Measuring Email Success: Key Metrics Every Real Estate Agent Should Track

Email is one of the simplest ways to stay in front of sellers, buyers, investors, and landlords. When you measure the right numbers, you learn what to send, who to send it to, and when to send it. This guide explains the essential metrics, how to calculate them in plain language, and how to link them to real results like appraisals booked and listings won.

Why measuring email performance matters

• It shows what content attracts enquiries, inspections, and appraisal requests

• It helps you spend less time guessing and more time on what works

• It proves the value of email to your team and to vendors who fund marketing

• It protects your sender reputation so your messages land in the inbox, not in spam

The five levels of email success

Think of your email performance like a simple ladder. Each step leads to the next.

1. Deliver. Did your email reach the inbox

2. Open. Did your contact open it

3. Engage. Did they click or reply

4. Act. Did they book, enquire, register, or download

5. Grow. Did your list size and quality improve over time

Essential metrics and how to calculate them

Use simple counts from your email platform and calculator. Write each formula in words so anyone can follow.

Deliverability rate

• What it is. The share of emails that reached inboxes

• How to calculate. Delivered emails divided by emails sent, multiplied by one hundred

• Aim for. Above ninety eight percent

Bounce rate

• What it is. The share of emails that could not be delivered

• Types. Hard bounces are invalid addresses, soft bounces are temporary issues

• How to calculate. Bounced emails divided by emails sent, multiplied by one hundred

• Aim for. Below one percent

Open rate

• What it is. The share of people who opened your email

• How to calculate. Unique opens divided by delivered emails, multiplied by one hundred

• Aim for. Thirty five to fifty five percent for local property content

Click through rate

• What it is. The share of delivered emails with at least one link click

• How to calculate. Unique link clicks divided by delivered emails, multiplied by one hundred

• Aim for. Three to ten percent

Click to open rate

• What it is. The share of openers who clicked

• How to calculate. Unique link clicks divided by unique opens, multiplied by one hundred

• Aim for. Ten to twenty five percent

Reply rate

• What it is. The share of delivered emails that receive a reply

• How to calculate. Replies divided by delivered emails, multiplied by one hundred

• Aim for. Zero point two to two percent, higher for plain text updates and personal invites

Conversion rate

• What it is. The share of delivered emails that lead to the goal you set

• Goals to track. Appraisal booking, market update request, open home registration, private inspection request, property report download, vendor meeting

• How to calculate. Goal completions divided by delivered emails, multiplied by one hundred

• Aim for. Zero point five to three percent for clear single call to action

Leads per one thousand emails sent

• Why it helps. Normalises results across big and small lists

• How to calculate. Number of qualified leads divided by emails sent, multiplied by one thousand

• Use when. Comparing campaigns across months

Unsubscribe rate

• What it is. The share of people who opt out

• How to calculate. Unsubscribes divided by delivered emails, multiplied by one hundred

• Aim for. Below zero point three percent

Spam complaint rate

• What it is. The share of delivered emails marked as spam

• How to calculate. Spam complaints divided by delivered emails, multiplied by one hundred

• Aim for. Below zero point zero two percent

List growth rate

• What it is. Net growth of your list each month

• How to calculate. New subscribers less unsubscribes less hard bounces, divided by last month list size, multiplied by one hundred

• Aim for. Three to ten percent monthly if you promote sign up forms and lead magnets

List churn

• What it is. The share of your list that leaves or goes inactive

• How to calculate. Unsubscribes plus hard bounces plus cold contacts, divided by list size, multiplied by one hundred

• Aim for. Below two percent per month

Read time and top links

• What it shows. How long people read and which links win the most clicks

• Use it to. Shorten long emails, move prime links higher, and place main button above the fold

Device and client split

• What it shows. Mobile versus desktop, Apple Mail versus Gmail, and more

• Use it to. Design mobile first, keep buttons large, and test on real devices

Send time performance

• What it shows. Which day and hour gets the best opens and clicks

• Use it to. Build a simple rhythm, for example Tuesday mid morning or Thursday mid afternoon, then adjust

Benchmarks to guide your goals

Every list and area is different. Use these healthy ranges as a starting point, then set your own targets.

• Deliverability above ninety eight percent

• Bounce rate below one percent

• Open rate between thirty five and fifty five percent

• Click through rate between three and ten percent

• Click to open rate between ten and twenty five percent

• Reply rate between zero point two and two percent

• Conversion rate between zero point five and three percent

• Unsubscribe rate below zero point three percent

• Spam complaint rate below zero point zero two percent

• List growth between three and ten percent per month

Link email metrics to real outcomes

Numbers matter most when they lead to appointments and sales. Map each metric to a clear property outcome.

• Appraisal bookings from email invites to a free market update

• Listing presentations requested after a vendor education series

• Open home registrations from new listing alerts

• Private inspection requests from price change notices

• Buyer enquiries from feature property spotlights

• Landlord leads from vacancy reduction tips and case studies

• Repeat business from anniversary check ins and sold story emails

Create one simple rule. Every campaign must have one main call to action that maps to one outcome.

Set up tracking the right way

Follow these steps once, then reuse the same structure for every send.

1. Define the single success action for the campaign, for example Book an appraisal

2. Build a landing page or form that captures name, mobile, email, and suburb

3. Add hidden fields to the form, for example Source equals Email, Campaign name equals Sept Vendor Series

4. Use booking links for appraisals so you can count completed bookings

5. Add UTM tags to every link, for example utm_source equals email, utm_medium equals newsletter, utm_campaign equals sept_vendor_series

6. Connect your email platform to your CRM so the source and campaign name flow through

7. Create a saved report in your CRM that shows Leads by Source equals Email and Campaign Name by week and month

8. Use a unique phone number on key landing pages if you need to capture phone calls as conversions

9. Confirm your unsubscribe link works and matches the Spam Act in Australia

Build your weekly and monthly scoreboard

Keep this simple and visible for your team.

Weekly scoreboard

• Campaign name

• Segment sent to

• Delivered count and deliverability rate

• Open rate

• Click through rate and top three links

• Replies and reply rate

• Goal completions and conversion rate

• Unsubscribes and unsubscribe rate

• Notes on what worked

Monthly scoreboard

• Total emails sent

• Leads per one thousand emails sent

• Appraisals booked from email

• Listings won from email

• Average open rate and trend arrow up or down

• Average click through rate and trend arrow up or down

• List growth rate and list churn

• Revenue or gross commission linked to email sourced listings

A B testing made simple

Testing helps you learn faster without risk.

• Test one thing at a time, for example subject line, hero image, or call to action button text

• Split your audience into two equal groups

• Pick a winner based on click to open rate and conversion rate, not open rate alone

• Roll the winner to the remaining contacts in the segment next time

• Keep a simple log of tests and results so you do not repeat old ideas

Quick wins to lift each metric

Lift deliverability

• Remove invalid addresses and role emails such as info at or admin at

• Use double opt in or a confirmation step for new sign ups

• Send to engaged segments first, then warm the rest

• Keep a steady send rhythm, not long gaps followed by a burst

Lift open rate

• Use a clear sender name that people recognise

• Write subject lines that promise one benefit, for example Your Spring Market Update for Carindale

• Use preview text to add a second hook

• Keep segments tight so the message feels local and personal

Lift clicks

• Place one main button high in the email

• Use short copy with scannable subheadings and bullet points

• Add property cards with a single View listing button

• Use text links as well as buttons for readers who prefer text

Lift conversions

• Send to the right segment, for example homeowners in the last five years for a free market update

• Use a distraction free landing page that matches the email message

• Keep forms short, then nurture for extra details later

• Add social proof such as recent sales and short vendor quotes

Reduce unsubscribes and complaints

• Set a clear send frequency and tell people what they will receive

• Add a preference centre so contacts can choose topics such as new listings, market updates, landlord tips

• Remove cold contacts who have not opened in six months after a final re engagement note

Grow your list

• Add sign up forms to your website header and footer

• Offer useful downloads such as suburb reports and selling checklists

• Capture emails at open homes with a simple tick to get new listing alerts

• Add a tick box for market updates to all enquiry forms

Simple workbook items to copy into your system

Campaign naming

• Use a pattern with underscores to keep names clean

• Example. year_month_theme_audience, such as 2025_09_vendor_series_homeowners

UTM tags

• Use the same tags every time so reports stay tidy

• utm_source equals email

• utm_medium equals newsletter or alert or invite

• utm_campaign equals your campaign name pattern

CRM fields

• Source equals Email

• Campaign Name equals your campaign name

• Goal equals Appraisal booking or Open home registration or Market update request

Example calculations with real numbers

• You sent four thousand emails

• One hundred soft bounces and twenty hard bounces

• Three thousand eight hundred and eighty delivered

• One thousand eight hundred opens

• Three hundred unique link clicks

• Thirty appraisal bookings

Now calculate.

• Deliverability rate equals three thousand eight hundred and eighty divided by four thousand, multiplied by one hundred, which is ninety seven percent

• Open rate equals one thousand eight hundred divided by three thousand eight hundred and eighty, multiplied by one hundred, which is forty six point four percent

• Click through rate equals three hundred divided by three thousand eight hundred and eighty, multiplied by one hundred, which is seven point seven percent

• Click to open rate equals three hundred divided by one thousand eight hundred, multiplied by one hundred, which is sixteen point seven percent

• Conversion rate equals thirty divided by three thousand eight hundred and eighty, multiplied by one hundred, which is zero point eight percent

• Leads per one thousand emails sent equals thirty divided by four thousand, multiplied by one thousand, which is seven point five

You can now compare these to your targets and decide what to improve next.

Troubleshooting guide

• Low deliverability. Clean your list, confirm sign ups, reduce images, and avoid spammy words

• Low open rate. Test sender name and subject line, improve preview text, tighten the segment

• Low click rate. Move the main button higher, simplify the message, and add a clear benefit

• Low conversion rate. Fix the landing page, shorten the form, and match the message to the page

• High unsubscribes. Reduce frequency, split by interest, and improve expectations on the sign up page

Your checklist

• One campaign, one clear goal

• A named segment that matches the goal

• Links with UTM tags and a matching landing page

• A working unsubscribe link and clear permission

• Scoreboard updated weekly and monthly

• A short note on what to repeat and what to test next

Measure these numbers, improve a little each week, and you will turn every send into more conversations, more appointments, and more listings.

Author Ken Hobson