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You Can be an Email Marketing Supergenius #102

Subject Lines That Work
Issue # 102

1> Numbers Raise Response Rates
2> Skip The Spam Words
3> The Defense Against Deletion

1> Numbers Raise Response Rates

No one knows why, but putting a number in the subject line of an email message greatly increases readership and response rates. Just about anything works: Top 10, Save 10%, 3 Great Ideas, etc. Try it in everything from B2B email newsletters to consumer mailings selling things like CDs.

2> Skip The Spam Words

Unfortunately, spammers have stolen words and phrases that work great for legitimate marketers and made them useless. Proven direct-mail winners (such as Free, Special Offer, and Limited Time) are useless in email. As soon as your readers see them in a subject line, your message will be deleted as potential spam. Even worse, the automatic spam filters at major ISPs scan for these words and direct you right to the junk mail file.

3> The Defense Against Deletion

Never change your subject line and “from” fields — or keep those changes as minor as possible. Every morning your readers are deleting unwanted emails as fast as possible. If they don’t recognize your message, they are going to delete it. A consistent subject line helps readers recognize your messages, so they don’t get swept away with the trash.

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