At one time, email was the cutting edge of instant communication, and it stood alone as a quick and easy way to get your brand message out to customers. Now, email has stiff competition from social media and even text as an "instant" form of messaging.

But email marketing is still an essential part of the digital marketer's toolkit. It's found a resurgence as a way to communicate differently with prospects, offering more in-depth information and opportunities for engagement than might exist on social media.

So how do you know if your email marketing efforts are working? For many marketers it can feel like these messages are simply fading out into the ether with an uncertain path home to conversion.

But the truth is very different. You can gather your email analytics to develop valuable insights into your campaign performance. These analytics come together into one essential document: your email marketing report.