Email Isn’t Safe From Swipe Culture: Here’s How to Stay Relevant
Jessica Kent
Head of Agency
Attention spans haven’t just shortened – they’ve evolved. And while most brands are busy optimising their social ads for viral moments, they’re completely overlooking one huge channel: email.
Yes, your emails are now competing with TikTok. With Reels. With Shorts. That same swipe-first, feed-scrolling behaviour? It doesn’t magically pause when someone opens your newsletter.
So if you’re still sending out emails that look like PDFs or feel like work, don’t act surprised when open rates drop and CTRs become non-existent.
Here’s how to adapt.
People scroll through their inbox the same way they scroll on social platforms. Fast, distracted and ready to move on.
That means:
The inbox is just another algorithm-free feed. If your emails aren’t built to win attention instantly, you’ve lost.
The vast majority of people open emails on their phone. Yet too many brands are still thinking in desktop layouts and wide screens.
Change your mindset:
Static, print-style emails? No. Build for how people actually consume now.
No one’s clicking “July Newsletter” or “Product Updates from [Insert Brand Name].” You’re not a publisher. You’re in a battle for clicks.
Write subject lines that:
In the inbox, bland equals invisible. Treat subject lines like ad copy.
Long paragraphs are a guaranteed bounce. No one’s reading an essay in their inbox.
What works:
Each scroll should feel like progress, like there’s always something next worth seeing (or clicking).
This isn’t a suggestion – it’s a must.
Here’s your bare minimum checklist:
If the answer to any of those is no, you’re leaving performance on the table. Mobile-first isn’t a nice-to-have. It’s the bare minimum.
Clean layouts, motion upfront, no filler.
Feed-style product drops with one CTA per scroll.
Feels like Instagram in your inbox. Visual storytelling, built for mobile and all on-brand.
Clean hierarchy, bold CTAs, vibrant visuals. Feels like their product: intuitive and creative
Highly visual product drops, mobile-optimised layout, fast load times, clear “shop now” actions.
Gamified energy, micro-animations, punchy copy and a voice that cuts through the noise.
Swipe culture hasn’t killed email, but it has killed lazy email.
The brands winning right now treat their email strategy like they treat social: built for speed, clarity and mobile UX. Dynamic. Visual. Engineered for the scroll.
So if your email performance is flat, it’s not the channel. It’s the experience.
Rethink it, or risk becoming background noise.
