British consumers are most likely to opt in to email communications, according to a new report from Intuit, the company behind Mailchimp and QuickBooks.
However, it found British shoppers were also the “most sceptical”, with 40% of respondents highlighting that they do not trust brands with their personal data and 55% reporting they unsubscribed if they found the content was irrelevant.
The report, titled ‘The Art of the Opt-In: Why List Building is Only the Beginning’, surveyed consumers and marketers in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the UK and United States.
According to the study, 41% of British marketers report that getting visitors to complete sign-ups is a “key hurdle” and 32% believe that the volume of information to collect is a concern.
“UK consumers are very willing to engage with text and email marketing if there is clarity and clear value delivered in exchange,” says Sarah Logan, head of agency partnerships, EMEA at Intuit Mailchimp.
“Putting these aspects at the centre of an opt-in strategy is critical for achieving sustained success”.
The data found that retailers sometimes used email marketing to overshare “irrelevant content”, which drove away potential customers. It stated that retail marketers need to “focus on building relationships and long-term personalised value”.
When surveying marketers, Mailchimp found that less than one-third globally considered their email and SMS lists to be of high quality, and only 8% reported opt-in conversion rates of above 20%.
The data found that only 1 in 5 brands have fully automated their email and text campaigns. Consumers have also noticed an increase in marketing emails and texts, but only 40% are paying more attention, and around a quarter of respondents admit to tuning out these communications.
According to the report, 56% of those who remain subscribed to marketing communications want content that adds value.
It also highlighted that 65% of brands asked for a phone number in their pop-up form, but only 28% of consumers are willing to hand it over.
Intuit showcased that brands that have “highly aligned omnichannel messaging” were more likely to report value from its channels, including organic social (62% vs. 43%), paid social (56% vs. 40%), and Generative Engines (10% vs 5%).
Diana Williams, vice president of product at Intuit Mailchimp, said: “This research reinforces what marketers are feeling every day: relevance comes from clarity, not volume.
“When data is fragmented, even the best intentions fall short. Our focus is removing that friction, bringing behaviour signals, automations, and omnichannel insights together so marketers can confidently turn every interaction into a chance to build trust and long-term growth.”
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