In one of our previous articles, "The Basics of Email Marketing: How to Improve Your Conversion Rates," we briefly touched upon the importance of luring in your subscribers through snappy and intriguing subject lines.
Before diving into your content, your subject line is the very first connection to your subscriber and it is your chance to quickly and effectively convey your message.
Consider these tips a jump-start to making money and developing relationships with your free email marketing campaign. Use these tips before creating your subject line.
Figure out What Type of Email You're Sending
How you'll write your subject line is entirely dependent on what type of email you're crafting.
Essentially, you're going to lead off your subject line with the point of your email. Is your email a sales pitch? Or do you have a coupon code for 50% off shipping on their next order? Are you asking your subscribers to participate in a customer satisfaction survey? Or, are you asking your subscribers to respond to your call-to-action?
Whatever type of email you're writing, start your subject line with your push.
Sales: "75% Off Sale!"
Coupon Code: "Free Shipping!"
Survey: "Tell Us and Win!"
Call-to-Action: "Help Get the Word Out!"
Who is Your Audience?
Or, who are your customers? Are you serving just customers (B2C) or other businesses (B2B)?
Do you know what your customers "look" like? Meaning, what's the picture of your average customer?
Knowing this critical demographical information makes and breaks the way that you title your subject lines.
Do you know which email titles receive the highest or lowest conversion rates? Does one particular wording work better than others?
Understanding who your customers are is a marketing 101 trick. Before you even make a move, you have to know who you're connecting with.
So, how do you get this valuable information if you don't already have it?
1. Track spending habits
2. Analyze which emails receive the most turn-over
3. Conduct surveys that include optional personal information
4. Test different subject line strategies
Other Quick Tips
Figure out your voice. Your voice is the voice of your business. Are you formal or informal? Chatty and friendly or are you an expert? Knowing this will guide you in writing your subject lines.
Begin your subject line actively. One of the most common mistakes in professional writing is to write passively rather than actively. Writing actively means that your sentences are snappy and concise. Try starting each subject line with a noun or a verb like "Sale," "Closeout" or "Speak Up." Writing in this way gets right to the point quickly and effectively.
Keep it short If you write actively, then your subject lines will always be short. But, if you're struggling, the free email marketing rule of thumb is to keep your subject line no more than a handful of words. Writing complete sentences with a lot of flourishes is not only a turn-off but also clogs your subscribers' email viewing page.