It has been observed that “timing is everything,” and that applies to email marketing as well. According to a study by email software marketing leader GetResponse, almost 18 percent of marketing emails are sent on Tuesdays, with Thursdays and Monday following closely behind with 17 and 16 percent, respectively.
However, when you send your marketing emails is of little importance if they are not read, and while data from the study shows that recipients are most likely to open emails on Tuesdays, with almost twenty percent doing so, there was an interesting fact uncovered by the survey – Friday may actually garner a greater read, response, and click rate.
Friday is the day on which the fewest numbers of emails are sent out, yet they have an open rate almost identical to Tuesdays (lagging behind by only three tenths of a percentage point) while at the same time having a click rate of just short of 15 percent (14.9), slightly ahead of Tuesday. The implication here is that not only are email marketing materials sent on Fridays more likely to be read, but because they have less competition for attention from other email marketing sources, they are more likely to generate response.
The time of year plays a role as well. Email open rates are highest in the first quarter, while click rates are highest in the fourth. The implication here is that the holidays may spur a greater need to find special deals or holiday ideas, at which point subject line content becomes a point of focus and attraction.
Reference:
eMarketer. “Consumers Click on Marketing Emails Most on Friday,” October 23, 2013.
