How to Rescue Low-Performing Emails Using Clickmaps and Visual Feedback

Every marketer has faced it — the campaign that looked perfect in the design stage but flopped when it landed in inboxes. Low open rates can sometimes be explained by subject lines, but low click-through rates often hide deeper layout and engagement issues.

The good news? You can rescue low-performing emails by using clickmaps and visual feedback from CRMx heatmaps in Salesforce Marketing Cloud (SFMC).

🔍 Why Clickmaps Are the Key to Fixing Underperforming Campaigns

A clickmap is a visual representation of where subscribers clicked in your email. It shows:

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  Hot zones (high engagement areas)

  
  


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  Warm zones (moderate clicks)

  
  


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  Cold zones (little or no interaction)

  
  

Unlike raw click reports, clickmaps reveal context — where your design grabs attention and where it loses it.

📊 Step-by-Step: Rescuing Low-Performing Emails with CRMx

1. Diagnose the Problem

In SFMC, pull the campaign’s engagement data and load it into CRMx.
Your heatmap will instantly show:

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  Which sections drew attention

  
  


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  Which CTAs underperformed

  
  


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  Where clicks were wasted on unlinked areas

  
  

2. Identify Engagement Gaps

Common low-performance patterns include:

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  All clicks clustered at the top → lower sections ignored

  
  


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  CTA in a cold zone → needs repositioning

  
  


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  High engagement on unlinked images → add links to capture clicks

  
  


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  Mobile layout issues → buttons too small or too far down

  
  

3. Make Data-Driven Adjustments

Based on your heatmap:

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  Move key CTAs into proven high-engagement zones

  
  


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  Simplify or remove underperforming content blocks

  
  


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  Link every clickable-looking element

  
  


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  Adjust mobile design for better tap accessibility

  
  

4. Test the New Version

Create a revised version and run an A/B test in SFMC.
CRMx allows you to compare both heatmaps side-by-side, so you can visually confirm:

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  More balanced click distribution

  
  


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  Improved engagement on key CTAs

  
  


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  Reduced drop-off in lower sections

  
  

5. Repeat for Continuous Improvement

Rescuing one campaign is good — but building a continuous optimization loop means each send gets better than the last.

🎯 Example: A Campaign Turnaround

A tech retailer noticed that only 12% of clicks went to their main “Shop Now” button, buried mid-email. Heatmaps revealed that 40% of clicks went to an unlinked hero image.

After changes:

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  Linked the hero image to the main landing page

  
  


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  Moved “Shop Now” to the top hot zone

  
  


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  Removed two distracting mid-section banners

  
  

Result:

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  CTR jumped by 33%

  
  


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  Revenue per email increased by 21%

  
  

🚀 Why CRMx Is Perfect for Campaign Recovery

CRMx integrates with SFMC to deliver:

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  Real-time click heatmaps for every send

  
  


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  Element-level click percentage rankings

  
  


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  Mobile vs desktop engagement views

  
  


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  A/B test visual comparisons for optimization proof

  
  

It’s built for CRM, marketing, and design teams that want more than just numbers — they want visual clarity.

✅ Final Thoughts

If your emails aren’t performing, it’s not always your offer or audience — sometimes it’s your layout and click flow.

With CRMx clickmaps and visual feedback, you can:

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  Spot underperforming areas instantly

  
  


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  Make targeted improvements

  
  


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  Validate changes with visual proof

  
  

📬 Turn “meh” campaigns into high performers — one heatmap at a time.