TL;DR
Low open rates don't always mean poor performance anymore. Email privacy features (Apple Mail Privacy Protection, Gmail blocking tracking pixels) and spam filter bots artificially inflate or deflate open rates. Focus on reply rate and interest rate instead; these measure real engagement. If open rates are genuinely low, improve subject lines, verify email list quality, and check your sender reputation (SPF/DKIM/DMARC).
Symptoms
Open rates below 20% on cold email campaigns
Open rates are significantly lower than in previous campaigns
High open rates (80%+) with no replies or clicks (likely bot/spam filter activity)
Multiple opens from the same recipient within seconds (false tracking)
Opens registered but no actual engagement (replies, clicks, meetings booked)
Environment
Applies to:
Cold email campaigns sent via lemlist
Recipients using Apple Mail, Gmail, Outlook with privacy protection enabled
Campaigns targeting B2B contacts with strict email security filters
Step-by-Step Fix
Check if open rates are actually the problem
Go to your campaign in lemlist and compare open rate, reply rate, and interest rate. If reply rate and interest rate are healthy (above 5% and 2% respectively), your campaign is performing well, open rates are just unreliable due to privacy features.
✅ Verify: Reply rate is above 5%. If yes, your campaign is fine, ignore low open rates.
If reply rate is also low, improve your subject lines
Open your campaign and review your subject lines. Avoid spam-trigger words (free, urgent, limited time), keep them under 50 characters, and personalize with variables like {{firstName}}{{companyName}}
Test subject lines with A/B testing in lemlist. Compare open rates between variations.
✅ Verify: A/B test shows improved open rates on better subject lines.
Verify your email list quality
Check your email list for invalid or outdated addresses. Use lemlist's email verification or an external tool (e.g., ZeroBounce, NeverBounce). Remove hard bounces and unverified emails.
✅ Verify: Bounce rate drops below 5% after cleaning your list.
Check your sender reputation and authentication
Go to Google Postmaster Tools and verify your domain's sender reputation. Ensure SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records are properly configured in your DNS settings.
✅ Verify: Postmaster shows "High" or "Medium" reputation (green/yellow), and SPF/DKIM tests pass.
Focus on engagement metrics instead of open rates
In lemlist, track reply rate (percentage of recipients who reply) and interest rate (percentage who mark as interested). These metrics measure real engagement, not false tracking.
Set campaign goals based on replies and meetings booked, not opens.
✅ Verify: You're tracking and optimizing for reply rate instead of open rate.
Adjust sending practices to improve deliverability
Warm up new email addresses gradually using lemlist's warmup feature. Limit daily sends to 50–100 emails per address. Personalize email content and avoid sending identical emails to large lists.
✅ Verify: Deliverability improves, fewer bounces, more inbox placement.
Confirm It's Fixed
✓ Reply rate and interest rate are healthy (5%+ and 2%+ respectively)
✓ Bounce rate is below 5%
✓ Sender reputation is "High" or "Medium" in Google Postmaster Tools
✓ Subject line A/B tests show improved open rates
✓ You're tracking engagement metrics (replies, meetings) instead of relying on open rates
Why It Happens / Prevent This
Open rates are becoming unreliable due to:
Email privacy features: Apple Mail Privacy Protection, Gmail, and Outlook block tracking pixels, preventing accurate open tracking.
Spam filter bots: Some email servers open emails and click links to scan for threats, artificially inflating open/click rates without real recipient engagement.
False tracking: Multiple opens from the same recipient within seconds are often false positives caused by email clients pre-loading content.
To prevent low engagement:
Clean your email list regularly, remove bounces and invalid emails
Improve subject lines, personalize and avoid spam triggers
Maintain good sender reputation, configure SPF/DKIM/DMARC and warm up new addresses
Focus on reply rate and interest rate, these measure real engagement
Alternatives
Track clicks instead of opens: Add a call-to-action link in your email and track click rates. Clicks are harder to fake than opens and indicate genuine interest.
Use manual engagement tracking: Mark leads as "interested" or "not interested" based on their replies or behavior outside email (e.g., LinkedIn engagement, demo bookings).
Test email deliverability: Use tools like Mail-Tester or GlockApps to check if your emails land in spam folders instead of inboxes.