Yesmail Study: Consumers Clicking Less as Inboxes Fill Up

Analysis of 25 billion emails shows unique click rate dropped 14 percent as email volume grew by 9 percent over the past year


PORTLAND, Ore., Sept. 9, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- A recent Yesmail report shows consumers are clicking on far fewer promotional emails than they did a year ago, as they receive more marketing messages than ever.

The Email Marketing Compass report from Yesmail, the email marketing solutions provider of Yes Lifecycle Marketing, finds that, while email volume increased by 9 percent over the last year and open rates remained fairly consistent, falling by only 3 percent year-over-year, unique clicks of marketing emails saw a significant drop of 14 percent over the past year. The data from the Yesmail study suggests, while subscribers are keeping up with the higher email volume by opening messages almost at the same rate as before, they are becoming increasingly selective about the messages they click on.

The increased selectivity with which subscribers act on the emails they receive is likely driven by the increasing number of emails opened on mobile devices and the lower likelihood of those opens converting into clicks. Almost two-thirds of email opens now happen on a smartphone or tablet but mobile clicks only account for 35 percent of all email clicks.

"Consumers reach a tipping point where they can't keep up with their inboxes," said Michael Fisher, president of Yes Lifecycle Marketing. "Brands are continuing to rely on email to communicate with their customers, but marketers won't earn the all-important click unless they meet the needs of each subscriber through relevant content and optimized user experience."

By contrast, active subscribers – those who have opened or clicked a message in the past 90 days – continue to interact with brand emails and represent an opportunity for marketers this holiday season. Over the past year, the number of opens among active subscribers increased 6 percent, bucking the overall downward trend.

"The holiday season is a critical time for brands. Traditionally, the open rate tends to fall during the holidays as email volume spikes. The year-over-year drop in clicks, ranging from 7 percent to 16 percent over the last year, represents an additional threat," Fisher said. "Brands should respond to the selective email reader by listening carefully to their audiences instead of simply sending out more messages that get ignored or deleted."

To download the full Yesmail Email Marketing Compass report, click here.

About Yesmail Interactive

Yesmail Interactive, Yes Lifecycle Marketing's email marketing solutions provider, powers intelligent customer interactions. We define ourselves by a better caliber of technology, unmatched insights, and skilled services experts that help our clients get to 'YES' sooner with their customers. As a leading email services provider, we seamlessly integrate email, mobile, web, and social channels, enabling the world's best known brands to use data-driven insights to create meaningful connections with their customers in real-time. For more information, visit www.yesmail.com.

About Yes Lifecycle Marketing

Yes Lifecycle Marketing is a solution provider that brings together multichannel marketing platforms and data, with creative and strategy services honed on the optimization of delivering relevant marketing messages. This gives marketers the ability to source best-of-breed technology and creative and strategy services from a single vendor at a cost-effective price point. For more information, visit www.yeslifecyclemarketing.com.


            

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