E-mail marketing is alive! According to a research study from Marketing Sherpa, 72% of people prefer to be contacted via e-mail. It’s also a marketing tactic that is cost-effective, and “gives you more control” than social media platforms.
E-mail marketing is considered a ‘softer’ approach to selling your product or service. Brands can introduce new products or service offerings, offer a discount, and nurture leads to take the next step in the sales funnel, to convert. It also helps to keep your customers fully engaged and interested between purchases.
As great as e-mail marketing may be, it comes with a set of challenges. One of them being the open rate. The goal of your e-mail campaign is that people open, read, and click on your e-mail, right? People receive an influx of e-mails in their inbox daily, so how can you ensure people open your e-mail?
This article gives 5 insights into how you can increase your open rate. But first, let’s dive into the meaning of open rate.
What is an e-mail open rate?
Mailchimp explains ‘open rate’ as a percentage that tells you how many successfully delivered campaigns were opened by subscribers. Campaign Monitor writes that an average email open rate should be between 12-25%. Your average click-through rate should be between 2-5%. Your average click-to-open rate should be between 10-22%. Note that this may be different depending on the industry.
But how can you ensure that your open rate exceeds the industry average and reach your subscriber? Here are 5 ways to improve the open rate of your e-mail campaigns.
#1 Quality Subscriber List
Thanks to the POPI Act, people had to start being more responsible in the way they collect and use personal information. According to POPIA’s website, the POPI Act sets out the minimum standards regarding accessing and 'processing' of any personal information belonging to another.
This leaves us with the question, how do you collect data for your business? Is it ethical? Do people consciously sign up, or do you sneakily add in an automatic ‘by reading these terms and conditions you are automatically added to our newsletter list’?
Quality over quantity. Rather have people who want to opt-in for your e-mail list, than irritating people with the information they’re not interested in or a high number of people unsubscribing after receiving an e-mail from you. Always use your subscribers’ email addresses for the purpose they signed up for.
#2 Subject Line
People decide if they want to open an e-mail based on the subject line. Ensure you have attention-grabbing subject lines.
A few insights to create the best subject lines:
- Personalise it with a first name
- Spark interest and curiosity
- Add an emoji to the subject line
- Keep it short and sweet
- Add humour if it fits the brand
- Create anticipation
- Provide value, for example, a discount code
- Add urgency and exclusivity
#3 Test, test, and test
Take the guesswork out of your e-mail marketing and do A/B testing. Test different subject lines, different times and days of sending out an e-mail campaign. Remember, when doing A/B testing, you should only test for one variable at a time.
If you’re unsure of what appeals to your audience, test it, and get results without guessing.
#4 When to send out an e-mail? It matters!
#4 Time of The Day
The day and time of day you send out e-mail campaigns matters! But this is a tricky one because every person is different. Some start their day by catching up on e-mails, while others do it mid-day, and others read e-mails late afternoon.
So, how do you determine when is the right time to send out emails? We suggest that you do an industry research on when the best time of day for your audience will be. Also, look at previous emails and which ones performed better. It might be because it was sent out at a specific time or day? You can also do A/B testing to determine what your audience prefers.
#5 Segment your database
The relevancy of your e-mail will also determine if a person will open it, or not. Segment your list into different interests, target audiences, ages, or stages of the sales funnel they find themselves in. This way you’ll tailor the emails to your audience’s need, and it will result in a better open rate and a better user experience.
Conclusion
E-mail marketing is effective if it’s done right. By incorporating these 5 tips into your next e-mail campaign, you’ll see a higher open rate. Need help with building a quality e-mail list, and e-mail campaign? Send us an email at info@omni-agency.com or click here.
Resources:
https://adoric.com/blog/increase-you-email-open-rate/
