"Total recipients" vs the number of recipients in "Sent" state

Modified on Wed, 11 Oct, 2023 at 10:32 AM

When sending an email, it's important to understand the difference between the total number of recipients sent and the number of recipients in the "sent" state. Here's what you need to know:

Total number of recipients sent

Is a count of all recipients who were included in the email send. It includes all recipients, regardless of their current state (such as "sent" or "deferred"). As the send progresses and recipients transition from different states to "sent," the open rate becomes more accurate. If you compare the total number of recipients sent to the number of recipients who have opened the email, you will likely find that the open rate is much closer to the reported value.

Number of recipients in ‘Sent’ state

The number of recipients in the 'sent' state refers to the count of recipients who have successfully received the email. This includes recipients whose email delivery has been completed and are classified as 'sent'. It does not include recipients in other states such as 'deferred' or 'in-progress'.

It is important to note that the open rate, which measures the percentage of recipients who have opened the email, becomes more accurate as the send progresses and more recipients transition to the 'sent' state. If you compare the number of recipients in the 'sent' state to the total number of recipients sent, you will likely find that the open rate is much closer to the reported value.

Calculations

When calculating open rates, it's important to use the correct numbers.

To determine the open rate for an email, the number of unique opens is divided by the number of emails sent, minus those that bounced:

Click rate is the number of recipients who clicked divided by the number of emails delivered (which is those sent minus those that bounced)

CTOR stands for “click-to-open rate.” It's the percentage of people who opened your email and then clicked a link within that email. You can calculate CTOR by dividing your unique email clicks by your unique email opens and multiplying by 100.

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