With third-party cookies becoming less reliable due to consent issues and evolving privacy regulations, it’s time to rethink how you approach your email customer journey. Contextual and behavioral targeting can unlock the full potential of your email personalization tools, making every message more relevant and engaging.
As 30% of brands increase their email marketing spend, leveraging your first-party data is key to building smarter, personalized campaigns. In this guide, we’ll break down both targeting strategies, helping you craft emails that resonate and drive results in a cookieless world.
What are the differences between contextual vs. behavioral vs. audience targeting?
Recent data highlights the urgency: 45% of marketers are unprepared for these shifts. That’s why understanding key targeting methods is so essential.
Let’s break down the three main strategies:
- Contextual targeting aligns content with a user’s current environment (web pages, keywords).
- Behavioral targeting leverages past actions to deliver relevant content.
- Audience targeting segments users based on demographics and shared interests.
Knowing how to use each one can make your email campaigns more personalized and effective.
What is contextual targeting?
Contextual targeting aligns your emails with content that matches your audience’s interests in real-time. Instead of relying on user data, it focuses on what your recipients are engaging with right now.
It works by analyzing:
- Website content
- Keywords
- Topics
- Themes
For example, if someone subscribes to a travel blog, you can send them an email promoting travel gear or related services.
This method respects privacy by not using personal data and is especially useful as data regulations tighten. While not as personalized as behavioral targeting, it ensures your emails are relevant to your audience’s current context.
What is behavioral targeting?
Behavioral targeting uses first-party data to tailor emails based on a subscriber’s online behavior. It leverages information like:
- Browsing history
- Purchase behavior
- Search queries
- Device usage
- Location
For example, if a customer frequently buys outdoor gear, behavioral targeting work allows you to send personalized product recommendations based on their past purchases. This approach helps you reach your target audience with relevant content, driving higher engagement and conversions while respecting privacy.
What is audience targeting?
Audience targeting combines behavioral and demographic data to segment subscribers into specific groups. These groups share traits like:
- Demographics (age, gender, income)
- Interests
- Purchase intent
- Life events
For example, you can create an email campaign targeting high-income professionals interested in luxury cars, aged 35-55 interested in performance cars to create inspiring personalized emails based on CRM data.
Audience targeting is ideal for scaling personalized messages across different platforms, making it a key tool for marketers who want to reach the right people with the right message.
Harness the power of email personalization
Discover how to better connect with your audience, deliver tailored content, and drive engagement with email personalization.
Using contextual and behavioral targeting in email marketing
Combining contextual and behavioral targeting is a powerful marketing strategy that can significantly boost your email marketing ROI (return on investment). By aligning your content with user behavior and user interests, you create timely, personalized messages that resonate with both existing and potential customers.
Which should you use?
The best marketing strategies blend both contextual and behavioral targeting, as each method excels in different situations. Contextual targeting aligns with the present moment, while behavioral targeting draws from historical data to reach the right audience with precision.
It’s also worth noting that 79% of UK consumers are more comfortable seeing contextual ads than behavioral ads, which may influence your targeting strategy.
Use contextual targeting when:
- You want to capitalize on immediate relevance
- Privacy concerns limit data collection
- You’re reaching out to new subscribers
Opt for behavioral targeting when:
- You have rich historical data on subscribers
- Driving repeat purchases is the goal
- Personalizing based on past behavior
Contextual targeting strategies
Let’s talk about making your emails as timely as that pizza delivery guy who always knows when you’re hungry.
For starters, contextual advertising works best when you adjust email content based on the time of day, day of the week, or season. For example, a restaurant might send lunch specials in the late morning.
Have a local brick-and-mortar store? Use geolocation data like Kate Spade does in its email to deliver relevant local promotions or store information. Recipients see the store closest to where they’re opening the email.
The same email from Kate Spade also provides real-time inventory updates. Likewise, you can showcase products or services currently available to create urgency and relevance.
A Google Shopping Feed powers this email’s products and contains visibility layers based on stock level. The live stock level is displayed when there are five or fewer in stock, and when a product only has one in stock, the almost gone badge is displayed.
Side note: Only 7% of marketers currently use live or real-time content, but it’s a tactic that marketers are increasingly intrigued by. Open-time personalization is an opportunity to surprise, but you may need to look beyond your email service provider (ESP) to make it a reality.
Lastly, tailor product recommendations or content based on local weather conditions. For example, this email from American Giant works well in promoting how heat-resistant their t-shirts are for the summer.
Source: Really Good Emails →
Contextual targeting makes content relevant right away and boosts engagement without needing much historical data. It works well for new subscribers or when there’s little behavioral data. By focusing on the present, these strategies deliver timely content that fits the recipient’s needs right now.
Behavioral targeting strategies
Ever feel like some emails just ‘get’ you? That’s behavioral targeting working its charm to create emails that convert.
Behavioral targeting in email marketing uses a subscriber’s past actions and preferences to send personalized content. Here are some important strategies you can use with examples:
- Purchase history recommendations: Suggest products based on previous buys. A bookstore might recommend titles in the same genre as a customer’s last purchase.
- Retargeting: Use data from website visits or past email interactions to send highly targeted follow-up emails, bringing users back to complete actions or explore related offerings.
- Browse abandonment reminders: Re-engage users who viewed items without purchasing. Send an email featuring the products they browsed, potentially with an incentive.
- Lifecycle stage: Tailor content to where the subscriber is in their customer journey. Programa, for example, sends onboarding tips to new users.
- Engagement-based frequency: Adjust email cadence based on how often a subscriber opens or clicks. Highly engaged users might receive more frequent communications.
- Cross-sell opportunities: Promote complementary products based on past purchases. An electronics retailer could suggest accessories for a recently bought device.
Source: Really Good Emails →
Behavioral targeting creates a personalized experience tailored to each person’s interests and needs. It’s great for building customer relationships and encouraging repeat business, especially for personalization in eCommerce.
Personalize for impact
Use our comprehensive personalization checklist to better connect with audiences and drive more conversions from your campaigns.
Industry-specific use cases
How do you tailor targeting strategies to your business? Below are industry-specific examples of contextual and behavioral targeting enhancing email personalization.
Retail & eCommerce
Retailers can combine behavioral data with contextual insights to create highly personalized shopping experiences.
For example, behavioral data can be used to recommend products based on browsing history while adjusting content contextually for real-time relevance, such as showing waterproof products when it’s raining in a subscriber’s location.
Clothing brand Solids does a great job with this by customizing email content based on a customer’s loyalty status (behavioral).
Then, they take it a step further to send platinum members exclusive in-store event invitations when they’re near a physical location.
Here are some other ideas for retail businesses:
- Dynamic product recommendations: Use behavioral data to showcase items based on web browsing and purchase history, but adjust the display contextually. For instance, highlight waterproof options from a customer’s favorite brands when it’s raining in their location.
- Personalized promotional calendars: Tailor sale announcements to individual shopping patterns. If a customer typically buys seasonal items at the end of each season, send them early access to clearance sales.
- Abandoned cart recovery: Beyond standard reminders, incorporate contextual elements. If a cart contains summer items, but the weather has turned cold, suggest alternatives or remind them to prepare for next season.
- Size and fit emails: Use past purchase data to recommend correct sizes, but adjust messaging based on current trends or seasons. For example, highlight how a particular cut is trending for the upcoming season.
These strategies show how retail and eCommerce can create a seamless, personalized experience that feels familiar yet new to each customer. And with Litmus, you can easily update email content in real-time, ensuring that product recommendations and promotional offers are timely and tailored for each shopper.
Financial services
Financial services can blend behavioral insights and contextual data to send personalized, compliant communications.
For example, Arrived, combines a client’s investment preferences (behavioral) with real-time market data (contextual) to send personalized alerts.
Source: Really Good Emails →
Here are some other strategies to use:
- Life-stage financial guidance: Use behavioral data to identify major life events (e.g., marriage, home purchase) and contextually tailor advice. For instance, send newlyweds budgeting tips that adjust based on current market conditions or local cost-of-living indices.
- Investment portfolio alerts: For example, notify a risk-averse investor about potential portfolio rebalancing needs during market volatility.
- Personalized financial wellness scores: Create custom financial health metrics based on account activity, then contextually adjust recommendations. If a client’s score drops during high inflation periods, suggest tailored strategies to combat rising costs.
- Targeted product cross-selling: Use behavioral data to identify suitable products, then contextualize the offer. For a client with a high savings balance, promote investment options with messaging that adapts to current interest rate environments.
- Fraud prevention communications: Use behavioral patterns to detect unusual activity, then send contextually relevant security alerts. For instance, if a client rarely makes international transactions, send a location-specific security reminder when they travel abroad.
Financial services can offer personalized guidance, stay compliant, and build trust by combining behavioral insights with context. With Litmus, financial services can send timely, compliant communications that align with changing market conditions.
SaaS
SaaS companies can use contextual and behavioral targeting to enhance user engagement, drive product adoption, and reduce churn.
Zapier, for example, analyzes usage patterns to identify power users then sends contextually relevant upgrade offers. If users consistently hit data limits at month-end, they time an upgrade email to arrive just before their busy period.
Source: Really Good Emails →
Looking for other strategies? Check these out:
- Feature discovery journeys: Use behavioral data to identify underutilized features, then contextualize introduction emails based on the user’s role or industry. For a project management tool, highlight resource allocation features to a newly promoted team lead.
- Personalized onboarding sequences: Tailor onboarding emails based on initial setup choices (behavioral), but adjust content delivery based on actual login frequency (contextual). Accelerate the sequence for highly engaged users or slow it down for occasional users.
- Churn prevention campaigns: Identify at-risk users through engagement metrics, then send contextually relevant re-engagement emails. For a user who hasn’t logged in recently, showcase new features that align with their industry’s current challenges.
- Integration ecosystem recommendations: Suggest integrations based on a user’s tech stack (behavioral) but prioritize recommendations based on current usage trends within their industry (contextual). For a CRM platform, highlight a trending email marketing integration to users in the eCommerce sector.
- Custom benchmark reports: Generate reports comparing a user’s key metrics to similar companies (behavioral), but contextualize insights based on current market conditions or industry events. For a social media management tool, provide engagement benchmarks that account for recent algorithm changes.
Combining behavioral insights with context allows SaaS companies to create a more intuitive, value-driven user experience using machine learning and semantic analysis. Litmus allows SaaS brands to automate and personalize email journeys, delivering the right message at the right time to increase user engagement.
Healthcare
Healthcare organizations can deliver personalized, timely, and sensitive communications while maintaining strict compliance with privacy.
For example, behavioral data can be used to identify potential health risks, and then contextually relevant prevention tips can be sent. Send heart-healthy lifestyle tips for patients with a family history of heart disease during Heart Health Month.
Here’s an example of an email Everly sends:
Source: Really Good Emails →
Check out these other strategies:
- Preventive care reminders: Use behavioral data (age, gender, medical history) to identify necessary screenings, then contextualize reminders based on local health trends or seasons. For example, send mammogram reminders to eligible women, emphasizing the importance during Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
- Medication adherence programs: Analyze prescription refill patterns (behavioral) and send contextually relevant reminders. Increase adherence reminders for patients with seasonal allergies as pollen counts rise in their area.
- Personalized wellness journeys: Create custom health plans based on patient data, then adjust content delivery contextually. Send healthy recipe suggestions for a weight management program featuring seasonal, locally available ingredients.
- Appointment follow-up sequences: Tailor post-visit communications based on the type of appointment (behavioral), then contextualize content based on recovery timelines. Post-surgery patients should be sent progressive care instructions that align with their expected recovery stages.
- Telemedicine promotion: Analyze in-person visit patterns (behavioral) and promote telemedicine options when relevant (contextual). During flu season, encourage virtual consultations for patients with minor symptoms.
Blend behavioral health data with contextual factors to deliver more personalized care experiences while adhering to HIPAA and other privacy regulations using advanced email design tools. This approach improves patient engagement, treatment adherence, and overall health outcomes when you use sophisticated email building tools.
Personalization for the win
Discover how leading brands are driving results with personalized email strategies.
Tips for implementing your contextual and behavioral strategies
Some moves can make or break your digital advertising strategies. Use these tips to maximize your chances of conversions:
- Start with clean, accurate data: 24% of marketers find inadequate data to be the most challenging part of personalizing emails. Regularly audit and cleanse your data to ensure your email personalization efforts are built on a solid foundation. Accurate data leads to better optimization and results.
- Segment strategically: Leverage both behavioral and contextual signals—such as a user’s browsing history or a page’s content—to create more nuanced audience segments. This ensures your emails are relevant and timely for each recipient.
- Test and iterate: Continuously A/B test your targeting strategies to stay ahead of evolving customer preferences and market trends. Testing ensures your digital marketing approach remains effective and adaptable.
- Integrate your tools: Ensure your email platform, CRM, and analytics tools are fully integrated. A unified view of customer behavior allows for more precise targeting and better campaign performance, maximizing your email optimization potential.
Establishing KPIs and measurement frameworks
Setting clear KPIs and measurement frameworks is essential for evaluating how it works—specifically, how well your contextual and behavioral advertising solutions perform.
Begin by defining what you aim to achieve with your programmatic targeting efforts. Are you focusing on open rates, click-through rates, conversions, or customer retention? Your objectives will guide your KPI selection.
While ROI is important, email is more than just a conversion tool. Use it to build relationships and drive brand awareness—especially for the 95% of your audience who aren’t ready to buy yet.
Key KPIs to focus on include:
- Open rates: Measure the effectiveness of subject lines and sender reputation.
- Click-through rates (CTR): Gauge how well your email content and associated landing page resonate, ensuring you’re delivering relevant ads.
- Conversion rates: Track how many recipients take the desired actions.
- Revenue per email (RPE): Measure the direct financial impact of your campaigns.
- Unsubscribe rates: Monitor audience satisfaction and content relevance.
- Engagement over time: Assess the long-term effectiveness of your digital ads and email strategies.
- Email read rates: Check how often recipients open and engage with your emails.
Regularly conduct A/B tests to optimize performance across different targeting approaches. Whether it’s email subject line testing or a combination of programmatic ad strategies, this ensures continuous improvement.
Measure the incremental lift your targeted campaigns provide over non-targeted efforts to truly quantify the value of your personalization. Establish internal benchmarks and set realistic goals for continuous optimization.
Blend context and behavior for email success
Combining contextual and behavioral targeting is the key to future-proofing your email strategy. Together, these approaches allow you to deliver timely, relevant content that resonates with every subscriber.
With Litmus, you have the tools to create personalized, data-driven emails that adapt in real-time—whether it’s responding to a customer’s past behavior or the current moment. As third-party cookies fade, first-party data and real-time context will give you a competitive edge.
Ready to elevate your email marketing? Start blending contextual and behavioral insights to deliver the perfect message, every time.
Make every email count
Boost engagement with dynamic content. Use behavioral targeting and live email content to drive results.