Reply rate

A reply costs the recipient real effort. They had to read the message, decide it was worth their time and write something back. That makes reply rate a far more honest signal than an open, which email privacy features have made unreliable, or a click. A low reply rate rarely means "send more". It usually means the list is wrong, the offer is unclear or the copy reads like a pitch instead of a note written for one person. Doubling it hits the same pipeline goal with half the volume.

• Track positive replies separately from all replies. A reply that says "not interested" is information, but it is not pipeline.
• Test one variable at a time, such as the opening line, the depth of personalisation or the specific ask, on otherwise similar audiences.
• Segment by company size, role and industry rather than sending one message to everyone.
• Space follow-ups a few days apart and give each a new reason to reply, not a repeat of the first message.
• Treat a very low rate on a cold list as a targeting problem before a copywriting problem.

Reply rate is replies divided by messages sent. If 200 cold emails get 12 responses, the reply rate is 6 per cent. The denominator matters: some teams divide by messages sent and others by messages delivered, and the second figure is higher. Pick one and keep it. Decide too whether auto-replies and "please remove me" answers count, because they inflate the number without helping the pipeline.

• Judging a campaign on a few dozen sends, where chance dominates.
• Chasing the rate with clever subject lines while the list remains poorly targeted.
• Ignoring deliverability. If messages land in spam, reply rate falls whatever the copy says.