The subject line is arguably the most important part of email marketing. If the user doesn’t open the email, the rest of your content gets lost. While the subject line can be your downfall if ineffective, it can also be a powerful tool to engage your audience. 47% of people will actually open your email based only on the subject line. Here are five tips to improve email subject lines and subsequently improve your open rates.
1. Speak to Your Audience Personally
People love to feel special. Something as simple as adding a first name to the subject line can increase your open rates by 26%. Personalized offers and exclusive content also do well. Consider offering a free download of a white paper or a personal invitation to view a webinar and call it out in the subject line. This will peak your audience’s interest and entice them to click into the email to learn more.
2. Use Emojis to Express Your Message
Don’t go overboard with the emojis, but a tasteful emoji or two can make your message more appealing to potential customers. A study done on email subject lines with emojis found that emojis increase the open rates by 56%. When choosing whether to use emojis and which ones, however, it’s important to remember who your audience is. How old is your audience? Do they use emojis frequently? Would they understand the meaning of the emoji? And, in case you were curious, some of the top emojis used in emails are 😃😍❤️☀️.
3. Offer Relevant Content
Don’t just send emails to show up in someone’s inbox. Emails should have a purpose, so call this out in the subject line. This way your audience knows exactly what to expect when opening the email. For example, if you are a food & beverage ingredient brand, highlight your new product launch, new research or your presence at a trade show. All of these are relevant to your audience, compared to just simple product details. A great way to incorporate and plan relevant content is through a content calendar because it allows you to plan out content in advance and make sure all parts of your campaign are aligned properly. This way, your audience will make a connection with your brand as one that provides value.
Relevance also may come in the form of email timing. A sense of urgency in your subject line can provide the extra push a contact needs to open your email and convert to a paying customer.
4. Avoid Common Spam Words
Lastly, be careful when selecting your subject line so that you don’t come across as spam. Our emails can filter out potential spam and label it as “spam” or “junk” before it ever hits the inbox folder. This is arguably a useful feature, but you don’t want your company to end up there! After landing on a subject line for your next email campaign, make sure to proofread it for potential spam. Some examples include “free”, “increase sales”, “visit our website” and “#1.”
5. Try A/B Testing
Not sure what will speak to your audience? Try A/B testing. Many CRMs offer this service, and if it isn’t available to you, you can even manually split your contact list. Then, send two different subject lines out to see which performs better. Measuring which received higher opens can inform future subject lines, hopefully leaving you with better results every send.
If you feel like you’ve tried it all and people still aren’t opening your emails, ColinKurtis is here to help! Contact Mitch Robinson at Mitch@colinkurtis.com or call 815.965.6657 EXT. 1, and ColinKurtis Advertising can help you achieve your email marketing goals.
Blog post from:
Matt Hensler
Vice President, Digital Integration
Leave A Comment