Quarterly email benchmark report
Q2 2014 April, May, June
An Experian Marketing Services benchmark report
Q2 2014 email benchmark report
Table of contents
Q2 2014 executive summary.............................................................................................1
Spotlight on: Email for mobile acquisition..................................................................2
Q2 2014 benchmark volume.............................................................................................6
Year-over-year volume comparison..............................................................................................6
Volume variance YOY Q2 2014 versus Q2 2013..........................................................................6
Volume variance quarter-to-quarter............................................................................................7
Performance analysis........................................................................................................8
All industry........................................................................................................................................8
Business products and services..................................................................................................9
Catalogers.........................................................................................................................................9
Consumer products and services..............................................................................................10
Media and entertainment............................................................................................................10
Multi-channel retailers..................................................................................................................11
Publishers.......................................................................................................................................12
Travel................................................................................................................................................12
Methodology...................................................................................................................................12
Mobile trends..................................................................................................................... 13
Email opens and clicks by platform..........................................................................................13
Email opens and clicks by device..............................................................................................14
Appendix I: Metrics definitions....................................................................................15
Q2 2014 April, May, June
Q2 2014 executive summary
The following report details the overall email marketing trends for the second quarter
of 2014 as well as the key performance indicators (KPIs) that shaped the success of
Experian Marketing Services clients email programs over the past two years.
Email volume rose by 16.8 percent in Q2 2014 compared to Q2 2013.
Unique open rates were 17.5 percent in Q2 2014 ahead of 16.3 percent in 2013.
Unique click rates were 2.1 percent in Q2 2014, declining slightly from 2.3
percent in Q2 2013.
Revenue per email was $0.10 in Q2 2014 compared to $0.11 in both Q1 2014
and Q2 2013. However, average order values were consistent year-over-year at
about $192.
In this months spotlight on section we look at how brands are using email for
mobile acquisition:
Dedicated mobile acquisition emails can significantly boost mobile opt-ins,
providing as much as 86 percent of monthly mobile sign-ups and increasing
overall list size by as much as 32 percent.
Including mobile calls-to-action in ongoing email campaigns is also an effective
mobile acquisition technique. Daily mobile sign-ups are up to 3 times higher
when emails include mobile-related banners, calls-to-action, or sidebars with
links to opt-in forms.
To optimize the cross-channel benefits of these two channels, mobile landing
pages should be used to capture email addresses.
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Quarterly email benchmark report
Spotlight on: Email for mobile acquisition
Email plays a key role in mobile acquisition. As noted in the recently published
Mobile marketing best practices guide from Experian Marketing Services, using
email to acquire mobile subscribers should be part of every mobile promotional,
customer service and rewards program. Email subscribers are a readymade
audience to opt-in to a mobile program, as these subscribers have already shown
interest in a brand. With over 50 percent of emails being opened on mobile
devices, there is a strong likelihood that many email subscribers will be interested
in receiving mobile messages and offers as well.
The mobile dedicated email
It is important to note that email list sizes are often significantly larger than mobile
list sizes, given the maturity of the channel. Mobile lists tend to be more difficult
to initially acquire due to the personal nature of the devices. However, mobile
messaging list sizes now range from tens of thousands to multiple millions of
phone numbers. Though list size may be smaller, mobile subscribers tend to be
highly engaged, and when subscribed to both email and mobile messaging, are
likely to be among a brands most valuable customers.
Much as we saw in the early stages of social media, emails specifically encouraging
mobile sign-ups can be the most effective tools for adding subscribers to the new
marketing channel, and growing a customer base over time.
Dedicated mobile emails can drive over 86% of monthly mobile acquisition
100%
80%
86.4%
75.6%
78.5%
67.4%
60%
40%
28.1%
20%
0%
Case 1
Case 2
Case 3
Case 4
Case 5
Dedicated email opt-ins as % of monthly opt-ins
Source: Experian Marketing Services
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There are two main formats for mobile dedicated emails:
Text to short code call-to-action
Simple opt-in process direct from mobile device
Single opt-in user flow
Limited CRM data collection opportunities
Link to web opt-in form
Multi-step enrollment process for users via web form
Double opt-in process upon form submit
Opportunity for data collection and subscriber profiling
Opportunity for device detection
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Quarterly email benchmark report
For emails dedicated to mobile signups, the number of mobile subscribers
acquired was typically around 1 percent of the email volume sent. While this may
seem like a low response rate, it actually represented an increase of between 15
and 32 percent in the overall mobile list size for these brands.
For the cases in this study, the dedicated mobile
acquisition mailings were sent once a month or once
every other month. The first mailing generated the
highest number of mobile sign-ups, while the next
months mailing generated 40 percent to 50 percent
more new mobile subscribers. Some of the subsequent
mailings also included general offers in their creative, as
well as a major section asking subscribers to sign up for
mobile. These dual purpose mailings did just as well in
obtaining subsequent mobile subscribers. It is important
to test both the timing and content of your campaigns to
optimize mobile acquisition for your brand.
Mobile calls-to-action
Just like social media icons, shop now buttons and other features, a mobile callto-action should be a standard feature in your email design and creative. Growing
your mobile list requires continuously promoting the program. Our case studies
have found that daily mobile sign-ups are up to 3 times higher when emails include
mobile related banners, calls-to-action, or sidebars with links to opt-in forms.
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Q2 2014 April, May, June
Leveraging mobile to capture new email subscribers
Conversely, there are a variety of highly effective mobile strategies that can
be used to acquire email subscribers. Forty-four percent of our 2014 State of
Cross-Channel Marketing Survey respondents cited mobile (SMS, apps, or
mobile web) as an acquisition source for email addresses. Acquisition of email
addresses via SMS can provide a streamlined method for capture in stores and
has yielded impressive results for many brands. Several clients utilizing this
method have acquired more than 50,000 email addresses within a six month period.
Consider a user experience like the one below for capturing email addresses in-store
via SMS and a mobile landing page:
Source: Experian Marketing Services
Email and mobile acquisition recommendations
Send dedicated mobile acquisition emails: Whether you are presenting a
text to short code call-to-action or a link to a subscribe form, dedicated mobile
emails can significantly increase your mobile list.
Links to web opt-in forms: Collecting additional information with an opt-in
form can provide data for further targeting and offer segmentation.
Include mobile calls-to-action in ongoing email campaigns: Mobile
calls-to-action should become a standard feature in your email design to
continuously encourage subscribers to receive your mobile messages.
Capture email sign-ups on mobile landing pages: Email and mobile
lend themselves well to cross-channel acqusitions and promotions. Each
channel can be used to support the other and combine to provide dynamic,
complimentary elements of a well-run digital marketing program.
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Quarterly email benchmark report
Q2 2014 benchmark volume
Year-over-year volume comparison
The following benchmarks report on the year-over-year (YOY) trends for Q2 2014
compared to Q2 2013. This quarter, email volume rose by 16.8 percent compared to
the same quarter last year.
Volume variance YOY Q2 2014 versus Q2 2013
Volume variance by industry Q2 to Q2 (2014 vs 2013)
30%
27.7%
26.4%
20%
18.6%
10%
18.5%
16.8%
9.5%
5.8%
0%
1.6%
Business
products
and services
Catalogers
Consumer
Media and Multi-channel Publishers
products entertainment
retailers
and services
Travel
All industry
Catalogers had the highest gain in volume, as one hundred percent (100%) of
brands increased mailings in Q2 2014, while media and entertainment had the
second highest volume gain with 61 percent of brands showing year-over-year
volume increases.
Business products and services brands had a small year-over-year increase in
volume, as brands split 50/50 for increases and decreases in email volume.
Seventy-one percent of multi-channel retailers, 67 percent of consumer products
and services, 54 percent of publishers and 47 percent of travel brands had
increases in year-over-year volume.
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Volume variance quarter-to-quarter
20%
19%
Volume variance Q2 compared to Q1 by industry 2013 and 2014
12%
10%
6%
2%
0%
10%
8%
7%
9%
9%
6%
7% 8%
7%
1%
1%
-10% -8%
Business
products
and services
Catalogers
Consumer
Media and Multi-channel
retailers
products entertainment
and services
Q2 2013 to Q1 2013
Publishers
Travel
All industry
Q2 2014 to Q1 2014
In a change from 2013, business products and services had the largest quarterto-quarter increase in volume of all of the industries.
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Quarterly email benchmark report
Performance analysis
In order to enhance our understanding of whats happening by industry, we have
created views of all Q2 year-over-year metrics for 2014 versus 2013.
Positive change
Minimal change
Negative change
All industry
Q2 All industry year-over-year performance analysis
In Q2 2014, total and unique open rates were higher than those seen in Q2 2013,
as more than 56 percent of brands had significant increases in year-over-year
open rates.
Click rates were lower year-over-year, as 70 percent of brands had a significant
decrease in click rates in Q2 2014 compared to Q2 2013.
Open rates and average order values were fairly constant in Q2 compared to Q1
2014, but click and transaction rates declined.
Q2 2014 compared to Q1 2014 all industry performance analysis
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Q2 2014 April, May, June
Business products and services
Q2 Business products and services year-over-year performance analysis
Sixty percent of business products and services brands had statistically
significant increases in open rates.
Click rates remained the same year-over-year.
Catalogers
Q2 Catalogers year-over-year performance analysis
While year-over-year volume increased for catalogers, open rates were higher
in Q2 2014, as 57 percent of catalogers had statistically significant increases in
open rates in Q2 2014 compared to Q2 2013.
Although transaction rates declined, year-over-year revenue per email remained
the same as average order values rose in Q2 2014.
Bounce rates increased, but the 1.4 percent rate for catalogers is still much
lower than the 2.3 percent all industry average bounce rate for Q2 2014.
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Quarterly email benchmark report
Consumer products and services
Q2 Consumer products and services year-over-year performance analysis
Open rates rose for consumer products and services, as 55 percent of brands
had statistically significant year-over-year increases compared to Q2 2013.
Declining click rates were seen as 70 percent of consumer products and
services brands showed statistically significant lower year-over-year click rates
in Q2 2014.
In spite of lower click rates, year-over-year revenue per email and average order
values rose in Q2 2014.
Media and entertainment
Q2 Media and entertainment year-over-year performance analysis
In spite of a large year-over-year volume increase, media and entertainment
brands enjoyed increases in open rates as 70 percent of brands had statistically
significant increases in Q2 2014 compared to Q2 2013.
Click rates also increased for media and entertainment brands, but the results
were mixed as 50 percent had significant increases, while the others had declines.
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Multi-channel retailers
Q2 Multi-channel retail year-over-year performance analysis
Sixty percent of the multi-channel retail brands had statistically significant yearover-year increases in total and unique open rates in Q2 2014.
Transaction rates, revenue per email and average order values all had minimal
year-over-year changes.
Trend to watch: Fall or autumn
Starting in early summer, subject lines for fall fashions, travel opportunities
and events start appearing in emails. We looked at 45 brands that used
the words fall and autumn in their email campaigns from June through
October, 2013. While fall was used more frequently, campaigns with the
word autumn in the subject line had over 6 percent higher unique open
rates than campaigns with the word fall (18 percent unique open rate for
autumn compared to 16.9 percent for fall). Test using autumn in your
subject lines for this upcoming season.
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Quarterly email benchmark report
Publishers
Q2 Publishers year-over-year performance analysis
Open rates for publishers in Q2 2014 matched Q2 2013.
Click rates declined with two-thirds of publisher brands showing a statistically
significant year-over-year decrease in click rates in Q2 2104.
Travel
Q2 Travel year-over-year performance analysis
While open rates showed a minor decline for the travel vertical in Q2 2014, the
results are actually mixed as 58 percent of brands had statistically significant
increases in opens compared to Q2 2013.
Unique click results were also mixed with 32 percent of brands either matching
last years rates or showing statistically significant increases in click rates in Q2 2014.
Methodology
Experian Marketing Services quarterly email benchmarks are based on analysis of
major email marketing trends and key performance indicators across seven major
verticals: Business products and services, catalogers, consumer products and
services, media and entertainment, multi-channel retailers, publishers and travel.
Data analyzed within these benchmarks are from client brands within the United
States and Canada that have opted to participate in this study. All metrics reflect
average performance at 14 days after the emails have been sent.
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Mobile trends
Email opens and clicks by platform
Q2 2014 opens and clicks by platform
Forty-eight percent of total email opens occurred on a mobile phone or tablet in
Q2 2014. This is a slight drop from the 50 percent seen in Q1 2014.
The majority of email opens occurred on mobile phones or tablets for
catalogers, consumer products and services and multi-channel retailers.
Only multi-channel retailers had 50 percent or more of their total clicks occurring
on mobile phones or tablets.
Business products and services, travel and publishers still receive most of their
email opens and clicks on desktop devices.
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Quarterly email benchmark report
Email opens and clicks by device
Q2 2014 opens and clicks by major device types
The totals for opens and clicks by device type may not add up to 100 percent as
there is a small percent of other devices not included in the chart.
Catalogers had the highest percentage of tablet use (18 percent of opens and 13
percent of clicks).
The iPhone was most popular for multi-channel retailers with 38 percent of
emails opens and 27 percent of clicks occurring on an iPhone.
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Appendix I: Metrics definitions
Total opens: All opens recorded for the mailing including multiple opens by the
same subscriber. Total open rates are (total opens/received).
Unique opens: The number of unique subscribers that have opened an HTMLformatted message. Unique open rates are (unique opens/received).
Total clicks: Every click on a tracked link, including multiple clicks by a given
subscriber. Total click rates are (total clicks/received).
Unique clicks: The number of unique subscribers who have clicked on any link.
Unique click rates are (unique clicks/received).
Click-to-open rates: Unique clicks as a percentage of unique opens (unique clicks/
unique opens).
Transaction rates: Overall percentage of transactions as related to delivered
messages (transactions/received). This metric only includes data for clients who
have implemented Experian Marketing Services Track to Purchase functionality.
Transaction-to-click rates: Percentage of transactions compared to the
number of unique clicks (transactions/unique clicks). This metric only includes
data for clients who have implemented Experian Marketing Services Track to
Purchase functionality.
Average order value: Average total amount for each transaction. This metric only
includes data for clients who have implemented Experian Marketing Services Track
to Purchase functionality.
Revenue per email delivered: Average amount earned for each delivered email
(total order/received).
Bounce rates: The percentage of subscribers that did not receive a mailing because
their email addresses hard bounced (bounce/sent).
Unsubscribe rates: This reflects the total number of subscribers lost as a result of
users unsubscribing from the mailing (unique unsubscribers/received).
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