108: Inbox, Interrupted: How to Actually Win with B2B Email - with Kestrel Lemen, Senior Manager Lifecycle Marketing at Zillow | REPLAY EP 05

** Originally published on January 18, 2023 **

This episode is a favorite for anyone who's ever argued about buttons vs hyperlinks, wondered if open rates still matter, or just wants to get better at email without sounding like a spam bot.

Kestrel Lemen is an email powerhouse: part strategist, part storyteller, and hands down one of the most insightful voices in email marketing. Her take on what actually drives conversions, how to balance plain text with visuals, and what marketers still get wrong about newsletters is full of gold.

It’s one I still reference, and if email is even remotely in your job description, you’ll want to give this one a listen.

Want a part two with Kestrel? Leave a review, drop a DM, or just say the word.

— Jane

--

In this episode of Women in B2B Marketing, host Jane Serra sits down with Kestrel Lemen, email marketing expert and former Senior Strategist at Seguno Software (now Senior Manager Lifecycle Marketing at Zillow!) From her start in the art world to building Bronto’s London office and becoming an email force in both B2B and B2C, Kestrel’s journey is as fascinating as it is full of lessons.

They get into:

• The difference (and surprising similarities) between B2B and B2C email strategies
• Visual vs. plain text emails - and when each actually performs best
• What’s still true about email above the fold (and what’s totally changed)
• The metrics you should be tracking now - and which ones are just vanity
• Spam triggers, button design, and real talk on segmentation
• How privacy laws like GDPR and Apple MPP are reshaping email as we know it
• Why your “free Yeti cooler” giveaway is probably not the move
• Building emails that convert and don’t annoy
• Plus: how to keep your resume “conversion-optimized” for your future self

If email is part of your job - or just gives you heartburn - this episode is a goldmine.

Key Links:

Guest: Kestrel Lemen: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kestrellemen/

Host: Jane Serra: https://www.linkedin.com/in/janeserra/

Community: Women of Email - https://womenofemail.org/