Fewer people reading.
FIRST, CONSIDER MEASUREMENT
Open tracking is increasingly unreliable. Privacy features in mail clients affect it, sometimes inflating and sometimes suppressing.
A change in reported opens may not reflect a change in reading.
Look at clicks, which are more trustworthy.
IF CLICKS ALSO DROPPED
Something real changed.
THE LIKELY CAUSES
Deliverability declined, so messages are filtered A long gap since the last send, so subscribers forgot you The sender name or address changed Content became less relevant The list has aged, with many subscribers no longer engaged
CHECK DELIVERABILITY FIRST
If messages stopped arriving, opens fall regardless of anything else.
CHECK THE GAP
Sending after three months of silence performs poorly. Consistency is what maintains engagement.
CHECK RELEVANCE
Have you drifted into sending only offers? That is the usual reason engagement declines gradually.
THE LIST AGE FACTOR
Lists decay. Subscribers change jobs, change addresses, and lose interest.
Regular pruning and steady growth maintain engagement.
