What does ‘open rate’ mean?
In email marketing, the term ‘open rate’, as the name suggests, refers to the percentage of the recipients of a particular email who proceeded to open it.
If you want a more in-depth understanding of this topic, check out the FAQ section below:
Question #1: What is a good email open rate to shoot for?
As a general rule, a good one to shoot for would be anywhere between 12 and 25%. The actual number, however, would ultimately depend on your particular industry, business, target audience, and email list health.
For example, businesses that operate in the electronics and computer industries typically see a 19% email marketing open rate while those in the construction and real estate fields mostly see about 26%.
In terms of your target audience, on the other hand, since not everyone uses email with the same frequency, your open rate may naturally be higher or lower than the average in your industry.
Finally, in terms of email list health, if yours consists of a lot of properly qualified leads who are actually interested in your products, services, and content—and submitted an actual valid email address—then you will naturally see an open rate that is higher than average.
In contrast, if you just let anyone into your list just so you can grow it faster, you might see a lower-than-average open rate because there is a big chance you will have a lot of unengaged, inactive recipients.
Email list health = are you properly targeting and filtering? Are you regularly cleaning your list?
Question #2: How can I improve my email open rate?
To improve your email open rate, you need to:
- Target and filter your leads better. The goal is to make sure recipients are actually interested in what you have to offer.
- Subdivide your email list. This would allow you to send more relevant emails more easily.
- Use compelling, non-clickbait-y subject lines. This is the first thing your recipients see. You need to make it as eye-catching and compelling as possible.
- Make sure you send out quality, relevant content. Getting your subject lines right is just the first step. You need to actually deliver on what your subject lines promise.
- Explore personalization. Sometimes, simply addressing the recipient by name makes a world of a difference.
For more strategies to increase your email open rate, check out this helpful page.
Question #3: What is the difference between open rate and click-to-open rate (CTOR)?
The biggest difference between the two is the thing they measure. As we have seen earlier, your open rate simply measures the number of recipients of a particular email you send out who actually proceed to open it. In contrast, your CTOR measures the number of recipients of a particular email you send out who not only proceed to open it, but also click on a link it contains.
To calculate it, simply divide the total number of recipients who open a particular email you sent out by the total number of recipients.
For example, if you sent an email to 10,000 people and 4,000 of them ended up opening it, then your open rate would be 40% using our formula:
4,000 (recipients who opened your email) / 10,000 (total recipients) x 100 = 40%
To calculate your CTOR, on the other hand, simply take the number of recipients who clicked on a link in your email, divide it by the number of recipients who opened the email, and multiply the number you get by 100.
So, for example, if a total of 50,000 people opened your email and 10,000 of them proceeded to click a link in it, then your CTOR would be 20% using our formula:
50,000 (recipients who clicked a link) / 10,000 (recipients who opened the email that had the link) x 100 = 20
The actual number of emails you sent out and the total number of recipients do not matter in this case. The CTOR only takes into account recipients who open an email and click on a link in it.
Question #4: What is the difference between open rate and conversion rate?
The biggest difference between the two, just like with the open rate and CTOR, is also the thing they measure as well.
We already know what our open rate measures, so let us move on to the conversion rate, which, simply put, measures how many of your recipients proceed to complete a conversion event, such as:
- Making a purchase
- Booking a call
- Downloading a lead magnet
- Booking a free trial
- Signing up for a service or event
Conversion rate, however, does not only apply to email marketing. It is also used to measure conversion events that happen on websites and apps.