How to Use Emojis in Email Marketing (And How Not to!)

HOW TO USE EMOJIS IN EMAIL MARKETING 🙌

ambiguous emojis are a no-no in emails

If you were born into the millennial or early Gen Z generation, then chances are – you use emojis to express yourself and the brand you work for. You speak emoji and you can, and do use it as a second language. But do you know how to use emojis in email marketing – a traditional channel that relies heavily on cold, outbound marketing? In this short guide, we detail just some of the ways you should use emojis in email marketing.

1. do think about your audience 🦸🏻‍♀️🎅🏼🤵🏾‍♂️👩🏼‍🎨

If you are sending an email about funeral services or will writing, you won’t want to make light of the topic by using graphic emotions. The same goes for email campaigns targeted at senior stakeholders or older generations working in sophisticated or important roles – they might not `get` it or worse, take your efforts seriously. This is of course a sweeping generalisation, but you need to weigh up whether it’s worth potentially losing them as valuable data contacts.

2. don't overuse emojis

When used correctly, emojis can help your subject lines stand out in the inbox (and more) 👍🏼.
But to influence your results by using emojis, you need to first ask yourself whether they are adding value to your emails – and value comes with careful placement. Stick to a maximum of two emojis per subject line and one in the copy… and try not to use them in every email send. Oh – and make sure you do lots of testing to find your ideal emoji placement.

3. do use emojis to shorten your subject line

We all love a short subject line – and unless we are trying to spark intrigue, it’s best to fit the whole subject line in. Using emojis to replace words in a subject line is doable – and it works if your chosen emoticons are obvious.

"Don't use emojis with multiple meanings.

you could offend a portion of your database."

4. do use inclusive emojis

This one’s short and sweet – choose gender-neutral and emojis that represent all cultures, backgrounds, and ethnicities. We have access to these emojis, so it’s only fair we use them. ☺️

5. don't use emojis with multiple meanings

Steer away from using emojis that can be interpreted in several ways – like the clapping hands/thank you/prayer emoji 🙏.You could send the wrong message, and offend somebody in your database. Another set of emojis to avoid are those that are difficult to see (such as viewing on a mobile device or in a subject line), as your message could be lost completely.

Need more information about using emojis or simply want some help writing your email copy… contact us, we can help.