Marketers should apply the trove of data collected through social networks and the location data collected via mobile apps to increase the relevance of e-mail marketing campaigns, say a host of marketing experts in a recent white paper published by Silverpop Systems Inc., an e-mail marketing services provider.

“Social intelligence will help brands fill in the missing data about their online subscribers,” says Doug Camplejohn, CEO of Fliptop, a company that mines social data. “Companies should understand the overlap between Twitter, Facebook and e-mail followers and pinpoint their most engaged and influential customers.” Marketers can use this data to segment and target consumers more effectively according to the interests they express in social media, Camplejohn says. 

It’s also a given that e-mail messages these days need to be optimized for viewing on smartphone’s small screen sizes, says Sara Meaney, president of strategy and growth for advertising agency Hanson Dodge Creative. And content should also be targeted to recipients’ most immediate needs. Retailers can incorporate location-based mobile data into messages sent when a consumer is near a retailer’s store, or use that data in later e-mails to generate customer loyalty, says Asif Khan, founder and president of the Location Based Marketing Association. He says using real-time location data to trigger tailored, relevant e-mails to mobile consumers could help draw them in. Later e-mails that use that information can play a role in building long-term loyalty. 

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