Did you know that 33% of email recipients use email subject lines to decide whether or not to open an email? And 69% of email recipients drop emails as spam based on the subject line. Now more than ever, businesses are turning to email marketing campaigns to notify customers of goods and services. Every aspect of an email campaign is integral to the success of its message, and even something as basic as a subject line can be the difference between new customers or increased unsubscribes. To avoid having your emails marked as spam, follow these six best practices for effective subject lines.
- Use a familiar sender name instead of opting for generic ones. Email senders like ‘noreply@web.com’ are not only impersonal, but are more likely to be sent straight to the spam folder.
- Personalize your email subject lines. If possible, address recipients by name, or send emails using location-specific information. For example, “Hello, Jamie! Here’s this week’s…” or “6 Seattle Bars for the Casual Drinker.” These personalizations show your recipient you care for more than just their email address, and can often be the difference between a click-open and a click-through.
- Use numbers or ask questions. Tell recipients in one quick phrase exactly what they can expect from your email content by including numbers or a question. You can set expectations with numerical data, or ask questions to provoke curiosity. Always, always, always follow up and/or answer questions posed in the subject line.
- Timing is everything. This Coschedule blog post is a great resource for the best time and days to send emails. Tuesdays and Thursdays have higher peak opening rates than any other day. And while emails sent at 10am, 2pm, and between 8pm-midnight had the best chance of being opened, 50% of recipients check and respond to emails at 6am, before they’ve even left the bed.
- Don’t use all caps or too many exclamation points. Recipients don’t appreciate getting yelled at, and you risk your email looking spammy and getting deleted.
- Analyze your results. A/B testing, or split testing, is a way of testing different versions of a single email campaign to determine the efficiency of different variables. You’re able to test things like efficiency of subject line, From name, content, etc. to determine which changes positively (and negatively) affect your campaigns.
Check out RedCappi for more ideas on how we can help you boost your business.