Do you know that over 100 billion emails are sent and received daily? These includes newsletter subscriptions, brand announcements and product updates, cold-call inquiries, customer service follow-ups, and just plain old emails which you did not ask for. And while you think most of these emails are junk and useless, you can actually find treasure in them. Here are ways on how you can transform junk emails into valuable content for your advantage.

Browse through subject lines of emails

So you receive hundreds of brand-related emails and product newsletters weekly, but do you open and read them one by one amidst your busy schedule? Chances are, you only browse through the subject lines and read what captures your attention, right? In the same way, you can review each email’s subject line and identify what wordings and phrasings work well for you as a customer. You can them implement the same style on your email marketing, blogs, and article distribution strategies to guarantee a high open rate.

Pick up useful information

Dig into your inbox and find emails that provide useful facts and information. Some companies can afford to conduct primary research and incorporate the data they have gathered into the emails they are sending out. As recipient of these emails, your primary task is to take note of this valuable information that you can recycle and pass onto your customers. However, to ensure reliability, always double-check your reference facts and sources.

Learn how others communicate

From the subject line to the body of the email to the call-to-action buttons and links, study how your competitors or other players in the industry communicate to their customers. Find out what works and what doesn’t. Somewhere in the body of a good solicitation email, for example, you can find a statement that identifies why downloading their e-book is essential or why following their social media accounts is valuable. These reasons can be a great blog post starter. Remember, the most important blog posts speak directly to your audience and give them something relevant to consider or think about.

Turn images, videos, and infographics into interesting stories

To stand out, many online businesses send non-traditional forms of content on email, such as images, videos, and infographics. Your role as a recipient is to transform these kinds of content into something that can be useful for you and your website. Creating news stories, blogs, and articles about them is a cheap alternative to doing research and sourcing stories on your own.

So, before you delete that next promotional email that just got in your inbox, remember that you can always find treasure in trash!