Overview

The "Opens & Clicks," "Email Burst," and "Cadences" feature sets within our Sales Engagement package allow users to track when an email is opened or when a link within the email is clicked. Below are answers to some of the most common questions we receive.

1. How does email open tracking work?

To track email opens, we use a unique URL that resolves to a 1px transparent image (referred to as a "pixel URL"). This image is embedded into the email body. When the email is opened and the image is loaded, Riva marks it as an email open.

2. How does link tracking work?

For link tracking, we generate a redirect URL. When a link is clicked, the user is first redirected to this URL before being taken to the intended web page. Riva detects when this redirect URL is visited and marks it as a link click.

3. What engagement data does Riva store?

Riva stores the following engagement data:

• Date
• Location (based on IP)
• Operating System (OS)
• Browser Name
• Links within the email
• Email ID

Riva does not store any personal information or specific content from the email other than the link URL.

4. What are the limitations?

• Plain Text Messages: Tracking code cannot be inserted into plain text messages and will not be triggered if the recipient views messages as plain text.
• IP Address and Location: Riva determines the recipient's approximate location using their IP address. However, if the recipient uses a VPN, proxy connection, firewall, or other privacy tools that conceal their IP address, this information cannot be captured. As a result, the location data may not always be accurate.
• Image Blocking: Some email clients may prevent images embedded in emails from displaying, including the tracking pixel. For example, in Microsoft Outlook (desktop), the pixel will not be activated unless the recipient manually allows image downloads by clicking the prompt that says, "Click here to download pictures. To help protect your privacy, Outlook prevented automatic download of some pictures in this message."
• False Opens: There may be instances of false opens due to email clients triggering opens via bots, such as in Gmail or Apple Mail (due to Apple Mail Privacy Protection). Riva continuously improves its algorithms to reduce false open rates by identifying user agents that lead to false opens.
  • To tackle bots which are triggering false opens, Riva will be ignoring opens that was triggered within 1 minute of the email being sent. Based on our countless number of tests, it took maximum or 1 minute for these bots to trigger an open, we can safely identify opens that happened past 1 minute as valid.
  • Riva has also flagged certain user agents that triggered opens or link clicks as a potential bot.
• Gmail Image Caching:
  • Gmail has started to cache images; this includes the 1px image we insert in emails to track email opens. After the email has been opened, once, the 1px image will be cached, so no subsequent opens can be detected unless the recipient of the email cleared cache.

This guide should help you understand how to utilize and interpret the email engagement analytics features in our Sales Engagement package effectively.