Why moving beyond the Open Rate is so challenging

As a business owner or marketer, you know that email marketing is essential for reaching your audience. However, you only see part of the picture if you focus solely on the Open Rate when analyzing metrics.

I get it! 

Open Rates have been the go-to metric, and they're still commonly used today, even though they aren't the best metric. When I started in email marketing in 2002, our only available metrics were Open, Click, and Unsubscribe.  Today, when I look at reporting in any email marketing platform, the Open Rate metrics are usually in the first spot.

Why open rates are problematic:

• The rise of false opens, driven by Apple MPP and other software, particularly in the B2B space, can skew your open data. For example, I sent my "happy holidays" email to clients, and I know 100% that two of them were already closed for the holidays, yet they still showed as open immediately after it was sent. Later, when they returned from their break, they opened it again and even replied. If I had based any automation journey on opens, I would have targeted an activity that didn't happen in the timeframe.

• Higher Open Rates don't necessarily mean higher Click Rates or revenue. I have run several subject line tests with clients where we base the winner on Click Rate or revenue. The high Open Rate campaign often had lower clicks and lower revenue. We would have left money on the table if we had based the winner on Open Rates.

Open rates can still provide valuable insights:

• Even with false opens, that email had to make it to the inbox, meaning the recipient's email address is likely active.

• Analyzing the group that never opens can help you identify inactive segments and determine your next steps. Maybe they are still customers, or you are reaching them on a different channel outside of email.

• Open Rates are still a good diagnostic metric. If you suddenly see your Open Rates decline significantly, you may have an inbox placement issue or even a block.

Given that higher Open Rates don't always equate to higher Click Rates or revenue, it’s time to move beyond Open Rates and focus on your other metrics.