Do Your Subject Lines Pass This Test?

Friday - May 11th Do Your Subject Lines Pass This Test? rahman A new subject line scoring tool was launched this week by Worldata. The free tool lets you test your subject line for performance and delivery before you email it out. _________________________________ Sponsor: Want to See Your Ad Here! You can place a top sponsor ad in DEMC E-Magazine. Your offer will be sent to over 65,000 email subscribers. Click for more information: http://www.demc.com/advertise.shtml _________________________________ You can test out your subject lines for free at - SubjectLine.com To make sure your email subject lines pass the "SubjectLine.com" test with high marks use this 10 point email subject line check list. These 10 tips review how to craft an email subject line that gets results. Be aware that higher open rates alone are not the goal. Your email subject line also needs to increase the click through rate on your email to truly be a success. 1) Be specific not clever! I'll be the first to admit, I love clever subject lines that evoke curiosity. But case studies show curiosity subject lines, while getting opens, do not drive click throughs. Specific headlines that set expectations for what the email message will contain perform the best. Use numbers and percentages in your subject line when possible. Focus on writing a subject line that tells exactly what your email is about. 2) Include a keyword phrase. People have been trained to think in terms of keywords - as it is an integral part of using the Internet. So use a keyword phrase in your subject line that highlights the content of your message. As you write your subject line, think about what keyword phrase might a person use to find the information you're delivering in your email. When an individual then scans his inbox and sees the keyword phrase of your subject line, on a topic he has wanted more information about - he'll open your email. What keywords can you use to get your subscribers attention? 3) Keep your subject line under 50 characters. Subject lines longer than 50 characters are in danger of being cut off by many email readers. A cut off subject line is incomplete and likely will fail to inform subscribers about your message's contents. Focus on including the most important information at the beginning of your subject line. You can shorten your subject line using these tips: Use Synonyms Delete unnecessary words Try Symbols Instead or Words (See #8 below) Abbreviate if necessary 4) Name personalization does work! Case studies show again and again including your prospect's name in the subject line of your email increases open and click through rates. Don't let the reports about over using personalization scare you away from this strategy. If you know your subscriber's name, use it in your subject line where it make sense. 5) Include personalization based on subscribers data. Do you know what your subscribers have purchased? Where they live? What interests they have? When you can personalize your subject line based upon the data you have for a subscriber your email will get noticed. Find creative ways to include the name of a product they recently purchased, or the name of a service they requested more information about. Use the details you have about your subscribers to craft engaging subject lines and you'll build credibility and trust. 6) Honesty is the best policy. People do not like to be tricked. Using a subject line that has nothing to do with the contents of your message is disastrous. A subject line trick will fail to get click throughs on your actual offer. What's worse tricking subscribers to open your email will lead to a higher number of unsubscribes and complaints. So skip the "Bad News" and "Here's your Commission" subject lines as they're unlikely to generate the positive response you're looking for. 7) Urgency motivates subscribers. When you are running a promotion with a limited time offer, use that information in your subject line. A subject line that makes your subscriber feel they need to open your email now and act immediately will get results. You can use words like: Last Chance Don't Miss Ends Today Only a few hours remain Hours Left Final Day 1 Day Only 8) Use symbols to engage subscribers. Yes, over punctuation can cause your subject line to look like spam. So avoid the 6 exclamation points and 5 dollar symbols. However, for a special promotion or holiday email you can include a cool symbol in your subject line and make your message stand out in the inbox. Unicode symbols like - ★ and ♥ can be inserted into subject lines. Most web based email readers and mobile devices correctly show these Unicode symbols. Have some fun and test out different symbols to grab your subscriber's attention. Symbols can be used when you're delivering positive news or rewards to your subscribres. Try using symbols to replace a word or as a design element at the start or finish of a subject line. Avoid using the special character in place of punctuation. 9) Free still works. Using free in your subject line is a terrific way to get people to open your message. Yes, people still respond to the word free. The key is to avoid making free look spammy. Don't use free as the first word in your subject line. Don't put free in all capital letters. Don't use free in combination with an exclamation point. 10) Test your subject lines. Subject lines are a critical part to your email campaign success. Take the time to run tests on your subject lines to find out which generate the most opens and click throughs. Here's my 6 step beginners guide to email testing. A quick short cut technique for running an email subject line test on an upcoming email is to use your social media audience. Post your top 3 to 4 subject line options to your social media followers. Disclose to your group first that you'll be posting 3 messages with the same destination and ask them to click on the headline they like the best. The subject line with the most clicks is a good candidate for your upcoming email. Take the time to write and email subject lines that pass the test. Great subject lines improve your email marketing results and profits! Study, work hard and get an A+ on all your email subject lines! ### Abbie Drew DEMC Editor Please Share Today's Issue: Quote for today: "Don't go into business to get rich. Do it to enrich people. It will come back to you." - Stew Leonard Advertise in DEMC For details on advertising to DEMC E-Magazine's 65,000 subscribers go to: http://www.demc.com/advertise.shtml

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