Gmail's AI Inbox Is Rolling Out

Google announced AI Inbox a few days ago.

Here's the direct link to their announcement if you want to read it yourself: https://blog.google/products-and-platforms/products/gmail/gmail-is-entering-the-gemini-era/

I’ve already see people will panic and say email is dead (lol). They'll make drastic changes and tank their deliverability in the process. Don't be them. (See point #1)

The good news? You've got 12-16 months before this goes mainstream.

Even when it rolls out to the general public, there's going to be a transitional phase where people are figuring out if they trust the AI Inbox.

They'll be double-checking to make sure it's not missing anything important.

But the AI Inbox is only going to get better with time. Which means it's best to start adjusting now, while you still have breathing room.

Here's what's top of mind for us at Hypermedia Marketing, and what we're implementing with our clients right now.

Priority #1: Inbox FIRST, AI Inbox Second

This is the most important thing to understand.

The underlying email algorithm hasn't changed. The AI Inbox will be a visibility layer ON TOP of the regular inbox. In fact, AI has been influencing the algorithm for some time. The AI Inbox is mostly a view of your inbox.

If you start making changes and your emails go to spam, the AI Inbox summary doesn't matter anyway. You're still in spam.

What to do:

Before you worry about AI summaries, make sure you're actually landing in the primary inbox right now.

Run a deliverability audit this week. Check your SPF, DKIM, and DMARC authentication. All three need to be properly configured and passing.

Look at your sender reputation. If you're using a service like Google Postmaster Tools and Yahoo Sender Hub, check your domain reputation score and spam complaints.

Test your inbox placement with seed lists. Send to Gmail accounts you control and see where you land. Primary tab? Promotions? Spam? You need to know your baseline. We use Glockapps to see this information.

If you're not consistently hitting the primary inbox, fix that first. Get your authentication sorted. Clean your list of non-engagers. Improve your engagement rates. Everything else is noise until you solve basic deliverability.

Still optimize to get to the inbox FIRST. Then optimize for the AI Inbox.

Priority #2: Test How the AI Summarizes Your Current Emails

Subject lines, preview text, and body copy are still critical.

But now copywriters need to account for how the AI will summarize the email. You can have the best story with awesome copy, but if the AI summarizes it poorly, you're not going to earn the click from the summary.

The Testing Process:

We've been using this prompt for the last year or so to "see" how the AI might summarize our clients' emails:

"Please create a short 3-sentence summary of the following email, followed by at least 3 but no more than a maximum of 5 bullet points of proposed actions, tasks or responses needed from the email."

The reason I put "see" in quotes is that we've found the AI summaries are slightly personalized based on the recipient.

So in your tests, whatever you see isn't going to be the EXACT way the AI summary shows for your subscribers. But it'll should be close enough to identify problems.

What to Do This Week:

Take your last three emails. Copy the full body text. Run each one through ChatGPT or Claude with that exact prompt.

Look at what the AI pulls out. Is it your main value proposition? Your key offer? The outcome you promised?

Or did it latch onto something irrelevant? Did it summarize your story instead of your point? Did it miss your CTA entirely?

If the summary misses your main point, you need to restructure your email. The AI is showing you what subscribers will see in their AI Inbox digest.

Document what you find. Create a simple spreadsheet: Email title, What you wanted the AI to highlight, What the AI actually highlighted, Gap analysis.

This becomes your baseline for improvement.

Priority #3: Front-Load Your Value Statement (With an Open Loop)

This is directly related to the testing we just talked about.

From our testing, it seems like the AI weights the opening text and explicit CTAs or action items more heavily than the rest of the email.

So we've shifted our copy to front-load value statements, with an open loop transition to keep readers engaged with the full email.

The New Email Structure:

Here's the template we're using now:

Opening 100-200 characters: Front-loaded value statement

Example: "I'm showing you three deliverability tactics that have increased inbox rates from 45% to 94%."

Transition sentence: Open loop that creates curiosity

Example: "But before I reveal those tactics, you need to understand the one mistake that kills deliverability before you even hit send."

Body content: Your full story, framework, or psychological approach

Deploy your villain framework, your sensory language, your normal persuasion tactics. The AI already got its summary from the opening. Now you're writing for the human who clicked through.

The Results:

In our testing using that prompt, the AI summary talks more about the three deliverability tactics and outcomes instead of the story or the offer.

This means the subscriber sees a value-forward summary in their AI Inbox. If they're interested in increasing inbox rates, they click. If they're not, they don't. But at least they know what the email is about.

Compare that to our old structure where we'd open with a story. The AI would summarize "Tyler tells a story about his dog" and completely miss the deliverability tactics we were teaching.

Implementation This Week:

Take your next scheduled email. Rewrite the opening 150 words to follow this structure.

Run it through the AI summary prompt. Does the summary now capture your main value proposition?

If yes, deploy it. If no, adjust the opening and test again.

Do this for your next three emails. You're training yourself to write for dual audiences: AI interpretation and human persuasion.

Priority #4: Redesign Your First Few Days (This Is CRITICAL)

The welcome flow and first few days have always been critical. Now they're even more so.

Google's announcement explicitly states that Gemini identifies your VIPs based on signals like people you email frequently, those in your contacts list, and relationships it can infer from message content.

Translation: If new subscribers don't engage with your first few emails quickly, your future emails won't show up in their AI Inbox.

These first few days are absolutely crucial to drive engagement fast.

Tactic 4a: Ask for a Reply on the First or Second Email

Google's announcement says: "It helps you prioritize, identifying your VIPs based on signals like people you email frequently, those in your contacts list and relationships it can infer from message content."

The key phrase is "in your contacts list."

Most people don't realize there's a setting in Gmail that says "if I reply to an email from a sender not in my contacts list, automatically add them."

This is why we ask for replies quickly instead of asking people to add us to their contacts. A reply is usually less friction. And it automatically solves the contact list problem.

How to Implement:

Email 1 or 2 in your welcome sequence needs a reply-generating CTA.

Examples that work:

"Hit reply and tell me your biggest [topic] challenge right now. I read every response."

"Quick question: What made you sign up for [lead magnet] today? I'm curious what brought you in."

"Reply with one word: What's your top priority in [topic area] right now?"

Keep it simple. Make it easy to answer. Make it feel personal.

Test this immediately. Track your reply rate. Even 5-10% reply rate on Email 1 is a massive win.

Tactic 4b: Use SMS to Drive Subscribers Back to Email

We've been using SMS to drive more subscribers back to the email.

Here's the exact flow:

Someone opts in for a resource at 10:00am. They get the email immediately with the download link.

2-4 hours later (12:00pm - 2:00pm), they get an SMS: "Hey [name], it's Tyler from Hypermedia Marketing. Did you get [resource name] okay? Some people have said they haven’t seen it yet. If you didn't receive it, just reply and I'll send it directly."

This does three things:

First, it reminds them to check their email. Even if they got it, they might have forgotten to look for it.

Second, it positions you as helpful and attentive. You're checking in to make sure they got what they signed up for.

Third, it drives immediate engagement with the email. They go search for it, open it, download the resource. That's an engagement signal for Gmail.

How to Implement:

You need an SMS platform integrated with your email platform. We use GoHighLevel, but Postscript, Attentive, or Klaviyo SMS all work.

Set up the automation: Opt-in trigger → 2-4 hour delay → SMS with that message template.

Track how many people engage with the email after receiving the SMS versus those who don't get the SMS. We're seeing 20-30% lifts in email engagement when SMS is added.

Tactic 4c: Update Your Thank You Page

Make sure you're crystal clear on the thank you page about what to expect.

We've also started including the exact subject line they should look for.

The Before Template:

"Thanks for signing up! Check your email for your free guide."

The After Template:

"Thanks for signing up!

Check your email in the next 5 minutes for an email from [email protected] with the subject line: 'Here's your Deliverability Checklist'

If you don't see it in your inbox, check your Promotions tab or Spam folder. Then drag it to your Primary inbox so you don't miss future emails.

While you're waiting, connect with me on LinkedIn: [link]"

Why This Works:

You're setting clear expectations. They know who it's from, what the subject line is, and when to expect it.

You're giving them the subject line so they can search for it if it doesn't appear immediately.

You're providing fallback instructions if it goes to Promotions or Spam.

And you're starting the multi-channel relationship with the LinkedIn connection.

How to Implement:

Update your thank you page this week. Add these four elements:

1. Sender email address

2. Exact subject line

3. Timeframe to expect it (next 5-10 minutes)

4. Fallback instructions if they don't see it

Test this with your next lead magnet campaign. We can't definitively measure the impact yet, but it feels right. And anecdotally, we're seeing fewer "I didn't get the email" support requests.

Priority #5: Multi-Channel Becomes Critical (Not Optional)

This shift marks the beginning of two things:

First, the importance of brand. Subscribers need to recognize and trust your brand across multiple touchpoints, not just email. When subscribers are opting in, they’re going to continue engaging because they like the BRAND, not just the education.

Second, using other channels to complement and enhance email marketing. Email alone isn't enough anymore.

For our B2B clients, Email + SMS + LinkedIn is crushing right now.

The LinkedIn Strategy for B2B:

Here's the weekly flow we're using:

Monday-Tuesday: Post 2-3 times on LinkedIn about the topic of your upcoming newsletter. Don't give away everything, but tease the insights. Drive curiosity.

Include CTAs like: "I'm breaking down the full framework in this week's EmailOS newsletter. If you're not subscribed yet, link in comments."

Wednesday: Send your newsletter.

Thursday-Friday: If the email gets higher than normal engagement (you can see this in your ESP analytics), promote it on LinkedIn.

Post something like: "Earlier this week I sent my EmailOS subscribers a breakdown of [topic]. The response has been incredible. Here's one insight from it..." then share a key takeaway and link to your newsletter signup.

Why This Works:

You're using LinkedIn to build awareness before the email. People see your name and topic multiple times before the email hits their inbox.

When the email arrives, it's not cold. They recognize you. They've been primed by your LinkedIn content. They're more likely to open and engage.

Then you're using LinkedIn again afterward to extend the reach of your best emails. You're driving new subscribers from people who missed the original send.

It's a flywheel. Each channel amplifies the other.

How to Implement:

Block 2 hours on Sunday to prep your LinkedIn content for the week. Write 2-3 posts teasing your newsletter topic.

Schedule them for Monday and Tuesday using LinkedIn's native scheduler or a tool like Hootsuite.

Send your newsletter Wednesday as usual.

Check your email analytics Thursday morning. If engagement is 20%+ higher than your average, write a LinkedIn post about it Thursday or Friday.

Track the results. How many new subscribers came from LinkedIn? How did engagement on LinkedIn-promoted newsletters compare to those without LinkedIn support?

Run this for 4 weeks. You'll see the pattern.

For E-commerce or DTC:

If you're not B2B, LinkedIn might not be your channel. But the principle is the same.

Add SMS to drive people back to check email. Or use retargeting ads to new leads, reinforcing your brand and reminding them to look for your emails.

Test Instagram + email. TikTok + email. Whatever channel your audience actually uses.

The key is multi-channel coordination, not just multi-channel presence.

Re-targeting

We’re also testing re-targeting ads on Meta during the first 14 days. This is very, very new, so I don’t have much to report on because we’re still heavy into testing what works, but I’m throwing this out there as another way to drive engagement via email through ads.

Priority #6: Cold Email Growth Becomes Even MORE Difficult

For any algorithm, there are ways to hack it. I'm sure there's a way to get cold emails to show up in the AI Inbox summary.

But I think the AI Inbox will be very good at suppressing cold emails.

The reason is simple: None of the signals Gemini is looking for exist with cold emails. No communication frequency. Not in contacts. No inferred relationship. No engagement history.

Cold email to AI Inbox adopters will get buried.

The Ethical Hacks:

If cold email is part of your strategy, you can still test urgency signals that aren't manipulative.

Example 1: Industry Events

"For Social Media Marketing World, the deadline is approaching in February. A lot of people are going because they're wanting to learn about [topic], which is something we help with. If you're interested in a call, click here or reply if you're having these issues."

You're referencing an external deadline that's real. You're not creating false urgency.

Example 2: Company-Specific Dates

"In Q4, financial reports are due. I noticed [company] typically launches around [timeframe]. With [event] coming up in [specific date], you're probably gearing up for [outcome]. Here's how we can help with that."

You're showing you've done research. You're tying to their actual business calendar.

Example 3: Regulatory Changes

"Gmail announced AI Inbox rollout on January 8th. They're starting with trusted testers, then broader rollout in coming months. This changes how your emails show up in subscribers' inboxes. Here's what you need to adjust now before this impacts your open rates."

You're using a real industry change that creates genuine urgency.

The Bigger Shift:

But honestly, the better approach is to start building your LinkedIn or community presence now.

Warm introductions through other channels will matter more than volume-based cold email after AI Inbox adoption.

Join 3-5 communities where your prospects congregate. Answer questions. Share insights. Build authority.

When you eventually reach out via email, you're not cold anymore. They recognize your name. Your email gets engagement. Gemini sees the relationship.

That's the long game. But it's the game that wins in an AI Inbox world.

The Key Thing to Remember

The chronological inbox isn't going anywhere.

Everyone will still have access to it. They'll still browse through it. Google isn't taking away the option to see all your emails in order.

But I think inbox behavior is about to shift.

Right now, people use their inbox to search and work. They're looking for specific emails. They're processing messages one by one.

With the AI Inbox, I think behavior shifts to browsing instead of searching. They're scanning summaries. They're looking at what the AI thinks is important. They're trusting the digest.

That's the shift we're preparing for.

You're not overhauling everything overnight. You're testing what moves the needle while fundamentals still matter most.

Start with one action from this email. Run the test for 30 days. Track what changes.

The brands that adapt now get 12+ months of pattern establishment while competitors scramble later.

Want us to do an AI Inbox readiness assessment? Hit reply. We’ll make sure your delieverability is squared away AND do a content assessment. What we’ll give you is a document you can use to make sure your emails are optimized and ready to go for the AI Inbox world.

Hit reply if interested.

Tyler