How does Gmail track email engagement for reputation, including in-email clicks versus landing page visits?

Key findings

• Comprehensive tracking: Gmail tracks user activity within the email, including mouse movements, scrolling behavior, and even typing, irrespective of whether the user navigates to an external landing page.
• Beyond traditional metrics: While clicks to landing pages provide valuable data for senders, Gmail's reputation algorithms consider a broader spectrum of engagement signals, including implicit actions not typically tracked by marketers.
• Deeper engagement: Actions like replying to an email, forwarding it, or dragging it from the promotions tab to the primary inbox are often considered stronger positive engagement signals for sender reputation than simple clicks.
• Reputation impact: Consistent positive engagement, regardless of the specific action, is crucial for maintaining and improving Gmail sender reputation, impacting overall email deliverability.

Key considerations

• Optimize for attention: Design emails that encourage genuine interaction and time spent, whether it's by engaging with content directly within the email or by prompting clicks to relevant landing pages.
• Target engaged segments: Campaigns aimed at improving reputation should primarily target already engaged subscribers to avoid negative signals from uninterested recipients. Consider how managing inactive email subscribers can contribute positively.
• Utilize UTM parameters: For clicks that lead to external pages, use UTM parameters to track specific campaign performance and gather data on post-click user behavior on your website.
• Monitor broader metrics: While direct clicks are measurable, also consider indirect signs of engagement and user behavior to get a more complete picture of how recipients interact with your emails.

Key opinions

• External landing pages preferred: Most marketers agree that having users click out of the email to a separate landing page offers more accurate and reliable click tracking, which is beneficial for analytics and potentially for Gmail's perception of engagement.
• Segmentation is critical: It is highly recommended to target engagement campaigns, such as surveys, to highly engaged user segments only. Sending to less engaged users can backfire and negatively impact sender reputation.
• Beyond the click: True engagement for reputation improvement goes beyond just a click. Marketers should aim to provide valuable content that users genuinely enjoy and spend time with, reflecting a deeper level of interest.
• Measuring engagement: Marketers use various tools and methods, including tracking pixels and UTM parameters, to measure opens, clicks, and subsequent website activity, which helps inform their understanding of user behavior.

Key considerations

• In-email forms limitations: While convenient, in-email survey tools may not reliably log all clicks or interactions, making external landing pages a more robust choice for tracking purposes, especially with Gmail.
• Campaign goal alignment: Clearly define the primary goal of any engagement campaign. If it's specifically for delivery or reputation improvement, ensure the campaign's design maximizes positive signals that Gmail values.
• Targeting existing engagement: Focusing on subscribers who have recently clicked emails (e.g., in the last 30 days) is a safer strategy to build positive engagement and improve domain reputation.
• Holistic view of engagement: Marketers need to understand that their tracked clicks and opens are a lower limit of engagement, and Gmail's internal tracking captures a much fuller picture of user interaction.

Key opinions

• Extensive internal tracking: Gmail's tracking extends to nearly every user interaction within the email, including mouse movements, typing, and general activity within the inbox, even without images loading.
• Beyond sender metrics: Google's internal engagement rates are significantly higher than what senders can track, as they have access to data points not available to third-party tools, giving them a more complete picture.
• High-value engagement: Actions like replying to an email, forwarding it, or manually moving it out of spam or promotions are considered stronger indicators of positive engagement by Gmail.
• AI-driven assessment: Google's AI assesses user behavior such as opening, clicking, scrolling, and even how quickly a user exits an email (bounces out), all of which contribute to the reputation score.

Key considerations

• Contextual engagement: The definition of 'engagement' varies depending on whether it's viewed from the perspective of an ISP, a sender, or a compliance professional. All contribute to domain reputation.
• Google's perspective on clicks: While clicks are a signal, some experts note that Google has historically indicated they don't explicitly rely on clicks as the primary engagement metric for reputation, emphasizing deeper interactions instead.
• Holistic deliverability strategy: Senders should focus on fostering genuine user interaction that encourages replies, forwards, and positive inbox management behavior, as these contribute significantly to a good sender reputation with ISPs.
• Invisible tracking: Be aware that Gmail employs patents, such as for mouse movement tracking, as part of its sophisticated system to understand user engagement, which is then factored into its filtering decisions.

Key findings

• UTM parameters for external tracking: Technical documentation on web analytics (like Google Analytics) consistently recommends using UTM parameters to accurately track clicks from emails to external landing pages, providing granular data on user journeys.
• Tracking pixel usage: Email tracking pixels are fundamental for recording email opens, and when combined with modified link URLs, they also enable the logging of clicks, forming the basis of basic engagement measurement for senders.
• Engagement signals for reputation: Industry best practices highlight that consistent positive user engagement, including opens and clicks, signals to ISPs that emails are valued, thereby contributing to a better sender reputation and improved deliverability.
• Comprehensive analytics needed: Email analytics should encompass a wide range of metrics, not just clicks, to gain a holistic understanding of how users interact with email content and its impact on overall marketing strategies.

Key considerations

• Discrepancies in tracking: Be aware that internal email tracking might differ from web analytics (like Google Analytics) due to various factors, including security systems, caching, and how clicks are recorded versus actual page views.
• Advanced engagement tracking: While basic metrics are available, mailbox providers like Gmail use more advanced methods (e.g., assessing scroll depth, reading time) that go beyond simple clicks and opens, providing a deeper understanding of user interest.
• Importance of post-click behavior: Documentation emphasizes that what happens after a click (user behavior on the landing page) is also crucial. Marketers should optimize the landing page experience as much as the email itself.
• Google Postmaster Tools: For insights into how Gmail perceives your sending reputation, documentation advises utilizing Google Postmaster Tools, which provides feedback on metrics like spam rate and IP/domain reputation.