Can domain segmentation increase email ROI?

Segmenting online campaigns according to the similarities in groups of users - the same geographic region, similar buying habits or gender - is nothing new in the online marketing world. Segmenting by domain address, i.e. AOL, gmail or Yahoo, is something new but according to an Email Marketing Reports blog, it could help to increase the ROI of email campaigns.

by Kristina Knight

How? By indicating where troubles may lie. Delivery or design problems, for example.

For example, marketers can compare the open and click-through rates for entire domains - Yahoo, gmail, Hotmail and others. If there is a huge difference between in the open or click through rates of Yahoo and gmail or Hotmail and AOL there could be a problem at the domain level. All domains have their own set of rules to determine email sender reputation. In some cases, emails to the domain from a questionable source are blocked or bounced back. By seeing that Yahoo or Hotmail open rates are much smaller than open rates at gmail or AOL, marketers can tackle the problem.

Next, design. Some domains block images and some don't, some domains allow users to preview the messages and some don't. By segmenting according to domain, marketers can adjust the email design before a consumer sees if. If a preview pane is offered, the email design can accommodate and if images are blocked at that domain, actions can be taken to avoid the white space issue.