How to get a 63.6% open rate
Coming into the marketing world as a university graduate, I knew what an EDM, open rate and click through rate was, but didn’t quite understand how it all worked. Last week I got a pleasant surprise when I went to analyse two EDMs sent out for a client and saw a whopping 63.6% open rate and 6.1% click through on one, and a 55.2% open rate and 13% click through on the other. I was shocked. I started checking everything, thinking I had somehow made a mistake and only sent it to a small database, or was looking at the wrong numbers. No, it was legit.
The feeling was fantastic, but I fear I’ll now be disappointed with my EDM results for the rest of my career. So, here’s what I’m going to do to try and replicate my results:
- Put yourself in the shoes of the recipient: Know your database - who are they, what does their day and week look like, what do they want to hear from you? Understanding these things will help you identify the best time to send out the EDM and help you write a subject line that will intrigue them.
- Carefully craft your subject line: This is what determines whether you get an open or not, so it shouldn’t be rushed over. Entice curiosity and be original, but don’t elude to what the EDM is about completely.
- Segment your database: It is important not to send the same message to everyone. Your business can bring value to different people in different ways. Think about what you do that appeals to different groups, then create content around that and send it to the right people.
- Work with your data: Always seek to understand what was received well in your EDM content by looking at the link clicks. If your recipients mainly clicked on job opportunities, send another EDM focused on that. In your analytics, you are given valuable insights and lists based on what people click. When you have a list of contacts who clicked on a certain product, send that list an EDM about that specific product with more valuable, tailored information.
- Mix it up: If you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you’ve always gotten. If your EDMs aren’t getting the desired response, don’t keep doing the same thing. You need to think about what can change to improve, or you’ll be wasting your time.
- Ask for help: As much as we like to feel confident in our ability and work autonomously, it can be worthwhile to ask for guidance occasionally. I am lucky enough to have the guidance of Mellissah Smith and Christina Kortesis, who have over 45 years’ marketing experience between them and certainly know how to nail an email campaign. So, I reached out to them about how I could make sure we got fantastic results, and it payed off.
So, if you’re sick of ending up straight in the deleted folder or getting unsubscribes, it’s time to do something about it.
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comments ( 6 )
Rachit Magon
13 Aug 2019Wow, that's an amazing open & click-through rate! Was this for a cold email campaign or one with already engaged subscribers? Also, are there any tools available which can help with increasing the open rate of emails?
ReplyPaulineEvrard
29 Jan 2019Very interesting!
ReplyHellen
13 Dec 2018A very insightful blog! As someone who receives endless emails from retail stores I completely agree an enticing subject line is crucial in getting people to open an email. Looking forward to seeing more content from you.
Replyyuri
07 Dec 2018Interesting! I agree with you! I hope to see more posts!
ReplyMichelle
05 Dec 2018Great job Maddie, I'm so impressed with your writing style!
ReplyLewis
04 Dec 2018Wow!!! Serious eye opener!! Hope to see more posts from you on this site :)
Reply