Email Marketing
Open Rate
The percentage of people who open an email you send them.
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The Tradie Take
Open rate is how many people actually tear open your letter instead of binning it. If only 5 out of 100 people open your envelope, your envelope (subject line) needs work. But some people might read the letter at the kitchen table without you seeing them open it - that's the Apple Mail problem.
Definition
Open rate is the percentage of email recipients who open a marketing email you send. A 20-30% open rate is typical for most industries. It tells you whether your subject lines are compelling enough to get people to read your message. But open rates can be misleading - Apple Mail and other clients now block tracking pixels, making open rates less reliable than they used to be.
How It Works
- 1 When someone opens your email, a tiny tracking image loads and records the open
- 2 Open rate = unique opens divided by total delivered emails
- 3 A low open rate usually means your subject line isn't compelling
- 4 New privacy features in email clients are making open rates less accurate
Tips for Tradies
- Write subject lines that create curiosity or urgency: "Your heater needs servicing before winter"
- Avoid spammy words - "FREE!!!" and "ACT NOW" trigger spam filters
- Test different subject lines to see what your audience responds to