Smartlead Inbox Intelligence

Hey Smartleader,

77% of cold emails never get opened. Yikes! But A/B testing can help you beat the odds.

There are two main types of A/B split testing for cold emails:

• Classic A/B Testing: Compare two versions of the same email.

• Multivariate A/B Testing: Test multiple elements within the same email. Think different first lines, CTAs, or images—all in one go.

This good old trial-and-error method helps to maximize reply rates, CTR, and most importantly, conversions🎯

A/B Testing Ideas for Email Copy

1. Formal Greetings vs. Non-Formal Greetings: Test casual greetings like "Hi" or "Hey" vs. formal greetings like "Hello" or "Dear [First Name]".

2. Intro vs. No Intro: Test emails with and without an intro of the sender to see what works best for your audience.

3. Use of Images, GIFs, and Videos vs. Plain Text: Test whether visual-heavy emails or plain text emails generate more responses.

4. Generic Personalization vs. Hyper-Personalization: Test simple customization vs. hyper-personalization in follow-up emails to see what drives more conversions.
   
   Best practices for A/B Testing

   ✅ Test one variable at a time.

   ✅ Use a representative sample size.

   ✅ Consider the context and timing.

Leverage the AI Auto Adjust A/B Testing feature at Smartlead to optimize your campaigns and boost your revenue through increased booked meetings.  

Still feeling overwhelmed?

Track Cold Email Campaigns Metrics with Matt Lucero

Wondering why your cold emails aren't heating up? Check out Matt Lucero’s latest video on boosting response rates. Also keep your toes deepen into:

• Importance of tracking metrics.

• Optimize for meetings booked.

• Focus on the emails sent to meetings booked ratio.

• Ideal call booking ratio.

• Tracking prospects to emails sent ratio.

• Open and reply rates.

Smartlead Insights: Fixes to Deal with Outlook Bounce Rates

There's been some serious buzz in our Slack community lately. Microsoft seems to be blocking tenants aggressively, causing an uptick in bounce rates. If Microsoft suspects your inbox is being used for cold emailing, they're autobouncing all outgoing emails.

Here's how you can fix the issues (and avoid any panic moments):

1. ESP Matching: Set your campaign settings to match ESP (Email Service Provider). Outlook to Outlook is still reliable.

2. Turn Off Open Rate Tracking: Disable open rate tracking and stick to plain text emails in your campaign settings.

3. Remove Common Links: Avoid using frequently used links like Calendly.

4. Custom Domain Tracking:If you still want to track open rates, setup custom domain tracking as a compulsion

5. 3rd Party SMTPs: Now might be the time to try these out. We don't have specific recommendations since 99% of them are just white-labeled solutions of an SMTP provider and have their own issues (e.g., Tucows/Enom).

Keep sending—it’s all good in the hood. Stay vigilant and adjust your strategies as needed. 

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Popular Resources

Get a glance at the trendiest resources, expert tips, and insider highlights:

• Good Conversion Metrics for Cold Emails

• Email Bounce and Error Codes

• Guide to Configuring Outlook SMTP Settings

• SPF/DKIM/DMARC Setup: A Comprehensive Guide

Warm Regards,

Vaibhav Namburi | Smartlead.ai