Constant Contact (eNewsletter)
Audience engagement remained strong through August, with an increased open rate of 66% that continues to outperform non-profit industry benchmarks. Email volume held steady month-over-month, while total opens grew to 3,287 and total clicks reached 103. Please Note: August’s eNewsletter did not include our SaratogaREADS! Distribution List.
|
Metric |
August 2025 |
July 2026 |
August 2026 |
Month-over-Month (MoM) Change (%) |
Year-over-Year (YoY) Change (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Total Emails Sent |
4,597 |
5,293 |
5,283 |
- .19% |
+14.2% |
|
Delivered |
4,370 |
5,012 |
4,998 |
+.28% |
+14.37% |
|
Bounces |
227 |
281 |
285 |
+1.42% |
+25.5% |
|
Opens (Open Rate) |
2,649 |
2,824 |
3,287 |
+16.75% |
+24% |
|
Clicks (Click Rate) |
81 |
123 |
103 |
-16.2% |
+27.16% |
|
Unsubscribed |
2 |
4 |
4 |
0% |
+100% |
Breakdown of Email Engagement
- Opens by Device:
- Mobile: 47%.
- Desktop: 53%.
- Clicks by Device:
- Mobile: 56%.
- Desktop: 44%.
August saw social media activity settle back down to typical levels after July’s surge in traffic. By posting less overall and focusing on key event updates—such as Summer Scares Saratoga and larger Summer Reading programs in the Community Room—we were able to keep engagement steady and effective on individual posts. The plan is to increase posting again in September.
|
Metric |
August 2025 |
July 2026 |
August 2026 |
MoM Change (%) |
YoY Change (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Total Followers |
5,800 |
6,485 |
6500 |
+.2% |
+12.1% |
|
Net Follower Growth |
+40 |
+117 |
+41 |
-65% |
+2.5% |
|
Total Views |
47,000 |
132,000 |
35,000 |
-73.5% |
-5.4% |
|
Total Engagement |
564 |
1,860 |
413 |
-77.8% |
-26.8% |
|
Posts Published |
92 |
67 |
40 |
-40.3% |
-56.5% |
Breakdown of Post Interactions (MoM)
- Reactions: 1,311 (July) - 371 (August) (-71.7%).
- Shares: 147 (July) - 34 (August) (-76.9%).
- Comments: 343 (July) - 8 (August) (-97.7%).
August 2026 performance demonstrated strong overall audience expansion, crossing 2.1K followers with steady year-over-year growth (+23.5%), despite a sharp decline in publishing frequency (38 posts compared to 59 in July) that naturally led to lower overall views (-25.0%) and engagement (-30.6%). High-intent promotional content, particularly image carousels for the Summer Reading celebration at High Rock Park and Summer Scares, drove the highest per-post reach and interaction rates. As with Facebook, we are increasing post frequency in September.
|
Metric |
August 2025 |
July 2026 |
August 2026 |
MoM Change (%) |
YoY Change (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Total Followers |
1,700 |
2,000 |
2,100 |
+5% |
+23.5% |
|
Net Follower Growth |
+20 |
+51 |
+35 |
-31.4% |
+75% |
|
Total Views |
15,000 |
16,000 |
12,000 |
-25% |
-20% |
|
Total Engagement |
332 |
385 |
267 |
-30.6% |
-19.6% |
|
Posts Published |
90 |
59 |
38 |
-35.6% |
-57.8% |
|
Engagement Rate |
5.9 |
6% |
5 |
-16.7% |
-15.3% |
Breakdown of Post Interactions (MoM)
- Likes: 306 (July) - 233 (August) (-23.9%).
- Shares: 37 (July) - 30 (August) (-18.9%).
- Comments: 6 (July) - 2 (August) (-66.7%).
- Posts Saved: 17 (July) - 2 (August) (-88.2%).
YouTube
In August 2026, YouTube performance saw a decline compared to July and August 2025—primarily due to posting no new videos during the month. Channel views dropped slightly to 370 and watch time fell to 12.3 hours, while returning viewers dropped by half. Despite the lack of new videos, impressions rose 30.16% MoM to 4,035. .
|
Metric |
August 2025 |
July 2026 |
August 2026 |
MoM Change (%) |
YoY Change (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Engaged Views |
428 |
380 |
304 |
-20% |
-28.97% |
|
Unique Viewers |
331 |
295 |
255 |
-13.56% |
-22.96% |
|
Returning Viewers |
51 |
42 |
21 |
-50.00% |
-58.2% |
|
Total Channel Views |
428 |
380 |
370 |
-2.63% |
-13.55% |
|
Watch Time (Hours) |
19.1 |
15.8 |
12.3 |
-22.15% |
-35.6% |
|
New Subscribers |
1 |
3 |
0 |
-100% |
-100% |
|
Total Impressions |
5,088 |
3,100 |
4,035 |
+30.16% |
-20.69% |
|
Click-Through Rate (CTR) |
3.9% |
5.3% |
3.2% |
-39.62% |
-17.95% |
July Top-Performing Videos on YouTube
- Slippery Fish with Ms. Sarah: 106 views, 2.04 hours watch time, 5.20% CTR.
- Historic Bridges of the Adirondacks: 77 views, 2.08 hours watch time, 2.79% CTR.
- “In the Library” by Charles Simic: 17 views, 0.16 hours watch time, 18.18% CTR.
- Value Line Tutorial with Trevor - Part I: 17 views, 1.17 hours watch time, 6.45% CTR.
Takeaways for August…
- Open rates for the eNewsletter jumped to a strong 66% with over 3,280 total opens, continuing to far exceed non-profit industry benchmarks even while excluding the SaratogaREADS! list from this month’s send.
- Dips in views and interactions across Facebook and Instagram directly reflected an intentional drop in posting volume following July’s summer push, though both platforms are scheduled to increase publishing frequency again in September.
- Despite publishing fewer posts overall, targeted promotional content for key initiatives—such as Summer Scares Saratoga, Summer Reading events, and programs at High Rock Park—successfully generated the highest per-post reach and interaction rates.
- Audience expansion remained healthy year-over-year across social channels, with Instagram surpassing 2,100 followers (+23.5% YoY) and Facebook reaching 6,500 followers (+12.1% YoY).
- Even with zero new videos added to YouTube during August, impressions were up by over 30% MoM, highlighting ongoing interest in existing video content.
Prepared by Gina Michelin, Community Relations Coordinator