Improving B2B Cold Email Performance Through Data-Driven KPIs

306 – that’s the average number of cold emails you need to send to generate one B2B lead.

You might think that’s a lot of effort. It is, indeed, but is it worth it? Yes. 77% of B2B buyers prefer email communication – this is more than double of any other channel.

Email is also a preferred and effective channel for outreach, according to 43% of salespeople.

Even if email may appear like a cumbersome outreach channel, it has repeatedly proven to be the most effective, primarily due to its simplistic and less intrusive approach.

Email is not on your prospects’ faces compared to other outreach channels.

You can reach out to prospects without necessarily being a menace to them. This should be the foundation of every cold email you send: to be persuasive yet know when to stop. Indeed, data can assist you in doing that.

KPIs (Key performance indicators) that are based on data can help you figure out how well your cold email campaign is doing. Based on your cold email numbers, you can make any changes to your plan that are needed.

Let us learn more about KPIs that are based on data and how they can help you make your cold emails work better.

Identifying Relevant KPIs for B2B Cold Emails

Using data to guide your email strategies can help your cold email efforts be more powerful, efficient, and effective.

For those who are asking what “cold email” means, it’s just an email you send to a possible customer who has never heard of your business before.

Cold emails can help you connect with your audience meaningfully while driving higher engagement and conversion rates.

But the question is, what data should be tracked in cold emails, and what are the relevant KPIs for B2B cold emails?

Let’s cover each of these below.

1) Open Rate

The open rate is among the most basic statistics you might monitor in cold emails.

Tracking the proportion of receivers who open an email against the overall email count, the open rate KPI shows You may figure it by multiplying by 100 after dividing the total number of unique openings by the number of emails effectively sent.

Based on several industry research, an excellent open rate for cold emails is anywhere above 60%.

However, you don’t need to worry about calculating it manually, as your cold email marketing tool should do the job for you.

Open Rate=(Number of unique opens/number of emails delivered) x 100

So, what’s the importance of open rates in cold emails?

• It can help you gauge initial engagement on your cold emails. A high open rate suggests that the subject line and sender information captured the recipient’s attention.
• It provides insights into the overall health of an email campaign. Low open rates can indicate issues with email deliverability, relevance, or the attractiveness of the email’s subject line.
• It also lets you test and optimize various elements of your email campaigns to improve overall performance.

There are a few factors that influence email open rates:

• Subject Line: The subject line of your email should be very related to what the prospect wants or needs. Adding the recipient’s name or other special information to the subject line can make it more relevant and increase the number of opens.
• Sender Reputation: An email address and user name that are easy to remember and trust can have a big effect on open rates. People who know and trust the sender are more likely to open emails from that sender.
• Email Authentication: Proper email authentication (SPF, DKIM, and DMARC) helps improve deliverability and ensures emails land in the inbox rather than the spam folder.
• Spam-trigger words: Subject lines should avoid words or phrases commonly associated with spam, such as “free,” “guarantee,” or excessive use of exclamation marks.

Working on the above factors can help you increase your cold email open rates.

Though the open rate is mainly taken as a vanity metric, as a beginner cold email marketer, it can tell you a lot about your strategy and approach.

2) Click-Through Rate (CTR)

CTR measures the percentage of email recipients who clicked on one or more links within the email.
To calculate it, you just need to divide the number of unique clicks by the number of emails delivered and multiply the number by 100.

Formula:

CTR = {Number of Unique Clicks/Number of Emails Delivered) x 100

CTR is crucial for understanding how well your email content relates with your audience. A high CTR indicates that recipients found your email interesting enough to click through to learn more.

A QuickMail study has shown that the average click-through rate for cold emails is 3.67%.

It helps you measure the effectiveness of your email content and design. By analyzing CTR, you can determine which elements drive engagement and which need improvement.

There are a few factors that impact CTR:

• Relevance: Your email content should be highly relevant to the recipient’s interests and needs. Personalizing content based on recipient data can significantly boost CTR.
• Value Proposition: Communicate the value of clicking through. Whether it’s exclusive content, a special offer, or essential information, make sure the recipient knows what’s in it for them.
• Clarity: Your CTA should be clear and direct. Use actionable language that tells recipients precisely what you want them to do, such as “Shop Now,” “Learn More,” or “Register Today.”
• Mobile Optimization: Ensure your links are easy to click on mobile devices. Given the high number of emails opened on smartphones, mobile-friendly designs and clickable links are crucial for maintaining high CTR.

3) Response Rate

Response rate measures the percentage of email recipients who reply to an email out of the total number of emails delivered.

To calculate it, divide the number of replies by the number of emails delivered and multiply it by 100.

Formula:

Response Rate = {Number of Replies/Number of Emails Delivered) x 100

The response rate directly measures how engaging and compelling your email content is. A high response rate indicates that recipients are interested enough to interact with you.

According to a study by Belkins.io, cold B2B email campaigns aimed at 240–499 recipients can achieve an average reply rate of 10%.

Higher response rates can lead to more leads and conversions. When recipients respond to your email, they express interest, which can be nurtured into a sales opportunity.

Here are a few factors that impact your response rate:

• Tailored Content: Personalize the email content based on the recipient’s past interactions, preferences, and behavior. Use data to segment your audience and deliver relevant messages that resonate with each group.
• Clear Benefits: Clearly articulate the benefits of responding to your email. Explain what the recipient will gain from replying, such as access to exclusive information, a special offer, or personalized assistance.
• Compelling Offers: Include a persuasive offer that motivates the recipient to respond. This could be a discount, a free consultation, a valuable resource, or an invitation to an exclusive event.
• Single CTA: Limit your email to a single, focused CTA to avoid overwhelming the recipient. Having one explicit action increases the chances of them following through.
• Timely Follow-Ups: Send timely follow-up emails to recipients who haven’t responded. A gentle reminder can prompt action from those who may have missed or forgotten your initial email.

4) Conversion Rate

It measures the percentage of email recipients who complete a desired action, such as purchasing, signing up for a webinar, or downloading a resource after clicking through an email.

It is calculated by dividing the number of conversions by the number of clicks and multiplying by 100.

Formula:

Conversion Rate = (Number of Conversions/Number of Clicks) x 100

The conversion rate indicates the ROI of your email marketing efforts. Higher conversion rates mean better ROI.

It directly impacts sales and revenue. Successful conversions lead to increased business growth and profitability.

According to GMass, the widely accepted average across all cold emails is approximately 1% to 5%.

It measures the effectiveness of your email campaigns in driving desired actions, helping you understand what resonates with your audience and what doesn’t.

Factors that impact conversion rate:

• Timely Reminders: Send follow-up emails to remind recipients about the offer or action you want them to take. This is especially useful for abandoned cart reminders or webinar sign-ups.
• Personalized Follow-Ups: Personalize follow-up emails based on the recipient’s previous interactions and behavior. Tailored messages increase the likelihood of conversion.
• Relevance and Continuity: Ensure the landing page matches the email content regarding design, messaging, and offer. Consistency enhances the user experience and increases trust.
• Fast Loading Times: Optimize your landing page for fast loading times. Slow pages can frustrate users and lead to high bounce rates, reducing conversion chances.

5) Bounce Rate

Bounce rate KPI measures the percentage of emails not successfully delivered to recipients’ inboxes. There are two types of bounces:

• Hard Bounce: Permanent delivery failures, such as invalid email addresses.
• Soft Bounce: Temporary delivery issues include a full inbox or server problems.

Formula:

Bounce Rate = {Number of Bounced Emails/Number of Emails Sent) x 100

High bounce rates can affect your email deliverability. Email service providers (ESPs) may flag your emails as spam or lower your sender reputation.

Emails that don’t reach the intended recipients can’t generate opens, clicks, or conversions, reducing the overall effectiveness of your campaign.

Consistently high bounce rates can harm your sender’s reputation, making it harder for your emails to reach inboxes in the future.

Factors that affect your bounce rate:

• Regular List Cleaning: Clean your email list to remove invalid, inactive, or outdated email addresses. This helps maintain a healthy list and reduces bounce rates.
• Segmentation: Segment your email list to target active and engaged recipients. This reduces the chances of sending emails to invalid addresses.
• Re-Engagement Campaigns: Run re-engagement campaigns to confirm the interest of inactive subscribers. Remove those who do not respond to avoid future bounces.
• Email Verification Services: Use email verification tools to check the validity of email addresses before adding them to your list. These tools can identify and remove invalid or risky addresses.

Implementing Data-Driven Cold Email Strategy With A/B Testing

A/B testing enables you to compare two versions of an email to determine which one performs better.

This can involve testing different subject lines, call-to-action buttons, images, or content layouts.

The importance of A/B testing lies in its ability to provide concrete data on what works best for your audience, enabling you to optimize your emails for higher engagement and conversions.

How to Conduct Effective A/B Tests

To conduct a practical A/B test, decide which element you want to test.

Create two versions of your email with only this one element differing between them.

Send these versions to a small, random sample of your email list and measure the results based on your chosen KPI, such as open or click-through rates.

Analyze the results to determine which version performed better, and then roll out the winning version to the rest of your list.

Repeat this process regularly to improve your email campaigns continuously.

Winding-Up

Incorporating data-driven strategies into your B2B cold email campaigns is not just a trend but a necessity in today’s competitive market.

By focusing on personalization, A/B testing, segmentation, and automation, you can significantly enhance the effectiveness of your email marketing efforts.

These strategies allow you to create more relevant and engaging content, optimize your approach based on real insights, and maintain consistent communication with your audience.