Timing in an email marketing campaign - that is, deciding on what day and what time of day - to hit the send button is as important as actually crafting the message and selecting which segmented group of customers will receive it. There has been much research dissecting the best time to send an email, as well as a wealth of anecdotal evidence. A blog post by Gather adds to the mix by evaluating the pros and cons of each day.
The overall consensus from the numerous studies show that mail sent on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays has the best chance of being opened, it said. But more thought - far more - should go into a send decision than that, it said.
For example, Monday is a good day because after a long weekend, many email users make it a priority to organize their inboxes. "This means there is a good chance that they will run across your message and open it."
Monday and Friday
Gather's recommended approach for Monday: "Send email late in the morning, preferably just before lunch, as this is when they are more likely to have the time to check their inbox." As for Friday, "people tend to receive less email on Friday, which in turn, increases the visibility of your message." The recommended approach for Friday? "Send your message early in the day so the recipient has more time to read it and take action."
The Weekend
People do check their inboxes on the weekend, Gather said, which gives a marketing message unlimited potential. Best approach for these days: Send only to subscribers who are most responsive.
Flying Blind
Sometimes companies have to go by their own instincts - or at least internal research, as a recent example by Aer Arann shows. Last year, an email marketing campaign run by European airline resulted in a 320% spike in flight bookings for that particular day, the highest sales achieved by the airline in one day this year, according to the Irish Times.
The promotion offered 50% off all flights booked between 1pm and 3pm that day. To make sure that customers knew to open their emails, they were first alerted that a deal was coming the day before. Then, the next day at 1 pm, they learned the specifics. This window of time was no accident: Aer Arann established through research that few people book travel at home, but instead take care of such tasks at work. The peak booking period is between midday and 2pm, hence the highly targeted and small window.
