If you have been doing research on email marketing, chances are that you have seen numerous stories about what worked for a particular individual. This anecdotal information can be useful in a broad sense, but many find out that someone’s strategy does not work for them in the same regard. This is because depending on who you are and who the target of the audience is, you may need to adapt such a strategy that revolves around their habits. We will explore some of the nuances that must be considered when determining the best time to send your mailing list an email.

Weekdays Versus Weekends

Conventional email marketing strategies have suggested to individuals that they should not send emails during the weekend. Most likely, you have noticed that the number of emails you receive each day drop off during the weekend – with very few emails on Sunday. This is generally done so as not to pester their subscribers, but are weekend emails off limits or ineffective? No! There is no evidence to suggest that the average subscriber is any less likely to respond to an email over the weekend as opposed to a weekday, so do not let yourself be limited in crafting a weekend email strategy.

Night Versus Day

Various schools of thought have been brought up on this difference. Some believe that by emailing an individual during the day, they have the best chance of getting a response because people are generally checking their emails throughout the day. Others think that by sending an email at night – as late as possible, usually – they can be one of the first emails seen by the person when they check their email in the mornings. There is not much general evidence to suggest a general optimum time to send an email; many default by sending them at night so as to not pester their subscribers with email notifications during the day.

Particular Days

We have heard from several experts that deciding on a particular day may be to your best advantage; some days are considered to be less receptive than others when it comes to subscribers reading your emails. For instance, Friday is the day when many are supposedly “tuned out”, preparing themselves for the weekend, while Mondays may be too busy for someone to actually sit down and read your communication in full. Tip: Need to communicate with someone anonymously? Try Pingler’s Anonymous Email Sender Tool, which will allow you to convey a message without disclosing your identity.

Know Your Demographic

Is there any concrete evidence that suggest specific computer habits among your audience? Use this information to your advantage. It is known, for instance, that the average gamer stays up two hours longer on average than the average computer user; this means that a late-night email might be better received by them than by an older or less wired-in demographic. Also, observe the times at which your site is busiest. If they are coming to your site at these hours, then contacting them around the same time is simply a good idea.