Email marketers take heart.

Despite all the buzz surrounding social media platforms, new research from Kantar Media Compete found that email remains the primary driver of consumer purchase decisions.

In fact, about one-third of the survey respondents in the Kantar Media Compete survey reported that they receive more than 20 emails from retailers in a week. Even better, a whopping 89 percent said they at least occasionally click through to a retail site from an email or visit a retail site immediately after reading an email.

What can you do to make sure your email messages are the ones that stand out? If you want to improve click through rates, pay close attention to these key email best practices:

Segment your target audience

After you welcome new subscribers to your email list, invite them to complete a short survey. (You could even encourage participation by rewarding survey respondents with a discount or gift card.)Use the survey to gather the information needed to create more detailed customer profiles. Then, divide your subscribers into meaningful segments based on fundamental demographics enhanced with survey results, additional customer feedback, past purchase behavior, etc.

Target each segment with relevant messages

Once you have created different customer segments, tweak email content, reposition products and adjust graphics for optimal appeal. Make it a goal to send only messages that will truly resonate with each segment. Leverage popular calendar events (holidays, change of season, etc.) and send trigger emails based on customer-specific information (birthdays, buying behavior, change of status, etc.).

Apply KISS (Keep It Simple Stupid)

Keep messages on-point. When it comes to email content, less is more. Write like a newspaper journalist, highlighting the most important information in the first few lines of text. Grab your reader's attention early because most people won't read all the way to the end. In addition, take the time to design subject lines for maximum impact. Like the text, subject lines must be short; otherwise, they'll get truncated and rendered meaningless.

Optimize based on how consumers use in-box, mobile devices

Email marketers must recognize that formatting is now a top priority. After all, even the most compelling message won't elicit a response if it can't be read. Rule Number One: Stay out of the spam filter by avoiding key words like "free," "100%," "visit our website." Rule Number Two: most of your subscribers use an email preview pane feature that displays horizontally; vertical elements aren't likely to generate interest. Ditto for images. In fact, many email services block images by default. Also keep in mind that a healthy percentage of consumers now access email using mobile devices (with small screens). Create content that can be easily read in several different formats.

Include relevant links and calls to action

This may run counter to your gut instinct, but there's really no need to include lots of information in an email message. Instead, strive for clean and easy-to-read. Use links to send subscribers to your website where they can find more details. And don't forget specific calls to action. Once subscribers have opened an email from you, give them clear directions about precisely what to do next.

Test and track

Email marketing generates digital data -all of which can be tracked and analyzed. Measure your results and chart your progress. Use these insights to fine-tune future email campaigns.

Integrate

As you measure and track your click through rates, watch for trends that can improve campaigns across other channels. Is there a call to action that's particularly effective? Do certain segments respond especially well to certain trigger emails? Etc. Integration can also help you take advantage of sharing across social media platforms to amplify your message even more.

Email marketing is an effective way to connect with your target audience -if you do it right. Research tells us that consumers do respond to brand messages delivered to their inbox, and personalized, relevant messages with clear calls to action not only generate sales; they can build brand loyalty, as well.

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