How should email marketers adapt to MPP?

The shift away from open-rate dependency was overdue anyway. MPP accelerated a necessary transition toward more meaningful engagement metrics. Clicks, conversions, website activity, and purchase behavior tell you far more about subscriber interest than whether an image loaded.

Tactical adaptations: segment by click activity rather than opens. Use zero-party data (information subscribers voluntarily provide) for personalization instead of inferred data from tracking. Test subject lines using click-through rate rather than open rate. Re-evaluate sunset policies that relied solely on open activity.

For send time optimization, use click timestamps or ask subscribers directly for their preferred times. For location targeting, collect preferences explicitly or infer from purchase/shipping data.

Some marketers attempt to filter out MPP opens by identifying Apple's proxy IP ranges or analyzing open timing patterns. These methods are imperfect but can help isolate non-MPP users for more reliable open analysis.

When one instrument fails, skilled navigators consult others. The data hasn't disappeared; it's just moved to different signals.