I remember the days when open rates were the gold standard in email marketing.
Marketers everywhere would hit “send” and eagerly watch their open rates climb, celebrating anything over 20% like it was Black Friday.
But here’s the thing…Open rates just aren’t as unreliable these days.
What changed?
Let’s blame Apple (just a little).
With the launch of Apple’s Mail Privacy Protection (MPP), Apple started pre-loading email content before recipients even opened it. That means an email can look “opened” even if it was never read. Since then, inflated open rates have made it nearly impossible to know what’s real and what’s noise.
And with other platforms following suit, we’re officially in post-open-rate territory.
So, what should you be tracking?
It’s not all doom and gloom. Email marketing is still as effective as ever, it’s just evolving. So here’s what you can focus on instead of open rate:
1. Click-through rate (CTR)
Clicks don’t lie. If someone actually clicks a link in your email, you know they were engaged. CTR gives you a much clearer picture of how relevant and compelling your content really is.
Track it because:
- It shows action, not just interest
- It reflects how well your email content matches your audience’s needs
- It’s measurable and reliable across platforms
Pro tip: Don’t just track total clicks; monitor click-to-open rate (CTOR) too, if you’re still watching opens. It can help you understand how well your content performs once an email is opened.
2. Conversion rate
This is where the money lives.
A conversion can be anything from a purchase, someone filling in a form, or even making a booking; whatever goal your email was designed to achieve.
Track it because:
- It measures the actual results
- It ties email marketing directly to ROI
- It helps you prioritise campaigns that really perform
3. List growth & churn
Your list health tells a bigger story.
If people are subscribing, great. If they’re unsubscribing, even better, you’re getting clearer on who your real audience is. But if your list is shrinking and your clicks are dropping… that’s a red flag.
Keep track of:
- The number of new subscribers
- Your unsubscribe rate
- Your bounce rate
- Any spam complaints
I’ll always take good list hygiene over vanity metrics.
4. Email engagement over time
Instead of looking at a single campaign in isolation, look for patterns across multiple campaigns:
- Which content themes tend to perform well?
- Which days and times are most effective for your audience?
- Are certain segments more engaged than others?
This kind of trend-tracking can help you refine everything from your content strategy to your automation flows.
5. Revenue per email (RPE)
If you’re in e-commerce or sending sales-driven campaigns, this one’s gold.
How much money is each email bringing in on average?
RPE = Total revenue / Number of emails sent
Track it because:
- It’s the cleanest link between email and your bottom line
- It helps you optimise for profitability, not just engagement
- Your stakeholders want to know this
The bottom line
Open rates were never perfect. They were just the easiest metric to obsess over.
But now we have a chance to build a more accurate, more strategic view of email performance.
Focus on clicks, conversions, engagement, and most importantly, value.
Want to chat email?
At TouchBasePro, we don’t just help you send emails; we help you send the right emails to the right people, with real results.
