E-mail marketing is an essential tool of integrated marketing.  But how to avoid a “click” to trash instead of a “click-through” to sales?

The subject line is your first impression—the smile, the starch in your collar, the attitude of confidence that says you have something of value to share.  Here are some guidelines to help you evaluate your subject lines.

•  Be relevant

Readers will only give you a few seconds to state your case and establish your credentials.  Your subject line must accurately convey the content or substance of your e-mail message.  If you fail this test, the recipient may never open another e-mail from you again.  Always make good on the promise of your subject line.

• Be brief

This is important because subject lines are not always displayed consistently from one e-mail platform to another.  Check with your vendor, but a rule of thumb is 50-60 characters max.  Yes, that’s asking for a lot of economy.  But consider this:  Some of your recipients will read your e-mail on a mobile device.  The iPhone will show most characters in a subject line, but the BlackBerry won’t.  To be absolutely sure, test your subject line on different platforms first to see what it looks like.  That’s the only way to be sure.

•  Use a consistent “From” line

Just like you, readers tend to look at the “From” line first before the subject line.  Then they decide if they want to open the e-mail.  Use a consistent “From” address in all your e-mail messaging whether it’s a first and last name or the name of your organization.

•  Make it deliverable

Spam filters pick up words that can make your e-mail undeliverable.  Unfortunately, spam filtering technology can also block legitimate e-mail if you use spam-like phrases.   Whatever you do, avoid anything spammy.  Typical spam words are ”cash,” “money,” “bad credit,” “home mortgage,” “gift card,” and “diet.” Some other less obvious words and phrases are “free download,” “% off,” and “huge sale.” Other usages to avoid:   all capital letters, too many exclamation marks, and the dollar symbol.  To make sure your e-mail is deliverable, run your copy and subject lines through your software’s spam checker.  A little common sense goes a long way, too.

•  Use deadlines to convey urgency

Toward the end of the year, you may have unsold inventory, seasonal inventory, holiday specials, or perhaps you are a not-for-profit encouraging donors to consider end-of-year giving.  These are all legitimate reasons to communicate with your audience, and you can do it repeatedly with subject lines of increasing urgency linked to a specific deadline.  As with all e-mail, the goal is to gain attention without annoying people.  So keep “the build” in your messages reasonable, e.g., “only 2 days left...” or “last minute gift ideas...”

•  Instead of last, write it first

The exercise of brevity—collapsing a marketing appeal into just a few characters of your subject line—can help you better focus on the messaging itself.  So consider writing your subject lines first.  Also, the more subject lines you create, the better your testing—pre- and post-.

•  And speaking of testing...

Just do it!  A/B split tests will tell you which subject lines are working and which aren’t.  If you are working with an e-mail vendor, start testing today with two or more identical e-mail messages using different subject lines.  Your vendor will use a subset of your target audience to determine which subject line is pulling.  Then you can send your most effective subject line to the rest of your list.  Check your open rates vs. your click-throughs.  Messages opened is the number of recipients who open your e-mail to read it.  Click-throughs refers to the number of times a recipient clicks on any trackable link in your e-mail.  

All information is good information, especially when it comes to writing a good subject line—and welcoming customers or donors in your front door.

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