Alright! You’ve worked hard to regularly put up and send new issues in your email newsletter.
Finally, step by step, at a slow pace, you are now noticing that promising uptick in new subscribers. Awesome!
But wait. Subscribers’ number will quickly reduce (or maintain) your open rates. So, you have to search for solutions to boost your email open rates. If recipients don’t open your emails initially, how will you nurture and ask them to take the next step?
We are going to show you 10 tested strategies that do this. Ready? Let’s go!
Why Does Email Open Rate Matter?
Email marketing generates $40 in return for every dollar US brands spend and $43 for EU brands on average. However, to hit that ROI, you need your subscribers to open your emails first, right? That’s why open rates matter a lot, as this is the first stage in which you optimize your emails for ROI.
What is the Average Email Open Rate?
Although some companies have 50%+ open rates, Most email marketers can’t boast the same numbers.
According to a report from GetResponse made based on an analysis of 7 billion messages, they’ve discovered that the average worldwide email open rate stands at 19.66%.
Some things have an impact on it. Let’s review some of them.
- Location. In Europe, you may aim for an open rate of 25.18%, while in North America, you should strive for a close open rate of 23.53%.
- Industry. Non-Profits (31.73%), Food (32.04%), Real Estate (28.57%), Automotive (30.87%).
- Business type. Subscribers are sure to engage in different ways with B2C and B2B content.
- The email type. Is it an invitation for a webinar, a weekly newsletter, or a Cyber Day deal? Open rates will differ for each of them.
How to Increase Email Open Rates?
Create an Organic Email List
Quality or quantity? The value of an email list lies in its quality rather than quantity. Companies that purchase many leads to initiate their marketing efforts will likely experience low open rates.
Grow your email list organically instead. Yes, it’s slow. Yes, it’s hard. However, the benefits are awesome. Start getting subscribers from day one. How? Provide a free trial, give out a valuable lead magnet, host a competition, or get a straightforward subscription option in place. These are all effective ways to grow your email list naturally.
Popups are highly beneficial in building an organic email subscriber list.
Design personalized popups with a professional popup maker and give your visitors a simple way to join your email list.
Verify Email Addresses Regularly
Your list is going to get cluttered with time. That’s why it’s a good idea to use a tool like
Snov.io email verifier to keep things clean. Do it regularly, at least 2 times per month.
This way, you are sure to get rid of emails that trigger bounces. It’s better for your email reputation as a sender. It’s great for open rates too. You’ll be able to keep them high, as all invalid emails will be removed from your list.
Pay Attention to the Subject Line
Writing unique subject lines is one of the most efficient ways to increase email open rates. For a good reason. You’ve got only a few seconds to make people want to open your emails. Plus, your subscribers get dozens of emails every hour.
So you have to master killer headlines. Email marketing experts say that funny and short subject lines are sure to beat boring and long ones. When you write your subject lines, make them:
- personal
- humorous
- intriguing
- special offer-oriented
- controversial
- benefit-oriented
Ensure your subject lines address your client’s pain points and interests. This is the first thing to have in mind. Get it checked off first, then focus on things like emojis, numbers, personalization, power words, etc.
Make Sure You’re Sending Emails at the Right Time
Optimize the send-out time of your emails. Do this right, and your open rates will get better. Yes, it’s not easy. However, things will become more like a pattern once you figure it out.
Have an open mind when you do this. For example, someone tells you to send emails at 8 AM every Monday to improve your open rates. Here’s the thing. It may work for one niche but may not for yours. Test it and see with real numbers.
According to another GetResponse report, people are more likely to open emails at 4 AM-5 AM and 6 PM. And the day of the week doesn’t matter a lot. But again, test how it works for your newsletter.
Resend to Non-Openers
Your subject lines are great. Your preview text is well-crafted. And the send-out time is perfect. That’s awesome, but most of your contacts will still not open your email. A lot of your subscribers won’t take any action anyway.
And that’s fine. It’s life. Your subscribers are busy with work or personal issues or have no time to open your newsletter. Don’t give up on the first try. Send a follow-up.
Make an A/B Test
Yes, run A/B tests to improve your open rates. These tests enable you to see what works best and ditch losers. They give you a lot of great data. Use it to improve your subject lines, copy, and preview texts. Even tiny improvements might greatly impact how many people open your emails. And this part is unsexy. Not many people are willing to do this, though it drives growth and ROI.
Conclusion
Even experienced creators find it difficult to figure out how to increase open rates. Luckily, increasing email open rates through strategies that work like a clock is possible. Follow the steps above, practice them regularly, and monitor the outcomes. You’ll see the improvements shortly.