The Black Friday countdown is on! View our resources page to ensure you are prepared.

Published on Aug 11, 2025

How To Consistently Get 40% Open Rates (And The Power of Influencers)

bio-kati

Written by Katie Samuelson

Most marketers are happy with open rates between 18-20%.

But for Melanie Balke, a marketing consultant who specializes in ecommerce, open rates any lower than 40% means there’s a huge opportunity.

And it starts with segmentation. The problem is that most people have no idea where to start when it comes to segmentation.

They get so overwhelmed that they just keep firing off emails to their entire list.

But your buyers are in different stages…

Just think about how you interact with people in your personal life. What you share with your closest friends is completely different than what you share with acquaintances.

When you start to think about your customers that way, not only will your open rates be higher your conversion rate will increase too.

Because you’ll be sharing messages that are hyper-relevant to the people who are getting them. So we asked Melanie to share how she thinks about segmentation and interacting with customers.

Get our best content on ecommerce marketing in your inbox 2 times a week

On this episode, you’ll learn:

  • Melanie’s playbook for working with influencers.
  • Why you should be shooting for 40% open rates with your emails.
  • How to use email and text messaging together.
  • How to calculate what you should be spending on ads.

What to listen for:

  • [2:04] The biggest mistakes she sees ecommerce marketers making.
  • [7:45] Tips for getting amazing content for social.
  • [10:03] How to find influencers.
  • [12:40] How to pitch influencers.
  • [13:55] Why a 40% open rate is Melanie’s target for every email she sends.
  • [19:40] The best way to use text messages.
  • [26:27] How to start with segmentation.
  • [28:06] Knowing what to spend on ads.
  • [31:56] Why your creative is the most important aspect of your ads.
  • [34:18] How to test creative before putting any budget behind it.

Writen by Katie Samuelson

bio-kati

Katie is the VP of Marketing at Privy.

You may also like to read

Learn how we responsibly build, test, and refine AI models and capabilities to ensure accuracy and domain relevancy.

SMS Marketing

The Best Ecommerce SMS Marketing Examples We’ve Seen in 2025

Take inspiration from these SMS marketing examples.

Read More
BFCM

Stand Out This Black Friday: 5 Proven Promotions That Convert

BFCM can be pretty noisy. These promotions will help your brand cut through.

Read More
BFCM
Email Marketing

3 Must-Send Black Friday Emails to Maximize Revenue

BFCM is just around the corner, and this plan will help you crush it.

Read More