Why has my email click-through rate dropped in Gmail?

Key findings

• Non-deliverability issues: Sometimes, a drop in CTR is not due to emails failing to reach the inbox but rather issues on the recipient's end, such as website tracking problems (e.g., cookie consent pop-ups or misconfigured analytics) that prevent clicks from being registered.
• Content and relevance: Low-quality content, irrelevant offers, too many images, or a poor subject line/preheader combination can significantly reduce engagement and clicks, even if emails are delivered. This is a common reason for a low click-through rate, as indicated by SocketLabs.
• Technical alignment: Proper email authentication, including DKIM and DMARC, is fundamental for Gmail deliverability. A lack of DKIM can impact your domain's reputation and lead to lower inbox placement, subsequently affecting CTR. You can check your DMARC, SPF, and DKIM configuration.
• Sender reputation: Gmail's perception of your sending practices directly influences inbox placement. If your domain's reputation drops (e.g., trending low or bad in Google Postmaster Tools), emails might land in spam or promotions, reducing visibility and click potential. You can track your reputation using Google Postmaster Tools.
• List engagement: A growing list with unengaged subscribers can dilute overall CTR. Subscriber fatigue, an aging list, or a lack of segmentation might mean your emails are reaching people who are no longer interested in your content. This is a point highlighted by MarketingProfs.
• Email clipping: Emails that are too large in file size can be clipped by Gmail, hiding important calls to action and reducing the likelihood of clicks.

Key considerations

• Check web analytics: Before assuming deliverability issues, investigate if website-side tracking (like Google Analytics or specific cookie consent tools) is correctly recording clicks from Gmail users.
• Review email authentication: Ensure your domain has correctly configured SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records. Use Google Postmaster Tools to monitor authentication success rates and identify any drops. Issues with DKIM can directly affect Gmail performance.
• Analyze content effectiveness: Evaluate your subject lines, preheader text, and the main body of your email. Are they compelling? Is the call to action clear and prominent? Test different approaches to see what resonates with your audience.
• Monitor sender reputation: Regularly check Google Postmaster Tools for your domain's sending reputation and spam complaint rates. A decline here indicates a need to refine your sending practices. For advice on how to improve this see our guide on how to improve domain reputation.
• Segment and clean your list: Remove inactive subscribers and segment your audience to send more targeted and relevant content. This can significantly boost engagement for active users, even if your overall list size decreases.
• Review email size: Keep your email HTML code lean to avoid Gmail clipping your messages. Ensure key calls to action are visible without needing to expand the email.

Key opinions

• Website tracking issues: A primary cause for a perceived CTR drop might not be email deliverability but rather issues with website-side tracking, such as misconfigured analytics or cookie consent mechanisms, which prevent clicks from being registered properly.
• Content quality: Low-quality or irrelevant content, excessive images, and poorly chosen subject lines are frequently cited reasons for diminishing engagement and clicks. The presence of too many images can even cause problems for recipients.
• Audience engagement: If the email list is growing but engagement is not keeping pace, the overall CTR can decline. This points to subscriber fatigue or a need for better list segmentation to target audiences more effectively.
• Email clipping: Emails that are too large in file size risk being clipped by Gmail, which can hide critical calls to action and reduce the likelihood of clicks, as noted by DigitalMarketer.
• Seasonal factors: Some marketers observe declines in CTR during specific seasons or for particular types of emails, such as event-related communications, which can be attributed to cyclical engagement trends.
• Domain reputation: Even with high deliverability, a low domain reputation with Gmail (as seen in Google Postmaster Tools) can lead to emails landing in less prominent inboxes (e.g., promotions or spam folders), thus reducing visibility and clicks.

Key considerations

• Verify tracking: The very first step should be to confirm that your website's click tracking, particularly with third-party tools like Cookiebot, is functioning correctly and not inadvertently blocking analytics from registering user interactions.
• Improve content: Marketers should focus on creating highly relevant and valuable content, optimizing subject lines and preheader text to entice clicks. Review strategies to increase your email click-through rate.
• Segment your audience: Segmenting your email list and tailoring content to specific interests can combat subscriber fatigue and boost engagement, ultimately improving CTR.
• Optimize email size: Reduce the overall file size of your emails to prevent clipping in Gmail, ensuring that your entire message, including crucial calls to action, is visible to the recipient upon opening.
• Monitor deliverability: Even if the issue isn't deliverability per se, keeping a close eye on your inbox placement and sender reputation in Gmail Postmaster Tools is essential for understanding overall email performance. See our guide on how to troubleshoot a sudden drop.
• Review tracking domains: Marketers should also consider how their use of tracking domains or URLs within emails might be impacting deliverability or how clicks are registered, as some ESPs or mail clients can treat these differently.

Key opinions

• Authentication importance: A crucial factor for Gmail deliverability and subsequent CTR is the proper implementation of email authentication, especially DKIM. Lack of a DKIM signature can negatively impact sender reputation and inbox placement.
• Google Postmaster Tools: This tool is invaluable for diagnosing Gmail-specific issues. Experts recommend using it to check DKIM success rates, domain reputation, and spam complaint rates, all of which directly affect how Gmail perceives your emails.
• Domain specificity: When troubleshooting, it's essential to examine data for the exact sending domain and associated DKIM selectors, as generalized reports across multiple domains can be misleading.
• Content quality & engagement signals: Gmail algorithms factor in user engagement. If content is consistently poor or irrelevant, leading to low opens and clicks, Gmail may progressively filter messages more aggressively, impacting future CTR. A low CTR indicates content or messaging issues.
• Impact of new rules: Stricter spam rules from Gmail and updates like those from iOS can disrupt engagement metrics. These changes mean more brands might miss the inbox if they don't adapt their sending practices, as highlighted by MarTech.
• Beyond open rates: Some experts argue that while open rates are still relevant for indicating potential blocking issues or subscriber fatigue, marketers should shift focus to key metrics that truly drive success, implying that CTR is a more telling indicator of campaign effectiveness.

Key considerations

• Comprehensive checks: Experts advise performing a thorough analysis using tools like About My Email to check authentication, size, and structure. Additionally, leverage Google Postmaster Tools extensively for Gmail-specific insights.
• DKIM configuration: Ensure your DKIM records are correctly set up and being recognized. If a DMARC tool struggles to find a DKIM selector, it might indicate a configuration error or a mismatch with what Gmail expects. Our guide on DKIM selectors can help.
• Domain reputation health: A low or bad reputation in Google Postmaster Tools signifies that Gmail perceives your sending practices as poor, leading to filtering that impacts CTR. Focus on improving sending hygiene and list quality to build a positive reputation. For more details on this, see our guide to Google Postmaster Tools domain reputation.
• Identify the actual problem: Distinguish between a symptom (low CTR) and the root cause. Sometimes the issue is not deliverability but rather post-delivery factors like website tracking errors, as was seen in the initial problem discussed.
• Adapt to policy changes: Stay informed about changes in Gmail's sending requirements and platform updates that could impact email performance. Adjust your strategies to comply with new regulations and maintain inbox placement.

Key findings

• Authentication standards: Documentation consistently highlights the critical role of SPF, DKIM, and DMARC in email authentication. Proper configuration is essential for emails to be trusted by recipients like Gmail and reach the primary inbox.
• Sender reputation metrics: Mailbox providers, including Gmail, assign a reputation to sending domains based on adherence to best practices, spam complaints, and user engagement. This reputation directly influences inbox placement. Google Postmaster Tools provides specific insights into this, including your spam rate dashboard.
• Bounce rates as indicators: A high bounce rate can signal underlying issues such as being added to a blacklist or sending to inactive email addresses. These issues indirectly impact CTR by reducing the number of emails that even have a chance to be opened and clicked, as noted by Bloomreach.
• Content and messaging: While not strictly technical, documentation often implies that a low CTR is a clear sign that the combination of sender, subject line, preheader, offer, and messaging is not optimal. This directly affects user willingness to click, as pointed out by SocketLabs.
• User engagement signals: Mailbox providers use various signals to determine user engagement. Low opens, clicks, or a high number of deletions without opening can negatively impact future inbox placement, creating a cycle of declining performance and CTR.

Key considerations

• Implement DMARC: Ensure your DMARC policy is correctly implemented and configured to move towards quarantine or reject policies after thorough monitoring. This helps protect your domain from impersonation and build trust with receivers like Gmail.
• Monitor blocklists (blacklists): Regularly check if your sending IP or domain is listed on any email blocklists or blacklists. Being listed can drastically impact deliverability and, consequently, your CTR. Our guide explains how email blocklists work.
• Manage bounce rates: Actively manage and reduce your bounce rate by regularly cleaning your email list of invalid or inactive addresses. High bounce rates can negatively affect your sender reputation and deliverability.
• Follow content best practices: Adhere to content guidelines that reduce the likelihood of emails being flagged as spam. This includes optimizing subject lines, using clear and concise messaging, and avoiding spammy triggers, as detailed by Google's guidelines for bulk senders.
• Optimize for mobile: Given that a large percentage of email opens occur on mobile devices, ensuring your emails are responsive and display correctly on various screen sizes is critical for a positive user experience and to encourage clicks.