How accurate were email open rates in 2018?

In 2018, email open rates were generally considered accurate for measuring initial engagement, as they relied on invisible tracking pixels loading when an email was viewed. However, some factors, like Gmail's image caching , could lead to slightly inflated numbers because pixels might load automatically upon delivery rather than explicit opening.

Why is it difficult to find Gmail-specific open rate benchmarks for 2018?

Most benchmark reports from 2018 aggregated data across various ISPs and industries, making it difficult to isolate Gmail -specific data. While Gmail's performance was included in overall averages, dedicated breakdowns were rare.

What other metrics should I consider if open rates are less reliable now?

Since open rates are less reliable due to evolving privacy features, focus on metrics such as click-through rates, conversion rates, unsubscribe rates, and overall deliverability benchmarks . These provide a clearer picture of active engagement and campaign effectiveness.

How can historical 2018 data help my current email strategy?

Historical 2018 data can help you understand the foundational elements that always drove email performance: list hygiene, relevant content, and strong email deliverability . It emphasizes that consistent, quality sending practices are key to reaching the inbox, regardless of tracking changes.

How to find and interpret 2018 email open rate benchmarks, especially for Gmail? - Basics - Email deliverability - Knowledge base

Understanding historical email open rate benchmarks, especially from a specific year like 2018, offers a valuable look back at the email marketing landscape. While the industry has evolved significantly since then, particularly with changes in privacy regulations and how open rates are tracked, examining past data can still provide context and highlight foundational principles of email deliverability. This retrospective helps us appreciate how metrics have shifted and why our approach to email engagement needs to adapt.

In 2018, open rates were a more straightforward and widely accepted indicator of email campaign success. However, isolating specific data for a single inbox provider like Gmail can be challenging, as most benchmark reports aggregated data across various providers and industries. Nevertheless, we can still glean insights into the typical performance expected at the time and understand the factors that influenced these numbers.

The landscape of email open rates in 2018

In 2018, an email open rate was primarily measured by a tiny, invisible tracking pixel loaded when an email was viewed. This method was the standard for determining whether a recipient had opened a message. It provided marketers with a seemingly clear picture of initial engagement, indicating that the subject line and sender name were effective enough to prompt an open.

Overall average email open rates across all industries and locations, as reported by various sources in 2018, often hovered around the 19-22% mark. This figure, however, was a broad average and could fluctuate significantly based on factors such as the industry, audience engagement, and the type of email being sent. For instance, transactional emails typically saw much higher open rates compared to promotional newsletters.

While useful, relying solely on open rates as a measure of success could be misleading even back then. A high open rate didn't necessarily translate to conversions or meaningful engagement. Other metrics, such as click-through rates and conversion rates, were also crucial for a comprehensive understanding of campaign performance.

Navigating 2018 benchmarks for Gmail and beyond

Finding precise Gmail-specific email open rate benchmarks for 2018 can be challenging. Most public benchmark reports from that period aggregate data across various internet service providers (ISPs), industries, and geographical regions. They typically present overall averages rather than breaking down performance by individual mailboxes.

However, some comprehensive reports from 2018 do offer general insights that can be extrapolated. The 2018 SendGrid Global Email Benchmark Report, for instance, analyzed billions of emails from a vast number of senders, providing broad industry averages. Similarly, the Cheetah Digital Q2 2018 Email & Mobile Benchmark Report offered insights into performance indicators from their North American clients. While these reports do not specify Gmail open rates directly, the overall trends reflect the performance across major providers, including Gmail.

To interpret these benchmarks for Gmail, it's essential to consider the industry your emails fall into, as open rates vary widely. Here’s a hypothetical look at how different sectors might have performed in 2018, keeping in mind that these are general averages.

Industry	Average Open Rate (2018)
Education	28-30%
Retail	17-20%
Non-profit	25-28%
Government	29-32%

Beyond the number: interpreting open rate data

When looking at any benchmark, particularly historical ones, it is vital to understand that a raw percentage only provides a partial view. A high open rate does not automatically guarantee success, nor does a lower one necessarily indicate failure. Factors like sender reputation, email content relevance, subject line effectiveness, and list segmentation all play a significant role in influencing whether an email is opened.

One of the significant challenges with interpreting historical open rate data is the lack of normalization across different datasets. Various email service providers and companies use differing methodologies for data collection and, more importantly, have varying standards for list hygiene. A company that aggressively removes unengaged subscribers, for example, will naturally report higher open rates than one that maintains a less strict list, even if their actual sending effectiveness is similar.

For Gmail, specifically, there was already an element that made open rate tracking less precise even in 2018: image caching. Gmail (and other ISPs) caches images, meaning the tracking pixel might load automatically when an email arrives in the inbox, rather than only when a user explicitly opens it. This could lead to inflated open rates, affecting the accuracy of open rates.

Key considerations for 2018 email open rate interpretation

Context: Always consider the specific industry, target audience, and type of campaign (transactional vs. promotional).
Deliverability: An email cannot be opened if it does not reach the inbox. Focus on ensuring your emails bypass the spam folder.
Engagement: Beyond opens, prioritize metrics like click-through rates, conversion rates, and unsubscribe rates for a fuller picture of engagement.
Consistency: Track your own campaign performance trends over time rather than fixating on external benchmarks.

Evolving metrics and improving deliverability

While 2018 benchmarks provide a historical reference, the email marketing world has shifted significantly. With evolving privacy features from major mailbox providers, the reliability of open rates as a primary metric has diminished. Today, a more holistic view of email deliverability issues and engagement is paramount. This includes focusing on whether emails reach the inbox, are clicked, and ultimately convert, rather than just being opened.

To improve Gmail deliverability today, even when focusing on historical insights, emphasize building a strong domain reputation, maintaining excellent list hygiene, and ensuring proper email authentication (SPF, DKIM, and DMARC). These practices are timeless and form the bedrock of successful email programs, regardless of how open rates are measured. Focusing on these fundamentals will always contribute to better improved Gmail open rates and overall campaign performance.

Views from the trenches

Best practices

Actively segment your email lists based on engagement and demographics to send more relevant content.

Consistently clean your email lists by removing inactive or unengaged subscribers.

Personalize subject lines and content to increase recipient relevance and interest.

Common pitfalls

Ignoring spam complaints and high bounce rates, which negatively impact sender reputation.

Sending emails to unengaged subscribers who rarely open or click, dragging down overall metrics.

Not regularly checking for and removing your domain from email blocklists (or blacklists).

Expert tips

Monitor your domain's reputation using tools like Google Postmaster Tools.

Implement DMARC, DKIM, and SPF for strong email authentication.

Prioritize engagement metrics like click-through rates over just open rates.

Marketer view

Marketer from Email Geeks says that comparing open rates across different senders and industries can be misleading, as hygiene practices vary widely.

August 23, 2019 - Email Geeks

Marketer view

Marketer from Email Geeks says that normalization of data is a key challenge when analyzing industry benchmarks, as aggressive unengaged subscriber removal skews results.

August 23, 2019 - Email Geeks

A look back and a path forward

While pinpointing exact 2018 Gmail email open rate benchmarks can be challenging due to data aggregation and the inherent limitations of the metric, general industry reports from that year offer valuable historical context. They remind us that open rates were a key indicator, but always needed to be interpreted with a clear understanding of influencing factors like industry, audience, and list quality.

Today, with advancements in privacy and technology, the focus has rightly shifted towards more reliable engagement metrics and foundational deliverability practices. By ensuring strong sender reputation, maintaining a healthy subscriber list, and implementing robust authentication, you build a sustainable email program that transcends the changing nature of specific metrics and consistently reaches the inbox.