Are your email marketing campaigns falling victim to faulty timing? Studies show that email has an extremely short shelf life – the longer your email sits an a recipient’s inbox, the less likely it is to be opened.
Well-planned email timing increases engagement
According to a September 2012 survey from StrongMail, 54.6% of U.S. marketers believe that sending emails within a certain window of time increases engagement. One third of surveyed marketers said that the right timing can increase revenues.
Email’s expiration date
According to email marketing service provider GetResponse, emails are most likely to be opened within the first hour after delivery. Nearly one quarter of all email opens happen within 60 minutes of delivery, and open rates drastically decline after that first hour, dropping by half within the second hour, and by more than 90% five hours after delivery.
Best times to send marketing emails
The best time to send emails is logically when your audience will be reviewing their inboxes. While this will vary according to your audience’s demographics and habits, GetResponse uses data to conclude that, for the most part, email is likely to be tackled in the morning and early afternoon. The top open hours are:
- 8:00 am
- 9:00 am
- 3:00 pm
- 4:00 pm
When choosing a delivery time, it’s important to remember that your recipients live in a variety of time zones. While 9am may be prime time in New York, your London audience will receive this “morning message” in the afternoon. Combat this issue by segmenting your lists according to time zone, or check if your email service provider allows for timing adjustments according to time zone.
Timing your email blasts correctly can be tricky, but it’s one of many factors that can boost the ROI of an email campaign. Be sure to check out our tips on newsletter signup boxes, mobile-friendly email and building email lists with Facebook.
