Improving the Email Subject Line

Posted on Tuesday, October 30th, 2007.

The main way to get people to open your email are recognition, reputation and subject line.

One thing to keep in mind is how do you get your emails opened as it is easy to hit the “Delete” key.

Below are common characteristics all great subject lines share:

1. It needs to have something that is relevant to the subscribers
2. It needs to be something that is important to the subscriber
3. It needs to have an expiration or urgency factor so the subscriber is motivated
4. It needs to be something the subscriber can act upon

Create subject lines that incorporate these characteristics and you’re bound to boost your open rates.

As we move to less and less personal forms of communication (from handwriting to emails) we gain more exposure but face the danger of becoming disconnected from our clients.

Characters and words to avoid putting into your subject line:

1. Avoid use of + and ?
2. Avoid using exclamation points (!)
3. Avoid using your email address again in the Subject line
4. Avoid using the same word twice in a Subject line
5. Avoid using similar words together (eg “offer” and “sale”)

It is important to send the email to the person responsible so it is about something they know, so instil a sense of urgency and have something in the email that they can act upon immediately.

Remember that it is past behaviour and receiving relevant and useful emails that drives future success so think carefully about what you send.

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