategies to stand out in crowded inboxes and maximize conversions.

Foot Notes:

1. https://99firms.com/blog/email-marketing-statistics/

2. https://www.marketwatch.com/press-release/e-mail-marketing-market-2018---global-swot-analysisemerging-market-strategies-industry-overview-2018-09-14

3. https://fossbytes.com/who-invented-email-ray-tomlinson-or-shiva-ayyadurai-know-the-truth/

4. https://www.smartinsights.com/email-marketing/email-communications-strategy/email-marketing-evolution/

5. https://afterdigital.co.uk/blog/email-marketing-still-digital-marketing-asset/

6. https://marketingland.com/email-marketing-turned-40-this-year-now-what-246400