Email marketing is a powerful tool for businesses to communicate with their customers, and sending newsletters is an excellent way to stay connected.
However, one of the most common questions that arise here is, “How often should I send email newsletters?”
This is a valid question, as sending too many or too few newsletters greatly impacts your email engagement rates.
Hence, it’s important to consider several factors to determine the optimal frequency for your business.
In this post, we’ll look at some factors that affect the sending frequency and also explore some guidelines to help you determine the perfect frequency for your business.
But before we dive into the details, let’s understand why email sending frequency matters.
So, let’s begin.
Why does email newsletter frequency matter?
Email frequency can directly affect your open rate, unsubscribe rate, and customer engagement.
If you send emails too frequently, subscribers may become overwhelmed and disinterested, leading to lower open rates and higher unsubscribe rates. This can damage your brand reputation and lead to lost sales opportunities.
Conversely, if you’re not sending emails frequently enough, subscribers may forget about your brand or lose interest over time. This can also result in lower engagement rates and unsubscribes.
The following is the graph from CoSchedule that shows the impact of email marketing frequency on the engagement rate:
So, how do you know how often should you send an email newsletter? Let’s figure it out.
How often should I send email newsletter?
There is no one-size-fits-all answer to this question. The ideal frequency will generally depend on various factors which you need to consider while determining your email frequency. Let’s break them down:
1. Industry type
Your industry can play a significant role in determining the ideal frequency for your email newsletter. Different industries have different expectations when it comes to email marketing.
For example, if you operate a news website, sending a daily email newsletter may be appropriate since your audience expects to stay informed of breaking news.
Similarly, if you run an e-commerce business, you may want to send emails twice a week during the holiday season to capitalize on the increased shopping activity.
Hence, it’s important to research your industry and understand the expectations of your audience to determine the ideal frequency for your emails.
2. Email list
The next you need to consider is the composition of your email list. It can also affect the ideal frequency of your emails.
If your list is primarily made up of subscribers who have opted-in to receive your emails, they have already expressed interest in your brand then sending emails frequently will be appropriate.
On the other hand, if your list is made up of purchased email addresses, these subscribers may not be as engaged with your brand. Hence, sending too many emails may lead to high unsubscribe rates and low engagement.
Here, you should send emails less frequently like once every three months, six months, or a year.
3. Type of audience and their behavior
The third consideration is the type of audience you target. Because different audiences have different preferences when it comes to email communication. Hence, it’s important to understand the demographics and behaviors of your audience when it comes to determining the optimal frequency for your emails.
For example, if your audience is primarily made up of busy professionals, they may prefer shorter, less frequent emails that are easy to read on the go as they are already flooded with emails.
In contrast, if your audience is primarily retirees or stay-at-home parents, they may have more time to read longer, more frequent emails.
4. Need for product/service
Then comes the need for your product or service. It can also impact the ideal frequency for your email newsletter. If you are offering a product or service that is only needed once a year, such as tax preparation services, you may not need to send emails as frequently.
However, if you are selling a product or service that is needed on a regular basis, such as groceries or personal care items, you may want to send emails more frequently to remind subscribers to make a purchase.
Here, it’s important to understand the buying cycle of your product or service and adjust your email frequency accordingly.
5. The value proposition
Your value proposition refers to the unique benefits or value that your business offers to its customers. The frequency of your emails should align with your value proposition.
For example, if your main selling point is providing subscribers with exclusive discounts, promotions, or content, you may want to send emails more frequently like one per week to keep them engaged and interested in your brand.
However, if your focus is on providing high-quality, educational content, you may send emails monthly to ensure that subscribers have enough time to digest and appreciate each piece of content.
6. Engagement
Finally, the level of engagement from your subscribers can also impact the ideal frequency for your email newsletter. If your subscribers regularly open and interact with your emails, you may be able to send emails more frequently without risking high unsubscribe rates.
In contrast, if your subscribers are less engaged, sending too many emails may lead to even lower engagement rates. In this case, it may be more effective to send fewer, more targeted emails to re-engage subscribers and improve overall engagement.
Analyzing these metrics carefully will greatly help you determine and set an ideal frequency for sending your email newsletter.
When should I send the email newsletter?
In addition to figuring out how often to send email newsletters, it’s also important to know when to send your marketing emails.
Ideal days to send an email newsletter
According to data, open rates for newsletters typically peak on Tuesdays. This could be because people are busy catching up on Mondays, or because they take Mondays off for long weekends or vacations. Additionally, data shows that the best days to send emails are Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, as people are more likely to be in the office during the middle of the week.
Ideal time to send an email newsletter
As for the best time of day, studies have shown that the morning is generally a good time to send emails, with the highest-performing hours being between 9:00 and 11:00 AM. Some studies even recommend sending emails between 1-2 PM as it is lunchtime for the majority of people.
However, it’s important to keep in mind that there is no one-size-fits-all approach when it comes to the timing of your emails. Different brands may have different strategies that work best for them, such as sending emails at the same time and day every week or personalizing sending times for each recipient on their list.
Conclusion:
Finally the answer to “How often should I send email newsletter” is identifying, testing, analyzing, and readjusting. Here, you can use a cold email automation tool like SafeMailer to ease your task.
As there is no common answer to this question, you need to test different strategies based on your industry and readjust accordingly.
Ultimately, the key is to experiment and find the best approach for your particular audience and goals.