The Informz 2011 Association Email Marketing Benchmark Report

2011 Association Email Marketing Benchmark Report

Informz, Inc.

Table of Contents
Introduction
Email Marketing Metrics

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1

Key Findings Results

Overall Association Metrics Results by Email Type Results by Country of Sender Results by Association Type Results by Email Client Usage Results by Length of Subject Line Results by Number of Links Results by Number of Recipients Results by Time of Day Sent Results by Day of Week Sent Effects of Personalizing the Subject Line

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3 4 6 7 10 13 14 15 16 17 18

Conclusion About Informz

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2011 Association Email Marketing Benchmark Report

Informz, Inc.

Introduction
Email marketing has become one of the primary ways that associations communicate with members, and has proven to be both a cost-efficient and highly-effective tool. However, with the struggling economy and increasing demands on members time, optimizing email marketing campaigns has become more important than ever. Informz, the leading provider of email marketing solutions for the association industry, has performed a study on our association client base to provide email marketers from member-based organizations benchmarking information for their email programs. This study should help you to understand what metrics you should be analyzing when reviewing your email marketing program, what goals you can set based on similar organizations, and how your email marketing program is performing. This report includes a summary of email marketing metrics collected from over 500 large and mid-sized associations that used the Informz email marketing platform in 2010. These associations, located in the United States, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and United Kingdom, sent over 400 million emails in 2010 consisting of newsletters, appeals, surveys, and event related emails.

Email Marketing Metrics

Four key metrics are used in this report: delivery, open, click and unsubscribe rates. Delivery Rate is the percentage of emails that were not reported back to Informz as having been bounced or blocked. Open Rate is the percentage of delivered emails that were reported back to Informz as having been opened. If the text version of an email is read it is not counted. Likewise if an HTML email is read with the images turned off, it is not counted. However, if an email is opened with images off, but a link is clicked, the email is counted as being opened. Open rate only includes unique subscribers. Multiple opens by one subscriber only count once. Click Rate is the percentage of opened emails that are clicked by the recipient. Clicking on a link in a text email will not count as a click. Click Rate only includes unique subscribers. Multiple clicks by one subscriber only count once. Unsubscribe Rate is the percentage of recipients who unsubscribed from a particular mailing.

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2011 Association Email Marketing Benchmark Report

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Key Findings
The Informz Association Email Marketing Benchmark Report analyzed the results from 400 million emails sent by over 500 large to mid-sized associations. The key findings from this study are as follows: The timing of email had little affect on open and click results. Day of week had less than a 1% difference in result among the days. Tactics that affected the targeting and relevancy of content had the most significant impact on results. Smaller target groups outperformed emails with larger target groups, with the smallest groups of under 50 recipients receiving an average open rate of 60%. Event emails outperformed all other types of emails averaging a 40.73% open rate and a 15.46% click rate. Appeal-based emails underperformed, receiving the least amount of opens and the most number of unsubscribes. Possibly meaning these email often go to large groups, outdated lists and lack value to the recipient. 61% of emails were received and read using desktop email software, a number that decreased from the previous year, while web and mobile device usage increased. Mobile readership of email has more than doubled in 2010, from 6% to 13%, with the iPhone being the dominate device being used. Associations in this study achieved an email delivery rate above 95%, higher than the email marketing industry average high of 92%. Medical industry associations outperformed other associations with an average 57.07% open rate on emails.

Informz, Inc., 2011

2011 Association Email Marketing Benchmark Report

Informz, Inc.

Results
Overall Association Metrics
The following chart displays the average delivery, open, click, and unsubscribe rate from 400 million emails sent by over 500 associations in the United States, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and United Kingdom.

Overall Association Metrics

100 80 average rate 60 40 20 0 97.51% Delivery 35.18% Open 18.42% Click 0.048% Unsubscribe

Notes: The highest open rate recorded by an email sent to at least 1,000 people was 83.5%. The email informed recipients that their session proposal was selected for an upcoming conference.

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2011 Association Email Marketing Benchmark Report

Informz, Inc.

Results by Email Type

For the purpose of this study the subject line of emails were analyzed to determine the email purpose and then segmented by category. The categories of emails are: Newsletter, Event, Appeal, and Survey. It was found that the delivery rate did not vary with the purpose of the email, so only open and click rate results are displayed.

Metrics Based on Email Type

Open Click

35.22% Survey 34.36% 40.73% Event 15.46% 26.66% Appeal 16.56% 28.84% Newsletter 22.75% 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50%

Notes: While the results of the study show that event mailings have the highest open rate, they also have the lowest click rate. It can be concluded that while people like to be notified about events, they often do not register for them immediately. From this chart, you can see that emails sent consistently, such as newsletters, resulted in higher open rates. While consistency in time of day and subject line may lead to increased brand awareness, it also can lead to complacency. This is where your subject line is most important. If you experience a decrease in the results of your weekly or monthly newsletter, try testing out new subject lines. A fresh subject line that helps recipients understand what value and content they will find inside the email can help your email stand out in a crowded inbox and lead to higher open rates. This study also shows that click-thru rate is higher in newsletters and one hypothesis is that recipients are willing to click on links when there isnt a direct commitment, such as fundraising attempts.

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2011 Association Email Marketing Benchmark Report

Informz, Inc.

Unsubscribe Rate Based on Email Type

0.050% 0.040% 0.030% 0.020% 0.010% 0.000% 0.047% Appeal 0.037% Newsletter 0.032% Event 0.021% Survey

Notes: The results show that the unsubscribe rate varied greatly depending on the type of email being sent. Emails containing surveys only lead to half as many unsubscribes as an appeal, while event emails also came in well under newsletters and appeals. Although newsletters tend to be opt-in, due to the frequency of them, individuals may overlook them if they do not find the information relevant or valuable, and therefore, unsubscribe. To reduce unsubscribes, make sure the information is relevant and personalized to the recipients. Avoid sending the same newsletter content to everyone on your list. Segment recipients by things like past click-thrus, job function, interest area, or demographic information and then create targeted newsletter content for those groups. Relevancy is the number one tool to help fight list fatigue and unsubscribing.

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2011 Association Email Marketing Benchmark Report

Informz, Inc.

Results by Country of Sender

Based on the physical location of the association, email marketing results were split into USA, Australia, and Canada for analysis. Other countries were omitted because there were less than 30 clients located in those countries. Delivery rate did not vary between countries, so it has been omitted from the chart.

Metrics by Country

Open Click

30.60% Australia 20.41%

39.43% Canada 24.50%

35.53% USA 17.96%

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

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2011 Association Email Marketing Benchmark Report

Informz, Inc.

Results by Association Type

Business and Industry Associations

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Banking Farming Manufacturing Tourism Retail Medical Education Other Banking Farming Manufacturing Tourism Retail Medical Education Other Banking Farming Manufacturing Tourism Retail Medical Education Other
0% 20% 40% 60% 80%

98.3% 97.14% 97.09% 95.05% 95.61% 97.57% 97.86% 97.47% 32.37% 34.66% 23.95% 36.47% 23.68% 34.78% 33.67% 32.36% 19.60% 32.23% 19.29% 19.19% 13.57% 14.71% 27.90% 20.28%
100%

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Click

Open

Delivery

2011 Association Email Marketing Benchmark Report

Informz, Inc.

Professional & Trade Associations

0%
Legal Medical Accounting Architecture Engineering Insurance Management Real Estate Marketing Government Education Other Legal Medical Accounting Architecture Engineering Insurance Management Real Estate Marketing Government Education Other Legal Medical Accounting Architecture Engineering Insurance Management Real Estate Marketing Government Education Other

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%
97.80% 98.68% 97.65% 95.51% 97.35% 98.24% 97.61% 98.10% 97.58% 97.64% 97.29% 97.27% 29.35% 57.07% 30.38% 31.34% 20.13% 35.25% 34.79% 38.83% 29.97% 36.36% 30.92% 32.44% 19.68% 10.30% 16.83% 20.73% 20.27% 18.92% 25.22% 19.49% 20.60% 25.25% 25.60% 21.21%

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

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Click

Open

Delivery

2011 Association Email Marketing Benchmark Report

Informz, Inc.

Notes: The results from this study should provide a general baseline to compare your current statistics. However, it is important to remember that every audience is different. Therefore, when conducting tests and analysis be sure to also consider your organizations past analytics to see if improvements have been made. Associations in this study achieved an email delivery rate above 95%, higher than the email marketing industry average high of 92%. Medical industry associations received the highest average email open rates with an impressive 57.07%, and Engineering and Manufacturing associations reported the lowest open rates, less than 25%. When looking at open rates, a text version open is not reported in this study. With technical audiences it is common to have a higher percentage of text version recipients, lending importance to analyzing email engagement and conversion rates. Engagement rates such as open and click-thrus are a result of how relevant the message is for the recipient. Interestingly, Farming industry associations reported the highest click-thru rates with an average of 32.23%. To increase engagement rates, it is important to utilize stored data, such as past behaviors, to customize your message and the experience for your members.

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2011 Association Email Marketing Benchmark Report

Informz, Inc.

Results by Email Client Usage

Informz is able to determine the email client or program used to view any email that is recorded as being opened by Informz. The first chart shows the relationship between desktop software (Outlook, Lotus Notes), web-based (Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail) and mobile email clients (iPhone, iPad, Android). It should be noted that emails opened in a web browser on a mobile device are considered mobile and not web-based. Also, mobile devices that do not display HTML are not reported here.

Opens by Type of Email Client

80% 70%
Mobile Device Desktop Software Web Based Email

60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0%

67% 24% 6% 6%
December 2009

Uncertain

63% 26% 9% 6%
June 2010

61% 25% 13% 6%

December 2010

Notes: Understanding what your recipients are using to read your emails can help you to create an effective email design to best engage your readers. Desktop software continues to dominate, however the study shows that mobile readership of email has more than doubled in the past 12 months alone. With the growing popularity of smartphones, this number is expected to continue to rapidly increase. Email renders quite differently on a mobile device than it does on a PC, and to add to the challenge, all mobile devices differ in how they render email. Therefore, it is important to consider your mobile audience and alter your design to meet their needs (subject line length, graphics, and link placement).

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2011 Association Email Marketing Benchmark Report

Informz, Inc.

Email Client with Most Significant Changes

50%
Outlook 2000/2003 Outlook 2007

40%

iPhone iPad

30%

20%

10%

0%

43% 14% 6% 0%
December 2009

37% 16% 8% 1%
June 2010

31% 17% 10% 2%

December 2010

35% 30% 25% 20% 15% 10% 5% 0%

Desktop Email Client Usage

31.5%
Outlook 2000/2003

17%
Outlook 2007

8%
Apple Mail

2.5%
Outlook 2010

2%

1%

Lotus-Notes Thunderbird

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2011 Association Email Marketing Benchmark Report

Informz, Inc.

6% 5% 4% 3% 2% 1% 0%

Web Based Email Client Usage

5.1% Yahoo

4% Hotmail

3.7% Gmail

2.8% AOL

12% 10% 8% 6% 4% 2% 0%

Mobile Email Client Usage

10% iPhone

2% iPad

1% Android

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Informz, Inc., 2011

2011 Association Email Marketing Benchmark Report

Informz, Inc.

Notes: Desktop software continues to dominate in the area of email client usage. The most significant changes were seen with the usage of desktop software, specifically Outlook 2003 and Outlook 2007. Usage of Outlook 2003 has rapidly declined while adoption of the 2007 version of the program is increasing. Adoption of Outlook 2010 is also slow, as the results show it constitutes only about 2% of the opens in December 2010.

Results by Length of Subject Line

50%

Open Rate Based on Subject Line Length

40%
Open Percentage

30%

20%

10%

0%
<10 1019 2029 3039 4049 5059 6069 >69

Notes: Email subject line is your first impression and aside from the email from address, is one of the most important factors in determining if your email is read by a recipient or not. Vague, consistently misleading, or static subject lines often can cause emails to be overlooked. It is also important to be aware of how your subject line reads if truncated. Long subject lines often get cut off and can take on a different meaning or lose the intended message, therefore shorter subject lines are recommended. On desktops, subject lines should be no more than 50 characters; mobile devices even shorter, less than 30 characters.

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2011 Association Email Marketing Benchmark Report

Informz, Inc.

Results by Number of Links

35% 30% 25%
Click Percentage

Click Rate Based on Number of Links on the Email

33% 27% 24% 18% 14% 13% 19% 21% 16%

20% 15% 10% 5% 0%

1 2

34

57

815

1630

3150

5170

>70

Notes: Having many links in an email provides the reader increased opportunities to click on a link, and therefore can increase the click-thru percentage. When deciding which links to place and where, utilize your click-thru reports from previous emails sent to see where your audience is more likely to click. Try testing different strategies like making images, buttons, and text clickable options for recipients.

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2011 Association Email Marketing Benchmark Report

Informz, Inc.

Results by Number of Recipients

80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0%

<50

Metrics Based on Number of Recipients

Open Click

50100

100250

250500

5001k

1k5k

5k50k

50k100k 100k250k

>250k

Notes: This study shows that the open rate and click rate decrease with the more recipients included in a mailing. The highest open rate results are achieved with micro targeting of fewer than 50 people. The smaller the recipient list, the more customized the message tends to be; thereby supporting the notation that relevancy has a significant effect in engagement levels and ROI.

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2011 Association Email Marketing Benchmark Report

Informz, Inc.

Results by Time of Day Sent

Metrics Based on Time of Day Sent

50%

Open Click

40%

30%

20%

10%

0%

41.49% 15.32%
Morning

34.19% 19.15%
Mid-Day

32.62% 20.41%
Late Afternoon

30.58% 18.89%
Night

Notes: This study has found that emails sent in the morning hours have received the highest open rates, meanwhile the highest click rates are found in the afternoon. The increase in clicks towards the end of the day may signify that as staff is preparing to end the typical work day, they are more willing to take action on an email. If no action is taken on an email in the morning it can get lost among the myriad of emails that are sent throughout the day. Analyzing the time of day in which your audience is most likely to take action, can help you further customize the time in which you plan to send important emails.

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2011 Association Email Marketing Benchmark Report

Informz, Inc.

Results by Day of Week Sent

One of the most common questions asked by email marketers is, when is the best day to send my email? This study analyzes the mailing results by day of the week, Monday Friday.

Email Metrics Based on Day of Week Sent

40% 35% 30% 25% 20% 15% 10% 5% 0%
34.82% 18.03% 34.15% 18.55% 33.95% 18.73% 33.20% 19.33%

Open Click

35.45% 19.11%

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

Notes: Interestingly, this study shows that there is very little change in open or click rate based on the day of the week the mailing is sent. Meaning that day of the week has little impact on the results of a mailing; whereas the other studies show that content and relevancy impact your email program more.

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Informz, Inc., 2011

2011 Association Email Marketing Benchmark Report

Informz, Inc.

Effects of Personalizing the Subject Line

Open Rates Based on Subject Line Personalization

50%
No Personalization Personalization

40%

30%

20%

10%

0%
35.22% 38.45% 26.66% 27.78% 40.73% 29.76% 28.84% 33.59%

Survey

Appeal

Event

Newsletter

Open Rates Based on Subject Line Personalization

40% 35% 30% 25% 20% 15% 10% 5% 0%
30.60% 32.60% 35.53% 30.83%

No Personalization Personalization

Australia

U.S.

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Informz, Inc., 2011

2011 Association Email Marketing Benchmark Report

Informz, Inc.

Notes: Organizations have been utilizing personalization within the body of an email for several years and it has now become a tactic that is almost expected by readers. However, personalizing the subject line is something that few organizations have been testing. Only approximately 1% of emails sent by Informz contained personalized subject lines in 2010 and only the US and Australia produced enough data to be analyzed for this study. Therefore, it should be noted that these results are not based on a significant source of data, however give a glimpse into a technique that should be tested as a tool to increase engagement with recipients.

Conclusion
The purpose of this study was to provide industry specific metrics to association email marketers enabling them to have a better understanding as to: what metrics to analyze when reviewing email marketing programs what goals to set based on similar organizations how their email marketing program is performing It is important to remember that the results from this study should only provide a general baseline to compare your current statistics. When considering analysis of your own email marketing program it is best to use these results in combination with your organizations past email marketing campaign results, as well as an understanding as to your specific audience and their needs.

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Informz, Inc., 2011

2011 Association Email Marketing Benchmark Report

Informz, Inc.

About Informz
Since 1997 Informz has been dedicated to serving the association and nonprofit industries by offering powerful online marketing tools built to meet the unique challenges faced by these organizations. Email is a Science Web-based technologies from Informz enable personalized, highly-targeted communications coupled with real-time reporting features designed to reach the inbox and drive results. Sending the right message to the right people at the right time is achieved through email relevancy and your organizations ability to leverage its database. Your successful marketing and communications depends on reaching the inbox and engaging subscribers. Simply stated, targeted email communications improve your response rates, and better response rates increase your messages impact. The Informz Difference In addition to on-demand product support, you deserve one-on-one, up-to-date email marketing guidance relevant to your unique needs, built upon strong relationships and reliable collaboration. In order to maximize your success, your exclusive eMarketing Advisor is always ready to assist throughout the development, publishing, and measurement of your email campaigns. Devoted to your professional success, Informz combines state-of-the-art technology with our trusted eMarketing Advisors to bring you products and services that fit with your marketing goals. Through dynamic targeting, intelligent deliverability, precision reporting, seamless integration, and expert Advisors, Informz truly is the way to know email marketing.

Informz has been a great email marketing tool; providing great analytics, great customer service and an easy to use product. Informz is now our core email marketing solution from emails and newsletter to surveys and alerts; it has become essential in our business.
~Chris Ma, Australian Veterinary Association

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