Personalized emails are 26% more likely to be opened and in the age of AI it’s no longer enough to insert first names via dynamic content rules.
Not only does AI email personalization lead to increased ROI, but it will also free marketers from hours of discussion on whether to send emails on Tuesday or Wednesday.
The painfully overused adage “the right message to the right person at the right time” finally makes sense!
With AI personalization in email, it actually is possible to give customers information they want at the time they typically engage.
Let’s explore the difference.
What are Dynamic Content Rules in Email Marketing?
Dynamic content gives marketers the ability to create rules-based personalization that changes part of an email (such as text, images, sale offers) based on predefined conditions of what you already know about them (such as name, location, past purchases).
It can be something simple like a variable that inputs the customer’s name based on their contact record. This gives you the ability to easily personalize at the most basic level, at scale.
As another example, a marketer could set a rule for a winter email that “customers in Florida receive imagery & offers for beach products while everyone else receives an offer for depression pills.”
Or, “all customers who previously purchased X should receive a recommendation for Y.”
The key point to understand here is that this is all manually defined and does not change unless you change it. This is where the AI magic happens.
What is AI Personalization in Email Marketing?
AI takes email personalization to the next level by truly personalizing content based on that customer’s individual behavior. The marketer does not define specific rules.
AI personalization in email:
- Analyzes individual behavior
- Makes individual predictions
- Personalizes content at the individual level
AI doesn’t personalize in a general sense, such as showing beach images to everyone who lives in Florida. It would show beach images and offers only to those most likely to purchase based off that imagery.
There are certainly depressed people in Florida who don’t go to the beach and would prefer the pill offer, and AI knows that!
It predicts not only what you might like, but also when you will be most likely to engage & purchase.
Marketers love blanket rules like “We can’t send email on Friday!”
With AI, there is no more nonsense. Some people DO read emails on Fridays, and those people will receive their emails on Friday!
It’s almost time for 2026 planning. It’s time to start thinking about taking email personalization to the next level with AI.
For fast-paced teams with no time to learn more about AI, here’s a guide on how to trim some fat to make room.