By Marcus Roth, Simplicity Lone Beacon’s Senior Director of Data, Automation & Content.
People get tens, even hundreds of emails a day. With so many emails flying around our inboxes, it can be hard to think critically about the technical strategy behind a successful email campaign. The truth is that not just anything goes when it comes to your email strategy. Producing and maintaining a successful email campaign takes not only a solid understanding of your brand, but a dedication to deciphering what works from a technical and statistical standpoint and how to use that data as the backbone to conveying your authentic brand.
We recently conducted an analysis of our highly engaged email templates which are sent out to those our scoring system deems “Highly Engaged”. The data shared offers valuable insights into the performance of different email templates. By assessing the Average Open Rate (Avg. Open Rate), Average Click-Through Rate (Avg. CTR), and the total number of sends for each template, we can derive meaningful conclusions and insights that can inform future email marketing strategies.
In 2023 we switched many of our clients to a new version of the template. Moving from a very traditional email to various templates. Some of the new automations send two emails, one disguised email where the principal of the firm makes an in-person personal connection followed by a branded outreach 10 minutes later “assigning” the recipient to an employee of the firm as their now “go-to” person for questions.
We adopted this template strategy based on the success it was having in the real estate market from a digital marketing consultant and peer of mine. For context, I want to share with you how we examine and analyze the data presented above to make smart strategic decisions when it comes to financial advisor email campaigns.
- Overall Email Template Performance:
- Template A: Despite being sent only 35 times, this template exhibited a commendable Avg. Open Rate of 68.55%. However, its Avg. CTR stands at a relatively modest 2.86%.
- Template B: Demonstrating the effectiveness of this template, it had a strong Avg. Open Rate of 71.41% and a higher Avg. CTR of 4.83%. With 554 sends, its performance is consistently good over a larger sample.
- Template C: With 346 sends, it managed an Avg. Open Rate of 68.85% and an Avg. CTR of 4.15%.
- Template D: This template, used 16 times, has an open rate of 69.20%, but interestingly, no one clicked through the content, resulting in a 0% CTR. This template will be largely ignored for the remainder of this piece.
- Original: The most widely used template with 2492 sends, it had an open rate of 58.73%—the lowest among the templates. However, its CTR is the highest at 7.79%.
- By Email Type:
- Branded: These emails are stylized to look like a branded piece of official communications from the advisory. Representing the majority of the sends (3075), this type had an open rate of 61.74% and a CTR of 6.60%.
- Disguised: Even though it had fewer sends (1076), it achieved a higher open rate of 71.40%. However, its CTR is significantly lower at 2.40%. One critical stipulation to keep in mind is that the disguised emails do not often have a URL to be clicked in the body of the email. Since the template is attempting to look like an individual typing from their phone, the only things to click are email signatures and sometimes phone number quick call hyperlinks.
Conclusion: I think the open rate alone showcases the power of the new strategy. Firstly, disguised emails look and feel far more authentic because the subject line is crafted intentionally so. Then, within the email we tee up the reader to expect another email from the “company” which I suspect further boosts the next email’s open rate. CTR is depressed given the lack of links.
- By Version:
We can also see how the performance of these emails compare to each other based on which version they are. To break it down for you, see the following data to understand this comparison:
- New: This version had 1023 sends, with an open rate of 69.50% and a CTR of 2.96%.
- Original: As mentioned earlier, the original version had a lower open rate of 58.73% but an impressive CTR of 7.79% with 2492 sends.
Conclusion: The CTR of the original template is very notable, however – two outliers in the data I believe skew the average CTR data to a point of invalidation.
- Top Performing Templates:
For open rates, templates with versions B and C dominated, with the highest being the subject line- “Great to meet you!” at 84.80%. Followed by the next email in the automation with the subject line “Hi {{First Name}}, have you met [Company Agent’s Name]?”
Interesting Patterns & Observations:
Engagement vs. Action: The Original template showcases an interesting dichotomy. Despite a relatively lower open rate, it compels a higher percentage of users to click through. This could imply that the direct nature of the call-to-action within the email is compelling. It certainly is direct, which is clear and for prospects we know to be interested, might be the best strategy after all.
Branded vs. Disguised: The disguised emails, potentially appearing more personal or less commercial, seem to enjoy a higher open rate than branded ones. However, they don’t prompt as much interaction, suggesting the importance of balancing authenticity with clear calls to action.
Consistency of B and C: Templates B and C consistently performed well, both in terms of open rate and CTR, indicating their effectiveness.
In conclusion, for future campaigns, my current hypothesis we will test is simply adding the classic template to the end of the automation many weeks later. This will allow us to potentially get the best of both worlds. With many weeks apart, prospects won’t feel overwhelmed, but this will allow the advisor to “take another swing” at someone proven to be interested in their marketing materials and content.
Hopefully, this data summary gives you a window into what goes into a successful email marketing strategy from a technical and creative standpoint. With this, you’ll have a clearer understanding as to how and why your prospects are engaging with your brand, and what it takes to see actionable improvement in your marketing goals.
About the Author: Marcus Roth is Simplicity Lone Beacon’s Senior Director of Data, Automation & Content. Marcus has a unique experience in B2B and B2C start-up companies ranging from enterprise-level market research of Artificial Intelligence to self-defense eCommerce products. His experience in AI market research brought him, and his research, to INTERPOL, The United Nations and Harvard University.
