I thought I’d write a quick blog on email deliverability as it came up in one of my marketing meetings recently. There are lots of blog posts out there about this kind of stuff, but it seems to be written by and for robots and they all seem to focus on just the technical SPF & DKIM stuff…
Below are some things that have worked for me in the past, not theory but some technical and creative stuff from my time working on email campaigns for the likes of Manchester City Football Club and Swinton Insurance.
1. Segment Like You Mean It
At Manchester City Football Club, we started getting emails from some fans saying “You’re sending too much” but others didn’t mind the cadence. So we looked into the data and started tiering subscribers based on how many previous emails they had opened.
- Opened most of them? We classed them as super fans and sent more content, behind-the-scenes stuff, match-day info.
- Opened one or two, or just the monthly newsletter? We eased off, sent them just the highlights instead.
We also looked at how they came into the database. Fans from FIFA or Fantasy Premier League were probably more casual so less matchday info, more monthly newsletters.
None of this was rocket science, just empathy and a bit of common sense and the result was a 62% increase in open rates compared with the previous season.
2. A Breakup Email That Actually Worked
At Swinton Insurance, we had a challenge in having a large list but a lot of disengaged contacts. They took the decision to try and engage those that hadn’t opened an email in a long time, so we created an email with the subject line “Are we breaking up?”
Inside, we included a cheeky breakup mixtape linked to spotify playlist and asked if they’d like to continue to hear from us. A big YES or NO
If they didn’t click “yes,” we unsubscribed them.
The result?
- Cleaned-up list
- Higher open and click-through rates
- Better deliverability across the board
- Fewer emails hitting the spam or promo tab
Basically, we stopped hanging on to people who weren’t that into us.
3. The Subject Line That Beat Everything
This one still makes me laugh. Back working in one agency we had sessions on how to write the best subject lines. In fact here are 9 kickstarter strategies for writing subject lines
But do you know what the subject line was for the highest email open rate?
It was the one where somebody forgot to put any subject line in at all.
People are naturally curious and by creating an information gap, people needed to know what was in the email. But before you go and do this yourself, just remember you can only really do this once before it loses its magic.
4. Don’t Forget the Boring Bits (I Don’t Think They’re Actually Boring)
I know the technical side isn’t the sexiest bit of email, but it really does matter.
Here’s the checklist we should all be ticking off:
- SPF, DKIM, and DMARC set up properly (if you’re not sure then IT can help you).
- Unsubscribe link in every email.
- No spammy subject lines, if it reads like a late night shopping channel, rewrite it.
- Warm up new IPs slowly and don’t send to your whole database on day one.
- Keep an eye on bounce rates and spam complaints they’re warning signs, not just metrics.
If the tech is right, and the content is relevant, you’ll be in a good place.
5. Be Human About It
And my final point is to remember to be human. Your emails aren’t going up against your competitors, they’re also competing with wedding invites, amazon receipts and emails from Mum.
So be clear, be honest, and speak directly to the person reading it. No jargon or filler.
EDIT
We also tested multiple names for the sender and this also helped to increase open rates. Try names like “Emily@CompanyName” and test other names too. It’s amazing how a small change can have huge impacts on your open rates.