At Lyris, we signed up for 75+ retail email marketing programs to track the latest trends and tactics used by leading retailers across the United States. The preliminary results are in … and the findings may surprise you.

1. Social Media Links

Social media links are the #1 retail email marketing tactic tracked in our study. Not surprisingly, Facebook is the most featured social link but Twitter and YouTube are popular as well. Retailers use social links to effectively drive fans and followers to their social media pages (Victoria Secret is leading the market with over 10 million Facebook fans). And savvy retailers are communicating their key branding and promotional messaging simultaneously across four key mediums – Email, Web, Facebook and Twitter – to maximize results.

2. Free Shipping

Email marketing offers abound, especially through the holiday season, with discounts of 40%, 50%, even 75% off select merchandise. But the #1 offer used by retailers continues to be free shipping. The tactic is used to drive email opt-ins, reward email subscribers and increase online order size with minimum purchase amounts.

3. Store Locator Link

Although some major online retailers don’t have a "brick and mortar" presence, the majority walk a tightrope between supporting their online store and maintaining their physical retail business. To help drive sales both online and off, over 50% of retail e-mailers featured a store locator link. Other popular "clicks-to-bricks" tactics included printable coupons redeemable in-store, online purchases available for retail pick up, and in-store only offers.

4. Safe Sender Link

In this age of burgeoning email marketing programs and cluttered inboxes, the safe sender link is still a critical element for retail marketers. Having customers who "white list" your email messages greatly improves overall deliverability as well as long term campaign prospects. But opportunity for improvement exists – only 40% of retailers feature a safe sender link.

5. Mobile Viewing Link Surprise!

Mobile viewing is key and retailers are taking note, particularly for higher-end products that target a mobile-savvy audience. We found 37% of audited retailers offer links to a mobile-friendly version of their campaign. While most mobile versions were a simple text email, some retailers are offering full text and graphics adapted for mobile viewing. Mobile Shopping Apps are also on the rise with 9% of audited companies featuring a link to their mobile shopping application as part of their marketing program.

Although the retail email market continues to be highly competitive and dynamic, the strong 2010 holiday season indicates real opportunities to help drive your retail business forward in 2011. Leverage these top retailer tactics to help assure your own place in the market.

To learn more about the latest retail email marketing trends revealed by our retail email audit, register for our upcoming webinar: Riding the eCommerce Wave: Techniques for Maximizing Retail Email

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About the Author

Allison Landis is the Interim Director, Field Marketing at Lyris, working closely with sales, marketing and product leadership to run demand generation programs. With over 15 years of sales and marketing experience with a focus on online marketing, she has developed successful marketing programs for B2B and B2C companies including Leapfrog, The Learning Company, Syndero and SoftCoin. 

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