Whether you're generating a report for your boss, measuring return on investment o r tracking recipient activity, when it comes to analyzing email marketing efforts many of us find ourselves asking the question "What's a good open rate?" The quick and easy answer is open rates between 15%-30% are considered average. In truth, open rates tend to fluctuate based on send time and send date and vary with industry, list size, messaging and many other variables.
As an example, email messages related to marketing and acquisition typically have lower open and click rates than editorial or non-profit messages. Similarly, emails sent from within the travel industry tend to have higher open rates than those from the retail industry.
What does this mean for your business? There really is no magic number to achieve when it comes to open rates. The best method for finding a good open rate for your emails is to monitor your own previous and current rates and take steps to improve upon those numbers. More importantly, click rates can be an even stronger indication of customer engagement. Click rates should also be monitored and improved upon. They indicate that a recipient has not only opened your email but that they are also also interested in the content you've sent them.
Steps you can take to improve open and click rates:
- Personalize Campaigns - Creating a personal, one-on-one dialogue will make your emails more welcomed by recipients. Example: Include the recipient's name in the greeting of your email. Check out our video tutorial on how to personalize emails or visit our VR for AppEx tutorials site for more tips!
- Use Customer Data - Previous behavior or past purchases can be used to send targeted emails and appealing messages. Examples: Send a specific message to customers who recently purchased a certain product to promote a similar product on sale. Or, offer your most frequent or highest-value customers a special premium (free shipping, zero setup fees, etc.) as a thank-you for their valued business.
- Send Timely Follow-ups - Send messages to recipients while your brand is fresh in their mind and interest is high. Example: Quickly follow-up with individuals who have recently visited your website or registered for a newsletter.
- Test, Test, and Test Again- Test send times, subject lines, link types and email template designs to find those that deliver the best click and open rates for your type of business and audience. Example: Perform a split test to measure open rates of two differing subject lines.
Related Posts:
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