56 Characters or Less – Effective Subject Lines
If you don't already know about it, I write for Dr. Ralph Wilson's Web Marketing Today newsletter on email marketing. This is the first of two articles on Subject lines. The second was just published in this week's newsletter, but will also appear here in a week or so.
56 Characters or Less – Effective Subject Lines
What is the first thing you scan in your email inbox? For me, it’s the Subject line. If it catches my attention, I then check to see who sent it.
Your relationship with your readers/customers starts with the subject line.
You can have Subject lines as lengthy as you choose, but you have to assume that the most people see is 56 spaces…total. That is what you have to work with to make an impression strong enough to get your readers to the next stage, clicking and opening the email you’ve toiled over.
Support your Subject Line and create instant recognition with the same From: information every time. That does not mean an anonymous person in your company, but a real and recognizable persona. That does not mean that every reply has to go to the CEO! That’s what redirected emails are for.
Now that many email clients block images by default, your Subject line is the most important sentence in your entire campaign.
Consider a descriptive name for your regular newsletter and then, expand on that if you feel it necessary or desirable, e.g. TrendBlog-New Research Results on Testing Subject Lines (55 spaces), TrendBlog-I’m Sorry You Feel That Way… (40 spaces), TrendBlog-Top 5 Strategies to Build Subscribership (50 spaces).
Take a cue from the headlines; just don’t make that newspaper Variety! Variety, the entertainment industry newspaper built a reputation with its headlines like “Sticks Hix Nix Pix.” Creative is good as long as it is clear, concise, and doesn’t confuse your readers. Make it easy for people to understand, archive to find later.
Savvy email marketers are three times more likely to test subject lines. Certainly, the larger your list, the more valid Subject line testing can be. However, you can always enlist a group of trusted people to give you their opinions on which Subject line they feel is most effective. A twist on this is used by Outside magazine whose email newsletter includes a link to vote for your choice of magazine cover for the upcoming issue. Not only does it engage the online audience, but it also drives them to the newsstand and print magazine to see which cover design won.
Many “authorities” such as myself (ahem!) recommend that you personalize Subject lines with the recipient’s names. Call me old-fashioned, but personally I do not like this over-familiar ploy from strangers. And, unless your list maintenance is absolutely mistake-proof, I don’t think it’s worth the potential faux pas.
And, always – Be honest. Just yesterday I got an email from a major publication. The From: line was the “Magazine”.com. The Subject line was “Your friend wants you to receive Pearls of Wisdom,” so I took the time to open the email. It was an offer from one of their advertisers. The last time I checked I do not include major pharmaceutical companies as personal friends. Consider the fallout….
Stay tuned for Part Two-what motivates people to click through. What works, what doesn’t?
56 Characters or Less – Effective Subject Lines
What is the first thing you scan in your email inbox? For me, it’s the Subject line. If it catches my attention, I then check to see who sent it.
Your relationship with your readers/customers starts with the subject line.
You can have Subject lines as lengthy as you choose, but you have to assume that the most people see is 56 spaces…total. That is what you have to work with to make an impression strong enough to get your readers to the next stage, clicking and opening the email you’ve toiled over.
Support your Subject Line and create instant recognition with the same From: information every time. That does not mean an anonymous person in your company, but a real and recognizable persona. That does not mean that every reply has to go to the CEO! That’s what redirected emails are for.
Now that many email clients block images by default, your Subject line is the most important sentence in your entire campaign.
Consider a descriptive name for your regular newsletter and then, expand on that if you feel it necessary or desirable, e.g. TrendBlog-New Research Results on Testing Subject Lines (55 spaces), TrendBlog-I’m Sorry You Feel That Way… (40 spaces), TrendBlog-Top 5 Strategies to Build Subscribership (50 spaces).
Take a cue from the headlines; just don’t make that newspaper Variety! Variety, the entertainment industry newspaper built a reputation with its headlines like “Sticks Hix Nix Pix.” Creative is good as long as it is clear, concise, and doesn’t confuse your readers. Make it easy for people to understand, archive to find later.
Savvy email marketers are three times more likely to test subject lines. Certainly, the larger your list, the more valid Subject line testing can be. However, you can always enlist a group of trusted people to give you their opinions on which Subject line they feel is most effective. A twist on this is used by Outside magazine whose email newsletter includes a link to vote for your choice of magazine cover for the upcoming issue. Not only does it engage the online audience, but it also drives them to the newsstand and print magazine to see which cover design won.
Many “authorities” such as myself (ahem!) recommend that you personalize Subject lines with the recipient’s names. Call me old-fashioned, but personally I do not like this over-familiar ploy from strangers. And, unless your list maintenance is absolutely mistake-proof, I don’t think it’s worth the potential faux pas.
And, always – Be honest. Just yesterday I got an email from a major publication. The From: line was the “Magazine”.com. The Subject line was “Your friend wants you to receive Pearls of Wisdom,” so I took the time to open the email. It was an offer from one of their advertisers. The last time I checked I do not include major pharmaceutical companies as personal friends. Consider the fallout….
Stay tuned for Part Two-what motivates people to click through. What works, what doesn’t?
posted by Lydia Sugarman at
Friday, May 04, 2007
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