SVA Forum

[caroline]

Was doing some work on Mailchimp which is not one I usually use and came across this:
http://www.mailchimp.com/articles/email_marketing_benchmarks_for_small_business/

Now if I got these sorts of results I'd be horribly embarrassed. Now obviously this is squiffed by people uploading spammy lists, or sending out really bad emails with no calls to action.

Opinions??
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[PattieM]

Wow, those open rates are a bit shocking.

I was wondering about this and I guess it also depends how you've collected addresses for your list. Quite often I come across some sort of freebie I want online and I have to put in my email address to get it, that's fine I know they'll bombard me with stuff afterwards - I'll just never open it. I'm also quite lazy so often won't bother to unsubscribe either. So I guess I'm the kind of apathetic person that contributes to poor open rates like that!

The other thing, of course, is that, as with all marketing, often people send out irrelevant stuff to people who are barely interested. A few years ago not that many people had email newsletters, etc but now everyone from your mobile provider to the B & B you stayed in for one night last summer is sending out stuff. People have become far more discerning about what they read in their inbox.

I generally get open rates of around 60% to 70%. That sounds reasonable, but I have small lists and I regularly update them. I send only to clients and prospects and even with the prospects I don't generally include those people who email me asking if I'd like to type up their 10,000 word thesis for £10. Because from those kind of enquiries I can tell they are simply not interested in what I'm selling.

But maybe emailing a list of 5,000 contacts and getting an open rate of 20% is better than having a small list and a high open rate. Or maybe it all just evens out in the end!

What's everyone think?

Pattie Mason
www.onehourpa.com

[caroline]

I also think the type of list makes a difference - the open rates only record when someone is using HTML email so a list with home emails or emails where interactive content is likely to be blocked will have a lower open rate (so in general consumer lists then to have a lower open rate than a business-to-business list).
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