Thanks to NewsletterMonitor, throughout 2013 we collected a huge quantity of newsletters and have brought them together here in an analysis of how the apparel and personal objects industry communicated with its users. The analysis relates to over 1,900 international brands that send newsletters in the English language.

1. The apparel and
personal objects
industry in 2013
A newsletter analysis
on frequency, timing,
addresses & subjects

2. Apparel and personal objects industry - 2013
A newsletter analysis
In 2013, in what way did brands in the
apparel/personal objects industry
communicate through their newsletters?
Thanks to NewsletterMonitor*, in 2013 we
monitored and analyzed over 1,900
newsletters sent by international brands and
a grand total of 165,000 emails in English to
find out!
*NewsletterMonitor watches more than 17,000 brands in English, French, Italian, German, Spanish across
25 different industries and contains over 6,000,000 emails collected since 2007

3. Apparel and personal objects industry - 2013
Executive summary
•
In 2013, 165,000 English language emails were sent by over 1,900 brands in the
apparel and personal object industry.
•
On average, each brand sent 114 emails per year (9.5 emails per month). 14.5%
sent just one email per month while most of the brands (80%) sent between 1 and
15 emails per month. The highest frequency was 91.5 emails per month.
•
Emails are sent every day of the week; only 1 email out of 5 is sent out during
weekends.
•
The approach of Christmas is a good occasion to communicate: at the end of the
year (starting from October) there was an increase in frequency. Week number 49
registered the peak of weekly email sending.
•
67% of emails were sent between 11:00 gmt+1 and 20:00 gmt+1 and 9.5% of the emails
are sent while users are sleeping! (between 00:00 gmt+1 and 07:00 gmt+1).
•
Emails are sent at every hour of the day. The first minutes of each hour are
generally preferred. We can also see hourly peaks at :15, :30 and :45. Peak time is
15:01 gmt+1.

4. Apparel and personal objects industry - 2013
Executive summary
•
9% of emails use a “noreply@” for the mail-from address and only 1% of email omits
a mail-from name.
•
Each subject line, on average, uses 49.3 characters. Most of the subject lines
(81.5%) use between 20 and 69 characters. The longest subject line uses 304
characters.
•
For each subject line 8.9 words are used on average. Most subject lines (80.1%) use
between 4 and 12 words. The highest number of words used in a subject was 48.
•
More than 40,000 different words have been used in subject lines. The most used
words belong to 4 main word domains: savings, urgency, seasonality, exclusivity.
•
The most frequently used words include “off”, “sale”, “new”, “free”, “save”. “off” is
the most used word in subject lines in every month of the year.
•
Special characters are used in subjects: ★ was used 1,539 times, ♥ was used 820
times, ☀ was used 226 times.
•
Other special characters include stars, hearts, seasons, weather, arrows, pointers.

5. Apparel and personal objects industry - 2013
The 1,900 brands we monitored in 2013

6. Apparel and personal objects industry - 2013
Frequency: emails per month
165,000
114
emails
sent in 2013 by
1,900 brands
emails per year
and per brand
on average
9.5
emails
per month, per
brand on
average
% of brands by average emails per month
14%
12%
14.5% of brands sent
(on avg.)
one email per month.
10%
8%
50% of brands
6%
between 1 and 6
emails per month.
sent(on avg.)
80% of brands
4%
2%
sent(on avg.)
between 1 and 15
emails per month.
one of these brands sent
1,098 in a single year!
91.5 per month!
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
50+
0%

7. Apparel and personal objects industry - 2013
Timing: day of the week
Emails are sent every day of the week,
with peaks on Thursday (16.5%) and Friday (16.8%)
Day of the week
14.8%
15.4%
15.4%
16.5%
16.8%
9.7%
Mon
Tue
Wed
Thu
Fri
11.5%
Sat
Sun
Only 1 email out of 5 is sent out during weekends
78.8%
21.2%
Weekday
Weekend

8. Apparel and personal objects industry - 2013
Timing: month of the year
Emails are sent out every month, but especially at the end
of the year: in November (9.9%) and December (11.6%)
% email sent by month of the year
11.6%
7.4%
7.2%
Jan
Feb
7.9%
7.6%
Mar
Apr
8.2%
May
7.6%
8.0%
7.9%
8.0%
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
8.8%
Oct
9.9%
Nov
Dec

9. Apparel and personal objects industry - 2013
Timing: weeks of the year
Christmas is coming…
week 49 registered the highest number of sent emails
% of email sent by week Number
3%
Peak is in Week 49
(2013.12.01 - 2013.12.07)
with 3% of emails
2%
1%
0%
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52
Moreover, fall is the season with the highest number of
emails sent, with 29% of total sent emails in the year

10. Apparel and personal objects industry - 2013
Timing: time of day
67% of emails are sent between 11:00* and 20:00*
emails sent by time of the day (hours)
12%
10%
8%
6%
4%
2%
0%
9.5% of emails are sent while users are sleeping!
(assuming users sleep between 00:00* and 07:00*)
* GMT+1

11. Apparel and personal objects industry - 2013
Timing: time of day
Emails are sent at all hours of the day
The first minutes of each hour are generally preferred
emails sent by time of day (minutes)
Peak is at 15:01*, with
0.7% of all emails (avg.
is 0.07% per minute).
Hint: to avoid overcrowding, it’s best send a few minutes
before/after the exact hour
* GMT+1

12. Apparel and personal objects industry - 2013
Timing: time of day
Focusing on the minutes between 11:00 and 20:00 (time slot
with the highest number of email sent), we also see peaks
around minutes :15, :30 and :45
Email sent by time of the day (minutes between 11:00 and 20:00)
15:01
14:03
16:02
17:01
12:02
15:10
13:02
14:11
14:32
13:09
11:01
12:16 12:33
11:32
* GMT+1
13:30
18:01
19:01
15:17
15:31
16:31
16:15
16:46
17:15
17:30
18:15
18:31
19:31
19:16

13. Apparel and personal objects industry - 2013
Addresses: mail from and reply-to
Best practice: avoid using “no-reply” addresses in the mailfrom field (especially if you want to build a relationship!!!)
9%
Still
of emails uses
sender addresses.
“no-reply” in
9%
Best practice : use a mail from name (not only the mail
from email address)
Only 1% of emails in this industry omit a
1%
99%
mail from name!
91%

14. Apparel and personal objects industry - 2013
Subject lines: length
Each subject contains on average 49.3 characters.
21 emails were sent without a subject (maybe there was nothing to say…)
% of email sent by subject length
12%
10%
8%
6%
298 emails had a lot to
say and they used more
than 200 characters!
4%
2%
0%
4.9%
81.5%
13.6%
One of the longest subjects was the following:
«French Luxury Handbags: Chanel, Givenchy and More, Christian Dior Ties, Movado and Charriol Watches, French Spring
Apparel by L33, C-Label Women's Shoes, Almarei Handbags Made in Italy, Sexy Diva Dresses, Plus Size Fashions for Her,
Fiarino and Ted Lapidus for Him, YAY Apparel and Accessories, and More!»

15. Apparel and personal objects industry - 2013
Subject lines: number of words
Each subject contains on average 8.9 words
% of email sent by words count in subject
12%
80.1% of all emails
subjects are between
4 and 12 words.
10%
8%
6%
4%
2%
0%
0
1
2
5.2%
3
4
5
6
7
8
80.1%
9
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 30+
14.7%
One of the subjects with most words was:
«Sneaker Freaker News - Six kicks with Kyrie Irving, New Air Max prints by Matt Stevens, Soleheaven SF x LCS 'Summer Bay'
Euro launch recap, Inside New Balance's Flimby factory, Win a Rastaclat prize pack, New Nike Air Max 1 and BW releases,
Lil Wayne x Supra Chimera (Acid Yellow)»

16. Apparel and personal objects industry - 2013
Subject lines: most used words
40,000 different words have been used in subjects*
Words are used to express Savings, Urgency, Exclusivity, Seasonality
* without considering words with less than 3 characters and common words

17. Apparel and personal objects industry - 2013
Subject lines: words by month
The 20 most frequently used words each month*
Savings, Urgency, Exclusivity, Seasonality
* without considering words with less than 3 characters and common words

18. Apparel and personal objects industry - 2013
Subject lines: special characters
Special characters have been used in subjects.
About 13,000 special characters have appeared in subject
lines.
★ ♥ ☀
It appears in
852 subjects,
It appears in
681 subjects,
It appears in
226 times!
161 subjects,
1,539 times!
820 times!
★50% OFF ★ FREE Shipping ★
♥ 48 Hours Left ♥ 70% Off Sale! ♥
Here's What to Pack for Hawaii ☀
★★★ WOW ★★★
♥ Just in time for Valentine's Day ♥
Shop it like it's hot! ☀
Summer Super Stars...★★★★★
♥♥ MUST-HAVES ♥♥
☀ Summer Clearance is Here! ☀
★ Merry Christmas ★ Now 20% OFF
♥♥ Happy Mother’s Day! ♥♥
W☀W!
S★LE!
Dresses we ♥
The ☀ Is Out And NEW Arrivals Are Here!
They are used to make subject lines more appealing,
attract attention, refer to special occasions, substitute
letters or words

19. Apparel and personal objects industry - 2013
Subject lines: special characters
Other special characters that are used in subjects are...
stars and hearts
symbols used to indicate and to hurry
❤ ☆ ❥ ✰
✩ ✭ ❣ ✪
✯ ♡ ✶ ✮
☛ ⌛ ⇩ ➚ ▶
➽ ➠ ➨ ➜
☜ ➤ ⌚ ➳
symbols for nature, weather, seasons
numbers and letters
☀ ❀ ❄ ❃ ❊
☾ ♒ ☁ ☂ ✿
☃ ❆ ❅ ☼
➊ ❷❸
Ⓦ Ⓞ ⓦ
Ⓢ Ⓐ Ⓛ Ⓔ

20. Apparel and personal objects industry - 2013
Subject lines: special characters
Examples of subjects with special characters
stars and hearts
❤ 2/14 ❤ is coming! Order in time with free shipping.
Overnight Sale ☆ Take 10% Off Tonight Only!
❥❥Want Valentine’s Day Gift Ideas?❥❥
✰✰ It’s a Big Sale ✰✰
3 Days! ✩28 Hot Deals ✩ Lowest Prices of the Year
50% OFF top items ✭ Black Friday Deals
Omg ❣ Hundreds of new sale items added!
✪ 4th of July Shipping Specials! You choose. ✪
✯ YOUNGSTARS! The Coolest Styles for Kids & Teens ✯
✶ Let's Celebrate! ✶ The Holiday Lookbook is here!
✮✮✮ Sunday BestSellers ✮✮✮
symbols for nature, weather, seasons
☀ Brighten up Your Panty Drawer ☀
❀ 67% Off ❀ Spring Break Sale ❀ 67% Off ❀
❄ ❄ It’s Cold For Real ❄ ❄
❃25% OFF + Your gift of GLAMOUR❃
❊ Email-exclusive free shipping special ends tonight! ❊
High-Shine Stilettos for a Haute Halloween ☾
♒ Jump right into savings of up to 50% ♒
Denim Daydreams ☁
Let it Rain! Stay Dry in Style ☂
New Arrivals for the New Season ✿ Shop Now
Snow way, it’s a snow day! ☃
❆❆ Merry Christmas ❆❆ Here's A Gift
symbols used to indicate and to hurry
4 HOUR FLASH SALE ☛Up to 70% off online ☚
⌛ Hurry Before It's All Gone!
⇩Below Cost⇩ $129.99 Diamond Bracelet | Today Only!
▶▶Under $50: Our 50 Most Popular Styles◀◀
➽ Free shipping special ends tonight!
$6.99 (86% Off) ➨ Golden Bicycle Necklace
➜➜Last 12 Hours | 20% Off SiteWide | Happy Labor Day!
☞You☜ Get More (Coupons)
Last Chance ➤ Pick your Mystery Box
⌚ 4 Hours Only: 30% Off Your Online Purchase
Into the Wild ➳ Shop NEW Arrivals + Crop Tops!
numbers and letters
New sitewide sale: Buy ➊, get ➊ 50% off! Free shipping
special, too.
Score Big with Savings! ❷ DAYS ONLY!
❸ Hour SALE: Up to 50% OFF Best Selling Styles!
❸ ❷ ❶ 70% Savings Start NOW!
Fall Sample Sale Deets + ⓝ ⓔ ⓦ Arrivals!
ⒷⓄⒼⓄ SAVINGS on all Ulla tops
ⓌⓄⓌ 20% OFF + FREE shipping
Columbus Day ⓈⒶⓁⒺ - 25% OFF $125

21. About the authors
Valerio Verde – Product manager
valerio.verde@newslettermonitor.com
Always passionate about new media and new technologies, he began his professional career in 1995.
Has a degree in marketing and communications, and a master's degree in business administration.
Over the years has managed various activities, from digital marketing to the development of
communication strategies, from the creation of new software products to email marketing.
Francesca Borgonovo – Product specialist
francesca.borgonovo@newslettermonitor.com
She has a degree in marketing and global markets and has always been passionate about advertising
and communication.
She started working in a research institute where she has deepened her analytical skills and her interest
in new media.

22. About NewsletterMonitor
NewsletterMonitor is a free benchmarking platform to monitor, analyze and compare
over 6 million emails sent by more than 17,000 brands in 25 industries including:
Agencies and creative services, Apparel and personal objects, Art, Automotive, Beauty and wellness, Construction
industry & real estate, Dating and social networks, Education and training, Energy, Entertainment and events, Finance
and insurance, Food and beverage, Games, Home and office, Institutions and organizations, Internet and web services,
Mass market distribution, Media and publishing, Non profit, Professional services, Sports, Technology, Telecommunications,
Travel and tourism.
With a wealth of features, NewsletterMonitor lets you discover all the best email
marketing practices and be inspired.
Thanks to Brand Alerts you will be notified whenever your brand or a keyword is mentioned
in one of more than 4,000 emails received daily.
You will find more analysis and updates about the email marketing on our blog
blog.newslettermonitor.com
NewsletterMonitor is powered by ContactLab (www.contactlab.com)
To create your free account on NewsletterMonitor go to
www.newslettermonitor.com
To contact us send an email to
team@newslettermonitor.com

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