In this episode of the 7 Figures &Beyond E-commerce Marketing Podcast, host Greg Shuey sits down with email and SMS marketing expert Julia Ahmet to explore how e-commerce brands can optimize their strategies for 2025. Reflecting on the past year, Julia notes shifts in consumer behavior due to economic uncertainties and rising concerns over data privacy. Despite these challenges, she highlights opportunities, such as the record-breaking Black Friday/Cyber Monday spending, which showcased the resilience of consumer demand. The conversation emphasizes the importance of ensuring email deliverability and compliance through proper authentication protocols (SPF, DKIM, DMARC) and maintaining clean email lists to meet evolving global regulations.
Julia stresses the growing need for brands to adapt to inbox fatigue by shifting focus from high-frequency campaigns to highly segmented, personalized communications. She advocates for analyzing customer behavior to refine targeting and creating more meaningful connections with audiences without overstepping privacy boundaries. Mobile-first, accessible email designs are becoming non-negotiable, with trends like high-contrast CTAs, dark mode, and interactive features like GIFs and polls driving engagement. Additionally, she highlights the value of preference pages to empower consumers to control the frequency and type of emails they receive, ensuring a better customer experience.
Looking ahead, the conversation touches on the potential for AI to enhance efficiency, particularly in segmentation, predictive analytics, and brainstorming. While Julia remains cautious about relying on AI for creative elements like images and videos, she sees its value in overcoming bottlenecks such as writer’s block. To remain competitive, brands are encouraged to experiment with unique offers, such as multi-order discounts, and embrace calculated risks in their campaigns. Ultimately, Julia and Greg emphasize the importance of staying nimble and leveraging data-driven insights to test and adapt, ensuring strategies evolve with consumer expectations and industry trends.
Episode Links
Greg Shuey LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/greg-shuey/
Julia Amodt LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/julia-amodt/
Email Deliverability Tools: https://easydmarc.com/tools
Email Health: https://www.litmus.com/
BIMI Authentication: https://mxtoolbox.com/dmarc/bimi/how-to-create-bimi-record
Semantic HTML: https://www.semrush.com/blog/semantic-html5-guide/
European Accessibility Act (June 2025): https://www.levelaccess.com/compliance-overview/european-accessibility-act-eaa/
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