Hey it’s Chase and Jimmy here!

Most brands never audit their email marketing.

And it shows.

Dead flows. Dusty segments. Subject lines stuck in 2021.

If your campaigns are feeling stale—or worse, underperforming—it’s time for a proper checkup.

This morning's guide walks you through how to run a smart, sanity-saving email audit in 2025—what to look for, what to fix, what to scrap, and how to come out the other side with a leaner, higher-performing email machine. Because without regular audits, you’re not optimizing—you’re guessing.

Also inside this issue:

• Free webinar: Why your emails aren't converting (yet)

• DHL and Shopify team up to simplify cross-border shipping

• Why YouTube is a must-have in your content strategy

• New China tariff rules shake up DTC importing

👇 Let’s get into it.

📉 Why Your Emails Aren’t Converting (Yet)

Your product’s great.

So why isn’t anyone clicking buy?

Chances are, it’s not the offer—it’s the copy.

In this free webinar, Milda from Omnisend breaks down the psychology behind sales emails: what makes people say yes, what triggers action, and how to structure your message to convert.

You’ll learn:

✅ The psychological triggers that drive real action
✅ How to handle objections before they kill the sale
✅ A step-by-step structure for persuasive emails
✅ Go-to phrases for hooks, CTAs, and everything in between

🔍 The Email Marketing Audit Guide Every Brand Needs in 2025

You’re sending emails. You’re getting some results.

But if you're not sure what's working, what’s tanking, or what’s just taking up space in your subscriber’s inbox… it’s time for an audit.

And no, we don’t mean a scary IRS kind of audit.

This one’s designed to make you more money and help you send better emails, faster.

Let’s dig into how an email marketing audit works, and why your eCommerce biz absolutely needs one this year.

So, What Is an Email Marketing Audit?

It’s a full sweep of your email program: campaigns, automations, subscribers, list health, deliverability, performance metrics, content, workflows – everything.

You’ll uncover:

• Which automations are nailing it (or doing nothing)

• How clean (or chaotic) your list actually is

• Why subscribers aren’t opening or clicking

• Which emails are secretly clogging your revenue pipes

More than fixing what’s broken, it’s about doubling down on what works.

Why You Need an Email Audit (5 Benefits)

Here’s what regular email audits can do for your store:

• Boost opens, clicks, and conversions. You’ll know which subject lines and offers actually pull people in. And what needs tweaking (or trashing).

• Improve deliverability. Audits catch spam triggers, sender issues, and bad list hygiene before ISPs penalize you. Reputation matters.

• Clean your list (and your conscience). No more paying for dead weight. Re-engage the quiet ones. Say goodbye to the truly lost.

• Refocus on real goals. Are your emails just getting opens (read: vanity metric)? Or are they driving clicks, sales, and customer love? Audits help you recalibrate.

• Uncover missed opportunities. Maybe your abandoned cart flow ends too early. Or your welcome emails end up in spam. Your audit will bring these gaps to light.

Audit Components: What You’ll Be Looking At

Here’s a cheat sheet of the 5 main things to review during your audit:

• Performance metrics: Look at open rates, click-throughs, conversions, bounce rates, and unsubscribes. Are certain campaigns driving more $$$ than others? Are there drop-offs between opens and clicks?

• List health: Look for inactive subscribers, high bounce rates, and weird-looking addresses (looking at you, [email protected]). Messy list = bad deliverability = low performance.

• Design & content: Are your emails mobile-friendly? Do your CTAs pop? Is your copy clear? Also, check for pixelated images, broken links, and overly promotional language.

• Deliverability & compliance: Make sure your domain is authenticated, you’ve got proper consent for all contacts, your unsubscribe link works, and you’re compliant with all the laws.

• Automations: Audit your welcome series, abandoned cart emails, post-purchase follow-ups, winback campaigns, and product recs. Check the timing, tone, segmentation, and logic. Are these emails doing their job, or are they just set-it-and-forget-it artifacts?

How to Actually Run the Audit (Without Losing Your Mind)

1. Start with a goal

What are you hoping to fix or improve?

Are your welcome emails falling flat? Does your abandoned cart flow ghost potential buyers? Or are you chasing a higher repeat purchase rate?

Whatever your goals are, tie them to specific business outcomes, like:

• Increase post-purchase review submissions by 20%

• Recover $5K/month in abandoned cart revenue

Having tangible targets helps you stay focused and measure impact later.

2. Collect your data

Dig into the last 3–6 months of campaigns and automations. But instead of just grabbing open and click rates, pull deeper metrics, like:

• Conversion rates

• Revenue per email

• Device breakdowns

• Bounce/unsubscribe/spam complaint trends

• Segment-specific performance (e.g. VIPs vs. new subscribers)

• A/B test results (if you’ve run any)

Pro Tip: Visualize key metrics in a dashboard so you can spot trends at a glance (e.g. sudden dips in clicks or high unsubscribes after a particular campaign).

3. Bring in your team

You don’t have to do this solo (and you shouldn’t). Loop in:

• Designers to evaluate email layouts and mobile rendering

• Copywriters to spot messaging gaps or weak CTAs

• Sales team to align promos with top-converting products

• Customer support to surface FAQs or complaints you could address via email

• Web team to help with landing page speed, UX issues, or broken links

For example, a failed campaign might have nothing to do with the email itself. The problem could just be a glitchy checkout or product page.

Having your entire team on board can help you connect the dots faster and fix issues outside the inbox.

4. Test what’s not working

Found a weak spot? Use A/B tests to validate your ideas.

Let’s say:

• Your subject lines have flat open rates → Test urgency, curiosity, emojis, length

• Cart emails aren’t converting → Test discounts vs. social proof vs. reminders

• Your mobile CTR is low → Test button placement, font size, or image load time

Remember to keep the variables clean. Don’t test 5 things at once or you won’t know what moved the needle.

5. Remove the dead weight

Hanging on to inactive subscribers drags down your deliverability and wastes money.

Run engagement-based segments (e.g. hasn’t opened or clicked in 90+ days), and decide who gets:

• A win-back campaign
  A “last chance” email

• The boot 🥾

Pro Tip: Before you purge, look for signs of life. Some contacts might just need a fresh subject line or a more relevant offer to re-engage!

6. Write up your findings

Now that you’ve dissected your email program, don’t let your hard work live in your head.

Create a simple doc or spreadsheet that sums up:

• What’s working and why

• What’s underperforming and possible causes

• Quick fixes vs. bigger projects

• Metrics you’ll use to measure changes

• Ownership (who’s doing what)

7. Take action, then monitor

Prioritize fixes by effort vs. impact. Maybe you’ll redesign a few key automations, fix a clunky template, or update CTAs across top campaigns.

Then? Watch what happens.

• Did open rates improve after rewriting subject lines?

• Did cart recovery emails convert better after you added a testimonial?

• Are unsubscribes lower after cleaning your list?

Track results weekly for a month. If a change works, double down. If not, test again.

Final Thoughts

If you want your email channel to become a serious revenue driver (and not just a “marketing checkbox”), make audits part of your regular routine.

📆 Do a light one every quarter. A deep dive twice a year.
📈 Track results. Optimize ruthlessly.
💌 And send emails people love to open.

 📡 The Backchannel for Retention Marketers

You’ve seen the polished campaigns.

But the real retention secrets? They’re in the group chat.

eCom Email Certified Community is where email and SMS pros trade strategies, swap benchmarks, and share what’s actually working—before it hits a blog post.

It’s built for retention marketers who want real conversations, fast answers, and fresh ideas—not noise.

Here’s what’s inside:

✅ Private weekly newsletter with campaign ideas + strategy
✅ Slack with job leads + hot takes
✅ Feedback on flows, segments, and deliverability
✅ Direct access to Jimmy, Chase, and top email pros

Join the backchannel for just $1 today. Your inbox will thank you.

🗞️ Quick Clips

• DHL x Shopify: DHL Group has expanded its partnership with Shopify, enabling merchants to access DHL's comprehensive logistics solutions directly through the Shopify platform—simplifying international shipping and reducing administrative burden for online brands.

• YouTube Tops The Charts: According to Nielsen’s April 2025 Media Distributor Gauge report, YouTube is now the #1 platform for TV viewing in the U.S., capturing 12.4% of total audience time. That means longer watch times, more immersive ad experiences, and a growing opportunity to turn passive viewing into real product discovery. If YouTube isn’t part of your content and paid strategy yet, it’s time.

• Tariff Shift Shakes Up China-to-U.S. Shipping: The U.S. slashed tariffs on Chinese goods from 145% to 30%—but ended the de minimis exemption in the process. The result? A sharp drop in small direct-to-consumer shipments from China, forcing brands to rethink fulfillment and explore new import strategies.

Annnnd that’s a wrap for this edition! 

Thanks for hanging with Chase and me—always a pleasure to have you here.

If you found this newsletter helpful (or even just a little fun), don’t keep it to yourself! Share ecomemailmarketer.com with your favorite DTC marketer. Let’s get them on board so they don’t miss next week’s drops.

Remember: Do shit you love.

🤘 Jimmy Kim & Chase Dimond

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