An essential aspect of improving the chances of going into a mailbox and subsequently taking action, i.e., clicking open, is the bounce rate. A high bounce rate, particularly with reference to hard bounces, indicates bad, abusive, or expired email addresses, which negatively affect the sender's reputation and reduce the chances of getting into the mailbox. By checking this metric, we can routinely prune and update our email lists to ensure we are only sending messages to the right audience.
With a clean list, our deliverability improves, and with constant delivery of messages to inboxes, the chances for a higher open rate increase. Moreover, the aim of lowering the bounce rate is to maintain a good sender reputation, which directly affects the long-term results in email marketing.
Khurram Mir, Founder and Chief Marketing Officer, Kualitatem Inc
One pivotal metric we monitor at our company is the "sender reputation score," which fundamentally influences both deliverability and open rates. This metric reflects the trustworthiness of our sending domain, as perceived by email service providers, and is crucial for ensuring our emails actually reach the inbox. By consistently managing our sending practices and keeping engagement high, we've significantly improved our open rates and minimized bounces, which in turn preserves and enhances our sender reputation.
The sender reputation score is instrumental because it acts as a gatekeeper for our email campaigns. ISPs use this score to decide whether our emails should land in the inbox or the spam folder, impacting our overall campaign effectiveness. By prioritizing this metric, we directly influence how many potential customers interact with our content, thereby optimizing our reach and ensuring that our marketing messages are actually seen by our audience.
Marc Bishop, Director, Wytlabs
One important metric I track when aiming to improve email deliverability and open rates is the placement rate. This metric indicates whether emails are landing in the inbox rather than the spam folder, which is crucial for effective communication.
In 2024, the traditional focus on open rates is becoming less relevant due to several factors. Privacy changes, such as Apple's Mail Privacy Protection, have made tracking pixels often blocked, rendering open rates unreliable as a measure of engagement. Additionally, Google's new policies can penalize the use of tracking pixels, potentially increasing the likelihood of emails being marked as spam.
Open rates can also be distorted by bots and spam filters, making successful inbox delivery the key goal. Moreover, there is a shift in focus toward reply rate, as engaging in conversations and fostering genuine interactions is increasingly valuable.
I prioritize getting replies, not just open rates. Once I achieve a response rate above 5%, I refine my targeting and messaging for even better results. By focusing on placement rate and engagement metrics, we can enhance our email strategies and drive improved outcomes.
Vaibhav Namburi, Founder, Smartlead.ai
I always keep a close eye on the unsubscribe rate because it provides valuable insights into my audience's preferences. By tracking this metric, I can identify content that isn't resonating. For example, when I noticed a spike in unsubscribes after a specific campaign, I took the time to analyze the messaging and found that our tone was too formal for what our audience expected.
After adjusting our content to be more conversational and relatable, we not only saw a decrease in unsubscribes but also experienced an increase in open rates. I recommend regularly reviewing unsubscribe trends and being open to adapting your messaging accordingly. This responsiveness helps build deeper connections with your subscribers, ultimately enhancing engagement and loyalty.
Jeffrey Pitrak, Marketing Account Manager, Transient Specialists
When aiming to improve email deliverability and open rates, one important metric I track is the click-through rate (CTR). I find this metric essential because it reveals how engaging our content really is. When I noticed a decline in CTR, it was a wake-up call that our audience wasn't connecting with our emails as they used to.
To address this, I initiated A/B testing on various elements, including subject lines, imagery, and call-to-action buttons. This process helped me identify what resonated best with our audience and revitalized engagement across the board. As a result, we saw a notable increase in open rates, reinforcing the importance of continually optimizing our email strategies.
Matt Gehring, Chief Marketing Officer, Dutch
A metric that has been critical is email engagement over time. It's easy to get caught up in short-term gains, but for us, tracking how different audience segments engage with emails over weeks and months has given us deep insights into content preferences and optimal send times. This long-term view has allowed us to refine our approach, tailoring emails to be more relevant and personal, which ultimately drives better open rates and user retention. From my perspective, optimizing email campaigns is about understanding your audience's behavior and consistently delivering value.
Dinesh Agarwal, Founder, CEO, RecurPost
One of the metrics I monitor when tracking email open rates is the sender or spam score. This is especially important for newer businesses or when you are contacting new prospects who are not familiar with your brand.
Sender scores or spam scores are analytical tools offered by third-party platforms such as GlockApps or Mail Meteor. They monitor a few factors, such as the history of our domain as well as the actual written content, to see if our emails are likely to trigger any spam filters. Optimizing our sender score has also improved deliverability.
David Holman, CMO, Textun
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