Think your B2B outreach is working? Unless you’re tracking response rates, you’re mostly guessing. If you’re tired of throwing emails into the void and hoping for the best, this guide is for you. We’ll cut through the hype and show you exactly how to use Authoredup to track, analyze, and—most importantly—actually improve your response rates. No fluff, no “growth hacks,” just what works (and what doesn’t).
Why Response Rates Matter (And What They Really Tell You)
Let’s be honest: most B2B outreach ends up ignored. The average cold email response rate? It hovers somewhere between 1% and 10%. That’s… not great. But tracking your response rates isn’t just about feeling bad or good about yourself. It’s about figuring out what’s worth your time.
Good response rates tell you: - Your message is reaching the right people. - Your emails aren’t landing in spam. - You’re saying something that makes folks care enough to reply.
Bad response rates mean: - You may have the wrong list, a weak pitch, or issues with deliverability. - Or, honestly, you’re just doing what everyone else does—so people tune you out.
If you’re not measuring, you’re just guessing. And guessing is for casinos, not sales teams.
Step 1: Setting Up Authoredup to Track Responses
If you’re new to Authoredup, don’t worry—it’s not rocket science. But you do need to set things up right, or your numbers will be meaningless.
1. Connect Your Email Account Properly
Make sure your main outreach account is connected—not some random alias. This helps avoid deliverability issues and ensures you can actually track replies.
Pro tip:
Use a dedicated outreach email. Mixing personal and outreach emails is a recipe for confusion (and missed leads).
2. Upload Clean, Segmented Lists
Garbage in, garbage out. If your contact list is outdated or full of info@ addresses, your response rate will tank—no matter how clever your email is.
- Segment by industry, role, or company size so you can see what actually works.
- Remove obvious bounces and dead emails before you start.
3. Write Templates, Not Scripts
Yes, Authoredup lets you build templates. But don’t just blast the same email to everyone. Personalization isn’t just a buzzword; it matters for response rates.
- Add dynamic fields (like {First Name}, {Company}), but don’t force it.
- A little research on each prospect goes further than a fancy mail merge.
4. Enable Tracking Features
Make sure reply tracking is turned on. Open and click tracking are nice, but they won’t help you if you can’t see who actually wrote back.
Step 2: Understanding What Authoredup Tracks (And What It Doesn’t)
Don’t get hypnotized by dashboards. Here’s what’s useful—and what’s just noise.
Authoredup tracks: - Sent emails: Obvious, but you need a baseline. - Delivered emails: Helpful for spotting deliverability issues. - Opens and clicks: Nice to know, but opens are increasingly unreliable thanks to privacy tools. - Replies: The one metric that really matters for outreach.
It doesn’t track: - If someone forwarded your email to a colleague who replied instead. - If your email triggered a spam filter and never got seen. - The quality of replies (you’ll need to read those yourself).
Ignore: - Vanity metrics. If you’re getting tons of opens but no replies, something's off. - Overly granular time-based stats. “Tuesday at 10am” vs. “Wednesday at 9am” is rarely the issue.
Step 3: Reading the Numbers—What’s a “Good” Response Rate, Really?
Here’s the part most sales blogs won’t tell you: There’s no magic number. But there are some benchmarks.
- Cold outreach: 2–5% is normal. 8–10% is great. Anything higher? Double-check your math.
- Warm outreach (inbound or referrals): 10–25% is common.
- Anything below 1%: Time to stop and rethink your list or your message.
But be careful:
Chasing a high response rate can backfire. If you’re only emailing people you already know, your numbers might look great—but you’re not growing.
Step 4: Analyzing Your Results in Authoredup
This is where most people get stuck. They see a chart, shrug, and go back to blasting the same message. Don’t do that.
1. Break Down Responses by Segment
- Industry: Are SaaS companies replying more than manufacturers?
- Role: Are you targeting decision-makers or just whoever has a LinkedIn profile?
- Message variant: Did subject line A outperform subject line B?
If you can’t see these differences, tweak your tagging or segmentation in Authoredup until you can.
2. Look for Patterns, Not One-Offs
One campaign with a 20% response rate doesn’t mean you’ve cracked the code. Look for consistent trends over several campaigns.
3. Pay Attention to Negative Signals
- High bounce rates: Means your list is junky.
- Lots of opens, no replies: Your subject line is working, but your message isn’t.
- Unsubscribes or spam reports: Your emails are annoying, not helpful.
4. Actually Read the Replies
Not all responses are created equal. Someone saying “Remove me from your list” technically counts as a reply, but it’s not a win. Use Authoredup’s tagging or notes features to keep track of what responses matter.
Step 5: Making Real Improvements (Without Overcomplicating Things)
You’ve got your data. Now what? Here’s how to actually get better.
1. Tweak One Thing at a Time
Don’t change your list, your message, and your timing all at once. If something improves (or tanks), you won’t know why.
2. Stop Copying “Best Practices” Blindly
Just because some blog says “use first names in subject lines” doesn’t mean it works for your audience. Test it. If it doesn’t move the needle, ditch it.
3. Focus on Message Quality
Most B2B buyers have seen enough generic pitches to last a lifetime. If your email looks like it was written by a robot, it’ll get deleted.
- Be direct about why you’re reaching out.
- Keep it short—nobody wants to read a novel.
- Make it easy to reply (ask a simple question).
4. Review and Clean Your List Regularly
A stale list is a silent killer. Prune hard bounces and non-responders. Your response rate will thank you.
5. Don’t Obsess Over Timing
Yes, Tuesday mornings might work better for some. But unless your numbers are huge, the difference is minimal. Focus on the message and the list.
What to Ignore (Seriously)
- “Growth hacks” that promise to 10x your reply rate. If it sounds too good to be true, it is.
- Complicated A/B tests with 10 variables. You don’t need a data science degree to get better at outreach.
- Open rates as a success metric. Apple Mail privacy changes have made these even less reliable.
The Bottom Line: Track, Learn, Simplify, Repeat
If you take nothing else away from this, remember: Tracking response rates in Authoredup is about learning what works for your audience—not chasing big numbers for the sake of it. Keep your setup simple, review your results honestly, and tweak one thing at a time. You’ll get better, and you won’t waste time chasing magic tricks that don’t work.
Now go check your numbers—and don’t be afraid to scrap what’s not working. That’s how you actually improve.