Your inbox is 90% promotional emails. You delete most of them without opening. Sometimes you delete them while still reading the subject line. It's like a reflex at this point.
And somewhere out there, a marketer is staring at a 2% open rate wondering what went wrong. Spoiler: everything.
Promotional emails should be one of your highest-converting channels. Industry data shows average conversion rates around 15% when done right. Most brands hover closer to 1-2%. That gap isn't bad luck. It's bad emails. Start with your subject lines, fix your CTAs, and segment your list.
Here's how to write promotional emails people actually want to open.
What Counts as a Promotional Email?
A promotional email is any email designed to drive a specific action, usually a purchase. Sales announcements, flash deals, product launches, seasonal campaigns. If it's trying to get you to buy something, it's promotional.
This is different from transactional emails, which are triggered by user actions. Order confirmations, shipping updates, password resets. Those have a 98% open rate because people are waiting for them. Nice.
Promotional emails don't have that luxury. Nobody's sitting there refreshing their inbox hoping you'll announce 20% off. You have to earn every open.
Why Most Promotional Emails Fail
Here's what happens. Brand needs to hit revenue targets. Marketing sends more emails. Unsubscribes spike. They send to a smaller list. Revenue drops. They send even more emails to compensate.
It's a death spiral and it happens constantly.
The problem isn't email frequency. It's that most promotional emails are completely interchangeable. Same subject line formulas. Same hero image with text overlay. Same "Shop Now" button. You could swap the logo and nobody would notice.
46% of marketers use automation tools for promotional emails according to Porch Group Media research. Which means 46% of marketers are sending emails that look exactly like every other automated promotional email.
Best Practices That Actually Work
Lead With the Offer, Not the Brand
Nobody opens an email because they love your brand. They open it because something caught their attention.
Bad: "Our Summer Collection Has Arrived!"
Good: "Everything Under $50 (This Weekend Only)"
The first one is about you. The second one is about what they get. That's the difference between delete and click.
Make the Subject Line Specific
"Big Sale" tells me nothing. "40% Off Ends Tonight" tells me everything.
Vague subject lines feel like spam because spam is vague on purpose. It has to be. Specificity signals legitimacy and urgency.
Some examples:
- "Your cart expires in 3 hours"
- "$15 jeans. Not a typo."
- "Free shipping, no minimum, today only"
Each one gives you a reason to open right now.
One Email, One Goal
If your email promotes a sale, a new product, a blog post, and your Instagram contest, you've already lost. The reader sees a wall of options and picks none.
Every promotional email needs exactly one call to action. One thing you want them to do. One button that does it.
If you have multiple things to promote, send multiple emails. Weird concept, I know.
The Preview Text Matters More Than You Think
That little gray text after the subject line? Most people ignore it when building emails. Most readers scan it before deciding to open.
Bad preview text: "Having trouble viewing this email? Click here to view in browser."
Good preview text: "Including 3 items under $20 that keep selling out."
You get maybe 90 characters. Use them.
Time It Based on Behavior, Not Schedule
Tuesday at 10am is not the best time to send emails. There is no universal best time. The best time is when your specific audience is most likely to engage.
Look at your data. When do people open your emails? When do they buy? If your customers shop at 9pm on Sundays, that's when you send.
Scheduled sends based on someone else's benchmark are just educated guesses.
Examples Worth Stealing
The Scarcity Play
Subject: "Only 12 left in your size"
This works because it's specific and personal. Not "selling fast" but exactly how many. Not a general warning but about your size specifically. Creates urgency without feeling desperate.
The Honest Sale
Subject: "We made too many. Now they're 60% off."
Honesty cuts through noise. Everyone else says "exclusive offer" and "limited time" and nobody believes it. Admitting you overstocked and need to move inventory is weirdly refreshing.
The Value Stack
Subject: "Free gift + free shipping + free returns"
Sometimes you just stack the value until it's absurd not to click. No clever copy needed. Just make the offer so good the subject line writes itself.
The Callback
Subject: "Remember those shoes you looked at 47 times?"
Using browse data in subject lines feels a little creepy and works extremely well. You're calling out behavior they know they did. It's personalized in a way that actually means something.
Mistakes That Kill Conversion Rates
Sending to everyone. Your entire list doesn't care about every promotion. Segment by purchase history, browse behavior, engagement level. The engaged portion of a smaller segment will outperform a disinterested massive list every time.
Discount dependency. If every email is 20% off, 20% off becomes your real price. Now you need 30% to move anyone. Now you need 40%. Train your audience to wait for sales and they will.
Walls of text. People scan emails. They don't read them. If your promotional email requires scrolling and squinting, it's going straight to trash.
No mobile optimization. Over half of emails open on mobile. If your email looks terrible on a phone screen, over half your recipients just saw a terrible email. Fun.
FAQ
How often should I send promotional emails?
There's no universal answer. Some brands send daily and maintain engagement. Some send monthly and still annoy people. The right frequency depends on your audience tolerance and your content quality. Start with weekly, watch your unsubscribe and complaint rates, and adjust.
What's a good conversion rate for promotional emails?
Industry averages hover between 1-5% depending on the sector and email type. Exceptional campaigns hit 15% or higher. If you're below 1%, something is wrong with either your list, your targeting, or your offer.
Should promotional emails have images?
Yes, but not at the expense of load time. A heavy email that takes 5 seconds to render on mobile gets closed before it renders. Use images strategically. Make sure your message works even if images don't load.
How do I avoid spam filters with promotional emails?
Avoid spam trigger words like "FREE!!!" in all caps with excessive punctuation. Maintain list hygiene by removing bounces and unengaged subscribers. Authenticate your domain with SPF, DKIM, and DMARC. And most importantly, only send to people who actually want your emails.
What's the difference between promotional and marketing emails?
Marketing emails include newsletters, educational content, brand building. Promotional emails specifically push toward a purchase. All promotional emails are marketing emails. Not all marketing emails are promotional.