Silverpop unveil 2012 Email marketing open and click-through rates in Email Marketing Metrics Benchmark Study
Digital marketing technology provider, Silverpop, has released its 2012 Email Marketing Metrics Benchmark Study. Based on data collected from Silverpop customers, the Benchmark Study aims to help marketers see where they stand against their peers, while setting goals designed to move them into a top-performing quartile.
Silverpop examined email messages sent in 2011 and the first quarter of 2012 by 1,124 participating brands calculating the top and bottom quartile values of the data. Notable findings of the data included the overall open rate across all regions is less than half (44.9 per cent). Sectors with the best open rates globally are Financial Services with 55.6 per cent, followed by Charity with 52.2 per cent. The worst performing sectors globally are Education with 25.6 per cent and Retail 30.7 per cent.
Click-through rates were also found to vary from sector to sector, the overall click-through rate worldwide was found to be 5.2 per cent. Computer software and Media and Publishing were found to have the best click-through response with 8.6 per cent and 8.9 per cent respectively. Worst performing sectors included Travel (2.3 per cent), Retail (3.1 per cent) and Financial (3.5 per cent).
Interestingly, sectors with high open rates often had the lowest click-through rates. For example, Financial Services had an open rate of 55.6 per cent and click-through rate of just 3.5 per cent. The Retail sector had both a low open and low click-through rate, whereas Charity performed well in both areas with a 52.2 per cent open rate and 5.4 per cent click-through rate.
Loren McDonald, vice president of industry relations for Silverpop, commented: “These findings confirm that response rates vary widely based on the approach that is taken and the content that is delivered.
“Companies that focus on helping recipients by providing behaviour-based content that is meaningful, personal and relevant rather than just firing off one-size-fits-all promotions are far more likely to find themselves in the top quartile.”