• by Ray Schultz , January 24, 2020

British consumers like email — up to a point, judging by Consumer Email Tracker 2020, study from the Data & Marketing Association (DMA), sponsored by Pure360. In any case, they seem to be getting less of it.

Of the individuals polled, 46% prefer email in a range of contexts, ranking it over postal mail (26%), and text or face-to-face (24%) communications. 

However, when it comes to advice or tutorials, 48% choose face-to-face communications over email (32%). 

Consumers receive an average of 54.9 email per week, down from 73.3 in 2017. And 56% believe over half of these emails are from marketers, while 43% feel the percentage is lower. 

Brand recognition is the leading factor for 55% in deciding whether to open an email. But only 13% feel that over half the emails they receive are useful, and 85% feel that way about less than half the emails they receive.

Only 37% could identify that they believe email is doing well. But consumers under age 35 are more likely to find email useful. 

The GDPR has reassured 42% of consumers about the safety of their personal data, but 34% often wonder where a firm got their email address and 48% occasionally speculate about it. Only 19% never think about it.

Discounts are the most popular types of messages — 65% like them, versus 15% who dislike them. 

In addition, 59% like email receipts and 20% don’t.

Another 43% value advance notices of new products or services, compared to 29% who reject them.

The least popular type of email is one that offers advice, articles, information tips or tutorials — 34% welcome them and 38% don’t.

In general, consumers like marketing emails with these attributes:

• They contain offers — 52%
• They are relevant to me — 50% 
• I like the brand — 36%
• They contain useful information or news — 36%
• They are clear and concise — 29% 
• The subject line grabs my attention — 24% 
• They are personalized — 27% 
• I can choose the right kind of emails I receive — 19% 
• They are well laid out — 18%
• They are fun to read — 12%
• They are visually stimulating — 10% 
• They include pictures or links to videos — 10%

The study also notes that the average consumer has 1.87 personal email addresses and 0.82 for work. But 44% have no work email address.

Also, 23% use their additional email addresses for at least some of the marketing messages they receive, and 8% have defunct addresses. 

The DMA, working with Dynata, surveyed 2,051 consumers in the UK.