How to Write an Effective Email Subject Line

by crm.infusionsoft.com/go/demo/GregorAnton/Recommends” target=”_blank”>Infusionsoft

Writing the subject line of an e-mail might seem like a minor task, but subject lines are at least half the battle in email promotions.  Many people delete e-mails whose subject lines push them away without even opening the message. So, how can you make those precious few words in the subject line work for you? Here’s some suggestions-

• Keep it Short. This is vital when writing your email subject line. Fewer than 10 words is a must and less than 5 words is even better. Try this experiment- Look at all of the emails in your inbox that are from friends or co-workers (not promotional emails). You’ll find as you go through these emails that you will see the subject line may be two or three words. That’s what people recipients expect to see as subject lines in their inbox and are much more likely to open them.

• Avoid Exclamation Points. You’ll need to make sure that you keep your subject lines completely free from exclamation points. Very rarely will you see an exclamation in the subject line from a friend, but you will see it quite frequently in the emails that end up in your SPAM or Junk folder.

• Ask Questions- if they sound plausible. “Did you see this?” works pretty well. Asking a question adds a bit of healthy skepticism and ofter leads the reader to find out more.

• Keep it Light. Avoid selling language. “Free” may work like a champ in direct mail, but it’s a loser in email subject lines. The more you sound like a friend and less like a used car salesman the better.

• Avoid setting off the human SPAM sniffer. Yep… it’s true, not only should you avoid wording that will get you caught in certain spam filters, but you should also avoid wording that will trigger the “Human SPAM sniffers”. People can automatically tell whether or not they think and email is “too good to be true”, or “just another sales pitch” based on the wording you use. Avoid words like exclusive, free,

• Avoid Merging in Recipient Names. How many emails do you see from your friends that have a subject line like- “Hey Bob, Let’s do Lunch” None I’m sure. Usually, people are very brief in their subject lines and don’t include other people’s names. If you’d like to personalize the email, do it in the body or copy of your email.

• Don’t Bait and Switch. Want to see an easy way to rack up SPAM complaints and opt outs- try baiting and switching. Maybe they’ll open your email, but that’s it. Remember, email subject lines are just half of your battle in creating an email promotion. Why cripple yourself in the second half by shocking your customers with a completely different message than was in your subject line.

• Avoid Shocking Subject Lines. Don’t play around with the trust that your subscribers have in you or your product.  Yes a shocking subject line will increase open rates at the onset, but as time goes on you will see a sharp decline in open rates and a higher number of opt-outs and SPAM complaints.

Here’s probably the single best piece of advice when writing your email subject lines. Are you ready for this… just briefly explain what’s in your email. I know your thinking, “well, that’s obvious”, and you would be right- It’s painfully obvious. Often times marketers are exploring new and interesting ways to push the envelope, and find the secret sauce to improving open rates or close rate, but they disregard the obvious.

Remember, people don’t want to feel like their being sold on something. The same hold’s true for “selling” people on opening your email. It doesn’t work. Next time you right your subject lines keep these things in mind and you’ll see better long term results and fewer SPAM complaints.

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