July 2023 Sales Email Benchmark Report: Outbound Findings

Every quarter, Regie.ai analyzes millions of sales emails to learn what approaches are performing the best. Using this data, we publish the most effective practices in a benchmark report so you can use proven strategies to up-level your email game.

Get your copy of the full Sales Email Benchmark Report.

From the Q2 2023 Sales Email Benchmark Report, we've isolated the outbound dataset to give you a snapshot of the insights you need to keep your outbound outreach in line with current best practices.

Which emails were considered?

The emails included in this analysis were sent between April 1 and June 30, 2023. Only campaigns sent to 100 or more people were considered for this analysis, and both Regie.ai-generated and non-Regie.ai-generated email campaigns are included in the data.

How should you use the findings?

1. Set realistic expectations. Best practices are just that - guidelines for what has been working well in a general dataset. They are not meant to guarantee success in every situation, but rather illuminate areas of your strategy you may want to revisit.

2. Keep an open mind. The best practices recommended by Regie.ai may differ from what you’re used to, but that doesn’t mean they won’t work for you. We encourage you to try new things and see how they impact your results.

3. Be flexible. Best practices are meant to be adaptable to your specific situation. What works for one business may not work for another, so tailor the recommendations to fit your needs.

4. Test, test, test! The only way to know if a best practice will work for you is to test it out. Try different tactics and see how they impact your results.

5. Keep track of your results. Measure your success so you can continue to improve your results over time.

Now that the best practices are aside- let's get to the data.

Jump to the full Sales Email Benchmark Report.

What are Outbound Campaigns?

Outbound campaigns are sales sequences that contact cold prospects who have not yet expressed interest in your products or services. The goal of an outbound sales campaign is to generate engagement with cold leads that turn into meetings and opportunities for sales.

The Outbound Data

3,438 Campaigns analyze

11,092,754 Emails analyze

30.7% Average Open Rate

1.8% Average Reply Rate

2.6% Average Click Rate

Outbound Top 10 Subject Lines

These subject lines are associated with the highest open rates in the Outbound dataset.

• Open for the Zoom call about {{topic}}?
• Your next adventure
• This Friday
• Accelerating pipeline over the next 6 months
• Booking more qualified meetings
• Shameless last attempt
• Touching Base
• What’s your conversion rate?
• Day 8
• The power of {{keyword}}
  

Outbound Performance by Sequence Step Number

Open Rate - The campaign step number associated with the highest open rate in the Outbound dataset is Step 8 at 45.3%.

Reply Rate - The campaign step number associated with the highest reply rate in the Outbound dataset is Step 5 at 1.5%.

Outbound Performance by Word Count

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Subject Line - The subject line word count associated with the highest open rate of the Outbound dataset is 7 words at 46.2%.

Body Copy - The email body copy word count associated with the highest reply rate of the Outbound dataset is 144 words at 2.7%.

Outbound Takeaways

Pay attention to email trends based on step number, reply rate, and open rate. If you notice consistent spikes in these metrics at specific campaign steps, take two actions:

1. Analyze the subject lines, value propositions, word count, or CTAs used in the high-performing emails and apply them to other steps of your campaign.
2. Adjust the length of your campaigns to match the ones with spikes in performance. If your data doesn't show trends based on step number, consider experimenting with campaign lengths overall.

Regularly review your campaign lengths every three to six months to ensure you're optimizing your efforts and not exceeding what's necessary for success.

Conclusion

The outbound data from the report highlights the importance of engaging cold leads and creating sales opportunities. Subject lines, campaign steps, and word counts all play a role in driving open rates, reply rates, and overall campaign success.  

Check-in with your own outbound data to gauge health in relation to the benchmarks reported here. How are your reply rates? Are you seeing an average open rate of at least 30%? While metrics like these don't tell the whole story of your outreach, they are important markers in determining your messaging effectiveness.

It's also important to remember that depending on campaign type, benchmarks will change. Outbound messages will look different than inbound, inbound than follow-ups, and so on. For data like this on every campaign category, review the full copy of the Sales Email Benchmark Report here.

By setting realistic expectations, keeping an open mind, and being flexible, you can leverage these recommendations to tailor your strategies to your specific needs. Testing different tactics and tracking your results will help you refine your approach over time.

Download the full Sales Email Benchmark Report to access the complete dataset and optimize your email campaigns based on proven strategies. Elevate your outreach and unlock the potential for sales growth today.

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