Hi! In case we haven’t met before, I’m Justine Jordan, the Head of Strategy and Community here at Beefree. Over the past 16 years, I’ve worn many hats: designer, developer, marketer, community builder, and even the occasional cat GIF curator. I’ve been fortunate to build a career based on deep expertise in all things inbox, where I’ve seen firsthand the incredible potential of using email to connect people and businesses.
Way back in 2007, I fell into the email industry almost by accident. Fresh out of college, I started my career as a designer focused on creating print and brand assets. Frustrated by what felt like a lack of impact and respect in my design role, I wanted to be seen as someone who could help drive business success. Unlike brochures, email design offered instant feedback—opens, clicks, and conversions could tell a story.
I was hooked. And as the industry grew, so did my appreciation for email's ability to forge direct connections with people, right in their inboxes.
And yet, we all know that 16 years in any field (especially email!) is a long time. Email today is vastly different from the scrappy marketing channel I stumbled upon in 2007—even though its core mission remains the same: building meaningful, personal connections that drive business results. So, let’s dive into the fascinating, often underappreciated evolution of email and explore why it remains as relevant and impactful as ever.
A decade of opportunities and challenges
Personalization and the journey to hyper-relevance
When I started, email was largely one-size-fits-all. Campaigns were often “spray and pray” or involved very simple or binary yes/no personalization.
Today, personalization has evolved beyond first names in subject lines to sophisticated, data-driven approaches. Marketing teams can now leverage insights from browsing behavior, purchase history, and even real-time data, adapting dynamically to each recipient’s preferences and past interactions. This technology is still advancing rapidly—it’s hard to believe that it was barely possible two decades ago.
Rendering issues
In the past, we’d spend hours making sure emails looked as good in Outlook as they did in Gmail—and, going further back, in Lotus Notes! The visual building tools in most ESPs were buggy and produced bloated HTML that was ready for the web, but didn’t meet the unique constraints of email.
Fast forward to today, and while rendering challenges haven’t disappeared entirely, they’re far less consuming. Gmail's support for embedded CSS was a game changer, signaling an era where our designs could focus more on creativity and less on workarounds.
Rendering tools made this process easier, and drag-and-drop editors like Beefree produce clean, email-friendly HTML. What once required hours of coding and testing now takes minutes, freeing email marketers to focus on crafting their messages instead of debugging their code.
Mobile-first and responsive design
Mobile-optimized email design used to be a “nice to have,” but today, it's essential.
Brands must deliver a seamless experience across a wide range of devices and subscriber preferences. This shift required us to think beyond just fitting content on smaller screens; it required a rethinking of layout, typography, and hierarchy. Today, it's about more than just looking good on mobile—it's about providing immediate, relevant, and accessible information.
Interactive and accessible emails
Today’s email campaigns go beyond static images and blocks of text. Interactivity, whether through embedded videos, polls, or even checkout functionality within the email, is changing the game. We’re offering richer experiences that invite users to engage directly within their inboxes.
At the same time, accessibility has become a critical consideration. Making sure that everyone can receive and understand your message, regardless of any disabilities or assistive devices they may be using isn’t just good practice, it's an industry standard.
Privacy, authentication, and the role of trust
Over the past decade, privacy regulations like GDPR and CCPA along with authentication requirements from major receivers like Gmail and Yahoo have reshaped how people view the inbox and their relationship with brands that send email.
While the introduction of these new regulations initially posed considerable questions, confusion, and challenges, they also served as a valuable reminder that great marketing starts with trust, transparency, and consent. This shift encouraged brands to communicate with audiences in a more transparent, respectful way, reinforcing the idea that consumers own their data.
Email’s place in the C-Suite
Email marketing has always had champions, though convincing executives of its strategic value hasn’t always been easy. Over time, email advocates—often the Email Geeks among us—have successfully positioned email not as a tool for increased revenue but as a trusted channel for delivering essential information and building long-term relationships. Today, email is often recognized as a valuable asset in C-suite conversations about customer experience, retention, and ROI.
The power of community
The email industry has grown from a niche group into a thriving community that shares, supports, and learns from one another. I’ve had the privilege of being part of a community that openly shares best practices and fosters innovation.
Events like Unspam, Email Camp, and Litmus Live highlight just how much email professionals have pushed boundaries over the past decade. This spirit of collaboration keeps the industry strong and forward-looking.
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My #1 Lesson: Put People First
If there’s one lesson I’ve learned, it’s this: email should serve the audience, not just the business.
Reaching people in their inbox is a privilege, not a right. Too many brands treat email like an ATM, pumping out sales and promotions without considering the impact on loyalty, retention, or the user experience. Yet the companies that treated their emails as conversations rather than megaphones? They’re the ones that thrived.
Email is unique because it arrives in a personal space (the inbox) where people are expecting personal messages and relevance. It’s an honor to land in someone’s inbox, so the content should meet that privilege with empathy and value.
Some of my favorite brands—like Going—understand this: they craft emails that feel like they are speaking directly to me—thoughtful, helpful, and human. That’s the level of care that builds trust and loyalty.
Advice for the future: Embrace empathy and experiment
Reflecting on the past decade in email marketing feels like watching an old friend evolve. I've seen firsthand how a channel that is frequently sidelined and declared “dead” has become a pivotal player helping businesses grow and connect with their audience.
With each email renaissance comes new trends, innovations, preferences, and technology.
Every few years, email redefines its role in our lives as marketers, business leaders, and as humans. Email's journey has been one of resilience, adapting to new trends, regulations, and consumer expectations while remaining at the heart of customer engagement.
For anyone starting off in email, my biggest advice is always keep your audience at the heart of your campaigns. Email marketing is both art and science, and finding that balance is what makes this industry so rewarding.
Don’t be afraid to test your ideas—measure, refine, and get creative with how you deliver value. But always remember, the inbox is personal territory. If you respect that space, you’ll have a powerful, lasting connection with your audience.
I’d also suggest building a solid understanding of the complexity behind email—learn the basics of deliverability, the role of email in multi-channel lifecycle and marketing campaigns, connecting data and APIs, multivariate testing, and stay current with the latest tools and platforms.
With AI, privacy regulations, and rising consumer expectations, we’re bound to see even more shifts in how we approach email. Knowing how these elements work under the hood will only make you a more effective, innovative marketer.
But one thing remains: the need to make email human-centric. This will mean staying adaptable and continuing to create value-driven content that aligns with the subscriber's needs. Far from dead, the real magic of email is the central role it plays in our lives—and it’s not going anywhere. Here’s to another decade of email evolution 🙌
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