In the last three years I have gone from reading all my emails on desktop or laptop to perusing the majority first on a smartphone. Most importantly, I delete most emails on one as well. For email marketing to be effective we need to know who reads what, why and on which specific device. Smartphones, and all the other mobile devices available nowadays, complicate what we didn't realise was the simple situation of a couple of years ago.

Reliable statistics are all but impossible to find. No one agrees as to the percentage of people who open their emails on mobile devices yet this is the most basic criterion.

There are always ways in which email can provide an answer that can be used as a basis for a campaign. In the case of who uses a mobile device the poor research is probably a benefit as a general figure, no matter how precise, would probably not be applicable to your business. It is down to you to discover the percentage of your subscribers who have over-active thumbs.

You might wonder why this is important. Indeed, it would appear, at least according to statistics regarded as dependable, the vast majority of companies engaged in email marketing have little or no strategy for mobile devices. This though is good news. It leaves it open for those who are willing to do a little sensible planning.

Different mobile devices can require different layouts of email. A later article will cover the specifics.

There is a distinct tendency nowadays for more people to open their emails on a smartphone. Or rather certain people will do so. The question you have to answer is whether or not those on your email marketing lists fall into this category.

Those who are deskbound will probably favour a desktop or large laptop. The joy of continually fishing around in pockets for smartphones soon wears thin. Those whose job is mainly onsite might well use a smartphone exclusively.

Do not get left behind. The history of email marketing is littered with the corpses of companies which felt they had got it cracked.