E-Mail

Improve e-mail marketing performance

Latest data from the US shows that Open Rates and Click Through Rates for e-mail marketing have dropped by 20% over the last two years. (Source: Epsilon Jan 2009)

Q3 2006 had an Open Rate of 23.9% and a Click Through Rate of 7.3%

Q3 2008 has an Open Rate of 19.8% and a Click Through Rate of 5.9%

That means that over only two years the Open Rate has declined by 20% and the Click Through Rate by 19%

The reasons behind this decline are simple:

- the novelty rate of getting e-mail marketing messages has declined;

- as more e-mail marketing is done, the content quality has declined both generally and more irrelevant messages are being sent;

- spamming is increasing and the overall frequency of receiving marketing e-mails is reaching the point where the consumer tunes out;

- marketers aren't personalising their message in the way that will increase engagement; and

Using a promotion as the headline in an e-mail is a proven way of increasing the Open and Click Through rates. (However, it isn’t a panacea for poor targeting and irrelevant content.) However, email promotion should be used sparingly and intelligently otherwise it will quickly join the junk folder.