Digital marketing seems to change every day, so it can feel hard to keep up with it. What are the latest tools, what do people want to see, are people even reading their emails anymore?
Well, a resounding yes to that last one. As a specialist hospitality marketing agency that’s worked with more pubs and restaurants than any other UK agency, we know what we’re talking about – promise.
So grab a brew and settle in – these are your email marketing tips for 2025.
1. AI-powered subject lines & personalisation
Email subject lines play a crucial role in determining whether recipients open an email. According to HubSpot, 64% of recipients decide to open or delete emails based on subject lines (Source).
This stat highlights the importance of crafting compelling and relevant subject lines to enhance email open rates, but where do you start?
In 2025, with AI, of course. With AI and automation, it's now possible to create highly personalised subject lines tailored to individual guest behaviours, booking histories, and preferences.
Tips for engaging subject lines in 2025:
- Leverage AI-powered tools to test and optimise subject lines dynamically
- Use personalisation beyond a guest’s first name, try location, last visit, or menu preferences to really capture your reader’s attention
- Using emojis: Emojis still work, but A/B test them with your audience. What works? What doesn’t? How many is too many?
- Create urgency and exclusivity: for example, “🍻 Book Now: Limited Beer Pairing Event This Friday!”
- Test AI-generated subject lines: Tools like ChatGPT can craft multiple variations in seconds, allowing you to spend more time refining and improving.
Additionally, 69% of email recipients will mark an email as spam based on its subject line. This highlights the critical importance of crafting effective subject lines to ensure your emails are opened and not marked as spam (Source).
2. “Smart” landing pages for higher conversions
Not every email needs a landing page. In fact, we’d recommend against creating a new landing page for every email campaign, as this can take some serious resources to get right. A “smart” landing page, however, could be a game changer.
Definition: A “smart” landing page is a personalised and dynamic page that adapts to a user’s behaviour, preferences and interactions. They are designed to provide a tailored experience that increases the chances of conversion.
Key features of smart landing pages:
- Personalisation: Smart landing pages change based on data like location, browsing history, or the ad campaign that brought the user to the page. For example, a returning visitor might see different content than a first-time visitor.
- Dynamic Content: The content, images, or offers on the page can vary depending on the source or the user’s profile. For example, someone clicking an ad for a summer promotion may see a banner highlighting that offer, while someone coming through a search for a restaurant in winter may see more relevant offers.
- A/B Testing: Many smart landing pages use A/B testing automatically, displaying variations of content to see which performs best. This ensures continuous optimisation of the page.
- Integration with CRM & Data: They can integrate with customer relationship management (CRM) systems to pull user data and create targeted, personalised experiences.
- Behaviour Tracking: Smart landing pages track how users interact with the page (e.g., what buttons they click, how long they stay) and adjust accordingly to offer more relevant content.
So, how does a smart landing page create better email marketing?
- Your reader feels heard: The landing page can adapt dynamically based on the visitor’s email engagement history.
- Your reader feels more engaged: They allow space for more interactive elements, from menus and event sign-ups to and loyalty programme integration and more.
- It improves your SEO: A well-structured landing page boosts your brand’s visibility online, increasing brand awareness and, indirectly, email sign-ups!
3. Omnichannel integration
Customers don’t just rely on email to get their news and entertainment; they engage with social media, SMS, WhatsApp – and any other online channel or app you can think of. So... make sure you’re over there, too!
Omnichannel integration significantly enhances customer retention and spending. Companies that implement omnichannel strategies have been seen to retain an impressive 89% of their customers, compared to just 33% for those that don't (Source).
Additionally, omnichannel shoppers spend 30% more than single-channel shoppers (Source). These statistics highlight the substantial impact of a cohesive omnichannel approach on customer loyalty and revenue.
For maximum impact, align your email marketing with:
- SMS reminders and follow-ups: Send a quick "Hey, did you see our latest event?" message to re-engage your audience.
- Social media retargeting: If a user opens or clicks in one of your emails but doesn’t go on to book a table or buy a product, serve them a social media ad with a similar message or offer.
- User-generated content (UGC): Including UGC in emails – such as real customer photos or reviews from social media – can increase open rates and engagement, as well as increasing engagement on your social media. Who doesn’t want to pop up in a brand email, after all?
Diving deeper: Retarget email non-openers on social media
Did you know that retargeting those who have opened or clicked an email with social media ads can significantly boost conversion rates? For instance, retargeted users are 70% more likely to convert (Source).
As an added bonus, retargeting can also increase ad engagement rates by up to 400% (Source). If you’re anything like us, there’s really only so many times you can resist that product or experience you’ve been thinking about...
Retargeting email non-openers with a personalised Facebook or Instagram ad and reinforcing your campaign across platforms is important for keeping your brand top of mind. This is one of the most important things we consider when working on cohesive email and social marketing strategies.
How can we ensure that your audience receives a consistent brand experience across all touchpoints, increasing their awareness, recall, and loyalty to the brand? Get in touch and we’ll tell you all about it.
4. A/B testing with AI insights
We’ve said this before, and we’ll say it again: test, test, test!
With everything else you have to do, we’re not suggesting you do this all yourself – use AI-powered A/B testing takes this to the next level by:
- Predicting the best time to send based on guest activity patterns.
- Auto-generating subject lines, calls to action, and email structures for higher engagement.
- Segmenting audiences dynamically and adjusting content in real time.
Email marketing tips: What are the best things to test in 2025?
- Subject lines: AI-driven vs. manually written.
- Send times: AI-predicted vs. traditional best practices.
- Email tone: conversational vs. professional.
- Design elements: dark mode-friendly vs. bright visuals.
5. Advanced email automation and website integration
2025 is all about intelligent automation. If your email marketing strategy still relies on basic welcome sequences, it's time to upgrade.
Here’s what next-level email automation looks like:
- Behaviour-based journeys: Automate follow-ups based on real-time user actions.
- Predictive segmentation: AI can sort subscribers into the most relevant email flows for you – put the flipchart away!
- Triggered dynamic content: Emails auto-update based on subscriber behaviour, such as thanking them for visiting recently, or suggesting a product or service that would complement a previous purchase.
- Lapsed guest campaigns: Reignite engagement with exclusive offers and personalised reminders.
Email automations for hospitality in 2025:
- A guest books a table at your restaurant → Your guest automatically receives an email with menu highlights and special offers.
- A guest dines but doesn’t return for 60 days → Your email automation triggers a "We Miss You!" campaign with an exclusive incentive.
- A guest engages with your email → Your email automation offers a VIP loyalty programme to encourage repeat visits.
And that’s just off the top of our head – imagine what we could do with a full email marketing workshop together?
Email marketing tips: Conclusion
Email marketing in 2025 is evolving with technology, but the fundamentals – offering value, maintaining relevance and building strong relationships — remain key to success.
Keep testing, optimising, and staying updated on trends to keep your strategy effective and engaging!
If that all sounds like too much to handle on your own – and believe us, we get it – get in touch! This is what we live and breathe. Let’s have your audience excited to see your brand pop up in their inbox.
2025 email marketing tips: FAQs
In 2025, email marketing is all about personalisation, automation, and AI-driven insights. Brands are focusing on hyper-targeted content based on customer behaviour, using AI to optimise send times and subject lines, aiming to increase open and conversation rates.
The ideal frequency depends on your audience and the nature of your business. However, the key is consistency without overwhelming your subscribers. Many businesses find success with weekly or bi-weekly emails, while others may send daily updates. Always test and adjust based on engagement metrics like open rates and unsubscribes.
There are a few tried-and-true tactics:
- Compelling subject lines: Make sure they’re clear, engaging, and relevant.
- Segment your audience: Send tailored content to specific groups for better relevance.
- A/B testing: Test subject lines, send times, and content to see what resonates best.
- Optimised send time: Use AI tools to determine the best time to send based on user behaviour.
Automation is essential in 2025 email marketing. The role of automation in email marketing is to save time and energy within your team, while still delivering timely, relevant messages that drive engagement.
An example of email marketing automation is automatically triggered email campaigns, such as welcome emails, abandoned cart reminders, and post-purchase follow-ups.
Key metrics for measuring the success of your email marketing include:
- Open rate: Shows the percentage of recipients who opened your email.
- Click-through rate (CTR): Tracks how many people clicked on a link in your email.
- Conversion rate: Measures how many recipients completed an action (e.g., purchase, sign-up).
- Unsubscribe rate: Helps identify if your emails are becoming too frequent or irrelevant.
Regularly review these metrics and adjust your strategies accordingly.
With mobile devices accounting for a large portion of email opens, responsive design is a must. Use single-column layouts, large fonts, and clear CTAs that are easy to tap on smaller screens. Test your emails across multiple devices to ensure they look good on any platform.
Yes! AI plays a huge role in email marketing today. AI can analyse past campaign data to predict the best times to send emails, optimise subject lines for higher open rates, and even personalise content at scale.
Using machine learning algorithms, AI helps you continually improve targeting and engagement in your email marketing.
The best approach is to provide a mix of content:
- Welcome emails to introduce new subscribers to your brand.
- Promotional emails with offers, discounts, or product launches.
- Newsletter emails to share valuable content, news, or insights.
- Transactional emails like table booking info or order confirmations.
Beccy Lindon
Beccy Lindon is a Brew content specialist. She shares her expertise with our hospitality clients and manages their fast-paced content briefs from her home in sunny Mallorca.
