How will the iOS 15 announcement affect email marketing privacy and deliverability?

Marketer from Email Geeks shares that the iOS 15 announcement will not affect spam filters, inbox placement, and reputation because Google and others already proxy and cache images. He adds that various caches, prefetching of images, and other optimizations already mess with image open rate tracking.

Marketer from Email Geeks answers that measuring machines loading images was already flawed and suggests measuring clicks instead to inform the removal process. He adds that emails are either transactional and triggered by some activity you can prove, or they want the user to do something.

Email marketer from Email Uplers shares that marketers should shift their focus from open rates to other metrics such as click-through rates (CTR), conversion rates, and website traffic to gauge campaign success. It's also important to prioritize providing value to subscribers to encourage engagement beyond just opening emails.

Email marketer from G2 says that the update disrupts traditional email marketing funnels reliant on open rates. It encourages marketers to reassess their strategies, placing a higher emphasis on engaging content and valuable offers that drive actions.

Email marketer from Really Good Emails says that the iOS 15 update emphasizes the importance of focusing on true engagement metrics. Since open rates are becoming unreliable, marketers should prioritize strategies that encourage recipients to click links, make purchases, or interact directly with the email content.

Email marketer from SuperOffice shares that A/B testing is key to navigating the changes. With open rates being unreliable, marketers should focus on testing different subject lines, email content, and calls-to-action to see what resonates best with their audience. This data will help optimize campaigns based on actual engagement, like clicks and conversions.

Email marketer from Neil Patel shares that the iOS 15 changes reinforce the importance of building a strong, long-term email marketing strategy based on providing value to subscribers. This involves creating high-quality content, personalizing email experiences, and fostering a genuine connection with your audience.

Email marketer from HubSpot Blog explains that iOS 15's Mail Privacy Protection (MPP) makes open rates less reliable, as Apple devices may automatically mark emails as opened, regardless of actual user engagement. This inflates open rates and makes it difficult to gauge true audience interest based on opens alone.

Marketer from Email Geeks argues that it's making GDPR and ePrivacy compliance more difficult because it's harder to demonstrate that consent or permission is still active if the sender cannot implement a data lifecycle based on engagement.

Marketer from Email Geeks argues that spam and abuse will get worse without tracking opens.

Email marketer from Sendinblue shares that the update calls for a shift in focus towards metrics like click-through rates (CTR) and conversion rates. Focusing on these metrics can provide a clearer picture of how users are engaging with email content.

Email marketer from ActiveCampaign explains that the key to navigating the iOS 15 changes is to segment your audience based on engagement. Focus on identifying and targeting the most engaged subscribers using metrics like click-through rates, website visits, and purchase history. This allows you to send relevant content to those most likely to interact with it.

Expert from Word to the Wise responds that Apple's Mail Privacy Protection (MPP) will significantly impact email marketing. MPP inflates open rates because Apple preloads images. This change complicates traditional engagement metrics and requires a shift towards alternative metrics like click-through rates and conversions.

Expert from Email Geeks responds that during warmup we’re looking to ensure that the segments we’re sending to are people who are going to interact with the mail in a way that signal to the machine learning filters that the mail is wanted and good mail. She doesn’t believe a pixel load is a data point to identify the population and has generally looked for folks who click and reply and actively and positively interact with mail. Opens can come in later in the process, but to her, an open isn’t actually a sign of engagement.

Expert from Spam Resource recommends that due to unreliable open rates list hygiene is becoming even more important, as it helps to improve engagement rates. List hygiene refers to cleaning up your email list to make sure that you are only sending emails to people who want to receive them. This helps with overall deliverability and reputation, as well as the other engagement metrics. It mentions it will affect spam traps.

Expert from Email Geeks states that mailbox providers don’t need image loads to tell anything about the email because they have the data they need and never had insight into what users were doing with MUAs other than what was provided by the ISP.

Expert from Email Geeks shares that when looking at segmentation for warmup, particularly the very initial segments, my target is to find people who will miss the mail if it goes to the bulk folder. She looks for folks who are engaged with the brand: who is visiting the website, using the app, interacting with the brand on social media.

Expert from Email Geeks explains that inbox placement, reputation, and spam rules don’t use image opens and are based on real user behavior, therefore filtering won't change. She also mentions that open rates have been inaccurate for the last few years.

Documentation from Campaign Monitor shares that with open rates being less reliable due to Mail Privacy Protection, it's more important than ever to measure email marketing success based on other metrics. These include click-through rates, website traffic, conversions, and return on investment (ROI).

Documentation from Mailchimp shares that Mail Privacy Protection (MPP) affects how email opens are tracked. With MPP enabled, Apple Mail preloads email content, which can cause all emails sent to Apple Mail users to appear as if they've been opened, even if the recipient hasn't actually opened the message. This can result in less accurate open rate data.

Documentation from Litmus answers that Mail Privacy Protection (MPP) in iOS 15 impacts email marketers by skewing open rates. Apple's MPP preloads email content, including tracking pixels, which results in inflated open metrics, making it harder to identify truly engaged recipients.

Documentation from Oracle explains that the shift means marketers must focus on alternative engagement metrics, such as click-through rates (CTR), website traffic, and conversions. These metrics provide a more accurate reflection of user interest and behavior.