7 areas to improve email marketing performance

Getting a user to open an email is critical. A user can’t click through or convert until they open and read your email. Through testing, we’ve seen significant differences in open rates from applying different techniques. For example, a recent test we conducted using a subject line with personalization increased open rates 34-47% more than a subject line without personalization. Additionally, leveraging the company or brand name can increase open rates anywhere from 10-30%. While incorporating the company or brand names into the subject line may feel redundant, we’ve found it to be a very effective technique to increase open rates and ensure successful email marketing campaigns. Here is a list of considerations for subject line testing.

Personalization is one of the biggest ideas in email marketing today, and a user expectation. Consider how to test personalization to deliver relevancy.

Deployment timing is one of the most studied and documented areas of email. There are existing rules of thumb that provide overall guidance and direction. According to the DMA, there are higher click-through rates on weekends. Through millions and millions of deployed emails, J&C has also found that Wednesdays have a significantly higher open rate (over 30%) and click-through rate (10%) than emails deployed on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Testing, however, is always recommended to each client and/or product line to identify any nuances. Here is a further breakdown of the three aspects to consider in email testing for deployment time.

“How often should we email?” is a question we regularly get asked by clients. The answer isn’t completely cut and dry. Some companies can email their customers weekly, others twice a month. The optimal frequency is something that is driven by industry, type of communications and a number of other factors. Frequency, however, is a dimension that is testable and can be measured.

The purpose of most emails is to get the user to the next step in the process. Successful email campaigns are often measured based on metrics such as click-through and conversion rates. These metrics are largely impacted by the effectiveness of the call-to-action to get the user to the next step. Testing the optimal presentation of the call-to-action should be an important priority for most marketers. Dimensions for testing calls-to-action include the number of times the call-to-action is included, where it is located and how it is presented.

There are a number of email best practices to be considered in email design and content creation. The reality is, however, small nuances can still influence customer engagement. It is always worthwhile to try and improve email marketing performance.

More often than not, offers and targeting will define the success or failure of a marketing communications effort. Offers are one of the most critical levers that impact click-through and conversion rates. In a recent email test J&C conducted, we found that a higher-value offer generated a lift of 104% in ROI. Offer testing in email is a low-cost method to gauge receptivity to offers before rolling new offers out through multiple channels. One quick note: Ensure that each offer is presented in a consistent manner when testing different offers to minimize the chance of other factors such as design or layout interfering with the test results.

Although it’s not one of the primary drivers for improving open rates, “Friendly From” testing is in the consideration set. The rule of thumb is to keep the Friendly From and the from address related. Customers are more likely to open emails from a sender they know and trust. Variations of the Friendly From can be tested by monitoring the open rate.

Targeting is the single biggest response driver in any targeted communication. Yet it often seems that targeting is one of the more overlooked areas of email testing. With low cost per contacts, the temptation constantly exists for marketers to email everyone available on their list. Overlaying targeting on any list, and tailoring emails accordingly, will almost always provide a positive impact on email performance.