In the world of email marketing , open rates are one of the main indicators of success. The metric indicates the percentage of recipients who opened your email in relation to the total sent, and directly influences the chances of conversion and success of campaigns.
However, improving this indicator can be an ongoing challenge, as multiple factors are involved, from list segmentation to content quality .
In 2023, the global benchmark for email open rate is around 21.33% , according to marketing automation platform Mailchimp.
However, this varies significantly by industry. While industries like “Government” and “Media” have average open rates of 28.77% and 23.91% respectively, others, like “E-commerce”, have lower numbers, in the range of 15.68% .
Segmentation and personalization
Segmentation is essential to ensuring your emails are sent to the right people. Studies from Campaign Monitor show that segmented campaigns generate a 26% higher open rate than non-segmented emails .
This is because recipients receive content that is relevant and personalized to their interests, increasing the likelihood of engagement.
Types of segmentation that impact opening
Demographic segmentation : Based on age, gender, location, and other characteristics.
Behavioral : Segmentation based on user behavior, such as previous interactions with your emails, recent purchases, or visits to your website.
Engagement : Send different emails to highly engaged users compared to those who don’t interact with your campaigns.
Tech tip : Use email automation data to segment your users in real time. Tools like HubSpot and ActiveCampaign allow you to create dynamic lists that change based on user behavior, such as viewing a page or opening a previous email.
Subject and preheader
The subject line of an email is one of the biggest determinants of open rates. According to a study by OptinMonster , 47% of users open telegram data emails basedon the subject line.
Additionally, 69% of people mark emails as spam based solely on the subject line. In other words, this element can be both your greatest ally and your greatest obstacle.
Strategies to improve subjects
Short and Impactful : Subject lines with 6 to 10 words generate the best open rates, according to data from Invesp .
Urgency : Terms like “last chance” or “limited time offer” can increase open rates by 22% .
Personalization : Emails with the recipient’s name in the subject creating an optimization plan line have a 26% higher open rate .
The preheader , the short sentence that accompanies the subject line in email clients, also plays a vital role. A well-crafted preheader can complement the subject line and provide an additional reason for the recipient to open the email.
Tech Tip : Email tools like Litmus and TestSubject allow you to test how your subject line and preheader look across different devices and email platforms. This ensures that your message is effective no matter where the user opens the email.
The importance of timing: When to send your emails?
When you send your emails has a significant impact on open rates. Data from GetResponse suggests that emails sent between 10am and 2pm tend to have the best open rates, but this can vary by audience and industry.
Timing considerations
A/B Testing : Test at different times and days to understand when your audience is most engaged.
Time zone optimization : If you have a global subscriber list, sending cell phone number emails based on each group’s time zone can increase open rates. According to Campaign Monitor , this practice can increase open rates by 8% .
Automation based on user actions : Use automatic triggers to send emails right after a key interaction, such as cart abandonment or resource download.
List cleaning
Maintaining a clean and healthy email list is crucial to ensuring high open rates.
Emails sent to inactive or non-existent addresses can negatively affect your sender reputation , causing your emails to end up in the spam folder.
Best practices for cleaning your email database
Regular email verification : Use tools like NeverBounce or ZeroBounce to verify that email addresses are valid.
Re-engagement : For inactive subscribers, create re-engagement campaigns. If there is no response, consider removing them from your list.
Double opt-in : This practice significantly reduces the chance of invalid or misspelled addresses entering your list, increasing its quality.
Mobile-friendly: The importance of responsive design
With 46% of all email opens happening on mobile devices, according to Litmus , ensuring your email is mobile-friendly is essential.
Emails that don’t load well on smartphones and tablets are much more likely to be ignored or deleted.
Tips for optimizing emails for mobile devices
Responsive design : Use responsive email templates that automatically adjust to the device screen size.
Text and button size : Make sure text is readable and CTA (call-to-action) buttons are large enough to be easily clicked on a touch screen.
Short Subject Line : Longer subjects may get cut off on smaller screens, so optimize them to around 30-50 characters.
A/B Testing: Continuous Optimization
If you’re not regularly testing your emails, you’re leaving opportunities for improvement on the table.
A/B testing lets you test variations of subject lines, preheaders, layouts, send times, and more, helping you discover what works best for your audience.
Elements to test
Topics : Test different variations of size, style, and tone (formal vs. casual, for example).
Pre-headers : Try testing different combinations with the subject.
Sending times : Test different times and days of the week to find your ideal opening window.
Visual content : Test emails with more or less visual elements to see how it affects engagement.
According to data from Invesp , companies that regularly perform A/B tests see a 37% improvement in the performance of email campaigns.
Sender Reputation and Deliverability: Avoid the Spam Box
Maintaining a good sender reputation is vital to ensuring that your emails reach your recipients’ inboxes. This refers to the trust that email providers (like Gmail and Outlook) have in your sending domain and server IP.
Factors that impact sender reputation
Hard bounce rate : Emails sent to invalid addresses. Keeping this rate below 2% is crucial to prevent your emails from being marked as spam.
Recipient Engagement : Emails that are ignored or deleted without being opened negatively affect your reputation.
Consistent sending volume : Avoiding sudden spikes in the number of emails sent also helps maintain a good reputation.
Use tools like Google’s Sender Score or Postmaster Tools to monitor your sender reputation and adjust your strategy as needed.
Email Automation
Automation allows you to send highly personalized emails based on your recipients’ behavior and preferences.
Automation emails tend to have much higher open rates than manually sent emails.
Types of automated emails with high open rates
Welcome : Welcome emails have an average open rate of 82% , according to GetResponse .
Abandoned Cart : Abandoned cart recovery campaigns have open rates between 40% to 45% .
Birthdays and special dates : Emails sent on important dates for the customer (birthdays, for example) also have significantly higher open rates.
Tools like Klaviyo and Drip are leaders in the automation market, offering advanced behavior-based segmentation and automation capabilities, enabling personalization at scale and helping to increase open rates.
Authentication and security protocols
One of the reasons emails end up in the spam folder is the lack of proper authentication.
Email providers like Gmail and Outlook use security protocols to determine whether an email is legitimate or suspicious. Following these standards can significantly improve deliverability and, ultimately, open rates.
Main security protocols
SPF (Sender Policy Framework) : This protocol helps prevent spammers from sending emails with your domain, increasing trust with email providers.
DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail) : Allows the recipient to verify that the email was actually sent and authorized by the originating domain.
DMARC (Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting & Conformance) : Helps protect your domain from unauthorized use (phishing) and provides reports on email authentication.
Implementing these protocols is crucial to ensuring that your emails are considered safe by your email providers, which prevents them from being marked as spam or rejected.
Strategic use of emojis and special characters
Emojis and special characters can make a difference in the subject line of an email, catching the recipient’s attention in a crowded inbox.
However, they should be used with caution.
Benefits and risks of emojis
Benefit : Emails with emojis in the subject line have a 4.25% higher open rate compared to those without, according to data from Experian .
Risk : Out-of-context or overused emojis can appear unprofessional and reduce credibility.
Run A/B tests to see if emojis are effective for your specific audience, and only use them when they make sense for the content and tone of your message.
Using psychological triggers in the subject line
Consumer psychology is a powerful tool in email marketing. Subject lines that use psychological triggers can significantly increase open rates. Some of the most effective are:
Curiosity : Subjects that arouse curiosity (“Discover the secret behind…”) have a high open rate, as recipients are motivated to get the answer.
Exclusivity : Words like “only for you”, “exclusive access” and “limited offer” arouse the desire not to miss out on a unique opportunity.
Fear of missing out (FOMO) : Topics that indicate something is ending or an opportunity is about to end can increase urgency and generate more openings.
According to HubSpot , emails that create a sense of urgency or exclusivity can have open rates up to 22% higher.
Implementation of Interactive Emails
A growing trend in email marketing is the use of interactive elements within the email itself.
This includes quizzes, polls, and image carousels that can be interacted with directly in the email client, without the need to open a browser.
Advantages of interactive emails
Higher engagement : Interactive emails have 73% higher engagement than traditional emails, according to data from Campaign Monitor .
Better open rate : Using interactivity can pique recipients’ curiosity, resulting in higher open rates.
Tools like Stripo and BEE Free allow you to create interactive emails with little to no programming knowledge.
Performance analysis and constant adjustments
No email marketing strategy is complete without a constant cycle of analysis and optimization.
Monitoring the performance metrics of each campaign allows you to identify what works and what needs to be adjusted for future campaigns.
Metrics to be monitored
Open rate : The main metric, which indicates how many people opened the email.
Click-through rate (CTR) : Measures the number of people who clicked on links within the email.
Conversion rate : Checks how many people took the desired action (purchase, sign up, etc.) after clicking on the email.
Unsubscribe rate : An increase in this metric may indicate that the content of your emails is not aligned with recipients’ expectations.
Platforms like Mailchimp , GetResponse , and HubSpot offer detailed dashboards to track these metrics in real time and make adjustments quickly.
Conclusion
Improving email marketing open rates is a multifaceted task that requires attention to a number of details, from the quality of your recipient list to optimizing your content and utilizing automation and A/B testing.
The combination of precise segmentation, compelling subject line creation, and personalization at scale is essential to ensuring your emails not only reach inboxes, but also get opened and convert.
