The Key to Getting Your E-mail Opened

by: Danko Gulsoy

If you are like many companies out there, you are using direct e-mail advertisements to give possible consumers a chance to check out what you have to offer and learn a little bit about your company. If you are also like most of those companies, you are having a constant struggle trying to get said consumers to even give your messages a chance. The subject line is the first thing that the consumer will see so it is obvious why this would be the most important and why it is key to the sale.

The first thing you should know about a subject line is that it needs to read like you would speak to a customer. If you have a North Carolina web design firm and your e-mail reads, “ACT NOW WEB DESIGN AT NEW LOW PRICE” nobody is going to be interested in what you have to say. The more your e-mails appear to be from family, friends, or colleagues, the more likely the consumer is to open it.

After making the subject line seem natural the next most important thing is personalizing it. When a consumer sees their name, they automatically react differently than normal. This is also true with other information such as: their city, occupation, interests, and anything else you have as a resource.

Another important thing to think about is to keep it simple. A short sentence is almost always enough information to get your point across. Studies show that the more creative subject lines read like advertisements to consumers and they simply do not get any attention. It is almost always the more “boring” subject lines that attract people. Phrases like “[COMPANYNAME] Sales & Marketing Newsletter”, or “Website news - Issue 3” were on the top of the most clicked list while phrases such as “Last Minute Gift - We Have The Answer”, or “[COMPANYNAME] Holiday Sales Event” were at the bottom of the list.

To summarize: keep your subject line natural, keep your subject line personal, and keep your subject line simple. This will attract the customer initially and keep them interested after they do open the e-mail. Also, do not forget to make the body of the e-mail correspond with the subject line… it seems simple enough but there are many companies out there with very attractive subject lines that get wasted when a consumer clicks it only to feel tricked.

If you need help designing or writing an effective email campaign, you’re in the right place. Codank offers award-winning talent and results-driven strategy. Call us today to get your project started.