Wondering how to improve your email subject lines with your digital marketing campaign? The right subject can make all the difference in your email marketing results. With the huge volume of emails that the average person receives each day, you have a matter of seconds for your email to either be opened or sent to spam. Needless to say, it is vital that your subject captures attention right away.
How do you ensure that your email subject is on form? For starters, you can consider the tips below to help you improve your subject, and hopefully your open rate at the same time.
How to Craft a Powerful Email Subject
Some tips for a better email subject include the following:
- Keep it short. Short and simple subjects will always do better. The longer the subject line, the more chance there is of the text being cut off in your recipient’s’ email client. According to MarketingSherpa, the ideal length is 41 to 50 characters. That gives you enough space to summarise your email without text being cut off or readers losing interest.
- Use personalisation wisely. Personalise subject lines, but only if you do so carefully. Personalised, targeted emails make people feel like you are speaking to them directly. Too much personalisation can end up seeming creepy or spammy however. One way to personalise subtly is to use your segment’s city rather than their names.
- Split test subjects. Using just one subject may result in your chance to test effectiveness of different strategies. The best way to determine which subjects do well is to test one or more variations. Using at least two subject lines is the best way to see how each variation performs. You could use personalisation in one, for example, or test a longer or shorter length.
- Avoid false promises. Although this is obvious, be very careful of luring your readers with false promises, hype, so-called hypnotic words and other strategies that are a bit dubious. Although you may see a higher open rate at first, you will also start seeing a high unsubscribe rate as well. By all means use powerful words – just make sure that your subject is aligned to your offer.
- Be descriptive. It is also a good idea to make it clear what readers can expect within the email. Descriptive subjects that give a sneak preview of what readers will be able to find in the email are your best bet. When you are too vague, you run the risk of confusion and disappointment.
Ultimately, it often comes down to consistent trial and error. Keep testing, keep fine-tuning, and you will soon see that your email subject lines improve along with your entire email marketing strategy.
