Writing by Brick Marketing on Friday, 18 of July , 2008 at 8:23 pm Leave a comment
You`ve heard the rules on writing great subject lines over and over. And chances are, you pretty much stick to them in hopes of boosting your open rates. But what if I were to tell you that sometimes supposedly “bad” subject lines actually end up pulling in more readers?
Making an offer in the subject line is often considered spammy and poor taste. BUT, it can work for you if you have an established brand name. Let`s say you see an email from Office Depot offering you a 50% discount in the subject line . . . wouldn`t you want to check it out?
Other poor subject line tricks that can work include the following:
- No call to action. Sometimes the newsworthy headline is worth opening the email for.
- Boring subject line. You`d be surprised at how many dull, but informative subject lines have made it to the top 10 list!
- Too informal. While you might feel that your email should appear to be from a business, sometimes that friend feel is enough to get people to open the email.
Not all rules have to be followed all the time. Try experimenting with your subject lines and find out which ones work best with your particular audience.
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Category: Subject Lines
Writing by Brick Marketing on Thursday, 3 of July , 2008 at 4:30 pm Leave a comment
Your subject line is what draws people into your emails. Without a great subject line, your email newsletter is much like a blob of plain mashed potatoes, sitting there on a plate. Most people are going to zip right past it and look for something a bit more interesting.
When writing your email subject lines, keep in mind that people are scanning their inbox and you have to stand out. Very few readers actually sit down and work their way methodically through their emails. No, they are far more likely to reduce email time by simply running their eyes down the page. So, standing out is essential.
Using words that catch people´s attention is vital, but you also want to give an honest idea of what is inside the email newsletter. The trick to doing this is to make an action statement or to ask a question. Questions tend to pop up in email inboxes, but yours will stand out if dyou make it worth while reading.
People want to solve their problems, so by identifying the most common issues faced by your readers and then asking them about it will help draw them in. For example, you might ask your readers, “Sick of Earning by the Hour?” This implies that you have a better option and they will be more likely to click on your email.
Make your subject lines worth reading and interesting and you´ll be surprised at how fast people start to actually read your emails rather than ignore them.
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Category: Subject Lines
Writing by Brick Marketing on Saturday, 21 of June , 2008 at 5:52 pm Leave a comment
Are your subject lines bright and active, drawing the reader into your email? Or are they dull and boring and practically begging to be passed over in that daily email inbox scan?
The subject lines that you use could make or break your email marketing business, so this is definitely an area that needs to be focused on. There are a few ways to make sure that your subject lines are active and inviting.
- Use action verbs such as “increase”, “motivate” and “enhance”.
- Tell them what to do . . . “Open now”, “Click here”
- Use adjectives like “cheap”, “low cost”, and “easy”.
- Personalize it with the reader´s name.
These methods can really make all the difference in how your subject lines are perceived. Get people to open your email and the battle is half won. Your subject lines are very important in the process, so get used to thinking about them and rewriting if necessary.
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Category: Subject Lines
Writing by Brick Marketing on Sunday, 1 of June , 2008 at 7:33 pm Leave a comment
You probably don´t think of SEO when you´re writing subject lines for your email newsletters . . . after all, they´re being sent to someone´s email inbox, not Google. You might be surprised to realize that SEO actually does matter to some extent in your email subject lines.
ProQuest Technologies recently talked about this on their blog:
Here’s something else to take into consideration: Now that most email services provide multiple gigabyte-sized storage, users are archiving more newsletters than they used to.
On the one hand, doing this adds to their information overload. On the other hand, it enhances the long-term value of newsletters. That means email newsletters are now part of someone’s personal inventory.
While not precisely SEO, it does count. You will find that if you search email inboxes for specific keywords, the emails that have these words in the subject line will be first in the list. This means that having your keywords or at least keywords that describe the content of your email newsletter, should be used in the subject line.
Subject lines are a very important part of your email newsletter, but the fact that people will be searching their email for specific keywords makes them even more vital. Consider using some SEO techniques in your subject lines and make them easier for people to sort through.
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Category: Email Content, Subject Lines
Writing by Brick Marketing on Wednesday, 21 of May , 2008 at 10:51 am Leave a comment
Subject lines are the first thing your subscribers see when they open their email inbox. If you want to be noticed and have your email opened, you will definitely need a great subject line. This is an area where copywriting experience can really come in handy, but even if you don´t have any experience with copywriting, you can still create great subject lines.
- Keep it upbeat. Lately, I´ve noticed many email marketers using depressing subject lines like “I´m sorry, I just can´t do this anymore” or “I hate to inform you. . .”. You want your readers to be happy, not depressed!
- Make it active. Using words like “open”, “crush” or “earn” will bring your subject line a lot more attention than a plain, dull line. Make them want to read your email.
- Create anticipation. Letting people have a glimpse of what might be inside the email will definitely get them opening it. Just hint at what they could learn by reading your email. Don´t forget to give them real info, or they won´t come back, though.
Woo your readers with your subject lines. Make them want to read your emails and you´ll have loyal subscribers with higher open and click rates on a consistent basis.
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Category: Subject Lines
Writing by Brick Marketing on Friday, 9 of May , 2008 at 12:50 pm Leave a comment
It´s always a good idea to write decent subject lines, but if you can make them amazing, you´ll end up with a lot higher open rate. It´s something that can easily be changed to affect your email marketing campaign greatly.
How to Improve Subject Lines
- Read, read, read. The more you read about copywriting, headline writing and subject lines, the more you´ll learn about how to make them effective.
- Look for examples. What are the best subject lines that have ever appeared in your inbox? Save them to use as inspiration and to analyze later.
- Test. Testing your subject lines is a great way to learn what works and what doesn´t. Tracking and tweaking your subject lines will help you perfect your techniques.
- Get a second opinion. Ask someone else to critique your subject lines is the best way to ensure that you don´t make any major mistakes. While an email savvy reader would be best, even your mom can tell you if a subject line appeals or not.
Your subject lines don´t have to settle for being good, they can be great! However, it will take a little extra work to learn what works and what doesn´t. The best email marketers will tell you that it´s not just a walk in the park, but that with a little effort, your marketing campaign can become quite successful.
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Category: Subject Lines
Writing by Brick Marketing on Wednesday, 23 of April , 2008 at 5:05 am Leave a comment
Are personal subject lines really effective? There is something about seeing your name on something, even an email, that makes most people want to read it. You have to admit, it can be exciting to know that someone wrote you in particular. The same goes with your subject lines, if they are personalized, your open rate will be higher.
Studies have shown that personalized emails really do get opened more often, so this is a great way to boost your open rates. It´s usually pretty simple to set up a code for this and many autoresponders actually include this as an option. You can personalize your subject line as well as your email content.
When a subject line includes someone´s name it:
- Conveys trust
- Catches attention
- Indicates a more personal approach
- Suggests personalized info
- Offers friendship
If you aren´t already using personalized subject lines, this could be a very simple experiment . . . simply make your subject lines personal for a couple of newsletters and see if your open rates go up. Chances are they will!
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Category: Subject Lines
Writing by Brick Marketing on Monday, 14 of April , 2008 at 10:42 am Leave a comment
Verbs are essential in subject lines for a very good reason. You want people to take action (as in, open your newsletter), and what better way to convince them of that than to give them action words? Using verbs in your subject line makes it more alive and interesting, as well.
Not just any verb will do though. Action verbs are far better than passive ones. Check out these examples.
Passive: “The Latest News is Here!”
Active: “Read the Latest News Now!”
Passive: “Hot New Deal for You!”
Active: “Take Advantage of This Hot New Deal!”
Passive: “Your Discount is Inside.”
Active: “Open Now for a Huge Discount!”
See the difference? Now evaluate your own subject lines . . . are they using active verbs or passive ones? Try bumping up the action in your subject lines and enjoy better results.
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Category: Subject Lines
Writing by Brick Marketing on Tuesday, 1 of April , 2008 at 11:10 am Leave a comment
You may think you´ve got the perfect subject line, it gets past spam filters . . . but no one is opening your email. What could be wrong? Chances are, your subject lines, as spam filter friendly as they are, are just not what people are looking for.
While the perfect subject line can capture hundreds or even thousands of clickthroughs, a poorly written subject line can cause readers to delete you without a second thought. It´s depressing, but remember that your subject lines aren´t just about getting through the filters, they also need to appeal to people.
What are some signs of a bad subject line?
- It sounds too good to be true. People tend to delete things they don´t think will pan out.
- Your name code doesn´t work, so rather than the person´s first name, they see a subject line that reads something like “Dear %NAME%”. This makes a pretty lousy impression and people will assume it´s just a bot-email.
- You tell them to open the email immediately or pass it on . . . both of these scream “SCAM!” to many people and they will delete it without reading.
Subject lines need to cater to both spam filters and readers, so make sure that you aren´t frightening your readers with poorly written subject lines.
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Category: Subject Lines
Writing by Brick Marketing on Saturday, 8 of March , 2008 at 10:58 am Leave a comment
Subject lines can literally make or break your email marketing. Poor subject lines will result in poor clickthroughs and you´ll end up losing money, rather than making it. Email marketing tactics are constantly evolving as readers get used to them, but there are a few constants that will help your emails get opened more often.
Subject Line Tips
- Ask a question. People instinctively want to answer questions, so they will tend to open emails with a question in the subject line.
- Be personal. Using the subscriber´s name will certainly help you boost open rates and making the subject lines sound personal “Wilson, I loved your website”, tends to get people to open emails, as well.
- Ask for help. What is your response when someone asks you to help them out? Most readers will be more than willing to help, but first they need to know the problem, so they will open the email.
- Solve an issue. Everyone has problems and you are in the unique position of knowing what your readers need. Making that a part of your subject line is a great way to get people to pay attention.
Your subject lines need to stand out in an inbox full of emails. Think about how it will appear as someone is scanning dozens of new emails and trying to figure out which ones are worth reading and which should be deleted. Your subject lines will be far more effective.
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Category: Subject Lines
Writing by Brick Marketing on Saturday, 1 of March , 2008 at 7:38 pm Leave a comment
Everyone knows that your subject line plays an extremely important part in getting your emails opened, but many email marketers who are just getting started really aren´t sure how to go about writing the best subject lines.
Subject Line Basics
- Use from line. Your name or company name should be in the from line, eliminating the need to repeat it in the subject line. You will save a lot of space this way.
- Write headlines. If you look at a newspaper or top selling magazine, you will see headlines that jump out out at you and make you want to buy that issue. Do the same with your subject lines to get people to open your emails.
- Test everything. Without testing, you won´t know how effective your subject lines are, and won´t be able to single out the techniques that work for you.
- Important info first. Since subject lines are so short, you want to put the most vital info at the beginning to grab people´s attention. You can usually count on about 50 characters for your subject line before most email programs will cut it off.
- Don´t exaggerate. You want people to open your emails, but that doesn´t mean you should lie in your subject lines. Stick to the truth, but make it sound catchy.
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Category: Subject Lines
Writing by Brick Marketing on Monday, 25 of February , 2008 at 3:44 pm Leave a comment
Having consistent subject lines will help your readers quickly identify your email newsletter in their inbox, even if they have dozens of other emails competing for their attention. Here are a few things that should stay the same in your subject lines.
Order. The order that you place things shouldn´t change. For example, if you always start off with your name, don´t change that. Same goes for putting your business name in the from line. Make sure that these things don´t change because this is often how email filters will find your emails and set them aside to be read.
From. You want the from line to always have either your name or your business name in it. This allows people to identify your emails easily as something they want to read and will also allow them to set up email filters for this.
Non spam. Making sure that your subject lines never sound like spam will help get your emails directly into the inbox, rather than being stopped by spam filters.
Consistent subject lines will help to brand your emails so that people know exactly what to expect. This, in turn, will boost your open rates, so it´s a good idea to stick with similar subject line structure so your subscribers will open your email newsletters more often, always a good thing in email marketing!
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Category: Subject Lines
Writing by Brick Marketing on Friday, 22 of February , 2008 at 9:54 am Leave a comment
Subject lines are possibly the most important part of your email marketing newsletters since they are what make people decide if they should bother reading your email or not. If you have a subject line that really creates a bit of a buzz, it is far more likely to be read or even passed on to other people.
So, how do you create subject lines that create a buzz? Here are a few tips to get you started.
- Write series. Give out one part in each email marketing newsletter and be sure to add this to your subject line, “Photoshop Sizzle Tutorial: Lesson 3″ will grab attention more than many other subject lines.
- Use anecdotes. How many times have you opened an email that said something like, “Wanna know how I turned my offline biz into a major online corporation?” These subject lines create interest and the buzz you´re looking for.
- Use tangible words. Instead of saying that someone can “earn lots”, give them an actual number. “How to earn $50 more a day”. This makes it more tangible and you´ll find that more people will open these emails.
Subject lines need to be written so they can grab attention, leaping out in the middle of an inbox full of emails! That isn´t always easy, but by writing subject lines that create a buzz, you´ll definitely boost your open rates.
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Category: Subject Lines
Writing by Brick Marketing on Saturday, 2 of February , 2008 at 7:13 pm Leave a comment
Subject lines that actually stand out in today´s inundated email boxes are quite a feat. You really need to know what will make your readers want to open your email as opposed to deleting it along with everyone else who is jamming up their email inbox. It´s not uncommon for the average person to receive around 100 emails a day . . . most of those are not personal, either!
When you realize what a mountain of emails, mostly irrelevant, that your readers have to face on a daily basis, you begin to get an idea of how big a deal it is to make your subject line stand out. But how on earth do you do that?
Which of these would you be more likely to open?
Hey (your name), do you need to earn some cash?
Open now for instant millions $$$!
The first one is more appealing to most because it comes across as personal and friendly. Being personal is a very good start for subject lines. Making your email marketing subject line personal is the best way to grab someone´s attention. You should be asking for first names when you get sign ups, so that you can use them. Most autoresponders have a name insertion function which will make your subject lines look like they were written directly for the person receiving it. More people will tend to open an email if they think it was written specifically for them.
You should also try to hint at a solution inside the email . . . if they have a problem and you have the answer, you can be sure your subscribers will open the newsletter. Just make your subject line something catchy and intriguing. It should also be fairly short since many email programs will cut longer subject lines off and they won´t make much sense to your readers.
Subject lines are a vital part of email marketing. If your subject line doesn´t stand out, you certainly won´t get any clicks!
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Category: Subject Lines
Writing by Brick Marketing on Thursday, 17 of January , 2008 at 12:03 pm Comments (1)
Do you tend to ramble on in the subject lines of your email newsletter? You could be causing your open rates to drop if that´s the case. Keeping your subject lines nice and tight is always a good idea, for several reasons.
Short subject lines are easier to read. Computer monitors make it hard on the eyes to read, so keeping any text to short, easy to read segments is best and the same goes for subject lines.
Long subject lines may get cut. Many email programs limit the number of characters you can have in the subject line, so your longer text may be cut off at awkward places.
Keep it no nonsense. With so many emails pouring into their inbox every day, most people just don´t have the time to guess at what your subject line means. Keeping it short and easy to understand will get you more clicks.
Shorter subject lines allow your readers to get the information they need fast. All they really want to know is if your email newsletter is worth opening or not. Let them know fast and you´ll get higher open rates, it is really that simple.
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Category: Subject Lines
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