What are the email marketing metrics that really matter?

In this post we have gathered together the ideas that we found most interesting. about the Email Marketing metrics that matter the most from among those set out by 9 experts on the blog of Zettasphere, a UK email marketing consultancy. In this link you have access to the full post.

All but one of the experts highlight the value of open and click-through as standard metrics that "give an idea" of how a campaign has been performing, but coincide on their boundaries to show more interesting aspectssuch as the economic value generated by email and the level of user engagement with the brand.. These are some of their considerations.

Dave Chaffeyof SmartInsights, analyses the issue in the context of companies that use email as a sales channel. In this sense, it proposes to compare campaigns on the basis of the revenue generated per 1000 emails sent. When it comes to setting targets, one of the metrics we use at Digital Response with our clients is the value (per unit or per 1000) generated by each email sent. Let's say that over the course of a financial year we have obtained a value generated per email sent of €0.040 (€40 per thousand emails sent), we can consider, for the following year, an increase in revenue per email sent of 15%, that would be €0.046 (€46). This is an easily understandable metric that can be monitored.

Chad WhiteIn line with Dave Chaffey, he points to the importance of conversion. Specifically, emphasises linking open with conversion. That is to say, what is relevant is to detect which subjects induce the users most likely to convert to open the email. We can have a very high open rate, but if it is not among users who can potentially provide us with greater economic value,

For Justine Jordanof LitmusThe metrics depend in each case on the objective pursued by the email, and gives two examples. For the monthly newsletter they monitor the traffic generated on their blog, for which it is essential to use Google Analytics UTM coding correctly. In the case of webinar invitations, comparing the click rate of the invitation with the number of webinar registrants. This is a click-to-registration conversion model.

Finally, Samantha Iodice emphasises click to open (also known as reactivity). Click to open is the ratio in % of unique users who clicked for every user who opened the email. This is, and here we agree with Samantha, the best index to measure whether the content presented to the user has been timely and interesting enough to move them to action. (click on the email).

While it is true that each business has to establish the metrics that best reflect the performance of email marketing programmes, at Digital Response we believe that there are three metrics that should not be missing in any analysis and that allow us to understand how email marketing campaigns work and the overall performance of the programmes. These are:

1. Unic Open Rate: measures how many users have opened at least one email for every 100 emails delivered. (unic opens/email delivered)x100
2. Click To Open: measures how many users have clicked at least once on an email for every 100 openers. (unic clickers/unic opens)x100
3. Revenue by email sentmeasures the monetary value generated by each email sent. Revenue/no. emails sent or (Revenue/no. emails sent)x1000