Thanksgiving Day drove the highest email open rate of the holiday weekend — at 11.4%, versus 11% on Cyber Monday, according to a study by Constant Contact.
And while Cyber
Monday saw a 19% increase in emails sent over the same day in 2018, it suffered a 13% decrease in opens compared to the prior year.
Overall, brands sent 23% more emails over the 2019
holiday weekend than they did in the same period in 2018.
Constant Contact notes that Thanksgiving email opens have trended higher than those o other days over the past few
years.
The firm says that when small businesses send more emails, it doesn't translate into more opens.
The company advises brands to keep their subject lines short —
under 40 characters, or five to seven words — and to avoid spammy language such as “Buy Now” or “Free.”
It also urges firms to segment their contacts into
groups based on location or interest. This can increase click-through rates and engagement, Constant Contact says.
Companies should also study their email data to determine the timing of
opens — whether they were opened first thing in the morning, at lunchtime or later.