Email marketing is one of the oldest digital marketing strategies, dominating the world since 1978. But today, digital marketing is all about social media, influencer marketing, and instant messaging apps. So every marketer has this nagging feeling- is email marketing still relevant?
As we move towards 2025, email marketing continues to prove its worth and stands out as an indispensable weapon in digital marketers’ arsenal. It is still the number one choice due to its cost-effectiveness, directness, and measurable results. With more than 4 billion users per day, email marketing provides the opportunity to engage with a bigger audience at a lower price. Many people still prefer emails and newsletters for updates rather than continuous mobile notifications, especially in business-to-business communication.
In this era of infinite communication channels, email remains a persistent player in the Philippines for its usefulness. In this article, we will further explain how Philippine businesses still benefit from Email marketing and its relevance in 2025.
The Digital Landscape in the Philippines
As Filipinos spend hours on social media, the country is being labeled as the social media capital of the world. However, the country is also a mobile-first market, where users base their buying decisions on the web. Despite this dominance of social media and mobile usage, email marketing continues to thrive because it complements these platforms rather than competing with them.
Although the younger generation is hooked on social media, the number of active email users is still rising in the Philippines. In business-to-business communication, email remains the king. It’s a vital channel for professional communication, e-commerce transactions, and personalized brand interactions.
When it comes to B2C marketing, email offers more personalized communication by analyzing customers’ purchasing behavior, which is crucial to influencing their buying decisions. Product recommendations, cart abandonment emails, tailored products as per their search history, or suggestions for future shopping- all these offer a way to connect with the customer and keep them engaged. This blend of professional and personal relevance makes email marketing a crucial channel to reach Filipino audiences.
Why Email Marketing Works in the Philippines?
While more a more people are using social media, emails are still the top choice of communication in the Philippines. As per the latest surveys, the email advertising market in the Philippines is expected to grow at a rate of 6.36% as email marketing is highly targeted and personalized and has been giving the best ROI among all marketing channels. The top reasons Email marketing works in the Philippines are:
It has a widespread reach
Emails are still widespread. Every person needs an email address to sign up for any online service, utilize search engines, or make an online purchase. Plus, email opening rates are increasing every day in the Philippines. With email marketing, businesses get directly in touch with the relevant person without the interference of algorithms or optimization.
Plus, emails break the geographical barriers. No matter where your customer is, email can reach the right customer directly in their inbox making it a relevant medium for marketing.
It can be optimized for mobile
The Filipino population is noted for being active mobile users and marketing via email has developed to adapt to this habit. Email marketing has evolved and become mobile-friendly. So the internet users in the Philippines can easily access emails on their mobiles. Today email marketing campaigns are mobile-friendly and easily accessible on small screens with direct call-to-action buttons.
With 70% of emails in the Philippines being opened on mobile phones, email marketing has become a direct way to communicate with personalization, but with a professional approach.
It is a Cost-Effective strategy
The Philippines market is dominated by Small and medium-sized enterprises. Email marketing provides an affordable way for these businesses to reach their target audiences. Compared to paid advertising on social media or Google, email marketing is the most cost-effective way to reach the audience directly. According to a recent survey, for every dollar, you can get a return of $42 making email marketing the most budget-friendly marketing strategy.
Small and medium-sized businesses in the Philippines can launch effective email campaigns to engage existing customers and attract new ones without spending a lot of money on ad campaigns.
Personalization and targeted marketing
Customers value personalized communication. When you post on social media or optimize a website, it’s the same for everyone. However, email marketing can be targeted and highly personalized. Email marketing allows audience segmentation to deliver tailored content for specific groups. Emails can be segmented based on demographics, age, location, purchase pattern, old user, new login, etc. to send direct and relevant information.
Personalized emails boost engagement and conversion rates. Businesses in the Philippines can send personalized product recommendations, special discounts, or seasonal offers based on users browsing history. These personalized emails help foster a stronger bond between the brand and the customer.
More informative and trustworthy
Emails from trusted brands or services provide a sense of security and legitimacy. A well-crafted email campaign adds an element of professionalism, has more information, and looks authentic to create trust. Social media ads although cost more, are neither reliable nor provide information. Plus, online ads also work as per algorithms. Not every user sees the ad.
Email marketing on the other hand provides useful information that can be reviewed and shared any time the customer wants to check. Plus, exclusive deals, birthday discounts, or order updates via email build trust and strengthen customer relationships.
Integration with Other Digital Channels
Email marketing is a direct approach but it can be integrated with other communication channels. The beauty of Email marketing is that businesses can promote anything through email- offers, social media contests, live events, or updates about new blog posts.
Email marketing in the Philippines is used to announce product launches, share featured ads, or post updates from other digital platforms. This integrated approach ensures that email marketing amplifies the reach and impact of a brand’s overall digital strategy.
Overcoming Challenges in Email Marketing
While email marketing has tons of benefits for businesses in the Philippines, it’s not without challenges. Businesses often struggle with low open rates, spam complaints, and unsubscribes. You can follow some practices to keep your email marketing campaign relevant in 2025:
Crafting an attention-grabbing subject line: A compelling subject line, or attention-grabbing tagline in the content can significantly improve open rates and attract more attention. In the subject line, use a language or slang relevant to local customers in the Philippines- a language that resonates with their culture, family, community, etc.
For example, adding a subject line with a special birthday discount or a Pasko sale discount of up to 50% can compel more people to open emails.
Relevant content: For the success of any email marketing campaign, the content in the email should provide complete information- what is the discount, what date is the offer, coupon codes, etc. Content that is more personalized to the customer is more likely to grab attention than normal written emails.
For example, sending a personalized ‘things you may like’ email based on their purchase history to give ideas on which shoes go with the pants or jackets to match your outfit can increase the chance of conversion.
Timing: Timing is always crucial in the Philippine market. While social media posts are more relevant during lunch hours or weekends, emails get more opening rates during business hours or early evenings, especially B2B emails. Plus, aligning B2C campaigns with local holidays or paydays can maximize response rates and conversions.
Mobile Optimization: With more use of smartphones in the Philippines, email companies need to be perfectly optimized for mobile views. Use templates that are smartphone-friendly, a font size that’s visible on the phone screen, and a clear call-to-action button for easy navigation on smartphones.
Adapt the latest trends: Just like social media trends, email marketing has evolved tenfold. To stay relevant to customers, research what resonates with the target audience. An email designed with the latest trends and relevant subject lines is ten times more effective than a social media post.
Respect Privacy: Customers value privacy. Make sure to provide an option to unsubscribe and be transparent about how you use customer data.
Conclusion
Email marketing is far from outdated in the Philippines. It remains a reliable, cost-effective, and impactful tool for businesses to connect with their audience. Moreover, emerging trends such as artificial intelligence (AI) and automation have transformed email marketing campaigns through predictive analysis of consumer behavior, predicting preferences, and crafting hyper-personalized email campaigns.
Additionally, top digital marketing agencies in the Philippines use interactive emails with videos, surveys, and live updates to engage tech-savvy Filipino audiences. Whether you’re an SME, a MNC, or a budding entrepreneur, you can combine traditional email marketing strategies with innovative technology to ensure that this channel remains relevant and effective in the years to come.
