Email Delivers ROI

Increases in key metrics like non-bounce rates, click-through rates, and orders-per-email delivered are changing the way companies are looking at their email campaigns, according to a new report by DoubleClick. Permission-based email also remains a strong marketing channel, according to "Q2 2005 DoubleClick DARTmail." Overall, non-bounce rates reached an all-time high in Q2 2005 for the 13 quarters DoubleClick has been conducting the survey. The average orders-per-email-delivered rate increased 18.2 percent from Q2 2004, while the average click-to-purchase rate increased 27.8 percent, and click-through rates decreased 6.5 percent. The data is based on more than 2.5 billion email messages sent by hundreds of clients using DoubleClick's DARTmail solution. The performance metrics by category look at averages across all companies and are then broken down into industry verticals--business products and services, consumer products, consumer services, financial services, publisher, retail and catalog, and travel. Survey results mean that email remains a profitable medium despite a 24 percent year over year decline in open rates, according to Kevin Mabley, vice president of account management and strategic services for DoubleClick's email solutions. Although open rates declined 36 percent since last year, click rates remained stable. Mabley says the data demonstrates that content remains effective in driving click response once an email has been opened. It addition, consumers respond to email when they are in the market for particular items for which they have subscribed. With strong ROI numbers like these, companies are "looking at their email campaigns differently," Mabley says. "The environment is changing, because open rates are changing. Companies are more concerned about long-term customer contact strategies and the customer life cycle. Marketers are now looking at click rates and conversation rates with high-value customers." Open rates have declined 23.6 percent year over year, but click-through rates have only declined 6.5 percent, and revenue-per-email has remained stable. Most open rate decline can be attributed to consumers who are not qualified or are becoming more selective in the emails they open, according to Mabley--signs that email is becoming a stronger ROI channel. "Companies must consider their email program as a customer contact strategy and not just focus on one campaign at a time. Email is evolving. Companies must consider how they're interacting with their customers through this channel." Related articles: Email Response Times Lag Still Organizations Seek Target Marketing's Bull's-eye