Open Rate: Definition & Significance

What Does Open Rate Mean?

The open rate is a key metric in email marketing. It shows what percentage of delivered emails were opened by recipients. If 250 out of 1,000 delivered emails were recorded as opened, this results in an open rate of 25%. It thus measures the initial success of an email: the act of opening it. However, the open rate has nothing to do with whether the desired action was taken.

Technically, an open is tracked via a tiny image that loads when the email is opened. Due to privacy settings in some programs, this image may either fail to load or load automatically in the background. As a result, the measured open rate should be viewed as a rough estimate rather than an exact figure.

Where did the open rate originate?

The open rate was introduced with email marketing to measure the success of email campaigns. It was long considered one of the key metrics, but its significance has diminished as privacy settings have become more robust. As a result, metrics such as the click-through rate have gained importance.

Why is the open rate important?

An email that isn’t opened has no effect. Opening the email is therefore a prerequisite for all subsequent steps. If the open rate is low, there is a need for optimization in various areas.

Two of these areas are the subject line and the sender’s name. If they aren’t compelling, the email won’t be opened. Or the email may be going to the wrong audience.

Advantages

The open rate provides quick, easy-to-understand feedback.
It allows you to compare email campaigns with one another.
It helps you specifically improve the first impression.
The open rate can serve as an early indicator of whether the subject line, sender name, and salutation are generally effective.

Challenges

Privacy features in modern email programs skew the measurement. Furthermore, the open rate says nothing about what happens next. Did the recipient read the email and take the desired action?

The success of an email becomes more meaningful when considered in conjunction with the click-through rate, which shows whether recipients have responded to content or calls to action.

Example

A company sends out a monthly newsletter with the same, bland subject line every time: “Newsletter – Month/Year.” The open rates are dismal.

After switching to a more interesting and intriguing subject line that directly reflects the value of the content—for example, “Three Ways to Lower Your Electricity Bills”—the open rate increases significantly.