The timing of delivery has a big impact on open and response rates, so it’s obvious you’d like to make the most of it.
NOTE: If you want to find out how to set up the timing criteria, please check this article!
Initial message timing
You can set up an hour for messages to be sent according to a prospect's timezone. You can also mark which days of the week would be the most suitable for your message to be sent. This way, our app will schedule emails for the closest day that matches your criteria. This is very convenient when you plan to use your sequence multiple times!
We usually recommend sending messages at all days from Monday to Friday, morning hours 8 a.m. - 12 p.m.should be the best. However, we encourage you to make some research (e.g. in our Email Time Optimizer) and experiment with timing (e.g. through A/B testing) to find the best combination for your unique target group!
Follow-ups timing
When you schedule follow-ups, you have three options:
Choose a specific time and day, just like in the opening message.
Send after X days/hours.
Choose Optimize sending time for me option
It’s best to create a universal sequence by setting “x days after” and choosing days Mon–Fri.
In practice, the follow-ups should go neither too often, nor too rarely. The best way to increase your chances of receiving a positive response is to keep 2 to 10-day intervals between your messages. Here you can also find some tips and tricks on follow-ups timing:
Instant follow-up – send a one-line addition a few minutes or hours after the first message. Make it casual, as if you forgot to mention something.
Keep at least a two-day-gap between messages – you do not want to end up labeled as a spammer.
Try different days of the week and different times – this way, you give yourself a better chance of catching the prospect during their daily email check.
Think about the long-term – do not bombard your prospect with five messages in one week and then stop. The whole plan is to campaign for at least two or three weeks. If you still have not heard back, remind them about your offer a few weeks later.
How to pick the best day and time?
You might write amazing messages, but it is not only what you write that matters but also when you do it. Timing may not be everything in this case, but it definitely matters. Keep in mind a few facts about the weekdays:
Monday – people have a lot of things to run through to catch up after the weekend, but it can be worth trying.
Tuesday/Wednesday/Thursday – very good shot!
Friday – people are already thinking about the weekend and focusing on closing things they planned for the week. Avoid sending first messages then, but a soft follow-up may be a good idea.
Saturday – this day doesn’t seem to be a good idea, as the weekend has just begun, and people are not eager to check their mailboxes and read messages.
Sunday – can be a good choice; people plan their whole week and may put you in their calendars.
In terms of timing:
Morning – you’ll end up at the top of recipients’ inboxes when they check their messages after getting to work. Most people start the day by reading emails, so why don’t you add yours to their pile?
Afternoon – lunchtime is not a good idea, but after 2 p.m. should be fine.
Evening – this might be good idea on Sundays: the weekend is nearly over, and most of us are starting to think about work and planning the following week (i.e. people check their inboxes).
Sometimes people check their mailboxes on the way to the office or just after arriving. It’s worth remembering that they read your message and reply from their phones, so make your emails easy to skim.
Some people are used to replying to emails late in the evening before going to sleep, so it can be worth trying.
Here you can analyze the perfect timing for specific job positions, industry, company size etc., e.g.:
