Open Rates vs. Response Rates
If you're wondering how to track open rates in Pitchbox, you're not alone — it's a common question.
At Pitchbox, we’ve made a deliberate decision not to include open rate tracking in outreach campaigns. Instead, we focus on response rates, which tend to provide a clearer picture of engagement in relationship-driven outreach.
Why Open Rates Aren’t Included
There are a few practical reasons why open rate tracking is not part of the Pitchbox system.
1. Tracking pixels can affect deliverability
Tracking opens typically requires adding a small, invisible pixel to each email. While this is commonly used in marketing platforms, some email providers such as Gmail, Outlook, and Yahoo may treat emails containing tracking elements differently. In certain cases, this can increase the likelihood that a message is categorized as promotional mail.
Because outreach campaigns rely on reaching recipients directly in their inbox, Pitchbox prioritizes approaches that help maintain strong deliverability.
2. Open rate data can be inconsistent
Even when open tracking is implemented, the data is not always fully reliable. Several factors can influence open rate reporting, including:
- Email servers that automatically preload images or tracking elements
- Privacy protections, such as Apple Mail Privacy Protection
- Security filters or firewalls that scan email content
These systems can sometimes trigger tracking pixels without the recipient actually opening the email, which can make the data difficult to interpret.
Why Response Rates Are More Relevant for Link building Outreach
In many marketing campaigns, simply viewing the email may be enough to achieve the goal of increasing brand awareness.
Outreach campaigns, such as link building or partnership development, usually have a different objective: starting a conversation and building relationships with site owners, editors, or partners.
Because of this, responses provide a more meaningful signal of engagement.
Focusing on response rates can help you:
- Understand how well your pitch resonates with your audience
- Measure genuine engagement from recipients