Email marketing campaigns are essential to your strategy. They can boost your engagement and conversions and help build a loyal customer base for your business. That’s a pretty big promise, but it’s within your power to realise it. How, you ask?
Two words: timing and frequency. Let us explain.
Email campaigns have a lot of potential, but much of this potential depends on when and how often you send them. You want your emails to be seen, interacted with, and reacted to — that’s a sign of their success.
With email marketing timing, there’s no ‘one-size-fits-all.’ When you send your emails depends on your subscribers and when your open rate is at its highest. The same is true for email marketing frequency. Only you know how often your subscribers prefer to receive your emails.
Let’s begin by explaining the importance of email marketing timing before discussing email marketing frequency. Buckle up.
Every business is different, so an email marketing timing that works for one brand may not work for you. To find your email marketing campaign’s sweet spot, there are a few things to remember.
As we’ve already said, there’s no universal time that drives success for email marketing campaigns. It depends on your audience.
But, generally speaking, much research points to mid-week emails (so Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday) receiving higher engagement. On these days, people receive fewer emails than Mondays and Fridays.
This is your chance. Send your campaigns in the middle of the week. It lessens the odds of your email getting lost in your subscribers’ inbox clutter, increasing your open rates — yay!
Psst, here’s another tip: according to MailShake, if you want to boost your open rates, you should definitely send your email campaigns on Tuesdays.
Coolio. We now know which days work best, but… what about the time?
Research suggests sending email marketing campaigns in the morning (between 9am and 11am) or early afternoon (between 1pm and 3pm). Because some people are likely to check their emails during work breaks, emailing during lunch breaks (between 12pm and 1pm) can also be effective.
Again, this depends on your subscribers and whether they read their emails during the working day. Take this with a grain of salt, and remember: what’s true for one business may not be true for you, and that’s okay.
One way to find your ideal email marketing timing is to look at your past data. There are many metrics to consider, specifically your peak engagement times, the correlation between sending times, your open rates, and your click-through rates.
If you’re interested in learning more about this, contact us. We go on an ‘email marketing metric‘ deep-dive on our KnowledgeBase; we guarantee it’ll make your brain grow in size, just as your success.
If you need more information, consider looking at some general trends as well.
For example, some trends suggest avoiding weekends for sending campaigns (while others advise the opposite). Sending your email campaigns during the working week is a safe choice, but if you notice higher open rates on Saturday, take advantage of it.
Also, some trends note that evening emails (between 4pm and 7pm) can be deemed slightly annoying as your recipients will be unwinding after work. It’s usually after 6pm that open rates decline.
If your open rates are still high in the evening, then, of course, keep those emails rolling.
For some consumers, evenings are when most of their online shopping happens. It’s when many people have the time to look through their personal emails and absorb their content without rushing to open the email and forgetting to react.
Send your emails when you know your subscribers will pay close attention to them (and appreciate your well-crafted call-to-action — perhaps to the point of, well, taking action).
It all comes down to the type of subscribers you have and the kind of campaign you’re sending out. Knowing your audience is a must for finding your optimal email marketing timing.
You need to understand their habits and preferences. Identify common (online) behaviours and characteristics between your subscribers, whether that’s through available data or surveys, and your answer will start shaping up.
If you’re a newbie or simply don’t know enough about your audience yet, it’s no biggie.
Email marketing (or marketing overall, really) and experimentation go hand-in-hand. You’ll learn more about your subscribers and know what emails — and their timings — best resonate with them.
Think of it as a game. Send your emails to various segments at different times and days, analyse your open rates, and see what wins.
A/B tests are the best for this. They are designed to help you compare two versions of something (like email marketing timing) and determine the better-performing option.
Some variables you can compare in A/B testing to do with email marketing timing:
Now, let’s talk about how often you should send your email campaigns.
If email marketing frequency had a motto, it would be: ‘Don’t overdo it.’
It can be tempting, especially when you really want to sell your products or services, but a delicate balance must be struck. If you send too few emails, you risk losing your subscribers’ interest, and if you send too many, you risk a spike in unsubscribers (or being flagged as spam).
This in-between space is where the magic happens. It helps drive results and determines your campaign’s success.
You probably already guessed, but a good email marketing frequency also helps with customer retention. This means keeping your subscribers engaged, interested, and waiting for your new communications. (Yes, waiting!).
When you send the right amount of emails at the right time, more subscribers will take the next step and complete your desired action, like making a purchase. That’s why it’s so important to master this.
As with email marketing timing, there are several factors that you should take into account when finding the optimal frequency for your campaign. Here are a few:
No matter how many emails you send, following some recommended processes is essential to keep your subscribers happy and your open rates thriving.
Inform every new subscriber of how many emails they can expect to receive from you in a week. Be clear from the beginning. It’ll boost your brand perception and keep your subscribers from opting out of your email list; they knew what they were signing up for.
Take it one step further by utilising the email’s subject line. Be honest about the contents of the email (clickbait is a no-no!); craft something engaging, informative, and persuasive.
You read that right. Offer your subscribers the choice to control their email frequency. This personalises their experience and boosts their satisfaction because they don’t feel forced to receive emails they don’t want.
This might reduce their likelihood of unsubscribing, as you’re eliminating a reason for their opting out. Win-win… don’t you say?
Establish a strong relationship with your subscribers by being in constant contact with them. Send them regular emails. This way, your subscribers will learn more about your brand and what you stand for and offer.
This consistent contact might eventually push them towards making a purchase — or completing any other desired action.
To analyse the effectiveness of your email marketing frequency, you’ll need to know the average numbers across your industry. That includes analysing a few metrics, like click-through rates, open rates, and unsubscribe rates.
Benchmarks are key to equipping you with a deeper understanding of your campaign performance and industry standards.
Note the benchmarks you should aim for and whether you’re reaching them. If you’re not, have a brainstorm on what rates you can improve and how. Knowledge really is power, eh?
Ah, at last. The big question and the answer you’ve all been waiting for.
The general recommendation for email marketing frequency is between 1 and 3 weekly emails. This range lets you test the waters and see what frequency best resonates with your audience.
As we’ve already covered, experimentation is good. If you realise you could (or should) be sending more emails, increase your frequency to between 2 and 4 emails. Nothing is set in stone — you can always reduce or increase your email volume.
In this case, if you’ve some valuable content you think is worthy of sharing in an email, give it a shot. You won’t know until you try. Although now is a good time to remind you of email marketing frequency’s motto: ‘Don’t overdo it.’
Send one email directly promoting something, and make the next email informational (like company news, for example). This will boost your engagement, and who knows? You might have to increase your email marketing frequency to keep up the rhythm.
One way to make a lasting impact on your customers is through personalised interactions. That’s why email marketing is so effective: it lets you sell your brand while creating a meaningful relationship with your subscribers.
At Zap, we’re all about building strong relationships — including with our clients. We want to make you stand out, stay top of mind, and make an impact. Are you interested in having a chat? Contact Team Zap today.
