Email marketing benchmarks & business metrics

You've crafted your content and scheduled your emails for delivery to your subscriber list. Now what? How do you know if you've been successful? Are there specific metrics marketers need to track in their analytics platforms, and do they differ from business to business?

You might remember a time when email marketing was all about open rates. But with all the recent changes in data privacy, the value of an open rate has changed. What are the new email benchmarks considered to be the most important, and why? What’s the difference between Click-through rate (CTR) and Click-to-open rate (CTOR?) What’s considered a good CTR or CTOR?

Let’s answer these questions and break down the basics of email open rates, CTR, and CTOR, including all the benchmarks you need to know in today’s market.

Email marketing benchmarks are a yardstick against which your businesses can measure success. Metrics like click-through rates, and conversion rates provide insight into your campaign effectiveness. Understanding metrics helps you gauge where you stand among your competition.

Benchmarks are not only for making comparisons though. The goal is to identify areas for improvement and refine strategies for engagement. Maybe you see a spike in Click-through rates (CTR) coinciding with a specific content type. It makes sense that you’d want to replicate that success in future campaigns. 

The key is to view benchmarks as dynamic guides for building out your email marketing performance.When you identify strengths (and address weaknesses), you can fine-tune your approach. When you resonate with your audience, your business is really able to grow.  

An email open rate represents the percentage of delivered emails that recipients have opened. In the past, we used that number to illustrate the effectiveness of subject lines, sender reputation, and overall campaign engagement.

The email open rate is calculated by dividing the number of unique opens by the number of delivered emails, then multiplying by 100 to express it as a percentage. Suppose you send out 1,000 emails, and 200 recipients open them. The calculation would be (200/1,000) * 100, which calculates to an open rate of 20%.

Email open rates are a direct indication of how well you are capturing your audience’s attention. A high open rate suggests strong interest in your content, potentially leading to further actions like clicks and conversions.

So, what might stop, or “suppress” an open rate? It could be a lot of things. Unappealing subject lines, poor sender reputation, or issues with email deliverability, can result in unopened emails. Overuse of promotional language or sending emails at inconvenient times may also contribute to lower open rates.

You only know what you know. Taking action when you have your rates in hand might look like a lot of things. Experimenting with A/B testing, for example, helps identify optimal send times and subject line preferences. It gives you the chance to craft content that sparks curiosity, relevance, and urgency. Building trust is key, so if you have a poor sender issue, make sure to fix that right away.

The implementation of Apple's privacy rules, particularly Mail Privacy Protection, has significantly impacted the accuracy of email open rates. With users having the option to block email tracking pixels, open rates may no longer provide a precise measure of actual opens. This devaluation emphasizes the importance of shifting focus towards more reliable metrics, such as Click-through rates (CTR) and Click-to-open rates (CTOR). Users have prioritized privacy, and we must adapt to these alternative metrics for campaign success.

Say your brand notices a decline in open rates but a consistent rise in CTOR. By analyzing these metrics together, you discover that while fewer recipients are opening emails, those who did were highly engaged. This knowledge enables you to refine your targeting strategy and increase conversion rates.

Click-through rate (CTR) in email marketing is a crucial metric that measures the percentage of recipients who clicked on at least one link within an email, providing insights into the effectiveness of the email's content and call-to-action.

It’s as basic as this: The CTR is calculated by dividing the number of clicks by the number of delivered emails and then multiplying by 100 to express it as a percentage. The formula is CTR = (Number of Clicks / Number of Delivered Emails) * 100.

For example, if a campaign delivers 1,000 emails and records 150 clicks, the CTR would be (150 / 1,000) * 100, resulting in a CTR of 15%. This metric helps you assess the engagement and performance of specific elements within an email. It will be your guide in optimizing content for higher interaction rates.

A “good” CTR for email marketing typically falls in the range of 2% to 5%, although industry benchmarks may vary. Factors such as business size, industry, and the type of emails being sent are all a consideration.

A good place to start is by benchmarking against industry averages for your specific sector. Analyze your own historical data to establish a baseline and set realistic goals based on past performance. Consider the nature of your emails – promotional emails might have different benchmarks than informational newsletters. What is the size of your subscriber list? (Smaller lists might yield higher CTRs.) Regularly assess and adjust your benchmarks as your business objectives and industry trends evolve.

Emails that are considered “general marketing emails” fall in the category of newsletters, announcements, and content-focused emails. We’ve already said they typically range from 2% to 5%. It’s a bit different for promotional emails though. These often have a slightly lower average CTR, ranging from 1% to 3%. This is likely because they are focused on driving sales and may have a more direct call-to-action – a turnoff to some subscribers.

Transactional emails, such as order confirmations or shipping notifications, tend to have higher CTRs, often surpassing 5%, as recipients are more likely to engage with essential information. Similarly, emails tailored to specific audience segments may also achieve higher CTRs due to their relevance to a more specific audience.

Click-to-open rate (CTOR) measures the percentage of unique clicks in relation to the number of unique opens. This is valuable insights into how engaging the content is for those who opened the email.

CTOR is calculated by dividing the number of unique clicks by the number of unique opens and then multiplying by 100 to express it as a percentage. The formula is CTOR = (Number of Unique Clicks / Number of Unique Opens) * 100.

For example, if an email receives 50 unique opens and 20 unique clicks, the CTOR would be (20 / 50) * 100, resulting in a CTOR of 40%.

CTOR provides a more nuanced measure of content engagement. A high CTOR indicates that your content resonated well with those who opened it, reflecting the effectiveness of the messaging and the relevance of the call-to-action.

Let’s say you’re an online fashion retailer and you notice a decline in overall click-through rates for a new collection email. Upon closer look, you note that among those who opened the email, there was a significant increase in clicks on the product images. This clues in your marketing team that they need to optimize visuals and product placements in subsequent campaigns.

You can interpret your data in many ways. We’ve discussed the importance of benchmarking your CTOR against industry averages to gauge your performance, keeping in mind that benchmarks vary by industry and business size, so consider your unique context. We touched on examining your own historical CTOR data to identify trends and patterns. Look for correlations with specific content, send times, or audience segments that consistently perform well or need improvement.

Here are some others to consider:

• Break down CTOR data by audience segments or demographics. Analyze which segments are responding positively and tailor future campaigns accordingly to enhance overall engagement.
• Conduct A/B testing on various elements like subject lines, visuals, and calls-to-action. Analyze the performance of each variant to understand what resonates best with your audience and implement these insights into future campaigns.
• Different types of emails may have different CTOR expectations. For instance, promotional emails might have lower CTORs compared to educational or personalized content. Understand the purpose of each email type and set realistic benchmarks.
• Use feedback and surveys to understand the preferences and expectations of your audience. Qualitative data alongside CTOR metrics will help you gain a comprehensive understanding of your audience's behavior.

While a benchmark for a satisfactory CTOR varies, generally, a CTOR above 20% is considered strong. However, the ideal CTOR can differ based on specific circumstances.

Your businesses will determine what constitutes a good CTOR for your specific circumstances. You can help set realistic benchmarks for ongoing email marketing optimization by looking at your business size, industry standard, email type, historical success, and more.

What is true for CTR is also true for CTOR. Smaller businesses may have higher CTORs, as engagement is often more concentrated. Newsletters might aim for higher CTORs, while promotional emails could have lower benchmarks.

CTOR may vary among audience segments, so analyze that data for specific demographics or buyer personas to set realistic segment-specific benchmarks. Align CTOR benchmarks with campaign objectives. For content-focused emails, a higher CTOR might be expected, while a promotional campaign might have a lower but still impactful CTOR.

Remember, consistent improvement over time is a positive indicator, even if the absolute value may differ from industry benchmarks.

The average CTOR for general marketing emails typically ranges from 10% to 25%. Again, this includes newsletters, announcements, and content-focused emails.

The more specific emails are a bit lower. Promotional emails typically range from 5% to 15%, as their primary focus is on driving specific actions such as sales or sign-ups. The good news is that content-rich or educational emails often achieve higher CTORs, averaging between 20% and 30%, as recipients are more likely to engage with valuable information.

Transactional emails, such as order confirmations or shipping notifications, may have higher average CTORs, often exceeding 30%, due to their critical nature and the likelihood of recipients interacting with essential information.

Bounce rate in email marketing refers to the percentage of emails that were not successfully delivered to recipients due to invalid email addresses, server issues, or the recipient's mailbox being full. Bounces are categorized into two types:

• Soft Bounce: Temporary issues preventing delivery, like a full mailbox.
• Hard Bounce: Permanent issues, like an invalid or non-existent email address.

A high bounce rate indicates potential deliverability challenges. Monitor and address bounces to secure your email sender reputation.