WHAT ARE EMAIL OPEN RATES AND WHY THEY MATTER?
Selecting the best time to send an email is one of the most fundamental issues marketers face on a daily basis. A well crafted message accomplishes little if your target never sees it, and the top of the inbox is a competitive piece of real estate. If you miss the mark and send your message just an hour or two away from the right time frame, you could easily wind up way down the list – essentially invisible. Nailing the proper timing has a huge effect on open and click-through rates. These, of course, impact traffic and sales – the lifeblood of your business. While there have been loads of studies on this topic, the data does not always line up due to a variety of factors. However, we have compiled data to help determine the most consistently accurate send times to help optimize all of your email marketing campaigns going forward.
THE BEST TIME OF DAY TO SEND EMAILS
Since emails are most likely to be opened within the first hour after being sent, it’s best to simply think about when subscribers are most likely to have free time to scan their phones and choose accordingly.
Several research studies indicated the highest email open rate to be at 11am.
Sundays, however, were much different, with the main open rate time being 9pm.
Another study found that while late-morning send times result in more opens, the afternoon actually results in more conversions and revenue:
- 12am: 7% higher open rate, 66% higher revenue per recipient.
- 1pm: 62% higher revenue per recipient
- 4pm: 61% higher revenue per recipient
- 6pm: 22% open rate (highest) 3.14% CTR (highest)
Overall, studies indicate that the best time to send emails is mid-morning (10am) or just after lunch (1pm). Practically speaking, these figures make a lot of sense. A solid strategy would be to send emails during the night to reach the many people who check their messages as soon as they wake up, and in the morning on weekdays. Meanwhile, the other peak times land at universal transitional periods during the day. 1pm is typically just after lunch, 4pm is when then workday is winding down, and 6 pm is around the usual evening commute.
Considering Email Read Time
When designing your creatives and selecting your timing, keep in mind that people only check their emails for certain lengths of time. Here are a few examples of windows, separated by a few minutes each:
- 3-Minute Window – For these, people usually open emails on mobile devices. They could be waiting online at a store, see your email, and possibly save it to view more later on – particularly if the message conveys urgent action.
- 5-Minute Window – Typically also on a mobile device, readers can check their emails during a short break from work and spend a bit more time perusing the content of your messaging.
- 10-Minute Window – These can either take place on mobile or desktop. For the former, someone could be on a train ride to or from work. For the latter, they could be eating lunch at their desk or at home.
THE BEST DAY OF THE WEEK TO SEND EMAILS
Many studies indicate that the best days to send emails are on Tuesdays and Thursdays with Wednesdays being the third best option. Other data suggests while there is not much difference between any of the weekdays, Tuesday has the highest open and click-through rate. In addition, the best day to send promotional email is Thursday, while the second is Tuesday. Weekends, meanwhile, warrant the lowest open rates, since most people are engaged in other sorts of activities. Yet, a another industry report found that the most conversions and sales take place on Saturdays. This shows that many shoppers are actively engaging with marketing messaging on weekdays, but holding off on actually buying until the weekend. In the end, however, there is no true agreement on what exactly is the best day of the week to send emails. That is precisely why it is critical to conduct your own individual research with you company’s personal list. From that, you could discover that best day for you to send emails is unique to your respective business and customer base.
THE BEST DAYS OF THE MONTH TO SEND EMAILS
While larger brands typically send weekly campaigns, smaller ones tend to send on a monthly basis. Omnistudy gathered data measuring open and click rates for each day of the month: The resulting consensus was that sending email campaign at the very beginning of the month yield the best results. The first two weeks perform much better than the end of the month, with the best days for open and click rates being the 5th (19.15%), the 12th (19.03%), and the 7th (18.54%). The leader for best overall performance becomes the first 10 days of the month. We advise not sending emails towards the end of the month. This could be due to the fact that most people are paid at both the beginning and middle of the month, and have little remaining residual funds in the ensuing weeks.
BE AWARE OF TIME ZONES
An analysis of your data can easily tell you where the bulk of your audience is based. For instance, if your customer base is in the United States, hone in on the eastern time zone. It consists of nearly 50 percent of the population – the highest population aggregation in the nation.
KEY TAKEAWAY: KNOW YOUR SUBSCRIBERS
In reality, there’s no firm, set time for when to send out your emails until you know which times work for your audience. Every email list is made up of an entirely different set of people with varying habits and tendencies. Ultimately, the best time for your company to send emails is largely contingent on how well you know your subscribers, their lifestyles, and their behaviors. A Predictive Marketing Automation (PMA) Platform’s segmentation and clustering tools help group buyers based on a range of demographic and psychographic information. Moreover, BuyerGenomics AutoPilot system employs machine learning to analyze your customer behavior, calculate their routines and tendencies, and autonomously send messages to the right people, at the right place, at the right time. Remember, your email subscribers are your most loyal customers. They consciously chose to receive messages from your brand. They also have the highest willingness and tendency to share your content with others. Therefore, make sure you are reaching them at the right time.
