By Sean Tinney Might 30, 2024
As we write our e-mail content material, the inevitable query of “how lengthy ought to my e-mail be?” could pop in your head.
Personally, I are inclined to get just a little wordy with my emails, it’s simply the best way I talk.
So the workforce at AWeber needed to be taught as soon as and for all – how lengthy ought to your e-mail be?
To get that reply we analyzed 1,000s of emails from 100 of in the present day’s prime e-mail entrepreneurs. Our objective? Collect email marketing statistics that may reply how lengthy an e-mail must be.
The 100 consultants we analyzed are one of the best of one of the best. Their e-mail methods interact 1000’s and drive tens of millions in income. Lots of them see unprecedented outcomes (like 80% open charges and 30% click-through charges).
The common e-mail size
Of the 1,000 emails we analyzed, we discovered that emails have 434.48 phrases on common. 434 phrases takes roughly 3.3 minutes to learn.
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In order that’s it, your e-mail size must be precisely 434.48 phrases lengthy. Not precisely.
Reality is, it actually is dependent upon your viewers and what you’re attempting to speak.
Why shorter emails
Greater than 50% of the emails we analyzed contained 300 phrases or much less (a 2.3 minute learn time). With people receiving more emails than ever before, it is sensible these e-mail consultants are sending shorter emails. One would possibly argue that to face out to captivate your readers, shorter emails is perhaps a superb technique for doing so.
Henneke Duistermaat is the founding father of Enchanting Advertising and marketing and one of many 100 prime entrepreneurs whose emails we analyzed. She usually sends emails with lower than 300 phrases.
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“Have you ever ever heard somebody complaining they’re not getting sufficient e-mail? Everybody’s inbox is overflowing. We’re all time-starved. So, we love succinct messages that assist us make a fast resolution: whether or not to answer or not, whether or not to click on by means of or not”
Henneke Duistermaat is the founding father of Enchanting Advertising and marketing
Why long-form emails
But, 24.1% of the emails we analyzed contained 601 phrases or extra. And 11.4% of them had greater than 901 phrases, a learn time of roughly 6.9 minutes.
These consultants stand out by sending lengthy emails full of priceless content material, like Ann Handley. Handley is the Chief Content material Officer at Advertising and marketing Profs, a advertising and marketing schooling firm, and one other one of many prime 100 entrepreneurs we included in our analysis.
She sends her e-newsletter TotalAnnarchy through AWeber. On common, her newsletters comprise 1,838.5 phrases, which takes roughly 14 minutes to learn.
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“It’s not that long-form emails are efficient. Moderately, what’s efficient is emails which have worth for the folks in your listing. I don’t set out each different Sunday with a objective of writing the longest e-mail I presumably can. However I do have a objective of writing an genuine, priceless, enjoyable letter to each subscriber on my listing. I put my coronary heart and soul into it, and that’s why folks reply.”
Ann Handley, Chief Content material Officer at Advertising and marketing Profs
Matt Kepnes, creator and founding father of journey weblog Nomadic Matt, can be on our listing of prime entrepreneurs. He sends long-form emails as effectively. On common, they comprise 802 phrases. As a substitute of linking off to posts on his weblog, he contains whole articles inside his emails. These messages see excessive open and click-through charges.
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“Individuals will learn longer emails if the subject is essential sufficient.”
Matt Kepnes, creator and founding father of journey weblog Nomadic Matt
How to decide on your e-mail size
So how do you resolve whether or not to ship brief or lengthy emails?
It is dependent upon your distinctive enterprise targets, in response to Andy Crestodina, a prime e-mail marketer and the founding father of web site consulting firm Orbit Media.
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“In case your objective is solely consciousness, lengthy or brief is much less essential. If subscribers see it, prefer it, smile, you met the objective! In case your objective is site visitors, then give the recipient the minimal quantity of knowledge wanted to resolve to click on. The CTR (click-through fee) is all the things and extra textual content simply means extra noise of their inbox.”
Andy Crestodina
Listed below are just a few methods you possibly can be taught what e-mail size your viewers needs to obtain from you.
1 – A/B break up check
Our advice is to check. Your e-mail size technique must be primarily based on knowledge. So carry out an A/B split test to see what size e-mail performs greatest together with your subscribers.
2 – Ask your viewers
Each Thursday, we ship a weekly e-newsletter and in every e-mail we now have a sentiment widget the place we ask our viewers “what did you consider this e-mail”.
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We get extremely priceless suggestions. Not simply on the content material, however on the size. Take a look at what this reader of our e-newsletter needed to say:
It’s not that the e-mail is dangerous for the content material, however it’s simply too lengthy. If I’m being sincere I see these emails each week and simply open and delete as a result of I see the quantity to learn and my mind shuts off.
This constructive criticism helps us make sure that we’re being as concise and to the purpose as potential.
E-mail size pointers
So the place do you begin? The one widespread theme we acquired from all our advertising and marketing consultants is your e-mail wants to supply worth to your readers. In the event you can say the identical factor with much less phrases, then accomplish that.
You shouldn’t be too involved about ensuring your emails fall inside a sure phrase rely. Backside line is that if your emails comprise priceless content material or affords, your subscribers are going to need to learn your e-mail regardless of the size.
You may additionally discover the size of your e-mail varies by the type of emails you’re sending. Listed below are three sorts of emails and a few pointers you possibly can observe:
E-mail e-newsletter
Your e-mail e-newsletter size may find yourself being your longest. Why? As a result of you’ve gotten plenty of content material to share. However don’t overshare, your objective with a e-newsletter must be driving site visitors to your web site or touchdown web page.
The important thing to a superb e-newsletter size is to maintain every part transient. Take a look at this instance from Search Engine Journal. General the e-mail is lengthy, however every part solely has 1 – 2 sentences. To learn extra of the content material, it is advisable click on to their web site.
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Promotional e-mail
I might advocate retaining your promotional e-mail’s brief. Use pictures and a powerful headline to assist talk your provide. Get to your provide rapidly.
Right here’s an awesome instance from Grubhub. This e-mail solely incorporates 3 sentences. They’re attempting to drive an motion primarily based on the picture, unique provide, and name to motion.
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Welcome e-mail
Your welcome email could possibly be brief or lengthy format, it actually is dependent upon how a lot data you need to share together with your new subscribers.
Listed below are two examples that present each a shorter model and longer model, that each work.
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Begin creating your emails in the present day
Right here’s some extra data that may encourage you to write down superb emails:
Prepared to start out utilizing this data to ship higher emails? Get started with AWeber Free today.