How Apple Intelligence Will Impact Email Marketing

As one of the largest email providers, changes to Apple's Mail app can have far-reaching effects on email marketing strategies. Let's explore the key impacts and how marketers can prepare.

Key Changes Coming with Apple Intelligence

1. AI-Generated Email Summaries

Apple Intelligence will replace traditional email previews with AI-generated summaries. Instead of seeing the first few lines of an email or marketer-crafted preview text, users will see a concise summary generated by AI. This change could significantly impact how marketers craft their email content and subject lines.

2. Intelligent Inbox Sorting

Similar to Gmail's categorization system, Apple will use on-device intelligence to sort incoming messages into folders. The Mail app will organize emails into categories such as Primary, Transactions, Updates, Promotions, and Digest. Urgent emails like boarding passes and event information will be prioritized, while newsletters and promotional content may be filtered into secondary folders.

3. Enhanced Siri Integration

Siri will gain new AI capabilities, allowing it to access and surface information from emails, messages, and contacts. This could lead to users interacting with email content through voice commands rather than traditional opens and clicks.

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Technical Details of Apple Intelligence

Apple Intelligence is powered by two foundation models:

1. A ~3 billion parameter on-device language model
2. A larger server-based language model available with Private Cloud Compute

These models have been optimized for speed and efficiency:

• The on-device model uses grouped-query-attention and low-bit palletization, achieving 3.7 bits-per-weight without significant quality loss.
• On iPhone 15 Pro, the model reaches a time-to-first-token latency of about 0.6 milliseconds per prompt token and a generation rate of 30 tokens per second.
• The models use adapters, small neural network modules that can be fine-tuned for specific tasks without changing the original model parameters.

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Implications for Email Marketers

1. Rethinking Content Strategy

With AI-generated summaries replacing preview text, marketers will need to ensure their key messages are clear and concise within the main body of the email. The first few sentences of your email content will become even more critical, as they're likely to inform the AI-generated summary.

2. Increased Focus on Engagement

Apple Intelligence will use individual engagement history to determine email placement. This means maintaining high engagement rates will be more important than ever to ensure emails land in the primary inbox.

3. Emphasis on Text-Based Content

While Apple's Live Text can recognize text in images, it's not guaranteed that this information will be fully accessible to Apple Intelligence. Marketers should prioritize using live text for key information to ensure it's easily searchable and accessible.

4. Long-Term Content Relevance

As Apple Intelligence makes it easier for users to resurface old emails, marketers should consider the longevity of their content. Evergreen content and timeless offers may become more valuable in this context.

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How to Prepare for Apple Intelligence as an Email Marketer

1. Optimize for AI Summaries: Craft clear, concise opening sentences that convey your key message. These are likely to inform the AI-generated summaries.
2. Prioritize Engagement: Clean your email lists regularly and focus on creating highly engaging content to maintain good inbox placement.
3. Use Live Text: Ensure all key information in your emails is presented as live, selectable text rather than embedded in images.
4. Provide Whitelisting Instructions: In sign-up confirmation emails, ask subscribers to add you as a trusted sender to improve inbox placement.
5. Authenticate Your Emails: Set up SPF or DKIM email authentication for your domains to improve deliverability and reduce the chances of being marked as spam.
6. Create Evergreen Content: Consider the potential for emails to be resurfaced long after they're sent. Create content that remains relevant over time.
7. Monitor Performance: Keep a close eye on open rates, click-through rates, and inbox placement once Apple Intelligence rolls out. Be prepared to adjust your strategy based on performance data.

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Privacy Considerations

Apple has emphasized its commitment to user privacy with Apple Intelligence. The company has introduced Private Cloud Compute (PCC), which ensures that user data is only used to fulfill requests and is never stored or accessible to anyone, including Apple. This focus on privacy may limit the amount of data available to marketers, further emphasizing the need for engagement-based strategies.

Conclusion

While Apple Intelligence presents new challenges for email marketers, it also offers opportunities for those who adapt quickly. By focusing on creating high-quality, engaging content and optimizing for AI-driven interactions, marketers can turn these changes into a competitive advantage.As we approach the fall rollout of Apple Intelligence, it's crucial to stay informed about further developments and be ready to evolve your email marketing strategy accordingly. The key to success will be maintaining relevance and engagement in an increasingly AI-driven email ecosystem.

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References:

1. Apple. (2024, June 10). Introducing Apple's On-Device and Server Foundation Models. Apple Machine Learning Research. https://machinelearning.apple.com/research/introducing-apple-foundation-models
2. Campaign Refinery. (n.d.). Apple Intelligence in Apple Mail: What Does It Mean? https://campaignrefinery.com/apple-mail-ai/
3. Omeda. (2024, July 9). Apple Intelligence: how to prepare for Apple's new changes to email. https://www.omeda.com/blog/apple-intelligence/
4. Peters, J. (2024, August 5). 'You are a helpful mail assistant,' and other Apple Intelligence instructions. The Verge. https://www.theverge.com/2024/8/5/24213861/apple-intelligence-instructions-macos-15-1-sequoia-beta
5. Apple. (n.d.). Apple Intelligence Foundation Language Models. Apple Machine Learning Research. https://machinelearning.apple.com/research/apple-intelligence-foundation-language-models
6. Campaign Refinery. (n.d.). Apple Mail vs Gmail: Exploring Features and Functionality. https://campaignrefinery.com/apple-mail-vs-gmail/
7. Omeda. (n.d.). Blog. https://www.omeda.com/blog/
8. Peters, J. (2024, August 6). Mac users in the EU might get Apple Intelligence. The Verge. https://www.theverge.com/2024/8/6/24214750/mac-users-in-the-eu-might-get-apple-intelligence

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