More than four in five email marketers use personalisation, according to Forrester, and Marketing Land claims this is because it allows them to send specific messages to targeted audiences and so deepen engagement levels.

"Entrepreneur" reminded readers ahead of last Saturday's Earth Day how email is the green alternative to brochures, posters, flyers and direct mail. In the US alone it claims that 68 million trees worth of paper are used in marketing materials.

Direct mail has many strong attributes, including higher recall and engagement than email, Marketing Profs reveals. However, the relatively lower cost of email means it smashes direct mail on ROI.

Half of consumers feel frustrated about receiving marketing information over the Internet and phone that isn't relevant to them. Email isn't singled out by Marketing Tech News, which cites social media and phone calls as the channels that get it wrong most often. Top frustrations are receiving marketing messages about hobbies that a person does not like and about areas they don't live near.

Venture Beat is talking up the positive aspects of artificial intelligence, AI, in email marketing. The site claims the ability for computers to scour data for 'hyper' personalisation, deciding on the best time to send campaigns and the frequency of emails are already areas where AI is helping brands.

Email marketing is a hugely successful channel for getting return visitors to a brand's Web site and Huffington Post has some top tips to utilise its potential. These include retargeting cart abandoners and using great content to encourage a return visit.

Adidas has apologised for an email sent to runners congratulating them for "surviving" the Boston Marathon. "The Independent" reports that Adidas has admitted that the message was insensitive so soon after the bombing of the event four years ago.

In case you needed a reminder of why your freelance business needs an email newsletter, "Forbes" has a list of top six reasons. They include looking professional, building relationships with key clients and keeping your name in front of prospects.

The ICO is reporting that it is very pleased with the response from the marketing industry to its calls for feedback on its recent publication of draft consent guidelines under GDPR. The organisation is going through more than three hundred responses and promises to have an updated set of consent guidelines ready for June.

A new report from eConsultancy and Adestra flies the flag for email marketing's record on ROI and points to the key focus for practitioners is automation and personalisation in the year ahead.