Subject Line

A Good Subject Line – Tips You Should Consider

In direct marketing, emails are an important channel for customer retention and acquisition. The most important requirement for a successful email campaign is primarily that your email is actually read. But inboxes are full, and recipients select what interests them and what doesn’t. The content of the subject line is decisive for whether your email will be opened or deleted unread. Because before they open it, they only see the sender and the subject line.

Before sending an email, you should consider the following when formulating the subject line:

• Special characters such as stars, exclamation marks, hearts, all caps, sensational terms like “little money,” “winner,” “offer,” etc. shouldbe avoided. These terms may cause the email to be classified as spam.
• The subject line should inform about the content. Users are more likely to open an email whose content is clearly stated in the subject line.
• The subject line should be a maximum of 60 characters.
• Make the recipient curious.
• Intentionally use punctuation marks such as question marks, exclamation points in your subject line to enhance it.
• Include a call to action, such as “Order today!”
• Evoke emotions but avoid flat jokes.
• Do not use the subject line as the preheader. Some desktop email programs and smartphones show not only the sender and the subject line but also the first few lines of text when a new email arrives in the inbox. This area is an important element for email optimization.
• Give concrete facts, such as “10€ voucher” instead of vague terms like “high discount”.
• Limit your offer in the subject line by time: “Only today 50€ voucher. Order now!”
• Do not make false promises.
• Avoid filler words in your subject line.
• Formulate simple sentences.
• Place the most important words at the beginning of the subject line.

A/B Test – Helpful for Optimization

You can also test different subject lines against each other (A/B Test) and see which subject line achieves better open rates. With an appropriate email marketing software, you can preview your emails before sending them and check if all systems can read the subject line. For example, Thunderbird shows 66 characters, and the iPhone shows 41 characters.

Your Contact Person for Your Campaign

If you are interested in acquiring email addresses for customer acquisition and plan to send an email campaign to your potential buyers, it is best to directly contact our online specialist Tanja Hensler (hensler@trebbau.com, Tel.: 0221/37646 – 330). She will also gladly review your subject line and give you helpful tips on what to consider in an email campaign.