The goal of subject lines is to encourage subscribers to open your email and take steps . Don’t let the pressure of writing the prefect subject lines get to you. Finding the right words doesn’t have to be challenge .
Open rates depend on several factors like collection practices, list age and the industry in which you are sending. The average rate ranges from 10% to 25% (at the high end of the spectrum). We analyzed thousands of subject lines to find those with the highest open rates and the most impact. Here’s what we learned.
Be Definite : The subject line should tell viewers what they are going to get inside.
It is totally clear what the email is about and the recipient knows, when they open the email, they will read the details about the special offer. Also, note the "call to action" and a sense of urgency. However, it’s worth ignoring overwrought proclamations — you don’t want to come on too heavy.
Be True To The Purpose Of A Subject Line: The purpose is a glimpse of the email; a handful of words that capture the essence of the subject matter.
Words With Friends: Assessment is extremely important and with subject lines, getting some outside aspect is vital.
Ask your friends and colleagues what they think the subject line should be or have them edit your subject lines. Better yet, come up with a few options and ask them to come up with some themselves. Then see which ones are best. You will be surprised at how often this results in the perfect subject line.
Split Second Impressions: The first few words matter! When the email is being previewed, your initial few words are the ones that will be seen so make them count. Litmus has a neat tool to preview how your subject lines will display across multiple email programs .
Content Is King: Subject lines are a essential factor in generating strong open rates. It’s the first step to engagement and as such, it is worth looking at how your content drives your subject line rather than viewing the subject line as an second thought .
A fascinating subject line can only be built on a strong groundwork of content so make sure that your newsletter itself offers value. Thinking comprehensively , if you want to drive higher open rates, write content that provoke great subject lines.
While studying our best performing subject lines, a trend did emerge. Of emails that had the highest open rates, 76% of them had either their business name or the product name mentioned in their subject lines.
That’s more than a coincidence, that’s a pro tip: the top subject line writers use either their company name, the product name or both.
Utilize Google Insights For Search: If you are not sure of which words are best suited to your subject line, try comparing them with Google’s Insights For Search. While it is technically a tool to help improve search engine optimization (aka SEO) and help you understand what people are searching for on Google, the tool offers great ‘insight’ into online interests in general.
It is most useful for subject lines when you want to compare which words will be more powerful or whether to lead with a certain timely topic over another.