Skip to Content
Uncategorized

Gmail’s Inbox Filters Dent Marketing Email Exposure

Google’s filters, which automatically hide promotional messages, are hurting email marketers.
July 23, 2013

When Google introduced a new filtering system for its email service Gmail last month, I suggested that it might cut people’s exposure to promotional emails (see “Marketers Must Hate Google’s New People-Focused Inbox”). Figures released today by email marketing company MailChimp today show that is already happening, depsite the feature likely being used by only a fraction of Gmail users (here’s how to activate it).

Google’s new system automatically filters incoming emails into several different “tabs” of a person’s inbox. Anything that looks like a marketing email to Google’s algorithms ends up in the “Promotions” tab (where Google has also started to display a new form of ad).

Matthew Grove of MailChimp writes in his post that the rate at which Gmail users opened marketing emails sent via his company’s service was 13 percent or higher for a typical weekday before the new feature was introduced. A week after the feature debuted, open rates were under 12.5 percent.

Grove, who is writing for an audience of email marketers, concludes that Gmail’s new design is making marketing emails less effective but that the shift isn’t yet “dramatic.”

I’d add to that that there’s a good chance that shift will become more pronounced, since it is unlikely that every Gmail user has switched on the new filtering feature.

Emails filtered by the promotions tab targets are legitimate. People have done something to start receiving them, and are provided with ways to opt out. However, the challenges of dealing with the flood of such messages will likely drive Google’s new solution to be increasingly popular.

Meanwhile, Grove’s post signals that the marketing community is set to enter something of an arms race with Google, similar to that between the creators of spam email and the designers of spam filters:

“I’ve heard a lot of people asking how they can get out of the Promotions tab and into the Primary tab. There aren’t any good answers here, because Gmail is really good at what they do… we’re definitely testing the new inbox and trying to figure out how it works.”

Keep Reading

Most Popular

This new data poisoning tool lets artists fight back against generative AI

The tool, called Nightshade, messes up training data in ways that could cause serious damage to image-generating AI models. 

Rogue superintelligence and merging with machines: Inside the mind of OpenAI’s chief scientist

An exclusive conversation with Ilya Sutskever on his fears for the future of AI and why they’ve made him change the focus of his life’s work.

Data analytics reveal real business value

Sophisticated analytics tools mine insights from data, optimizing operational processes across the enterprise.

How to fix the internet

If we want online discourse to improve, we need to move beyond the big platforms.

Stay connected

Illustration by Rose Wong

Get the latest updates from
MIT Technology Review

Discover special offers, top stories, upcoming events, and more.

Thank you for submitting your email!

Explore more newsletters

It looks like something went wrong.

We’re having trouble saving your preferences. Try refreshing this page and updating them one more time. If you continue to get this message, reach out to us at customer-service@technologyreview.com with a list of newsletters you’d like to receive.