The Complete Email Marketing Audit Guide + Template Checklists

Are your email campaigns achieving their full potential? Are you confident that your strategy is as effective as it could be? Many email marketers face these questions but aren't sure where to start looking for answers.

This is where an email marketing audit comes in.

Let's dive into everything you need to know about successful email marketing audits and how you can use them to elevate your email marketing strategy. (You'll probably discover some new terminology in this post. If you do, head on over to our Ultimate List of 125+ Email Marketing Terms to learn more.)

What Is an Email Marketing Audit?

Audits involve closely examining your email campaigns, including metrics, segmentation strategies, workflows, creative direction, and more. In short, you're looking at every part of your email marketing to see what's working and what isn't.

Even though "audit" might sound scary, it's not like a tax audit. It's a helpful process that shows you what you're doing well and where you can improve. In fact, auditing is part of most email marketing success stories. You'll figure out which email types, segments, timing, messaging, and design elements get the best engagement and conversion rates.

You can focus on one specific area, like deliverability, or review the overall performance of your campaigns.

Why Do an Email Marketing Audit?

Audits might not be the most exciting task to take on. They require time and resources that you could use for other projects. So why should you conduct an email marketing audit?

The truth is, audits offer immense value, both in the short and long term. They provide the insights you need to improve your metrics, understand your audience better, and ensure legal compliance. Let’s explore these benefits in greater detail.

Identify Problems and Opportunities

If we refer back to the legal definition of an audit, the goal is to uncover issues. Email marketing audits are a great way to pinpoint problems.

But they highlight strengths, too!

For example, you may discover one segment has an unusually high open rate. By doubling down on more emails to that audience, results could skyrocket even further.

Without auditing, it's easy to get lost in executing campaigns without assessing effectiveness. Auditing prompts you to step back and gain perspective. You obtain a 360-degree view of how all the pieces fit together.

Ultimately, audits reveal gaps between where you currently stand and where you could be. Not in a discouraging way, but as an incentive to optimize your approach to reap the full benefits of email marketing. After all, you can’t improve what you don’t even measure.

Increase Conversion Rates and Other KPIs

Auditing can also boost email key performance indicators (KPIs). Conversion rate, for example, indicates how many email recipients become buyers, sign-ups, or subscribers.

You might find inconsistencies across different subscriber segments or notice that conversion rates drop at certain times of the day or year. Auditing helps you address these issues with precision.

There are many other important KPIs to track as well, like open, click-through, and unsubscribe rates. And let's not forget the ultimate metric - return on investment (ROI). Email can generate $36 for every $1 spent. But only if you optimize campaigns based on audit findings!

Gain Audience Insight

Email marketing audits are helpful for understanding your audience better. You can learn how they behave, what they like, and what interests them. This information is invaluable for making email campaigns that really speak to your subscribers. In fact, it's valuable in terms of creating your entire marketing lifecycle.

What subject lines compel them to open emails? Do they engage more with text-based or visual content? You can even survey a sample size of your subscribers to collect feedback.

Then, use that data to send the right content to the right people at the right time to spark engagement.

Ensure Compliance

Lastly, auditing ensures you comply with email regulations regarding security, privacy, and permissions. With GDPR and other legislation, it's crucial to demonstrate respect for reader data.

An audit checks that you have permission to email your subscribers and finds any design or messaging issues that need fixing right away. Staying compliant protects your brand's reputation and keeps your emails out of the spam folder.

Read: Email Compliance: Marketer's Guide + Checklist

Types of Email Marketing Audits + Checklists

Now that we've covered the critical importance of auditing, let's explore the different types of audits you can conduct.

We mentioned that audits assess various moving parts of email campaigns. You can choose specific areas to audit or take a comprehensive approach. Let's break down what assessing each facet involves!

Email Marketing Performance

This is the most common email marketing audit. It tracks how you're doing compared to important benchmarks, usually using standards for your industry. The average open rate is around 20%, so if your emails have a 10% open rate, for example, that means there's room for optimization.

To do this audit, choose a few key numbers (KPIs) to look at closely. You might focus on one really important one, or combine a few to get the full picture. It's all about using the data to see things clearly.

You can also compare click-through rates and conversions against competitor stats. This high-level assessment identifies your strongest and weakest metrics so that you can replicate already successful initiatives and fix underperformers.

Email marketing platforms provide a lot of this data. You can also integrate your email with Google Analytics so you can track traffic and conversions coming from email.

Email Accessibility Audit

This is a newer trend in email audits that evaluates how easily those with impairments can engage with your messages.

Considering 16% of the global population identifies as disabled, email accessibility is non-negotiable.

During this email marketing audit, you test font sizes, color contrast ratios, and screen reader compatibility. By using email accessibility checkers, you can identify areas that need improvement. The goal is to create inclusive emails that are accessible to people with diverse abilities. (If you're interested in accessibility, we have a piece about accessibility as it relates to SEO as well.)

Email Deliverability Audit

Making your emails better won't matter much if they never reach the inbox. A deliverability audit checks how many of your emails are getting to your readers. It inspects why messages get blocked or bounced and how to boost placement rates.

Spam filters, email authentication, the quality of your content - these can all contribute to poor deliverability. Use tools to look at numbers like inbox placement rate and bounce rate.

This audit often goes hand-in-hand with an email list audit. Go through your list to find any old or spammy emails that are hurting your deliverability.

Note that a deliverability audit can get very technical. If it isn’t something you have the knowledge to dig into on your own, you can always hire an expert. Here’s an overview of some of the things to look for.

Email Design Audit

Unlike the previous technical audits, this one adopts an artistic eye to assess message aesthetics. To conduct a successful design audit, you'll need a solid grasp of email design best practices.

Is your layout intuitive and easy to navigate? Are your images on-brand and high-quality? Does your email render flawlessly across various devices and email clients?

Be sure to test your email designs on a wide range of devices and email platforms to ensure a consistent, polished appearance no matter where your subscribers are viewing them.

Many design audits also incorporate a review of email copy. After all, even the most visually stunning email will fall flat if the messaging misses the mark.

Email Code Audit

A code audit examines the HTML and CSS behind your emails. While emails may look great on the surface, it's the code that ensures they render correctly across different email clients and devices.

This code is crucial because it impacts how your emails are displayed. No one wants distorted or broken emails to represent their brand. An email code audit identifies issues that could negatively affect email display, such as broken links, missing alt text for images, faulty CSS, and outdated code.

You don't want poorly formatted emails going out, so make sure not to skip this step. Use an email code validation tool to catch errors before sending campaigns. Well-written code ensures flawless presentation, regardless of the client or device.

Email Compliance Audit

Compliance isn't just about avoiding legal trouble – it's about preserving your hard-earned reputation as a trustworthy and respectable email sender.

Familiarize yourself with email marketing regulations, such as the CAN-SPAM Act and GDPR. These laws dictate important guidelines for obtaining subscriber consent, providing clear unsubscribe options, and safeguarding user data.

Ultimately, a compliance audit will demonstrate your dedication to readers' rights.

Email Automation Audit

Finally, most marketers these days use automation. Marketing automation uses triggers and workflows to deploy targeted, personalized content. An automation audit verifies these systems function properly.

The quick version: set triggers to send personalized emails to the right people at the right time. An audit will look at all these pieces to make sure they're working correctly. Review your automation flows regularly and make updates to your email marketing automation strategy depending on what you learn. And always, always test before you make anything live!

How to Perform an Email Marketing Audit

Now that we looked at the most common types of email marketing audits, it's time to run through the process of actually conducting one.

These steps provide a framework you can apply to any audit type we covered earlier. So, whether you're analyzing deliverability metrics or design elements, the methodology is the same.

Define Goals

Before diving into the data, define 1-3 goals aligned to the audit type you selected. Get clear on the purpose of this initiative. Write down the improvements or insights you hope to gain.

For example, maybe you want to boost click-through rates on mobile by 25%, or reduce unsubscribe rates company-wide by 10%. Setting SMART goals keeps the audit targeted and action-oriented.

Choose KPIs

You'll be drowning in data during your audit, so choose key performance indicators (KPIs) that match your goals to measure success. Open, click-through, and conversion rates all provide insight. Just make sure your metrics directly correlate to goals.

Your chosen email marketing platform probably has this data ready for you. But some platforms have better and more detailed analytics than others. Check out our top email marketing software for features like analytics, segmentation, and more.

Gather a Team

Next, assemble your audit dream team. Like we mentioned, audits aren't a quick and easy task. Be prepared to assign one or more team members to really take charge of this.

The team you choose can change based on the audit too. A technical analysis might mean rallying your IT department, while a content review is more of a marketing team effort.

Go with team members who are knowledgeable and experienced in the area you're auditing. Collaborating provides a well-rounded perspective when evaluating findings. Just be sure everyone clearly understands responsibilities and objectives.

Consider Tools

The right tools make auditing much more manageable. Most email platforms collect key data like open rates, clickthrough rates, bounces, and more.

Our top picks for the best email marketing software is a great place to start. Find a tool that perfectly fits your audit needs.

Other tools email marketing experts recommend include:

• Google Analytics: Helps track what users do after clicking through an email. This is vital for understanding the full customer journey and conversion tracking.

• Excel or Google Sheets: Your best bet for compiling and analyzing data. You could also try something like Tableau for data visualization.

• Litmus or Email on Acid: These tools can help you test for email deliverability, design, and rendering across different email clients and devices.

• Neverbounce or ZeroBounce: Can help you clean up your subscriber list by verifying email addresses and removing invalid or risky ones.

• SendForensics, GlockApps, Return Path, and MailTester: Can help you monitor and improve deliverability.

• MXToolbox: For checking email server health and ensuring proper email authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC).

Track Progress

Once the audit commences, track insights and changes in a centralized hub. Trust us, you won't remember every detail you examine during your audit. Do yourself a favor and track your progress in a spreadsheet or document. Recording findings and follow-ups in real-time will help you avoid losing momentum or forgetting critical details.

“Data collection is key,” says Richard Carey, managing director of RCDM Studio. “Export email performance metrics into a CSV file for analysis. Once you have your data, start by identifying trends. For example, one of our clients, Showtime, saw a 20% increase in engagement after we noted that emails sent on Tuesdays performed better.”

Analyze Findings

Once you finish the actual audit, review your findings thoroughly. Put it all into a handy report or presentation to get your team up to speed. You can also create dashboards to visualize key metrics and identify trends over time. A meeting is often held for everyone to share input on the findings and what can be done about them.

Tackle the big issues first, then circle back to the small stuff.

Take Action

The moment of truth arrives as you review audit takeaways with stakeholders and agree on an action plan. This blueprint will guide prioritizing quick wins, long-term objectives and resource allocation.

All that's left to do now is take what you've learned and put it into action. Keep an eye on things as you go so that you're moving in the right direction.

“In one audit, we noticed that a client’s automated welcome series had a high unsubscribe rate,” says Ilia Tretiakov, owner and lead strategist at So Good Digital. “Upon closer inspection, we found that the emails were too frequent and not personalized. We reduced the frequency and added personalized touches like the subscriber’s name and tailored product suggestions. This simple change led to a 50% reduction in unsubscribes and a 25% increase in conversions within two months.”

Email Marketing Audit Tips and Tricks

Before we wrap up, let's explore some tips and tricks to make the most of email marketing audits.

Where to Start

It's tempting to audit everything, but that's overwhelming! Break audits into chunks and tackle one section at a time.

Where to start? Many of the experts we spoke to recommended starting with either deliverability or subscriber engagement and list health.

“The foundation of any successful email marketing strategy is a healthy, engaged subscriber list,” says Jared Bauman, co-founder and CEO of 201 Creative. “Start by segmenting your audience into engaged and inactive subscribers. Analyze the performance of each segment to understand engagement patterns.”

Keep an Eye on the Overall User Experience

Remember the overarching campaign while auditing granular components. Don't lose sight of how details like copy and images influence cumulative metrics.

“The content and design are critical as they directly impact how recipients perceive and interact with your emails,” says Max Shak, founder and CEO of Nerd Digital.

In fact, in a recent email audit for a client, Shak found that generic content, outdated design elements, and lack of mobile responsiveness were part of the problem. After implementing changes here - along with making improvements to list quality and deliverability - he was able to increase open rates by 25% and boost conversion rates by 20%.

Keep Testing

Taking action based on your findings is critical, but don’t just forge ahead based on the assumptions you’ve made. Instead, use A/B testing to validate your insights and continue to refine your approach.

“Test different subject lines, email copy variations, and CTAs to see what resonates best with your audience,” says Phil Portman, CEO and Founder of Textdrip. "By continuously testing and iterating, you can ensure your email marketing strategy is constantly evolving and optimized for maximum impact."

Consider Other Sources of Data

Consider incorporating qualitative data like customer feedback alongside quantitative data. Both provide useful context to guide decisions. One way to do this is through a CRM.

Laia Quintana, head of marketing and sales at TeamUp, used HubSpot to set up an automated data sync, which pulls all customer and campaign data into a single hub.

“This automation doesn’t just save time - it ensures precision in our data and allows us to act swiftly on the insights we gather,” Quintana said. “Having this up-to-the-minute data means we can adapt on the fly, tweaking campaigns in real time to better meet our audience’s needs.”

Note that audits are great for email, but they also work for other channels. An email audit is an opportunity to connect the dots with your other marketing efforts.

Start Your Email Marketing Audit Today!

And there you have it - everything you need to start dominating with email auditing today! Follow this framework to uncover optimization insight that you can use right away.

Don't know where to begin? Use Softailed's comparison tool to compare email marketing platforms stacked with auditing capabilities. Identify the best solution tailored to your technical needs, budget, and business goals.