One of the most frequently asked questions our new Clients put to us is ‘what is a good Click Thru’ Rate?’ As with any question there are always two answers, the short one and the longer, more detailed version. We thought we’d share both with you here. Please bear in mind that we have been limited in terms of data available for industry benchmarking as most of the current reports available from 2011 are based on 2010 figures. Come on guys, the digital world is supposed to be able to respond in a blink.

The Short Answer

• Average Email Open Rate – 23.3%*
• Average Click Thru’ Rate – 5.9%*
• Average Delivery Rate – 96%*

*Epsilon Q1 2011 Email trends & Benchmarking

The Long Answer

The success of your e-CRM activity is dependent on many variables including:

• frequency of contact
• nature of communication (generic newsletter vs tailored message)
• relevance to target audience
• quality of data/segmentation

Taking a look at the bands of upper to lower CTR’s for specific types of email activity might prove a more illuminating exercise. For example:

• B2B email newsletter – 4%-16%
• B2C promotional emails – 2%-14%
• B2B/B2C tailored emails 10%-20%

To achieve the higher end of these scales you need to ensure your content is relevant and gives recipients a reason to click thru’ links.

If you find your communications are skewing at the bottom end of these statistics there are some simple steps you can take to improve performance:

• Check your email delivery rates. Make sure they’re getting through.
• Review your opt-in process. Average unsubscribe rates are 0.85%. If you’re getting higher than this it would indicate either your communications are irrelevant or your data quality questionable. How do you collate contact details? Are you adhering to basic opt-in practice?
• Review your data and make sure your messages are relevant to who you’re targeting. Try and make your communications as tailored as possible so it is relevant and valuable.
• look at your subject line. The more compelling it is the better open rate and so CTR you should achieve.
• Review your design and layout – make sure you have a strong call to action and that key links are clearly highlighted so you’re directing user behaviour.
• Take a step back and look at your communication. Put yourself in the recipients shoes. Does it honestly give you a reason to click thru’?

Of course we have our own case studies and set our own objectives based on industry benchmarks. We’ve been working with many of our clients for years now so that should tell you all you need to know about us. If you would like to discuss your email requirements please do give us a shout.

If you liked this article you might  be interested in some of our other blog posts:

There is a fold
How to boost your digital ROI
Our Top Tips for an effective CTA strategy
How to personalise your communications

Other sources which give additional/different information regarding this are:
Mailchimp – 2010 figures
MailerMailer metrics report – 2010 figures