In this article we will tell you what this indicator is, how to calculate it and increase it.
What is Open Rate?
This is a metric that can be used to determine how many times an email has been opened. Marketers also calculate a unique OR, which only takes into account the very first view by a specific user.
Let's explain with an example. You sent an email to two people, they opened it 10 times. But in fact, there were only the first two readings, and there can't be more. In this situation, it doesn't matter how many times each person could read the email, the total value will also not exceed 10.
The open rate of letters depends on the following indicators:
topics and snippets;
time and day of dispatch;
frequency of departures;
size and quality of the base;
areas of the company;
audience loyalty.
Why Opening Rate is Important
It can be used to roughly understand how interesting the newsletter is to subscribers. “Roughly” because this metric alone is not enough to accurately determine how much people like reading your news. To do this, you need to take into account and analyze all the statistics (click-through rate, unsubscribe rate).
But based on OR, you can safely judge how well the title and snippet of the letter were chosen.
Opens are just the top of the marketing funnel. They do not give a clear answer to whether the advertising campaign was successful or not. To really north korea business email list understand what results the mailings bring, the target action is important. Most often, this is a click or a purchase. Clicks are valued, for example, when sending informational content. If a person clicked and went to the desired material on the site, then he fulfilled his goal. Online stores may have another task - a purchase. An email with a selection of products fulfills this if after it the subscriber goes to the site and buys a product.
How to calculate email open rate formula
There are several ways to calculate open rate - from sent or delivered messages. The second option is more correct, since not everything can be delivered to the recipient, but it is better to consider both methods:
Open rate calculation formula
Let's explain with an example. We sent 50 letters, but in fact 40 were received. They had a total of 10 openings. In the first case, OR is 25%, and in the second - 20%.
Okay, we've calculated it, but now another question arises. Is the figure we got high or not? The answer is not so clear-cut. It may depend not only on the content of the newsletter, the title and preheader, but also on the specifics of the business and the audience.
According to the latest research , the average value in all niches is 28.8%. Of course, it will differ for different companies. For example, in the tourism industry it is 30.42%, and in retail - 24.90%.
To determine what is considered a good email open rate, you need to:
Analyze previous data (if any). You need to look at the differences in numbers and note changes in content or topic. Then you need to think about why the metric changed and what can be done to correct the situation or maintain it at the same level.
Conduct a test - send emails on different days and times to see how much the percentages differ.
Reasons for Low Open Rate
A sharp change in the type of content. Today you write about what useful articles you write, and tomorrow you overwhelm your clients with nothing but advertising offers.
Subscribers' inactive time. You send your highly intellectual investment musings late at night or during work hours when you don't have the energy to read such information. And, of course, you shouldn't send emails at night when your audience is asleep.
Frequency . For online stores, it's normal to send many emails per week to keep customers updated on new products and promotions. For other industries, such as B2B, sending too often can push users to unsubscribe.
How to Increase the Open Rate of Your Newsletter
We have determined what is the optimal open rate for the company and realized that the current indicator is quite low and it would be good to increase it. Here are several ways how this can be done.
Double Opt-In
Or double confirmation of subscription. How it happens: a person leaves their contact information in the form and receives a letter that asks them to confirm that they have subscribed to the content.
The email might look like this:
Subscription confirmation letter from Citylink.
But instead of simply "Confirm your desire to receive our promotions," you can add additional information: talk about the content and benefits of the messages. If you use a lead magnet with a discount or gift to get visitors to subscribe to your news, you can remind them of the promised bonus.
Email with a link to confirm your subscription from Book 24.
Most likely, you will ask: But why should we implement such a mechanic, because there will be fewer contacts? And you are right - if you use this method, the base will really grow more slowly. But this method has a big advantage - only those people who are really interested in your mailing will stay with you. For them, the content you offer is relevant and, perhaps, they are even aimed at buying something from you in the future.
Double Opt In also eliminates random subscriptions and protects you from spam. After all, the fewer random subscribers, the lower the percentage of complaints and the better the reputation of the email address.
How does this affect the stomatal opening rate: the more interested users, the higher the opening rate. After all, if a person is really interested in the information sent, he will most likely open the message.
Sender's avatar
This is an icon next to the company name that is only visible on the phone. When it is not set, the first letter of the name is automatically shown in its place.
It would seem, why install it? Many large organizations do not do this. They simply do not need to - the brand name is already recognizable, they do not need to do anything additionally. But for others it will help to stand out.
Below we have prepared mini-instructions for you on how to install a picture in different mail clients.
For Mail.Ru
Corporate accounts can only set an avatar through Postmaster Mail.ru. This can be done in the "Settings" section.
For Gmail
You can't set up an icon specifically for mail, you need to change your profile photo in Google+. Then the selected image will be displayed in the mailer as well.
For Yandex
In this case, you need to use a third-party program - Gravatar. You can choose a suitable photo in the "My Gravatars" section.
You can read more about installation in our step-by-step instructions .
Focus on key points
Few people enjoy reading a sheet of text without pictures. Such a letter is difficult to perceive, and it is even more difficult to understand what it is about. And some people will immediately close it if they see poor layout.
But there is a way out. You can:
Add illustrations.
Work on formatting - highlight important ideas in bold or italics.
Break the information into paragraphs, format headings and subheadings. This will give the reader something to catch their eye, and they will be more likely to read the email to the end.
Don't be afraid to use color - you can use it to highlight individual elements.
Add colored or accent buttons instead of text links. The user will subconsciously want to click on them, which means the likelihood of performing the target action is higher.
Here is an example of how even a longread can be well structured and capture the reader’s attention from the publishing house MIF:
Longread in the email newsletter of the publishing house MIF
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Fighting excesses
Or the balance of pictures and text. If we have already talked about the structure of the content, then it is worth touching on the illustrations. When you send a newsletter from an online store, there is a temptation to send a bunch of photos so that the reader's eyes run wild, and in the end he clicks on something. But such letters often lose their usefulness - you can't convey the idea with just a visual.
Therefore, it is important to maintain a balance when using photos and add explanations where appropriate.
A good example of excellent presentation of a product, where the main thing is the visual part, from the jewelry store Poison Drop. It would seem, why is there any text here, because usually we choose rings or earrings by their appearance. But the brand went further and added a description to the picture, which seems unnecessary. So attractive content also became useful. Also, all the illustrations are arranged in order, so it is quite easy to read.