Email open and click rates are on the decline, meaning people are less likely to open a marketing email. The latest study shows people opening marketing emails at a rate of 17% (compared to 26% in 2009).

This continues a trend since 2007.

Discussion Starters:

• Do these statistics surprise you? Why or why not?
• What influences whether you open an email?
• What can you learn from this for your own email messages -- both internal and external?

Assignment Ideas:

• Open your email inbox. Looking at the last 25 or so messages, which are you most likely to open and why? In small groups, discuss your reaction to the marketing emails. Did you open them initially?
• Now look at your sent box. Rewrite the subject lines of five emails to make them more enticing for the receiver to open.