Crafting the perfect copy or offer is of little use if your audience does not care to open your emails. It’s like throwing a great party, but no one shows up. If you are a business that uses email marketing to grow sales, you need to know how to get people to open your emails.
At Aqva Marketing, we work with startups, e-commerce stores, and seasoned corporations. One thing they all have in common is the desire to get noticed in the inbox. With the right tweaks and mindset, your email open rates can improve significantly. And we’re here to show you exactly how.
Why Getting People to Open Your Emails Is Tough
Email inboxes today are jam-packed. According to Statista, a staggering 347 billion emails are sent every day. So, if your emails aren’t opened, you’re not alone, and it’s neither a surprise.
But your emails can stand out and can get opened. You just need to know what truly makes the difference.
Here’s what impacts open rates most:
- The subject line (the real hook)
- Your sender name (trust factor)
- The timing (surprisingly underrated)
- List segmentation (speaking to the right person)
- Relevance of the content
Let’s unpack all of this with real-world strategies.
Subject Line: Your First (and Only) Impression
You just have 3 seconds to make an impression and compel people to open your emails.
Human-first tips to write subject lines that get opened:
- Use first names or city names if possible. Personalization feels intimate.
- Numbers work! (“7 Ways to Boost Sales” is better than “Sales Tips”)
- Ask questions that tap into curiosity: “Missing this one email trick?”
- Add urgency subtly: *”Only 3 seats left for the masterclass.”
Never fall into the clickbait trap. Once trust is gone, it’s hard to get back. Your subscribers are smarter than that.
“Instead of promising the moon, deliver a shooting star—something small but meaningful,” says Joanna Wiebe, founder of Copyhackers.
Show Up As a Real Person
People buy from people and not from systems or bots.
Sending your email from “noreply@company.com” is an instant turn-off. Who wants to engage with a robot?
Instead:
- Use a real person’s name (e.g., Arti from Aqva Marketing)
- Add a friendly photo or signature in the footer to humanize it
- Keep your tone conversational, like you are writing to one person
When you feel relatable, subscribers are more likely to open your emails.
Pick the Right Time to Hit Send
You should test the timings, experiment a bit, and you will find the best times when people are more likely to open your emails.
General best practices say:
- Tuesdays and Thursdays get more engagement
- 10 AM to 1 PM is the sweet spot
- For B2C, evenings and weekends work surprisingly well
But every audience is different. Aqva Marketing helped a B2B SaaS client improve their open rate from 15% to 32% just by shifting from Friday afternoons to Wednesday mornings.
Test. Learn. Repeat.
List Segmentation: Speak to the Right People
Here’s a truth bomb: Generic emails are dead.
If you send the same message to your entire list, trust me, most aren’t going to read beyond the first few lines. Instead, you should segment your list by:
- Purchase behavior (new vs. repeat customers)
- Engagement (clicked last email? ignored 5?)
- Location or interests
Aqva Marketing helped a lifestyle brand create separate flows for men and women, and the open rates jumped by 41%.
Tailored messages always win.
Preview Text Is Prime Real Estate
You know that faint grey text next to your subject line in your inbox? That’s the preview text. And it matters more than you think.
Make it count:
- Don’t just repeat the subject line
- Add more context or tease a benefit
- Stay under 90 characters
Example: Subject: Don’t Miss Our Email Mastery Blueprint! Preview: Only 4 spots left. Ready to write emails people love to open?
It acts like a second chance to grab attention. Use it well.
Avoid the Spam Folder
Here’s something that many marketers overlook. If your emails aren’t even landing in inboxes, your open rate will tank.
Here’s how you can improve the chances of email deliverability:
– Use trusted email tools (like Mailchimp, ConvertKit, or ActiveCampaign)
– Authenticate your email domain
– Avoid spam-trigger words like “free,” “buy now,” or “winner.”
– Keep your email list clean
We recently helped a client go from a 3% to a 24% open rate simply by cleaning up a bloated list full of inactive subscribers.
Win Back Inactive Subscribers
Not every inactive subscriber is dead weight. Some are just asleep.
And you need to wake them up with re-engagement emails like:
- “Still want to hear from us?”
- “We saved something just for you.”
- “Last chance to stay on the list.”
Give them a reason to engage. If they still don’t, let them go.
Measure, Learn, and Optimize
Data is your best friend in email marketing.
But what should you track?
- Open Rate (who’s clicking)
- Click-Through Rate (who’s engaging)
- Bounce Rate (who didn’t receive it)
- Unsubscribes (who said goodbye)
Aqva Marketing uses detailed email analytics to fine-tune campaigns. What you don’t measure, you can’t improve.
Also, test one thing at a time:
- Change subject lines
- Switch send times
- Try different content formats
Keep it simple, but consistent.
Don’t Just Get Opened, Get Remembered
Here’s what many forget: getting someone to open your emails is only half the battle. But what your potential client does after the open gets you sales.
- Does your content deliver on the promise?
- Are you offering something of real value?
- Are you making your reader feel seen and heard?
A short story, a personal insight, or a real example goes a long way.
When people like what they read, they’ll open your next email too. And the next. And the next.
Conclusion
Your email should be crafted in a way that your audience feels it was personally written for them. That is how connections are made. And that’s where Aqva Marketing comes in. We’re not just another digital agency. We’re your strategic partner, helping you write emails your audience wants to open.
Need help writing better emails or growing your list? Let’s talk.
Because when you send emails the right way, your audience doesn’t just open them, they look forward to them.