The biggest obstacle in email marketing is getting subscribers to open up their emails in the first place. Businesses are often faced with the reality that a very small percentage of their contacts actually see their newsletters. Unfortunately, a large number of email security softwares will automatically filter out newsletters, as they will mark them as spam. While some people do check their ‘spam folder’, the vast majority of people do not. So how do you increase the percentage of your newsletters that are opened? The answer is two-fold. First, make your newsletter subject lines attention-grabbing and interesting. Second, pick the right time of the day and week to send your newsletter. So what’s the best time, then?
Know Your Audience
There are a number of sites that have tracked the best statistical times for sending out newsletters using applications such as Google Analytics and Bing Webmaster Tools. Sites such as MailChimp and Constant Contact also allow users to view the insights on their newsletters and with Constant Contact,they even suggest an ideal time to send. However, what’s most important is knowing your audience. If most of your audience is based on the east coast, make sure you’re sending your newsletters at a time when they’re awake and checking their email. Also, the type of business you run should also factor into your decision on what time to send your newsletter.
Also, the type of business you run should also factor into your decision on what time to send your newsletter. If the contents of your newsletter are entertainment-oriented, it’s probably best to not send it during the 8-hour workday. If your business is in retail, Mondays and Tuesdays might not make the best days to send out your newsletter.
Avoid Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays and Mondays
As a general rule of thumb, it’s best to avoid sending out your newsletter between Friday and Monday. Employees are often distracted on Fridays due to the upcoming weekend, so therefore, they’re less inclined to open up your newsletter. People are generally busy throughout the weekend with activities, such as errands, chores and enjoying their hobbies, leaving emails sent during the weekend to go largely unchecked.Instead, catch them before the weekend by offering them deals that they can use during their weekend errands. Mondays, on the other hand, function much like Fridays, but instead of being distracted by the impending free time, people are burnt out from their busy weekend.
Pick an Ideal Time of the Day
Now that we know Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday make poor days to send out newsletters, we’re left with Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Metrics across a number of different sites actually find that Tuesdays and Wednesdays are not quite as optimal as Thursday, as one firm found that Thursdays often had about a 5% higher open rate than Tuesdays and Thursdays.
Throughout the course of the day, the highest open rates tended to be between 8am and 12pm. So for your next newsletter, try sending it on a Thursday between 8am and 12pm, as you’re next campaign will likely experience a higher open rate that your previous ones.