Today is the second post in our series on email marketing. If you missed the first one, all about email deliverability, you can check it out here. Once you’ve made sure your emails are actually getting delivered, the next thing you need to get right is the subject line. If you can’t get your subscribers to open your emails, it really doesn’t matter how good the actual email is.
It’s easy to spend a lot of time crafting a great message and then just slap a subject line on it at the end, but just like the headline of your blog posts will determine how many readers click on it, so will the subject line of each email determine how many subscribers actually open it. Here are six tips to get you started.
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Keep It Short
You want your readers to see the entire subject line before they click it. You also want to make it easy for people to scan through their emails. Try to get your point across in 50 characters or less. Pay attention to how your subject lines look on your own devices.
Keep a Swipe File
It can really help to keep a swipe file of subject lines that grabbed your attention. Even if the emails are on a very different topic, you can adapt them for your own needs. Everyone is different, of course, but if a subject line got you to open the email, it may well appeal to others too.
Avoid “Spammy” Words
Stay away from using any words we all associate with spam emails. Words like “sale”, “discount”, “coupon”, “limited time offer” and even “reminder” are all over used. These words can trigger a spam filter with some email programs. Even if they don’t, and they actually make it to your reader’s inbox, chances are high they’ll get ignored.
Personalize It
While personalizing emails with someone’s first name has been overused in some markets, it still works well for many of us. Give it try and see if it works for you. Don’t overdo it, but use it when you really need to catch your subscribers’ attention.
Spend Some Time on It
Treat your subject line like you would a blog post headline, and spend some time getting it right. Make sure it entices with a promise or maybe a question. Use some emotive words if appropriate. Go back and see which subject lines got the best open rates on previous emails you’ve sent out. Try to analyze why they worked well for your market. Not everything will work well in every niche. Find the types of subject lines that get your readers to open your emails and tweak from there.
Pique Their Curiosity
We are all nosy and it’s hard to ignore subject lines that sound intriguing or only tell part of the story. The idea here is simple. You want them to click and open the email to find out how the story ends.
Need more help with email marketing? This online training, Funnels That Click, from my lovely colleague, Connie Ragen Green, is currently available for less than 10 bucks! Take a look.
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