Summary
With the decreasing reliability of email open rates, marketers and experts are emphasizing alternative metrics to measure engagement. Click-through rates (CTR) are considered a primary replacement, directly indicating subscriber interaction. Additional key metrics include website traffic from email campaigns, sales attribution (especially for e-commerce), conversion rates (measuring desired actions), email replies, read/skim times, event attendance driven by email invitations, time spent viewing emails, social media shares, forward rates, list growth, and changes in unsubscribe rates. Experts stress the need for a shift towards meaningful engagement, focusing on metrics that demonstrate user interaction and value.
Key findings
- Click-Through Rate (CTR): A direct indicator of subscriber interaction and a primary replacement for open rates.
- Website Traffic: Indicates subscriber interest by monitoring traffic generated from email campaigns.
- Sales Attribution: For e-commerce, it shows the direct financial impact of email marketing efforts.
- Conversion Rates: Measures the completion of desired actions (e.g., form submissions, purchases).
- Email Replies: Signifies deeper engagement and content resonance.
- Read/Skim Times: Provides a nuanced understanding of engagement by measuring how long subscribers actively view emails.
- Event Attendance: For event promotion, it demonstrates the effectiveness of email invitations.
- Social Shares: Highlights engaging content that resonates with subscribers.
- Forward Rates: Indicates that email content is valuable and worth sharing.
- List Growth: Indicates overall subscriber interest and the value of email content.
- Unsubscribe Rates: Changes in unsubscribe rates can identify potential content or frequency issues.
Key considerations
- Contextual Relevance: The most effective metrics depend on your business model, email marketing goals, and content type.
- Technology Requirements: Advanced metrics may require specialized tools or ESP features.
- Strategic Shift: Moving beyond open rates requires a strategic focus on meaningful engagement.
- Holistic Approach: Use a combination of metrics for a comprehensive understanding of engagement.
- Data Tracking: Requires the capability to track data with platforms and integrations
What email marketers say
13 marketer opinions
With the decline of reliable open rate data, email marketers are increasingly turning to alternative metrics to gauge subscriber engagement. Click-through rates (CTR) are frequently cited as a primary replacement, directly reflecting interaction with email content. Other significant metrics include website traffic driven by email campaigns, sales attributable to email marketing (particularly for e-commerce), conversion rates, and email replies. More advanced strategies involve tracking read/skim times within emails, event attendance driven by email invitations, time spent actively viewing emails, and social media shares originating from email campaigns. Forward rates and changes in unsubscribe rates can also provide valuable insights.
Key opinions
- Click-Through Rate (CTR): CTR is a primary replacement for open rates, directly reflecting subscriber interaction with email content.
- Website Traffic: Monitoring website traffic from email campaigns indicates subscriber interest in learning more about your offers.
- Sales Attribution: For e-commerce, tracking sales directly attributable to email campaigns demonstrates the financial impact of your efforts.
- Conversion Rates: Monitoring conversion rates (e.g., form submissions, purchases) provides a clearer picture of subscribers completing desired actions.
- Email Replies: Tracking email replies signifies deeper engagement and resonance with the content.
- Read/Skim Times: Advanced tools can measure how long subscribers actively view emails, providing a more nuanced understanding of engagement.
- Event Attendance: For event promotion, tracking attendance from email invitations shows the effectiveness of emails in driving real-world participation.
- Social Shares: Tracking social media shares highlights engaging content that resonates with subscribers.
- Forward Rates: Measuring forward rates indicate that an email's content is seen as useful and worth sharing.
Key considerations
- Context is Key: The most effective metrics will vary depending on your business model, email marketing goals, and the type of content you're sending.
- Technology Requirements: Some advanced metrics (e.g., read/skim times, time spent viewing) require specialized tools or ESP features.
- Data Privacy: Ensure compliance with data privacy regulations when tracking engagement metrics beyond open rates.
- Holistic View: No single metric tells the whole story; use a combination of metrics to gain a comprehensive understanding of engagement.
- Relevance: Ensure the alternative metric chosen provides real value when measuring engagement that helps improve overall marketing success
Marketer view
Email marketer from Neil Patel's Blog explains that click-through rate (CTR) is a solid alternative to open rates because it directly reflects subscriber interaction with your content. A higher CTR indicates that your audience finds your emails relevant and engaging.
8 Feb 2024 - Neil Patel's Blog
Marketer view
Email marketer from Email on Acid shares that monitoring conversion rates from your email campaigns provides a clearer picture of engagement. Tracking how many recipients complete a desired action, such as filling out a form or making a purchase, can be useful.
27 Jun 2023 - Email on Acid
What the experts say
2 expert opinions
Experts agree that replacing email open rates necessitates focusing on engagement metrics that demonstrate user interaction and value. Click-through rates (CTR) are highlighted as a key indicator of content relevance and audience interest. Additionally, tracking user behavior on your website and conversion rates (i.e., recipients taking a desired action) provide insights into the effectiveness of emails in driving tangible results.
Key opinions
- Click-Through Rate (CTR): CTR is a good indicator of email content relevance and interest to the audience.
- Conversion Rates: Conversion rates from email campaigns show whether recipients are taking desired actions.
- Website User Behavior: Tracking user behavior on a website after a user click provides a better picture of if email marketing is leading to real customer behavior
Key considerations
- Shift in Focus: Moving beyond open rates requires a strategic shift towards metrics that demonstrate meaningful engagement and business impact.
- Data Tracking: Effectively tracking the metrics requires you have the capabilities to track this data with platforms and integrations.
- Holistic Analysis: Evaluate these metrics to identify what drives a better user experience
Expert view
Expert from Word to the Wise, Laura Atkins, explains that moving beyond opens requires a shift to more meaningful engagement metrics such as click-through rates on links within the email, conversion rates demonstrating the recipient took a desired action, and tracking user behavior on your website after clicking from the email.
18 Oct 2023 - Word to the Wise
Expert view
Expert from Spam Resource explains that Click-through rates (CTR) measure the number of recipients who clicked on one or more links in your email. It is a good indicator of how relevant and interesting your email content is to your audience. Higher CTRs suggest that your audience is engaged with your content and finds it valuable.
17 Oct 2023 - Spam Resource
What the documentation says
4 technical articles
Email marketing documentation suggests various alternatives to open rates for measuring engagement. These include analyzing active reading time within emails for a more nuanced understanding, setting up goal completions in Google Analytics to track specific actions taken by users from email campaigns, monitoring list growth to gauge overall subscriber interest, and tracking changes in unsubscribe rates to identify potential content or frequency issues.
Key findings
- Active Reading Time: Analyzing active reading time within emails provides a more nuanced understanding of engagement than simple opens.
- Goal Completions: Setting up goal completions in Google Analytics measures specific actions taken by users arriving from email campaigns.
- List Growth: Monitoring list growth indicates subscriber interest and the value of email content.
- Unsubscribe Rates: Tracking changes in unsubscribe rates can help identify potential content or frequency issues.
Key considerations
- Tool Requirements: Analyzing active reading time may require specific email client analytics tools.
- Setup Time: Setting up goal completions in Google Analytics requires configuration and ongoing monitoring.
- External Factors: List growth can be influenced by factors outside of email content, such as marketing campaigns or website promotions.
- Benchmark: Unsubscribe rates should be monitored in the context of industry benchmarks and historical performance.
Technical article
Documentation from Google Analytics explains using goals is useful. Set up goal completions in Google Analytics to measure specific actions taken by users who arrive at your site from email campaigns. This could include signing up for a newsletter or downloading a resource.
31 May 2023 - Google Analytics Help
Technical article
Documentation from Campaign Monitor explains that list growth indicates subscriber interest in your content. An increasing subscriber base suggests your emails are providing value and attracting new audiences.
12 Feb 2024 - Campaign Monitor
How accurate is email client market share data when Apple Mail intentionally opens messages?
How can you deduce inbox placement metrics using per-ISP open rates and manage bot opens?
How do AI assistants and MPP impact email open rates, and what are better metrics to measure outbound campaign effectiveness?
How do Mail Privacy Protection (MPP) and Intelligent Tracking Prevention (ITP) affect click tracking in email marketing?
How should opens be used as a metric for email marketing?
Is email tracking dead and should marketers stop using open rates?
