Writing The Best Email Subject Line

"How should I write my subject lines so that more recipients will open my emails?"

To answer that commonly asked question Mailchimp recently analyzed over 40 million emails sent from their customers, and found the ones with the highest and lowest open rates. From the results they pulled 20 from each pile and put their subject lines in a side-by-side comparison. The "highest" open rates were in the range of 60%-87%, while the "lowest" performers fell in the dismal 1%-14% range. Was there a pattern?

On the "best" side, the subject lines are pretty straightforward. They're not very "salesy" or "pushy", most people would say that they are "boring." On the "worst" side however, the subject lines read like headlines from advertisements from the Sunday paper. Sure they might look more "creative," but their open rates are horrible.

For a long time now email marketers push the use of subject lines that are supposed to jump off the screen and "GRAB THE READER'S ATTENTION!" Most people get so much junk mail in their inbox, anything that even hints of spam gets thrown away immediately if it hasn't already been removed by their Spam filter.

Does that mean your subject lines should be really stale and un-creative to get high open rates? Not really. The most important thing is the type of expectation you are creating.

Mailchimp explains:

For example, email "newsletters" are for "soft-selling." They build relationships with your customers, and they're great if your products have a very long sales cycle. Use them to slowly soften your customers for the sale, or to make them feel really good about your brand. If your recipients signed up for these kinds of emails, don't expect them to be very enthusiastic when, out of the blue, you send an email with a subject line like, "10% Discount! Open Now!" For newsletters, keep your subject lines simple, straightforward, and consistent.

On the other hand, if your subscribers specifically opted-in to receive "special offers and promotions" from your company, there's nothing wrong with saying there's a "10% off e-coupon inside." They'll be expecting a "hard sell" from you. It's when marketers send promotional emails to their entire "newsletter" list when things go wrong. The idea is to create a totally separate opt-in list for those who want to receive promotional emails. Furthermore, segment your promotions list into smaller, more focused groups before you send your campaign (don't send an offer for purses and high-heel shoes to the men on your list, {unless of course they have opted in for that content}).

So what is the Secret Formula for Subject-Lines?

This is going to sound "stupid" to a lot of people, but here goes: Your subject line should (drum roll please): Describe the subject of your email.

Yep, that's it. Always set your subscribers' expectations during the opt-in process about what kinds of emails they'll be receiving.

• Don't confuse newsletters with promotions. If your email is a newsletter, put the name and issue of the newsletter in your subject line. Because that's what's inside.
  

• If your email is a special promotion, tell them what's inside. Either way, just don't write your subject lines like advertisements.
  

When it comes to email marketing, the best subject lines tell what's inside, and the worst subject lines sell what's inside.

This article has been adapted from content appearing on Mailchimp. To read the original article please follow this link.