How shorter and more direct email copy affects click-through rate
NextAfter
Experiment Summary
Ended On: 02/20/2018
In this experiment, we were sending an email to people on the NextAfter house file that had not yet been introduced to to the Nonprofit Innovation & Optimization Summit. The first email was written in our typical style – long form copy that told an in-depth story. We wondered if a more direct copy approach that got straight to the point would increase click-through rate.
Research Question
Will a more direct copy approach in a marketing email increase clicks?
Design
Results
| Treatment Name | Click Rate | Relative Difference | Confidence | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| C: | Long-form Story | 4.6% | ||
| T1: | Short-Form and Direct | 7.4% | 61.4% | 99.6% |
This experiment has a required sample size of 548 in order to be valid. Since the experiment had a total sample size of 2,409, and the level of confidence is above 95% the experiment results are valid.
Flux Metrics Affected
The Flux Metrics analyze the three primary metrics that affect revenue (traffic, conversion rate, and average gift). This experiment produced the following results:
61.4% increase in traffic
× 0% increase in conversion rate
× 0% increase in average gift
Key Learnings
The more direct copy approach saw a 61.4% increase in clicks. While other experiments show shorter and more direct copy doesn’t necessarily produce higher instant-conversions, for email where the sole goal is to get clicks, the shorter approach is more effective.