Do email clicks improve inbox deliverability?

Key findings

• Engagement signal: Clicks are a strong indicator of active recipient engagement, signaling to ISPs that your emails are relevant and desired.
• Part of a larger picture: ISPs use a holistic view of engagement, including opens, replies, forwards, and unsubscribes, not just clicks. A high click rate combined with other positive signals contributes positively to sender reputation.
• Correlation, not causation: Emails with high click rates often also have other strong positive engagement signals, which collectively improve deliverability. Clicks are a symptom of good engagement, not always the direct cause of improved inboxing.
• User-specific impact: Individual user clicks can influence future inbox placement for that specific user, training their mailbox provider that your emails are desirable.

Key considerations

• Authentic engagement: Focus on sending valuable content that genuinely encourages clicks, rather than artificially trying to boost click rates with unnecessary links. This builds long-term subscriber engagement and reputation.
• Content design: Some emails (e.g., newsletters with complete information) may not require clicks to be considered valuable. ISPs are becoming more sophisticated in understanding content types.
• Holistic deliverability strategy: Implement a broad deliverability strategy that includes proper email authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC), list hygiene, and content relevance, as detailed by Klaviyo's deliverability guide, rather than relying solely on click metrics. You can learn more about understanding email deliverability on their help center.

Key opinions

• Highest engagement: Many marketers view clicks as the ultimate form of engagement, indicating strong recipient interest.
• ISP consideration: There's a general consensus that ISPs account for clicks when evaluating where to place messages in the inbox.
• Driving engagement: Some have observed direct improvements in deliverability after re-strategizing to drive more clicks, especially for specific types of email content.
• Holistic view: Cautions against over-reliance on clicks, stressing that other engagement metrics like open rates are also critical for overall email health.

Key considerations

• Content completeness: If an email provides all necessary information without requiring a click, it might not be negatively judged by ISPs, challenging the idea that clicks are always necessary.
• Avoiding artificial boosts: Marketers should avoid creating emails that force clicks (e.g., hiding essential information behind links) solely for deliverability purposes, as this can harm user experience.
• Segmented re-engagement: When overhauling onboarding or re-engagement series, marketers should consider various forms of engagement, not just clicks, to define active subscribers.
• Niche audiences: The impact of clicks on deliverability might vary for niche audiences or specific mailbox providers, suggesting a non-uniform application across the email ecosystem.

Key opinions

• Indicator of engagement: Experts acknowledge clicks as a strong indicator of user engagement, but stress that it's part of a suite of engagement signals.
• Multifactor approach: ISPs analyze various positive interactions, not just clicks, to build a comprehensive sender reputation profile. This aligns with modern deliverability best practices.
• Correlation, not causation: High click rates correlate with good deliverability because emails that garner clicks are likely also generating other positive engagement, signaling overall health to ISPs.
• Avoid narrow focus: Experts advise against making clicks the sole focus for improving deliverability, as it can distract from more fundamental aspects of email program health.

Key considerations

• Audience and content: The relevance and design of your email content are paramount. Clicks happen when content is valuable and relevant to the recipient, not just because there's a link.
• Reputation building: Sustainable deliverability comes from consistent positive engagement over time, which builds a strong sender reputation, rather than short-term spikes in click rates.
• Beyond metrics: While clicks are measurable, other less visible positive actions (like marking as not spam) also contribute to a positive sender signal, highlighting the complexity of deliverability algorithms.

Key findings

• Real human engagement: Deliverability is often measured through active user interactions like clicks, replies, and forwards, confirming these as critical signals.
• Relevance indicator: Cicks indicate to email providers that the content is relevant and not spam, which helps in inbox placement.
• Sender reputation factor: Higher click-through rates are explicitly linked to an improved sender reputation, which directly influences where emails land.
• Tracking and reporting: Email Service Providers (ESPs) track and report clicks (if enabled), using this data in their deliverability assessments.

Key considerations

• Beyond clicks: While clicks are important, documentation also stresses other fundamentals such as proper email authentication and list quality as foundational for deliverability.
• Disparity in metrics: Some documentation indicates that a large imbalance between opens and clicks can actually be detrimental to sender reputation, suggesting a need for balanced engagement.
• Holistic deliverability: Success in deliverability comes from an integrated approach to email strategy, encompassing content, audience, and technical setup.