Email Marketing in the AI Era: Make Your Messages Stand Out

Email marketing may be one of the oldest tactics in the digital playbook, but it’s still among the most powerful in B2B. Revenue generated from email is projected to hit $13.69 billion by the end of 2025, so it’s no surprise that 59% of B2B marketers say this is their top revenue-generating channel and 81% name newsletters as their most frequently used content format.

But things are changing in the AI era. Inboxes are saturated with AI-generated content, and when you factor in expanding buying committees and marathon-length sales cycles, it’s clear: B2B brands need to crack a new email-marketing code.

The AI Inbox Invasion

By April 2025, 51% of emails that went to spam were generated by AI. Some of these emails are sent with malicious intent, like AI-powered phishing, but many of them are simply clumsy automation that doesn’t look or feel remotely legitimate.

Plenty of AI-generated emails still land in your inbox, though, and many are easy to spot. You’ve likely seen the scraped LinkedIn data, generic buzzwords, and templated compliments that are trying to sound human but feel formulaic and impersonal: “The work you’re doing as Vice President of Content Marketing at Firebrand Communications is great! Your expertise in crafting content strategies that drive tangible business results is impressive.”  

Your prospects see the same thing dozens of times a day. This content isn’t just falling flat — it erodes trust. As a result, there is a massive opportunity for B2B brands that understand the difference between being AI-only and AI-enhanced.

AI-Only vs. AI-Enhanced Email Marketing

At Firebrand, we don’t believe in using AI to replace every bit of human work. Instead, AI should enhance sophisticated email marketing strategies and the efficiency with which they’re carried out. 

Here are a few examples of how to leverage an AI-enhanced email marketing strategy:

• Use AI to dig through your content library and suggest relevant CTAs for your nurture campaign
• Use AI to analyze your highest- and lowest-performing emails and identify patterns
• Use AI to track when various segments are most likely to open emails and schedule sends accordingly

Here’s how AI can enhance the tactical side of email marketing:

• It helps brainstorm subject lines, preview text, and headlines
• It suggests edits that align better with your brand voice
• It quickly spins up ideas for split-testing
• It makes lengthy emails more concise
• It eliminates cliches, annoying buzzwords, and any words that may trigger spam filters
• It can automatically group contacts into segments based on industry, behavior, or inferred intent, which improves personalization
• It can enrich contact data with job titles, company information, phone numbers, etc.

The formula is simple: Let AI handle the mechanical tasks so your marketing team can focus on emotional intelligence, competitive nuance, and the human insight machines can’t replicate.

Tech Sales Cycles Are Marathons — So Stop Sprinting

Most B2B companies have formal buying committees, and the average deal includes 4-10 people. For enterprise deals, you could be navigating even more decision-makers spread across departments including Finance, IT, Operations, and Procurement. Getting to closed-won is a marathon with many stages. 

Many B2B tech marketers respond by sending lots of emails that push for a sales meeting. It’s like trying to see if a soufflé is rising by repeatedly opening the oven door. You’re making the problem worse.

The smarter play is to send emails that build intellectual capital. Share insight-rich content that educates, not agitates. Be the brand that informs internal discussions, not the one that just asks for meetings. 

(One low-lift tip I love? Tuck a “Book a Demo” hyperlink in the footer so buyers have a chance to raise their hand when they’re ready.) 

Be Honest: Are Your Emails Mission-Critical?

87% of tech buyers have said they’re only purchasing “mission-critical” tools, which means your emails must be mission-critical content. Make your message the one that helps your champion convince a skeptical room. Make it easy to explain your value. Create the email that gets forwarded, not the one that gets unsubscribed.

The future of B2B email marketing is more than automation. It’s about earning trust, proving value, and helping your buyers make confident decisions. These have always been the goals, but AI has made them even more important.

At Firebrand, we help B2B tech brands deliver mission-critical content. Because in a world where everyone’s inbox is overflowing, relevance and resonance aren’t optional — they’re your only advantage.