If a tree falls in the woods and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound? If an email gets sent and no one opens it, does it make a difference? How many times do you mindlessly delete random emails from your inbox? Be honest. We all do it and someone is on the other end of that email trying desperately to break through the gates and get our attention. Email is a modern communication miracle. It allows for direct specialized messages to be sent instantly to your target audience that can be tracked and analysed. The trick is getting your target audience to open the messages and act on them.
I am going to briefly discuss the importance of a proper subject title for marketing email messages. The subject is the first line of communication so it must captivate, inspire, confuse, or command your target audience. As a disclaimer there is no “right way” to title emails, however there are some best practices that have proven to increase open rates.
Good subject titles should be short and sweet, around 50 characters. This allows for your target to get the need to know information so that they can quickly decide to open your message. Titles that are too long project your email as being a waste of time and superfluous. And since we are on the topic of superfluous emails, stay away from ALL CAPS and explanation points!!! This reads as being spam and will likely get your message doomed to the pit of the junk folder. Another quick way of damning your emails to the virtual hell of the junk folder is using gimmicky “sales” words like free, donate, help, assistance, and limited time. These words trigger your target audience to ignore what you have to say and move on to the next.
Many people get annoyed when they feel like someone is trying to sell them something. This is largely due to the fact that we are almost constantly bombarded with advertisements and sales offers. Knowing this, when you craft your email subject title focus on telling your customer something important about your product or service and let them decide they want it. This resolves the “sales pitch effect” and essentially puts the ball in the customers court. Engaging customers to interact with your subject by asking a leading question is also an effective way to convert your email marketing campaign. A question in the subject that leads to a “yes” answer is ideal and if you can add a touch of mystery that’s the icing on the cake. This will raise your customers curiosity, a curiosity that opening your email might cure.
You’re spending time, money, and precious energy crafting your marketing messages and email lists. At the end of the day, all of that effort wasted if your target audience never opens your email. Your subject titles are the first thing your customers see and they will qualify your entire message based off of this first impression. The next time you draft your next promotional newsletter give some of these tips a try and see how it affects your open rates and web traffic. Message me the results.
