What It Is: Open rate is the percentage of people on your email list who opened a specific email you sent. It is one of the first signals you look at to gauge whether your subject line worked and whether your list is still engaged.
Formula:
Open Rate = (Unique Opens / Emails Delivered) × 100
Unique Opens is the number of distinct people who opened the email at least once. Emails Delivered is the number of emails that successfully reached an inbox, not the total you sent (some always bounce).
Why It Matters: For a local service business, open rate tells you whether anyone is paying attention. A low open rate usually means the subject line did not catch them, or the list has gone stale. A high open rate without bookings means the email itself did not move people to act. Reading both numbers together is what makes the metric useful.
Common Misconception: Open rate has gotten less reliable since Apple rolled out Mail Privacy Protection. Some opens are auto-counted by Apple even when the email was never actually viewed. Treat open rate as a directional signal, not a perfect number.
FAQ
What is a good open rate for a small business?
A 25 to 40 percent open rate is normal for a local service business. Anything above 40 percent usually points to a small, highly engaged list. Anything below 15 percent typically means the list is going cold or the subject lines need work.
How do I improve a low open rate?
Write subject lines like a person texting a friend, not a marketer. Keep them short. Send at a consistent day and time each month so people learn to expect your email. Cleaning out inactive contacts every six months also helps.
Should I track open rate or clicks?
Both, but click rate is the stronger signal. A click means someone took a real action. Open rate tells you the subject line worked; click rate tells you the email itself did.
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