Tag Archives: email open rate

How to increase your email open rate in 5 easy steps

5 steps to improving your email open rate

5 steps to improving your email open rate

How to increase your email open rate?

Do you know what is the average email open rate?

How many people are likely to open your emails when you send out an email marketing campaign?

Different industries have different email open rates, according to this Smart Insights report.

The overall average is 29.55%, according to the above link, which is quite high than what I expected.

This MailChimp report on the same topic shows that the average email open rate is 21.33%, which is a lot less then what the Smart Insights report says.

But MailChimp must have used its own servers to get data because it is an email marketing company.

Since MailChimp is an email marketing company, and it has used its own servers to derive data, I think they have more reliable data for different industries.

You can see the tabular data on both the links that I have included above.

How to improve your email open rate?

I would like to make an interesting observation.

According to the MailChimp report, agriculture and food services industry has an email open rate of 23.31%.

Emails from government have an open rate of 28.77% because most of the time they carry useful information that people need.

Hobbies related emails enjoy an open rate of 27.74%.

Religion related emails are close at 27.62%.

In the table, the lowest email open rates seem to be for daily deals and coupons (15.06%) and e-commerce (15.68%).

One would expect that daily deals and coupons emails may enjoy a higher open rate, but it seems people pay more attention to the emails that are close to their hearts rather than emails that simply offer discounts and lower rates for products and services.

What is email open rate?

Before learning how to improve your email open rate, it is important to know what it means.

Your email open rate is the percentage of recipients who open a specific email out of the total number of subscribers you have in your mailing list.

Mathematically, it is the number of people who opened email divided by the total number of emails you sent in a campaign, multiplied by 100.

Email open rates screenshot

Email open rates screenshot

Hence, if your email open rate is 25%, it means for every 100 emails that you send, 25 are opened.

You learn how to increase your email open rate – is it enough?

Not necessarily.

It is one of the factors.

It is one of the most important factors, in fact.

Unless someone opens your email message, how is he or she going to respond to it?

Hence, your first priority is to make sure that the maximum number of people open your email when you send out your email marketing campaign.

The second factor is the CTR – click-through-rate.

Every email campaign has a CTA – call-to-action.

It may be a “Buy” button.

It may be a “Download” button.

It may be a “Contact us now” link.

Whatever you want your recipients to do after they have gone through your email, is your call-to-action.

How convincing your message and call-to-action are, decide your CTR.

Now we come to the main topic of the post:

How to improve your email open rate

As I have written above, before something constructive can happen to your email marketing campaign, it is very important that maximum number of people open your emails.

The process of improving your email open rate is long-term and short-term.

The long-term process is improving your reputation to such an extent that when people encounter your email in their inbox, they immediately open it.

The short-term process is giving compelling information through the subject line, email extract, and even the name from which the email has come, to reassure people and make them open your email.

Listed below are 5 tips that can help you increase or improve your email open rate.

1. Optimize your subject line

After the name of the sender, it is your subject line that people read without opening your message.

Your subject line tells people why they should open your message.

If your subject line doesn’t inspire people, they won’t like your email message.

Your email will remain unopened.

Your email open rate will decline.

No matter how great your offer is, unless people read your offer, they are not going to be able to take its advantage.

Your subject line is like the main headline of your blog post or web page.

You may like to read: 8 types of headlines you can use in copywriting

Just like the headline, if your subject line fails to impress people, they won’t read further.

Never use your subject line to mislead people into opening your message.

You may be able to increase your email open rate for the time being, but once people begin to mistrust you, even if you are sending them a genuine offer, they won’t believe you.

According to this Optinmaster blog post, 47% email recipients open an email based on the subject line.

69% email recipients on the other hand mark an email as spam based on the subject line.

Hence, your subject line can be a double-edged sword.

Be mindful of what words you use in your subject line.

Defining the best subject line can be a tricky business.

There are many words that can get your email marked as spam, especially words containing “money”, “Casino”, and “meet singles”.

This Hubspot blog post contains a list of 394 words that can get your email message marked as spam, so, try to avoid them.

You can use AB testing to arrive at the best subject lines.

Define two subject lines with careful consideration.

Then send 50% of the emails using one subject line and 50% using the other.

After a couple of days, your email marketing service like MailChimp will give you the data on how many people opened your emails for those subject lines.

Then choose the subject line that performs better and create an improved version of it.

Then again sent 50% of the emails with one subject line and 50% using another subject line.

After a few AB testing phases, you will be able to arrive at the best subject line to use to increase your email open rate.

What defines a good email subject line that can help you improve your email open rate?

Here are a few suggestions:

  • Personalize your subject line
  • Keep it short and sweet
  • Start telling a story
  • Create suspense or another strong emotion
  • Ask a question
  • Create a mystery

2. Use segmentation to improve your email open rate

Most of the contemporary email marketing services these days provide you the facility to create segments based on user behavior.

For example, MailChimp allows you to create segments based on

  • People who opened your last email message within a range of days.
  • People who have been opening your messages for the past number of campaigns.
  • People who have opened your email message at least once in the past 25-50 email campaigns.
  • Regions from where people open your email messages the most.

And so on.

On some instances only segmentation can help you increase your email open rate almost by 40% (source).

Who are more likely to open your email message?

Someone who has already opened your messages in the recent past or someone who has never opened your messages?

Certainly, someone who has been responding to your messages is more likely to open them.

What is the use of segmentation if it reduces the size of your email list?

Remember that people who are not opening your messages are anyway not going to open them.

Why waste bandwidth on those people?

They may have subscribed to your mailing list due to whatever reason, but now they are no longer interested in hearing from you, and maybe too lazy to unsubscribe.

But if you use a service like MailChimp, you pay for every message that you send, whether that message is opened or not.

Therefore, segmentation doesn’t just help you increase your email open rate, it also reduces your email marketing costs.

3. Find the optimal time to improve your email open rate

Whether your email is opened or not also depends on at what time the recipient receives your email message.

Sometimes people can be too busy and even if they want to open your email message, they have no time.

At certain periods of the day they are deluged with email and even when they are interested, they end up ignoring your email.

Just as your email marketing service tells you how many people open your last campaign, they also tell you at what time they mostly opened it.

You will need to spend some time to gather such data and hence, it is a long-term process.

You may have to analyze 10-15 campaigns and gather the data in an Excel sheet.

You will need to find out on which days people open your messages the most and at what time they open your messages the most.

After that, try sending your email messages on those days and at that time.

For example, if the optimal time for you to send out your email marketing campaign is on Thursday at 10 AM, you can schedule your email marketing message accordingly.

Your email marketing service should be able to send out the message based on the recipient’s time zone.

This can be one of the best ways to increase your email open rate.

4. Request your recipients to add your email to their “whitelist”

20% emails don’t reach the inbox of your recipients (source).

Spam settings are the culprit.

Some spam settings are set by the user and some are set by email services like Gmail and Outlook.

I have seen that even legitimate messages that have got nothing to do with email marketing, are directly sent to the spam folder sometimes by the Gmail feature of Google Workspace.

Emails can be manually added to the whitelist.

When people are subscribing to your mailing list, politely remind them that they should add the email ID from which they will be getting your messages to their whitelist so that the messages are not redirected to the spam folder.

Also use double opt-in to subscribe to your mailing list.

In double-opt in, they must click a verification link that is sent on the email ID they initially submitted to your subscription form.

They will be able to click the verification link only when they open the email message from you.

Once they open your email message for verification, your email ID is automatically added to the whitelist.

5. Regularly engage your email recipients

This is one of the sure shot ways of improving your email open rate.

When people don’t receive your messages regularly, they tend to ignore your messages.

If they get in the habit of opening your messages, it can significantly increase your email open rate.

If you want to know how to improve your email open rate, consistency is the key.

This is a long-term process, of course.

If you regularly send valuable information through your email messages, your recipients will grow to expect your emails on certain days or at certain times.

Once they begin to find value in your email messages, they will eagerly open them.

Although, how successful your email marketing campaigns are depends on multiple factors, one of the foremost factors is the email open rate.

If they don’t open it, they won’t read it.

If they don’t read, they don’t click your call-to-action button.

If they don’t click your call-to-action button, it brings down your click-through rate.

Hence, the most important step towards executing a successful email marketing campaign is, to improve or increase your email open rate.

How to get people to read your emails?

How to make the maximum number of people open your emails

When you’re sending regular office emails the recipients, normally, have no choice but to open your email because it is work related. But when you’re sending emails to people who are not expecting to hear from you, who may not even know you, it becomes difficult to make them open your emails.

One of the biggest challenges faced by people who want to do email marketing is getting people to read their emails. Here are some helpful tips:

Use a familiar From name

The “From:” field tells your recipient from whom they are receiving the message. Messages from companies are usually ignored. Messages from strange names are also ignored. Nonetheless, using a name is far better than using a company name

You are more prone to opening an email from “Amrit” than “Credible Content”, or even from “Google”.

Use compelling subject lines

After the “From:” field, it is the subject line which is the biggest factor in people opening your email. Research shows that 47% of people base their decision of opening your emails based on the subject line (source).

There are some tried and tested formulas for writing compelling subject lines such as invoking the fear of missing out on a great opportunity, catering to the vanity of people, expressing curiosity, making people laugh, retargeting (sending emails to people who have abandoned your shopping cart), and such.

Send the emails at the right time

When are your recipients most likely to open your emails? There are different ways of finding it. You can use your common sense. You can use analytics data provided by your email marketing service such as MailChimp.

This may take some time. You will need to send multiple campaigns and then note during which time period your messages are opened the most.

Be regular on delivering value

Even if people open your email message the first time, they won’t open the subsequent messages if you don’t deliver on your promise. If they expect some value from your email messages, make sure you deliver that value. If they want to learn from your email messages, make sure that they learn something each time they open your email.

Make emails easy to read on mobile

59% of the millennials use their smart phones to check email. 67% of the generation z check their email on their mobile phones (source).

Whether you are enamored by the mobile or not, make sure that your email is easy to read on mobile phones. It is not even very difficult. Just keep your emails straightforward.

So, if you want to make more people open your emails, when you’re sending the email for the first time, the subject line plays a very important part, but after they have opened the email, and have become familiar with your name, it is the quality of your messages and the email content that is going to make them open your emails again.

How to increase your email open rate

How to increase your email open rate

How to increase your email open rate

In my previous blog post I mentioned that email marketing is an integral part of content marketing.

Rumor has it that for every $ 1 spent on email marketing, successful marketers earn $ 44.25.

But the success of your email marketing depends on increasing your email open rate.

When you send out emails, it has to cross many hurdles before it can make a positive impact on your bottom line. These hurdles include

  • Not ending up in the spam folder due to certain email service settings.
  • Arriving at the most appropriate time.
  • Getting noticed by the recipient amidst the deluge of other email messages in the inbox.
  • Grabbing the attention of the email recipient.

The opening of your email message is very important. Unless someone opens your email message, nothing much can happen.

How do you increase your email open rate?

How do you prompt people to click on your message in the inbox?

Here are a few things you can do to increase your email open rate…

Offer something compelling in the subject

Make a good offer in the subject line to increase your email open rate

Make a good offer in the subject line to increase your email open rate

Something compelling doesn’t mean offer something that would be unbelievable. Normally, you would know what sort of email messages your recipient is expecting from you if you have been building a mailing list of your own.

Make that offer in the subject line.

If someone has subscribed to your email updates to get notifications on some great discounts, then definitely use “10% discount on…” in the subject line.

If someone has subscribed to your updates to improve his or her SEO, have something like “Improve your SEO with this technique right now” or something like this in the subject line.

Make it compelling enough to open your email and check it out.

You can also use different emotions to compel people into opening your email.

This Constant Contact blog post gives many suggestions regarding what all you can include in the subject line:

  • Ask a question: “What will you do with this extra saving of $50?”
  • Give a command: “Open this message immediately or regret for ever!”
  • Teaser: “So, this is what you’re going to miss if you don’t read this email.”
  • Give a list: “20 sure short ways of making money with this simple tool.”
  • Make an announcement: “We have finally released the upgrade you have been waiting for!”

Here is another blog post that gives you 10 best email subject line formulas.

Make your subject line easier to read on mobile devices

Use mobile friendly subject lines to increase email open rate

Use mobile friendly subject lines to increase email open rate

Around 83% people might be checking your emails on their mobile devices. If your subject is too long to fit on their screens, they may skip your message.

Your subject message must be compelling, but it should also be shorter.

Use a name for the “From” field

Use the actual name in the From field

Use the actual name in the From field

People are more prone to opening emails when they get them from individuals rather than from organizations and businesses.

There is a greater chance of people opening the email if it comes from “Amrit Hallan” instead of simply “Credible Content”.

Pay more attention to your analytics data

Pay attention to email analytics

Pay attention to email analytics

Almost every email marketing service, MailChimp, for example, gives you data on when people open your emails.

23% emails are opened during the first hour of delivery, and this I have noticed myself. The greatest number of my emails are opened within 30-40 minutes of me sending out the campaign.

If you have been sending your email campaigns for many months, you can import, or manually enter, the details in an Excel sheet. Once you can see all the timings and the number of people opening your emails on those particular times, you will be able to arrive at the best time and this way you can increase your email open rate to a great extent.

Use icons and emojis in the subject line to increase your email open rate

Use icons and emojis in the subject line

Use icons and emojis in the subject line

Although I don’t believe in gimmicks as I think that people should open your email on its merit rather than for what sort of icons you have used in the subject line, it is a good way of standing out.

Don’t overdo it. If you use icons with every email you send out, it may diminish their utility value. They need to be very relevant to the message that you’re sending.

Ask your recipients to put your email ID in the safe list

Request the recipients to add your email ID to the safe list

Request the recipients to add your email ID to the safe list

Many of your recipients may never receive your messages because their email client, whether it is Gmail, Outlook or Yahoo mail, might be directing them to the spam folder.

This is why, when people have just subscribed to your email updates, request them to add your email ID to their safe list so that your message don’t end up in the spam folder.

The data on this blog post (slightly old) says that more than 20% marketing emails never make to the inbox.

How much email is consigned to the spam folder differs from region to region, according to this SlideShare presentation. 66% emails reach your recipient’s inbox in Asia compared to 86% in Europe.

By asking your recipients to put your email ID (the one that is used for your email marketing campaigns) in the safe list or telling them how to tell their email clients that emails from you are not spam, can considerably increase your email open rate.

Personalize your email subject line to increase your email open rate

Personalize your email messages

Personalize your email messages

Using first language, using the name of the recipient, also increases your email open rate.

When your recipient sees his or her name in the subject line, it conveys to him or her that it is not a machine-generated message (although, such messages can also be machine generated).

When people see their names, directly or indirectly it gets communicated to them that at some stage they must have interacted with you and that is why you know their name. Or at least, they themselves have subscribed to your updates. This increases your email open rate.

Use email segmentation

Use segmentation to send out email campaigns

Use segmentation to send out email campaignsfor

Recently I wrote about the importance of email segmentation.

Again, if you see the analytics given by your email marketing service tool (like MailChimp) it will tell you various aspects of your email recipients, such as, how many of them opened your messages, how many clicked the links in your message, in which regions they opened your message, and such.

For example, if there are certain email recipients who regularly open your messages, you know that they are interested in hearing from you. You can send them custom campaigns.

Those who click the links within your email campaign are interested in knowing more about your product or service. You can send them a different email message to increase your email open rate.

Build your own mailing list

Build your own mailing list

Build your own mailing list

The best way of increasing your email open rate is to build your own mailing list.

When people subscribe to your updates on their own they are more likely to open your messages. This is because they themselves want to receive your messages. They will also go to extra lengths to make sure that your messages don’t end up in the spam folder.

Keep refining your email list

Keep refining your mailing list

Keep refining your mailing list

No emails are ever opened from certain email ids? Repeat bounces from certain email ids? Wrong spelling? Wrong email ID is just to download your e-book?

Remove these email ids.

You may feel reassured that you’re sending your email marketing campaigns to 10,000 recipients, but if only 2000 recipients are likely to open your messages, you should focus on those recipients. You will get a better email open rate like this.

Use a consistent schedule for sending out your emails

Maintain a consistent emailing schedule

Maintain a consistent emailing schedule

This is something that I don’t do, but should. Actually, my email broadcasts are dependent upon the blog posts that I publish or the new content that I publish on my website and, I know this is contrary to what I often suggest in my writings, it is not a regular activity.

When you set a day and time for your emails people, unconsciously, begin to expect your emails on that particular day and at that particular time. This can have a big impact on your email open rate.

Interact with your mailing list subscribers

Regularly interact with your email subscribers

Regularly interact with your email subscribers

Don’t just send marketing messages. Ask your subscribers questions. Encourage them to respond. Try to know about their interests. Make an emotional connection.

When you make an emotional connection, you become familiar to them and when you become familiar to them, they readily open your email messages.

Occasionally you can conduct surveys asking 1-2 questions.

You can send them useful information you come across on other websites – for example, I can share with you an insightful blog post or article on SEO if I find it on another website, instead of constantly sending links from my own blog, and then ask you your opinion.

Never compromise on the quality of your content

Importance of quality content for your business blog

If you constantly broadcast quality content your subscribers will be waiting for your messages.

When you subscribe to my email updates you expect to learn more about content writing, content marketing and in general, promoting your business online.

If I keep sending you good quality content on these topics, there is nothing to prompt you to ignore my messages if you happen to notice them in your inbox.

Concluding remarks on increasing your email open rate

Tricking your email subscribers into opening your messages may work once, may even work twice, but ultimately, it is the content that you provide that matters and contributes towards increasing your email open rate.

It isn’t just about increasing your email open rate, it is about delivering value to your email subscribers.

But, opening your emails is the first step. If they don’t notice your messages in their inbox, if your messages get buried under other, less important messages, if your messages are redirected to their spam folders, no matter how valuable content you send them, they’re not going to receive it, they’re not going to benefit from it.