| 'Tis the Season for Standout Subject Lines |
| Email Marketing | |
| Written by Stefan Pollard | |
| Monday, 06 November 2006 | |
 You're going to be facing more competition than ever this year, not just for your recipients' business but also for your spot in their inbox. Your best defense is your subject line, but now you have to ratchet up your efforts even more to stand out in the coming flood of offers, year-end round-ups, solicitations and outright spam.
Even if you don't send email messages that are clearly commercial or tied to the holiday season, your emails could get lost in the crowd if your subject lines don't distinguish you.
A good subject line has three essential qualities: branding, urgency and brevity. It tells the reader at a glance that the message has value and comes from a known sender.
Now you have to add a fourth quality: distinction. What will distinguish your limited-time free-shipping offer from the 15 to 20 others that are probably poised for delivery right now to your customers' inboxes?
So, you need not only to write a good subject line but also know what your direct competitors are sending out, along with all of the other direct merchants whose emails will compete with yours for the reader's attention. It's a tall order, but this article will outline how to do it. Subject Line 101
First, let's review what makes a good subject line. (See the resource list at the end of this column for more detailed tips and advice.)
No matter what time of year, you need these elements:
You should know which subject lines generate the most interest from your recipients. If you're not sure, review your metric reports for the last three to 10 campaigns. See what the subject lines were for the best-performing campaign. The subject line isn't the only driver for campaign success, but it's an important one.
For EmailLabs and The Intevation Report, we know from checking our click and open rates that any subject line or article that has "subject lines" in it will do well. So, we play that up in the subject line where appropriate. Strive to be Distinct
At any other time of the year, the three main elements of a good subject line will get you noticed in the inbox. Now, though, you're not the only one offering free shipping, or an upgrade, or a 50% discount. While your main competitors with opt-in lists are inundating your recipients, other emailers – permission-based or not – are also email-bombing them.
So, what can you expect everybody else to be pushing this year? Here are the two biggies from last year:
Both of these are legitimate incentives. However, they probably belong inside, in the creative section, more than in the subject line unless you add an urgent or unusual qualification. Know What Your Competition is Up To
You should already subscribe to your competition's email offers to see what they're up to, if you're not finding out from trade publications or retailer gossip. If you don't have the time or energy to do that, a good free resource shows what's active right now in email offers: Chad White's Retail Email blog, which tracks the email campaigns of major e-retailers by subject line.
Chad also offers a daily "Subjectivity Scanner," which lists the retailer, email date and subject line of messages Chad has received that day. When you see all these emails together, you get a better idea of what your recipients' inboxes look like and why it's so important to distinguish your own emails. Remember the Sender Line
As important as the subject line is for reader recognition and action, it doesn't work in a vacuum. Your sender line (the "from" line) is also important, because readers look at both when deciding whether to open, trash or spam-report an email message.
Just a reminder: Configure your email-delivery program to show a company name, brand name, newsletter or offer name in the sender line, rather than an email address or a person's name, unless that name is a household one like Martha Stewart or Donald Trump. Some older email clients will grab the email address by default no matter what you do, but almost all of the standard desktop and Web-based clients will now accept the sender name you list. The Subject is Subject Lines: More Resources
You still have time to whip your subject lines into shape and test them before the heaviest email time period begins - the four weeks leading up to Christmas. Sharpen your skills with these articles offering tips, advice and real-world examples from our free Resource Center:
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