Conventional Wisdom on Email Timing is Evolving
A 2016 email marketing study concluded that Emails sent on Saturdays generate 60% higher-than-average conversion rates.
Wow! Everyone should start mailing on Saturdays, right?
Not necessarily.
Think about your target. Are you emailing to businesses or consumers? Are your prospects senior citizens, or are they college students? Are you sending emails to “C” level executives or to small business owners?
Now, put yourself into the position of your target and ask “when would I be most likely to open an email if I were that person?
College students do over 80% of their internet activity on mobile devices and that’s something to keep in mind. They are not likely to read long-winded content and they are probably not receptive to emails on weekends when they’re engaged in social activities.
Mid-level management people will probably open their email at work during business hours.
Early morning or after lunch might be the best time. “C” level executives may have their emails screened by an assistant and so you might want to slant the content for that possibility and deliver early morning during the work week.
Senior citizens? They have more time than people who work 40+ hours per week and they are looking for interesting content. You may want to avoid small type fonts for obvious reasons, and seniors generally wake up early so early morning might be an effective strategy.
A Brief Case Study
A software service marketed a new product to physicians and sent large quantities of mail on Tuesdays because that was the conventional wisdom at the time. The open rates were abysmal for the first few days but then they suddenly shot up on the weekends, especially Sunday.
Doctors simply do not have the time to open email during the work week when they’re occupied with exams, hospital rounds, or surgery. When the weekend comes and they have a few hours of free time they will often open their email.
Knowing what doctors had opened on Sunday but not converted, the sales team started a follow-up reminder campaign for the following Sunday morning so it email would be on top of their list. Opens, clicks, and conversions to sales all increased and the campaign achieved their goals!
When to Send?
The answer is to run tests. Fortunately GMass makes it easy to track clicks and opens in the Main Campaign Report. Run the report at various intervals and you will know who opened your emails and when. Here are a video and an article on that feature.
It can be a challenge to find the perfect combination, but try experimenting with different content, subject lines, and timing until you reach just the right combination. GMass is an excellent hands-on platform that is perfect for business owners and managers to use as they build and customize a successful marketing strategy!
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Only GMass packs every email app into one tool — and brings it all into Gmail for you. Better emails. Tons of power. Easy to use.
TRY GMASS FOR FREE
Download Chrome extension - 30 second install!
No credit card required
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GMass is actually fun to use. I love tracking the emails and being able to see who opened them, and who clicked my links.