How to Read Your Email Metrics and Fix What’s Broken
You know that feeling when you check your email stats and something just feels... off? (Listen, if you’re like “what are email stats?” you’ll find no judgement here.)
Maybe your open rates are fine, but nobody's clicking. Or people are clicking like crazy but not actually booking or buying. Or maybe everything was going great and then it suddenly tanked for no apparent reason.
Like all data, your email metrics aren't just random numbers. They're trying to tell you something. They're a lot like the dashboard warning lights in your car: it’s tempting to ignore them, but you could end up stranded by the side of the road. Or whatever the email equivalent is.
The good news is once you learn to decode what your metrics are actually saying, fixing the problem is usually pretty straightforward.
So let's walk through the most common metric red flags, what they mean, and exactly how to fix them.
Red Flag #1: Opens Are Fine But Clicks Are Terrible
What you're seeing: Your open rates look decent — maybe 25-35%, right in the normal range. But your click-through rate is abysmal. Like, under 1%. Sometimes under 0.5%.
People are opening your emails, scanning them, and then... doing absolutely nothing.
What this means: Your subject lines are working. People are curious enough to open. Yay! But once they're inside, your content isn't compelling them to take action. Boo.
This usually happens for one of three reasons:
Your call-to-action is buried or unclear. I see this all the time. Someone writes a beautiful, thoughtful email about their offer or their content, and then the CTA is this tiny little link at the bottom that says "click here." Friend, that is not a call to action — it’s a whisper to action.
Your email doesn't build toward anything. You're sharing information or telling a story, but there's no reason for anyone to click through. The email feels complete on its own, so why would they take the next step?
You're asking for too much, too soon. If your entire email list is cold leads who downloaded a freebie and you're immediately asking them to book a $3,000 package, yeah... they're not clicking. The ask doesn't match the temperature of the relationship. It also leads to unsubscribes from people who might have been warmed up to buy if they stuck around.
How to fix it:
Make your CTA impossible to miss. Big button. Clear language. "Book your free strategy call now" beats "learn more" every single time. And put it in multiple places if your email is long — beginning, middle, and end. If I want my readers to take action, I try to work a link in above the fold.
Build your email content toward the click. Every paragraph should be moving your reader closer to thinking "yes, I need to do this thing." If you're telling a story, end it with "this is why I created [thing]." If you're sharing tips, end with "Want the full framework? Grab it here” or “Read the rest in my latest blog post here.”
Match your ask to where they are in the journey. Cold subscribers get low-commitment asks (read this blog post, watch this video, take this quiz). Warm subscribers get medium asks (download this guide, join this webinar). Hot subscribers who've been engaging for weeks get the big asks (buy this thing, book this call).
And here's a sneaky trick: test different CTAs in your next few emails. Try asking a question that gets people to reply instead of clicking a link. Try making the CTA super specific ("Download the 5-email welcome sequence template") instead of vague. See what your list actually responds to. Lists tend to have their own “personalities” and what works for mine might not work for yours. Find out!
Red Flag #2: Opens Are Dropping Over Time
What you're seeing: Your open rates used to be pretty solid (30%-40%) but lately they've been creeping down. Now you're at 20%. Then 18%. Then 15%. And you're starting to panic because what the hell is even happening right now?
What this means: One of two things is going on here and both of them are fixable.
Possibility 1: You're landing in spam. This is the scary one. If your emails are ending up in spam folders instead of primary inboxes, your open rates will tank. And the worst part is that most email platforms won't tell you this is happening. You'll just see declining opens and have no idea why.
How do you know if this is the problem? Check your spam complaint rate. If it's above 0.1%, that's a red flag. Also look at engagement patterns. If a huge chunk of your list suddenly stopped opening all at once (instead of a gradual decline), that's probably a spam folder situation.
Possibility 2: Your subject lines are getting stale. If you've been using the same subject line formula for months, your subscribers have figured out the pattern. They know what to expect. And if what they expect isn't exciting or valuable, they stop opening.
I see this happen with people who always use the "question" format for subject lines. Or the "Here's how to..." format. Or the "3 tips for..." format. It worked great at first! And then everyone got used to it and it stopped working.
How to fix it:
If it's a deliverability/spam problem: You need to do some email list hygiene ASAP. Run a re-engagement campaign to your cold subscribers (the ones who haven't opened in 90+ days). Send them an email that says something like "Hey, I noticed you haven't opened my emails lately. Want to stay on the list or should I let you go?" Then actually remove the people who don't respond. I know it feels terrible to delete subscribers, but having them on your list is actively hurting your deliverability.
Also check your technical setup. Make sure your SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records are properly configured. (If that sounds like gibberish, ask your email platform's support team to help you verify this. It matters.)
If it's a subject line problem: Time to mix it up. Look at your last 20 subject lines. Do they all sound the same? Do they all follow the same formula? If yes, that's the problem.
Try rotating between different styles: questions ("Are you making this email mistake?"), curiosity ("The subject line trick nobody talks about"), direct benefit ("Get 30% more opens with this one change"), controversy or hot takes ("Why open rates don't matter as much as you think"), personal/casual ("Quick question about your email list").
The goal isn't to be clickbait-y. It's to be unpredictable enough that people stay curious about what you're going to say. You can grab my swipe file and steal some ideas here.
Red Flag #3: High Clicks But No Conversions
What you're seeing: Your click-through rate looks great! People are definitely clicking your links. But when you look at actual sales, sign-ups, or whatever conversion you're tracking... crickets.
What this means: Your email is doing its job. The problem is what happens after the click.
This is actually good news (kind of), because it means your email copy, your offer positioning, and your call-to-action are all working. People are interested enough to take the next step. But then they get to your landing page or your sales page and something makes them bounce.
Common culprits:
Your landing page doesn't match the email. Maybe your email promised "5 mistakes killing your email open rates" and your landing page is about your full email marketing course with no mention of what those 5 mistakes actually are. That’s the ole bait and switch, even if you didn't mean it that way.
Your landing page is slow, broken, or ugly. If your page takes 7 seconds to load, people are gone. If it's not mobile-friendly and 60% of your traffic is mobile, people are gone. If it looks like it was designed in 2009, people don't trust it enough to hand over their credit card.
The offer on the landing page isn't clear or compelling. Your email created desire, but your landing page didn't close the deal. Maybe the benefit isn't obvious. Maybe there's too much information and people get overwhelmed. Maybe there's not enough information and people don't feel confident buying.
There's friction in the conversion process. Too many form fields. Confusing checkout. No clear next step. People want to convert, but you're making it too hard.
How to fix it:
Message match is everything. If your email subject line says "How to double your open rates," your landing page headline better say something like "Double your open rates with this proven framework." Use the same language and actually follow through on the promise.
Test your landing page on mobile. Right now. Seriously. Pull out your phone and go through the entire conversion process. Is it easy? Does everything load? Can you actually complete the action without wanting to throw your phone across the room? If not, fix it.
Simplify your landing page. One clear headline. One clear benefit. One clear call-to-action. That's it. You can add testimonials and FAQs and feature lists, but the core message should be crystal clear in 3 seconds or less.
Remove friction. If you're asking for a phone number and you don't actually need it, delete that field. If your checkout has 6 steps, can you make it 2? Every extra click is an opportunity for people to change their minds.
And here's the thing people forget: your email subscribers are warmer than random landing page visitors. If they're clicking through from your email and still not converting, your landing page is probably scaring off even more people who come from other sources. Fix this and you'll improve conversions across the board.
Red Flag #4: Sudden Drop in Everything
What you're seeing: Last week your metrics were fine. This week everything tanked. Opens down 50%. Clicks way down. It's not just one bad email here and there, it's every email you send now.
What this means: Congratulations, you've been sent to email jail, also known as the spam folder.
This usually happens for one of these reasons:
You sent to a cold list. You had an email list sitting there for 6 months (or a year, or two years) and you decided to just... email everyone. All at once. With no warning. Gmail and Yahoo saw a bunch of people not opening your email and went "Nope, not today."
You had a spike in spam complaints. Maybe you sent something controversial. Maybe people don't remember signing up. Maybe your unsubscribe link was hard to find. Whatever the reason, too many people marked you as spam and now the email gods have decided you're not trustworthy. (Side note: As a reader of emails, remember that you can always just unsubscribe. Marking something you signed up for as spam can really mess with someone’s livelihood. There’s no good reason to do it when you could just…hit the unsubscribe button.)
You imported a purchased list or sketchy contacts. I really hope you didn't do this, but if you did... THIS IS EXACTLY WHY I HOPE YOU DIDN’T DO THIS. Sending to people who didn't explicitly opt in to hear from you is a highway to spam folder hell.
Your email authentication broke. Sometimes technical stuff just breaks. Your SPF record got messed up, your DKIM signature failed, something happened with your domain. And email providers don't trust emails they can't verify.
How to fix it:
First, stop sending to your full list immediately. You're just making it worse. Every email that goes unopened tells email providers you're not legitimate.
Run a re-engagement campaign to your most engaged subscribers only. Email the people who opened something in the last 30 days. Just them. Tell them you've had deliverability issues and ask them to reply or add you to their contacts. Those positive engagement signals will help rebuild your sender reputation.
Clean your list. Remove hard bounces. Remove people who haven't opened in 6+ months. I know it hurts to see your list shrink, but a list of 1,000 engaged people is infinitely more valuable than a list of 10,000 people who never see your emails.
Check your technical setup. Email your platform's support team and ask them to verify your SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records. Make sure everything is configured correctly. I know this is boring and annoying but it actually matters.
Slowly rebuild. Once you've cleaned your list and fixed your technical stuff, start sending again — but only to your most engaged segment at first. Send valuable, helpful content. Get people opening and clicking. Once your metrics stabilize with that group, gradually expand to your other segments.
This process takes time. Sometimes weeks. But it works if you're patient and strategic about it.
The Pattern You Might Be Missing
Here's something I see constantly: people look at their metrics in isolation. "My open rate is 22%. Is that good?"
But metrics don't exist in a vacuum. They tell a story when you look at them together.
If your open rate is 30% and your click rate is 0.5%, your subject lines are great but your content is weak.
If your open rate is 15% and your click rate is 8%, your subject lines need work but your content is solid.
If your open rate is 35% but your unsubscribe rate is spiking, you're attracting the wrong people or your content doesn't match what they expected.
Look at the whole picture to find the insights that can really tell you what’s going on.
What To Do Right Now
If you read this and realized your metrics are trying to tell you something, here's your action plan:
Identify which red flag matches your situation. Be honest. Don't just pick the easy one to fix.
Make one change this week. Not five changes. One change. If your clicks are low, work on your CTAs. If your opens are dropping, test new subject line styles. If conversions are weak, fix your landing page. One thing.
Track the results for at least 3-4 emails. You can't judge success from a single send. Metrics fluctuate. You need a pattern.
If nothing improves after a month, get a second opinion. Sometimes you're too close to your own stuff to see what's wrong. That's when outside perspective helps.
When To Call In Backup
Some of this stuff is genuinely complex. (Personally, I hate anything that feels like math so I tend to try to avoid looking at numbers whenever I can.) Deliverability issues can be a nightmare to diagnose and fix. Writing emails that actually convert takes practice and strategy. And doing all of this consistently while also running your business? That's a LOT.
If you're looking at your metrics and thinking "I don't even know where to start," you've got options.
If you want to learn the system and DIY it: The Inbox Intensive will walk you through setting up your email strategy, creating templates that convert, and building a workflow so you're never starting from scratch. You'll leave with a content calendar, email frameworks, and a plan you can actually execute.
If you'd rather hand it off: The Email Marketing Retainer means you get strategic, conversion-focused emails written and sent consistently without having to think about it. Your metrics improve because someone who knows what they're doing is handling it for you.
Either way, the version where you ignore your metrics and hope they magically fix themselves is not, in fact, a strategy.
Your metrics are talking. Are you listening?