AI is everywhere these days, and now it’s popping up in our email inboxes, categorizing our messages, and summarizing them too. While these AI-driven features can be handy, it changes the game for us email marketers. 

We can no longer rely on our meticulously crafted messages to consistently land in recipients’ inboxes. Despite these challenges, the email marketing benefits—like direct communication with your audience and higher engagement rates—remain as important as ever for business growth. 

So today we’re covering the latest trends when it comes to AI email summaries and features, how they impact your business, and what you can do to adapt so that your email marketing efforts don’t go to waste.

What are AI-Generated Email Summaries?

AI-generated email summaries use artificial intelligence to capture the key points of an email so that the reader can quickly grasp the message without having to read the whole thing. While there are external tools out there to accomplish this, AI email summaries are becoming increasingly popular among the most well-known email platforms, including Apple, Google, and Yahoo. 

New AI-Generated Email Features and Their Impact

AI has worked its way into our email marketing platforms in a handful of ways, most notably with Apple’s recent introduction of Apple Intelligence (along with a slew of new inbox features for Apple iOS 18). Given the popularity of the Apple email client, this kind of change is not one to be ignored. 

Before we get to how marketers can adapt to these new functionalities, let’s break down how they’re being used by email’s largest platforms, and therefore how they can impact your marketing efforts.

AI-Generated Email Previews

If you’ve worked with email marketing, then you know that getting an email opened isn’t just about the subject line—it’s also about the preview text. Traditionally, marketers have strategically written preview text to complement their subject lines in order to entice recipients to open their emails. But with the rise of AI-generated email previews, that control is slipping away.

Certain email providers—notably Apple—are now starting to replace that sender-defined preview text with AI-generated previews. For example:

• Apple Mail: By default, Apple’s latest operating systems no longer display the preview text set by the sender. Instead, Apple Mail generates its own AI-powered snippet based on the email’s content. It’s worth noting that this feature is not yet available on all Apple Mail clients, so the experience may vary depending on the user’s device and settings.

• Gmail and Yahoo Mail: Neither platform replaces the sender’s preview text with AI-generated previews by default—yet. Instead, they continue to display the preview text as provided by the sender or the first few lines of the email. This means that marketers and senders still have control over how their emails appear in recipients’ inboxes.

Impact on Marketing:

• Lost Control Over Messaging: With AI-generated previews, marketers lose control over how their email’s preview text is displayed, weakening the intended impact and potentially causing inconsistencies with the subject line and overall message.
• Potential Inaccuracy: AI previews may misinterpret the content, leading to inaccurate or misleading snippets that don’t accurately represent your brand or message, affecting user trust and engagement.
• Mixed Benefits: While AI previews improve the experience for personal emails, they can disrupt marketing emails, as they may focus on irrelevant content and miss key offers or calls to action, lowering engagement.
• Impact on Open Rates: Less engaging or misaligned AI previews may reduce open rates, as recipients might ignore emails with unappealing or unclear snippets.

AI-Generated Email Summaries

AI email summaries are similar to email previews, but instead they are a bit more detailed, and are presented once the email is opened. 

Email providers are leveraging AI to provide summaries of email content, highlighting key information, and offering suggested actions. The idea is that these summaries can save users time and help them stay organized. For example:

• Apple Mail: Apple’s AI-powered summary feature identifies key points in long email threads, offering a brief overview of the conversation’s most important details. What’s different about Apple’s email summaries is that, unlike the previews, email summaries are not shown by default. Instead, users have the option to click and view an AI-generated email summary. Again, this feature isn’t yet available on all devices or software versions.
• Gmail: Gmail’s AI assistant, Gemini, can summarize long email threads and suggest responses, allowing users to quickly understand the gist of a conversation. These summaries are available through the Gemini interface (if one has a subscription to Google Workspace) but are not automatically shown—users must choose to engage with them. 

• Yahoo Mail: Yahoo Mail offers AI-generated summaries that highlight important actions like tracking updates or event invites. These summaries appear within the inbox and can help users prioritize emails.

Impact on Marketing:

• User Engagement Challenges: While AI-generated summaries can make email management more efficient, they also mean that users may not always engage with the full content of your email. This might not, however, have as big of an impact on your email marketing as the changes brought by AI email previews. This is partly because, at least with Apple Mail, the AI summary isn’t automatically enabled.
• Potential for Misrepresentation: Just like with AI-generated previews, summaries aren’t always perfect. They may miss key details or present the wrong context, potentially leading to confusion or misinterpretation of your message. 
• Brand Dilution: Apart from the potential for message inaccuracies, brand voice will almost certainly be sacrificed given that AI summaries capture key information, not the overall tone of the email. This can result in a disjointed experience for the recipient, as the essence and personality of your brand may not come through as clearly, diminishing the emotional connection you aim to establish with your audience.
• Less impact on Email Engagement: If someone has already decided to open your email, it’s likely that they actually want to see what’s inside, and not just a summary. Since marketing emails are often designed to be skimmable and visually appealing, recipients are more likely to skip the summary and dive into the full content. This could reduce the overall impact of AI summaries on your email marketing metrics, as the summaries may be skipped in favor of engaging directly with your message.

AI-Categorized Inboxes

Email platforms have long used folders or categories to help users manage their inboxes, but with the rise of AI, some providers have started to use machine learning to automatically categorize incoming messages into tabs, making it easier to sort and prioritize emails. This feature helps users declutter their inboxes and focus on what matters most. It also means a whole other obstacle for email marketers.

AI-powered categorization automatically analyzes the content of incoming emails and sorts them into predefined categories or tabs. For example:

• Apple Mail: With the introduction of iOS 18.2 and macOS 15.4, Apple Mail now uses AI to automatically categorize emails into tabs such as Primary, Transactions, Updates, and Promotions. This feature helps users organize their inboxes by sorting emails based on content and sender. Like with the other AI features, this categorization is not yet available across all devices or versions. 

Gmail: Gmail has now long used AI to automatically sort emails into categories like Primary, Social, and Promotions, based on the content and sender. It now also further breaks down email categorization into “suggested for you” and “remaining promotions.” These AI-driven tabs help users easily find personal messages, promotional emails, and social updates without clutter.

Yahoo Mail: Yahoo Mail categorizes emails into tabs like Primary, Social, and Promotions, but with a focus on AI-powered summaries and quick actions. For example, quick action buttons within emails allow users to take actions such as tracking packages or adding events to calendars directly from their inbox. This feature is designed to streamline inbox management, but it can also impact how marketing emails are viewed and interacted with, especially if they’re automatically sorted into the Promotions tab.

Impact on Marketing:

• Reduced Visibility for Marketing Emails: AI categorization often filters promotional emails into the Promotions tab, reducing their visibility compared to personal messages in the Primary inbox.
• Need for Higher Engagement: Since AI considers user engagement when sorting emails, marketers must focus on increasing open and click-through rates to improve inbox placement.
• Encouraging Manual Overrides: Asking subscribers to move emails to their Primary inbox or add senders to their contact list can help bypass automatic sorting.
• A/B Testing for Optimization: Testing subject lines, send times, and email formats can help determine the best ways to maximize visibility within AI-driven inbox tabs.

AI Email Summaries: 6 Strategies to Adapt

By now it’s clear that these AI summaries and categorizations have an impact on your marketing efforts. So how can you combat these changes and stay ahead with your email marketing?

1. Prioritize Subject Lines

As email marketers, you’re now going to have to live and die by your email subject lines. Preview text is no longer guaranteed, so getting folks to open your emails means the subject line alone needs to get the job done. 

To succeed, keep subject lines concise (40-50 characters), create urgency, personalize when possible, and use clear, actionable language. Regularly test and optimize your subject lines while avoiding spam triggers, and focus on sparking curiosity or offering solutions to engage your audience. All the best practices apply now more than ever!

2. Keep Leveraging Preview Texts

While preview text is no longer a guarantee, that doesn’t mean you should disregard it altogether. Many platforms will still show your chosen preview text, so it’s worth still being strategic. With that in mind, make sure your preview text is clear, engaging, and reinforces your subject line, giving your email the best shot at standing out. Just remember, preview text is no longer your safety net—so make the subject line the star of the show!

3. Personalize Your Messages

Personalizing your messages is a smart way to hack all the AI distractions, and increase engagement. That’s because emails that include a recipient’s name or that are tailored to their preferences or past interactions are more likely to get noticed and read. People appreciate content that feels relevant to them—whether it’s a timely offer or an update on something they’ve shown interest in.

To get it right, segment your email list and pay attention to where each customer is in their email customer journey. A new subscriber may benefit from a welcome offer, while a loyal customer might appreciate an exclusive deal. By sending the right message to the right person at the right time, you’ll increase the likelihood that your email stands out even amidst AI email previews and summaries. 

4. Focus on Layout and Design

The way your email looks and is structured matters more than ever. If it’s just one big block of text, chances are your readers will hit that AI summary button before even giving it a second glance. To avoid that, you need to make your email layouts both easy to skim and visually appealing.

Think of it like setting up a display in a store—you want your message to catch the eye and make the reader want to dive in. Use headings, bullet points, and short paragraphs to break up the content. Add images or graphics that complement your message, and don’t forget to make your call-to-action buttons bold and easy to tap. By creating an email that’s not only simple to scan but also enticing to look at, you’ll keep readers engaged and less likely to rely on a summary. 

5. Optimize for Mobile

Since we’re fighting a few more inbox battles here, that means we need to be even more laser focused on mobile optimization. This means that it’s all the more important that, in a mobile context, your subject line is short, snappy, and compelling—remember, mobile screens cut off anything too long. 

As for the layout, think of it as your email’s first few seconds to impress. The option for an AI email summary can automatically push content down, so it’s especially key to place your most important information right at the top, above the fold, so your readers can immediately see the essentials without scrolling. Keep it clean, skimmable, and easy to tap, with large buttons and readable text.

A good email marketing platform will do the sizing optimization for you, as well as offer layouts. SiteGround Email Marketing, for example, offers the template above (along with many others) that automatically optimizes for mobile, and implements the best practices we’re discussing today. Easy to use, effective, and looks fantastic on all screens.

6. Ensure Good Email Deliverability

Sending emails is easy—getting them read is a different story. With AI-powered inbox sorting, your thoughtfully created messages might end up buried in the promotions tab or, worse, in spam. But with some extra effort, you might be able to outsmart the filters.

Tips to Boost Email Deliverability:

• Keep Your Email List Fresh – Regularly clean out inactive subscribers to improve engagement rates.
• Send Smart, Not Spammy – Avoid spammy words, personalize your content, and time your emails wisely.
• Track & Tweak – Monitor open rates and clicks—high engagement tells email providers your emails belong in the inbox.
• Use a Reliable Email Marketing Platform – Choose a platform with excellent deliverability, like SiteGround Email Marketing, that prioritizes proper authentication, avoids blacklisting, and ensures your emails land in the right inboxes, not the spam folder.

Adapt to AI Email Summaries and Stay Ahead

Email marketing should still be a mainstay among your business strategies, but staying ahead and adapting means it’s important to keep an eye on new AI features. With more undoubtedly on the way, staying flexible and proactive is the key to keeping your marketing fresh and effective.

At SiteGround, we believe in growth through adaptability. That’s why SiteGround Email Marketing is designed to be easy, efficient, and full of best practices, so you can spend less time on the details and more time on your big-picture strategy. We’ve got your back in helping your business thrive.