Why Gmail Inbox Tabs Could Be Good for Marketers

This summer Google added tabs to the Gmail Inbox so that you can categorize different types of email.

Once you turn this feature on, Gmail will automatically sort your email into one of these tabs. You can also “train” Gmail to customize how your emails are sorted.

The goal? To put you back in control of your Inbox.

Gmail Inbox Tabs

Why Gmail Inbox Tabs could be good for marketers

Individuals have more control over their inbox. Your subscription emails, which your subscribers have asked to receive, are in a place where recipients can go look at your messages when they want. This means at a time when they are receptive and interested in what you have sent them.

Google is signaling that it cares about email. Despite the rise of new forms of social media, email continues to be a reliable method for people to communicate with each other. When Google invests to continue to make email useful, that’s good for everyone. It’s especially good for marketers who ask permission and who provide useful information to their subscribers.

Your emails are in the same inbox with other emails designated as Promotional. Instead of competing for attention with co-workers, friends, and family, you are competing for attention with email from other marketers. Their email is probably low quality. The more you invest In the quality of your email, the more likely it is that your email gets read when someone goes to the Promotions tab.

Primary	Email from people with whom you interact most directly, at work and at home.
Social	Messages from social networking sites. You can also train Gmail that messages from specific senders should be sent here.
Promotions	Messages you have asked to receive. They could be subscriptions, deals or messages from other commercial sites.
Updates	Notices about commercial transactions – receipts, bills, and statements.
Forums	Messages from membership groups, discussion boards, and mailing lists.