6.05.2024 Marketing and PR
Cold Mailing: What is the Optimal Word Count for Best Results?
Krzysztof Fiedorek
Forget about popular guidelines for marketers that can be found on Google. An analyst from Hunter.io conducted a study of a massive database of 34 million emails requesting contact. It turns out that the world of marketing cold mailing looks quite different today.
illustration: bing.com/createThe study was conducted by Ziemek Bućko, content manager at Hunter.io, a platform for finding email addresses. The results of the analysis and the conclusions drawn from it were published on the company blog: What’s the Best Word Count for Cold Emails.
Bućko analyzed data from 34 million emails requesting contact to determine the optimal length of the sent message in terms of obtaining a response. The results indicate that shorter emails requesting contact have a higher response rate than longer ones.
- The average reply rate for the entire sample was 3.7%.
- Emails with a length of 20-39 words had statistically the highest response rate (4.5%).
- Messages with a length of 60-79 words (4%), 80-99 words (4%), and... 160-179 words (also 4%) achieved results clearly above the average.
The conclusion: shorter emails are more likely to be read and replied to. This is valuable advice for those who are engaged in prospecting and sales on a daily basis.
This also signals that the most frequently cited guidelines from Boomerang, recommending cold emails of 50-125 words, are now outdated. Moreover, as Ziemek Bućko emphasizes, they date back to 2016, which in the evolution of e-marketing is prehistoric. Furthermore, many commentators have overinterpreted some of the conclusions from the Boomerang study regarding its scope and methodology.
Length Matters, But...
However, the Hunter.io analyst emphasizes that the length of the email requesting contact is just one of many factors influencing the response rate. Other equally important factors include:
- Subject line: It should be clear, concise, and compelling enough to encourage the email to be opened.
- Message content: It should be personalized, valuable, and contain a call to action.
- Target audience: Emails requesting contact should be sent to the right people who are potentially interested in your offer.
From here, it’s easy to conclude that the optimal length of an email is a statistical curiosity that alone will not guarantee success. It is one of the factors worth considering from a UX perspective, but the key to success lies in the proper combination of all elements of the cold mailing puzzle.
For more information and data regarding the analysis, visit: https://hunter.io/blog/cold-email-word-count/
COMMERCIAL BREAK
New articles in section Marketing and PR
Predictive Analytics in Ads. Customer Doesn’t Know Yet, But Ad Does
Krzysztof Fiedorek
Artificial intelligence is changing the rules of marketing. Predicting customer behaviors through advanced AI algorithms and making data-driven decisions is already the present. The report "The State of AI," published by McKinsey, shows the impact this will have on the advertising and marketing industry.
Influencer Advertising. Teenagers Do Not Always Recognize It
KFi
The rise in the popularity of influencer-promoted content among young people raises issues with their ability to identify the commercial nature of this content. Subtler forms of promotion are often completely unrecognizable to younger teens.
Artificial Intelligence in B2B Sales. Forrester's Predictions for 2025
BARD
B2B boldly experimented with generative artificial intelligence in 2024, but next year, industry leaders plan to focus on sustainable solutions that increase revenue.
See articles on a similar topic:
Poles do not forgive brands' mistakes. Armatis Customer Experience Index
Krzysztof Fiedorek
As many as 57.2% of Poles are willing to abandon a brand after one bad customer service experience. This result is similar to what was noted in the United States. Every third Polish customer prefers phone contact with a consultant, though over 13 percent now prefer chat.
A Good Product is Not Enough. New Realities for Marketing are Coming
Reporterzy.info
- Brands face many tests in credibility and transparency in the coming years. The era of neutrality is over - predicts Maciej Swoboda, Chief Revenue Officer at the agency Funktional, in an interview with Reporterzy.info.
Customers Flirting with Service Bots. What Contact Center Research Says
Krzysztof Fiedorek
Research by Infobip shows that nearly 20% of Americans engage in flirtatious conversations with bots while handling standard customer service issues. This trend is particularly evident among people aged 35 to 44, where more than half of respondents admitted to flirting with a virtual assistant.
Large Online Ads vs. AdBlock. Poland Leads in Both Metrics
BARD
Large-format online ads make up 14% of Poland's online market, according to analyses by Gemius. This is the highest percentage among all surveyed markets. Paired with data on the rising popularity of ad-blocking—done by one-third of Polish internet users—it raises questions about the future of these ads.
