March 10, 2025  |  Peter Long

K12 Email Engagement Case Study

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13x Boost in Email Engagement Surge:
How MCH Transformed Email Marketing for a Major Educational Publisher

In December 2023, a prominent K12 Educational publisher approached MCH Strategic Data with a critical issue: their email marketing was failing. Relying on an MCH competitor's K12 contact list and platform, they witnessed a drastic decline in response rates, rendering email marketing ineffective. Following a recommendation from an independent consultant, they sought MCH's expertise.

The Challenge: Generic Emails and Plummeting Engagement

The Publisher’s existing strategy utilized a competitor's platform with standardized email templates. While seemingly efficient, these templates resulted in indistinguishable emails, mirroring those sent by numerous other companies. Consequently, school and district spam filters began recognizing these patterns, blocking the sender and causing a sharp drop in engagement. Attempts to compensate by increasing email volume only exacerbated the problem, reaching less targeted audiences and triggering further blocks.

MCH's Solution: Prioritizing Quality and Precision

MCH proposed a direct comparison to demonstrate their approach. The Publisher agreed to divide an upcoming campaign, using state-based segmentation for tracking. The MCH competitor provided a list of 25,000 contacts and completed the campaign as usual. MCH, however, adopted a strategic, data-driven methodology.

MCH, has spent over a decade tracking email engagement across our database. This allows us to distinguish between email addresses that have a strong history of engagement and those that have never responded to any campaign. Instead of simply matching the competitor’s quantity, we prioritized quality - creating a highly responsive, best-case list of about 15,000 email addresses, significantly fewer than the competitor’s 25,000.

The Results: A Dramatic Increase in Performance

The results were remarkable. MCH achieved open rates nearly 6 times higher and click-through rates 13 times higher than the competitor. Despite sending to a smaller list, MCH delivered more high-quality leads at a significantly lower cost.

Impressed by the results, The Publisher has since adopted MCH’s approach across all their specialty publishing lines, covering the full range of K-12 grades and subject areas. Now entering its second year, this strategy continues to drive exceptional engagement, proving that a data-driven, targeted approach is far more effective than high-volume email blasts.

The MCH Difference: A Data-Centric Strategy

MCH Strategic Data’s success is rooted in:

• Targeted, High-Performing Lists: Historical engagement data identifies recipients most likely to interact, maximizing campaign impact.
• Enhanced Deliverability and Trust: High engagement signals email value to receiving domains, improving inbox placement.
• Intelligent Email Distribution: Controlled email delivery prevents spam filter triggers.
• Reputable Sending Infrastructure: Clean sending domains and IPs ensure optimal deliverability.
• Customized, Engaging Messaging: Unique messaging stands out in crowded inboxes.

By combining these elements, MCH doesn’t just increase email performance - we redefine what’s possible in K-12 email marketing.

The Takeaway: Reimagining K12 Email Marketing

K12 email marketing is not obsolete; it requires a sophisticated, data-driven approach. MCH's strategy demonstrates that targeted, precision-based campaigns deliver superior results. If your email marketing is underperforming, MCH can help you achieve significant improvements through a smarter, more effective methodology.

If your email campaigns aren’t delivering the results you need, let’s talk. We’d love to help you achieve better outcomes with a smarter, more strategic approach.

More Insight from MCH

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About MCH

For nearly a century, MCH has empowered educational marketers with the data, tools, and solutions needed to thrive. Our cutting-edge technology continuously updates and verifies millions of educator records, ensuring you have the most accurate information for your campaigns.