Seeing the bigger picture: why email metrics don’t tell the whole story

Ah, email metrics. The bread and butter of every marketer’s existence

We’ve been relying on them for ages to measure the success of our campaigns, but let’s face it, they’re not all they’re cracked up to be. It’s time to shed some light on why you should take these metrics with a grain of salt.

First, let’s talk about clicks and opens. Yes, they may make you feel warm and fuzzy inside, thinking that your audience is devouring every word of your email. But the truth is, not every open or click is an indication of true engagement. People accidentally click, skim through content without actually absorbing it, or even worse, send your email straight to the trash without a second thought.

So, how can you measure real engagement?

It’s time to get sophisticated with your metrics. Move beyond the surface level and dive into web tracking, cross-channel engagement and lead scoring. These metrics offer a deeper understanding of how your audience interacts with your content and whether it’s driving the desired outcomes.

Let’s take a hypothetical journey using Force 24’s Journey Builder. You send an email inviting recipients to an upcoming webinar. After a three-day delay, you assess who engaged with your content and who didn’t. But here’s the kicker: your objective wasn’t just to generate email opens and clicks. It was to boost registrations. So, don’t end the journey just because someone opened or clicked the email. Instead, focus on those who demonstrated a willingness to engage and follow up with them strategically.

Cue the bots!

These sneaky creatures are skewing your email metrics, making it even harder to gauge real engagement. Since the release of iOS 15, all Apple iPhones forge opens and clicks, making it impossible to distinguish between genuine human interaction and automated actions. Thanks, mail privacy protection (MPP)! So, if you rely solely on these metrics for follow-up messaging, you’re excluding a chunk of your audience.

To broaden your horizons, you need to explore other email metrics that go beyond the realm of opens and clicks. Don’t let those iPhone users slip through the cracks. Consider metrics that provide a more comprehensive view of your campaign’s success, and don’t forget that a whopping 60% of all emails are potentially accessible from an Apple iPhone.

It’s time to take off those rose-tinted glasses and look beyond the vanity metrics. Embrace the complexity of measuring true engagement and dare to explore the metrics that truly matter. It’s a brave new world out there, and it’s time to navigate it with a touch of scepticism and a whole lot of data-driven wisdom.