JBA Central Blog System

Once you've created what, in your opinion, appears to be a great email marketing newsletter, you're all set and ready to launch it out into cyberspace, right? Wrong. First, you'll need to go back and check your subject line, making sure it concisely echoes the content of your message so that recipients find it too irresistible not to open.

But, you might be thinking, a subject line is just a few words - how difficult can it be to write? You'd be surprised. If you consider enticing newspaper and magazine article headlines, they have to be intriguing enough to pull in readers who will, at the very minimum, want to skim the article. Take a few minutes to thumb through one of your favorite publications, noting the qualities of the headlines of the articles you want to read. Much like these article titles and headlines, email newsletter subject lines are the gatekeepers of your message. If you fail to get the recipient's attention with your subject line, they may never see all the great deals and amazing content your email marketing newsletter has to offer.

To compose the perfect email subject line:

• Don't just describe the email. Think about why you are writing the email and what you want to be different after the recipient has read it.
  State the message's bottom line. B2C marketers, for example, should relay a sense of urgency when it comes to special offers. Provide exact details of the offer, how long it will last, etc. B2B marketers should highlight whatever timely, newsworthy topic is featured within their email newsletter content.
• If your message requires the recipient's action (and most of them do), say so; preferably with the first word.
  If your email comprises multiple topics, consider breaking it into multiple messages or summarize a few of the main topics in one or two words, divided by commas.
• Be precise, not vague. Include detail that allows the recipient to identify what you are talking about quickly and unambiguously. Think about the who, what, when, where, why & how of your message and then phrase your subject line almost as if it were an invitation. (Because, if you think about it, it IS an invitation - to open your email and take some kind of action that you think would be of interest to the reader).
• Email subjects need to be concise and not too wordy. Leave out unnecessary words like articles, adjectives and adverbs.