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Improve Email Results With These 12 Tips For Better Subject Lines
by Greg Branstetter, Hippo Direct
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The open rate of your email message is nearly 100% dependent upon your subject line. Your potential customers typically spend less than two seconds deciding if they want to read your message. Which means that you have to use compelling subject lines to be a successful email marketer.

Here are 12 tips for creating better subject lines:

1. Communicate fast, just like on an outer envelope. Use 40- 50 characters or less.

2. Mention your primary benefit in the subject line. You must motivate the reader to read your note now.

3. Build your subject line around your desired action. If you’re selling a webinar, include date/subject/registration in subject line. If you’re selling product, include price savings in the subject line.

4. Write your subject lines first, then create your email marketing message to complement the subject line. The number one mistake of most email marketers is a last-minute subject line.

5. Only use personalization in subject line if you already have a business relationship with the recipients of your email message.

6. Give urgent reason to act now. Examples include “order by x date”, “offer ends tomorrow at 6 pm”, “registration deadline is today”.

7. Be specific. Use phrase such as “Get up to 80% off” rather than “Save money”.

8. You can use the word “free” with caution by following these guidelines:

  • Don’t make “free” the first word in your subject line.
  • Don’t use exclamation point such as Free!
  • Don’t spell out FREE in all caps

9. If use the word “complimentary” instead of “free”, make sure it’s spelled correctly. Many email marketers incorrectly use the word “complementary”, which has a completely different meaning.

10. Test your subject lines continuously to find the winner for you. Make sure to send each version of subject line to at least 5000 email addresses.

11. Look at newspaper headlines and magazine covers for ideas on how to express ideas quickly with great appeal.

12. Use software to check the spam score of your subject line and body copy prior to sending email message. Then make changes as needed. Contactology has free software tool which allows you to quickly determine a message’s quality and deliverability.

Learn more about creating more effective email subject lines from these sources:

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Bethesda Emedia Marketing – Ask us about your website or template redesign.

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