SUBJECT LINES THAT SELL
by Susanna K. Hutcheson
When your recipient opens your email, whether it's a marketing message or your newsletter, you've made a sale. We call it a macro sale. Your recipient has taken a positive action --- in this case he opened your mail.
To make that happen, you must have a subject line that sells. And that's what this article is about.
In the beginning of the Internet you could put the word "Free" in a subject line and get anyone to read it. Now that same word will get your mail put in either bulk mail on Yahoo or junk mail in most filters or even put on the many Internet blacklists.
Can you ever use the word "free"? Yes. There are time when you can use it successfully. If you're careful. You might use a line such as:
"Download a Free Screensaver now." Or another one might be "Free guide to safety in the home." But don't overdo it with the word "free".
FILTERS AND YOUR EMAIL
Most people, especially business people, use filters or spam programs. For
example, I use a program that allows me to see only the mail that I think
might interest me. Nothing even gets off my hosts' server until I say I want
to see it.
It simply gets deleted if it looks like spam. Some of it I never even see. If it has the word "viagra" or "sex" or any number of other words, it's history. So those marketers who sent the messages out are wasting a lot of money for their lists and the creation of their email.
But there's more.
Many sly marketers are using tricks like putting RE: in the subject line to make it look like something you contacted them about. Or they even say that they have the information you asked for when in fact you didn't ask for it at all.
So how do you get YOUR email read and keep it out of the garbage bin?
SOME THINGS TO WATCH FOR IN YOUR SUBJECT LINE
Here are a couple of issues you need to watch for in your subject lines.
1.Don't ask a rhetorical question. "Are You Ready to Make Money?" will look like a lot of other email your readers already get - the unwanted kind.
2. Don't personalize your subject line. Have you noticed that the only people who use your name in the subject line are the ones who don't know you at all?
Now I personally think there are exceptions to this. But in general, when sending out newsletters or marketing material, marketers agree it's best not to personalize the subject line.
For those of you who send out newsletters or email messages, here are some tips that have proven to work. Now they could change at any time as things do on the net. But right now, they work.
With all the crap in your prospect's in box, how do you give your email communication a ghost of a chance of getting read? There's just one way: Write a dynamic subject line.
KISS THEM (OR KEEP IT SIMPLE, STUPID.)
Remember to KISS your readers. Keep the subject line short. Keep it simple.
Use fewer than 10 words. Use less than 5 if you can. This makes your email
seem more credible.
But there's an added benefit to a short subject line --- it shows the entire subject when the reader sees your header. A long subject line will not look good and can't be read by many email clients.
WHAT'S IN THIS DEAL FOR THE READER?
Your prospects are only concerned with one thing: What's in it for them? Write
your subject line, like your entire message, with the reader in mind.
What matters to you may not concern your readers. So be client-focused. Or customer-focused. Or reader-focused. Which ever works best for you. Think from the reader's point of view and you can't go wrong. See yourself in their chair when they open their daily mail. See your mail as they will see it.
Remember, your first sale in the email communication is making them spend their valuable time reading your offer or your news or article. If you can't write a subject line that will get them interested, you might as well not send out your email at all.
OTHER IMPORTANT DOs AND DON'Ts.
1. Don't use an exclamation mark at the end of the subject line.
2. Avoid words like "limited time," "free," "opportunity," and "only." Doing so may hook some; it will turn off many more.
3.Try to develop a style and personality in your email communications.
4. Don't use a lot of crappy sales talk in the subject line. Net users hate marketing hype. So tone it down. Be honest and courteous.
5. Don't use caps. I hate to get email in all caps. Don't you? Using caps on the Internet is the same as screaming. Yelling at the top of your lungs. If people get an email with all caps in the subject line they'll delete it just as sure as a cat will chase a mouse.
6. Avoid the use of $$$, ***, and other symbols.
Spam filters on mail programs such as Hotmail can be set to: Off, Low, High, or Exclusive depending on the degree of filtering desired. At the low setting, "... most incoming email messages will be delivered to your In box." At the Exclusive setting, the only way anyone can send a Hotmail user an email is if the sender's address is already in their Address Book.
Words like "sex", "free," and symbols such as dollar signs in the subject line may also filter out your message.
Here is some spam from someone's Hotmail account. His filter, set on High, filtered out all the following spam:
Global exposure we do the work 1106e
New Fruit Discovery Cures Most Ailments +
You need my help??? - Stop Searching Start Earning 7434
Let the Government MAKE YOU RICH...
Reduce Your Monthly Debt Payments up to 60%
If you're sending email to your opt-in subscriber list, your subject line
must be consistent and recognizable every time.
I change my subject line with each issue because my topic changes. But people can see it's my newsletter and that it's from me.
Other successful marketers never change the subject line at all except perhaps for the date. But try and be consistent so people will know the email is from you.
Alan Forrest Smith who published Hairee Salon Owners Discussion List says that putting who the newsletter is from first works best. For example, the line 'Hairee Salon Owners Discussion List #52, Reps bite back' "was one that tested very well and got opened better than any previous mailing", he said
He adds, "In summary I feel the best response I have had is to let them know who its from right away with a small headline after it changing according to weekly discussions. This currently gives me an open rate of around 20-30% weekly, high I know but it is very niche."
And I'd like to add one other thing. This has nothing to do with sending out newsletters or marketing email. It has to do with email in general.
No matter who you're sending your email to, always use a subject line. And try and follow the rules set out above for a good, carefully constructed subject line. This is especially true in your email to clients and customers.
Successful marketers also find that using a short question in the subject line works too. Questions tend to entice the reader and often get him to open an email when nothing else will. I know that I said above not to use rhetorical questions. And I stand by that. But a well constructed meaningful question is quite a different thing.
Should you only use questions in your subject line? No. Should you test them and try them from time to time? Yes.
BE CREATIVE WITH YOUR SUBJECT LINES and GIVE THEM THOUGHT.
Take time with your subject lines as with your email in general. Just because
you can dash it off instantly doesn't mean it doesn't deserve special consideration.
In fact, that's all the more reason to give it MORE consideration. You could
soon regret a hastily written subject line.
Here's what Debbie Weil, a highly respected email expert, says about the subject line.
"This is the secret. Your subject line should tease. It should intrigue.
It should drop a hint. Human nature being what it is, your reader is going
to feel compelled to click to find out more, to get the rest of the story."
Debbie also says,
"Think of the subject line as the purest distillation of your email
marketing message. If you understand what motivates your target audience --
what their pain points are in relation to your product or service -- you have
a good chance of getting a click."
Now I know that all of these rules and do's and don't's are sort of a pain.
And look --- we're all going to make mistakes. I've sent out newsletters with
misspelled words and other mistakes. And I've made worse errors than that.
But anyone who says they haven't made stupid mistakes in their marketing,
as in life, simply isn't telling the truth.
I'll tell you a little secret. When people read your newsletter or visit your Web site or get any correspondence at all from you, they're "hoping" to find a mistake. Why? So they'll have an excuse not to do business with you.
Now don't ask me why that is. But we marketers discovered it some time ago. That's why we try so hard to make everything as perfect as possible. And I might add, that's one good reason for you to consider professional help in your writing.
But do your best and you'll be rewarded. The subject line of your email is what stands between you and getting the guy at the other end to either open it or delete it. And if you're not careful, he may never even see it.
So take your time when composing your subject lines. Don't be hasty. A few extra minutes or a half hour working on your subject line could bring you a new client or more customers.
So try and make the person on the other end to want to see your email message. Make her glad she opened it. If you can accomplish that, your email marketing will bring you major rewards.
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Susanna K. Hutcheson is a professional advertising and direct mail copywriter. She was the first copywriter to utilize the Internet as a place to market this type of service. Susanna has clients all over the world. She writes everything from Web site content to direct mail and radio spots. Visit her Web site at http://www.powerwriting.com. Her email address is powerwriter@powerwriting.com. Telephone: (316) 684-0457.
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© Copyright 2006 by Susanna K. Hutcheson and Power Communications LLC. Any republication in any manner is prohibited without the consent of Power Communications LLC or the author. We do give you limited permission to use this article on your Web site or in your newsletter if you print it or reproduce it exactly as it appears here including this entire notice. This article cannot be sold by you or published in a for-profit publication, a pay-per-view site or a site which sells memberships. It cannot be used by schools or in textbooks without our consent in writing. Rights to use this article for a purpose other than the type of distribution for which it is intended may be purchased from us. Call us at 316-684-0457. You may, however, link directly (not by redirect) to this article.