Email Marketing: Improving Email Open Rates

Tuesday, October 25th, 2011

Hi friends:

This information is compliments of iContact. From a marketing perspective, we think it is good advice.

Picture this…
After gathering the right list, writing the perfect content, and designing the ideal template, you’re ready to send out your first email newsletter. Your mouse hovers over the send button – and you freeze. In a panic, you ask yourself, “what if nobody wants to read this?”

Worry not, for today’s lesson will ensure that you’re never in such a predicament. In fact, it’s easy to get recipients to open and read your email messages – once you understand a bit more about:

The “From Name”
The email’s “Subject Line”
The recipient’s expectations

The From Name
Your recipients might receive hundreds of emails per day… and their inboxes might be flooded with SPAM… which means your email messages need to stand out – but how?

It’s all about the From Name. Your recipients are infinitely more likely to open their emails when the From Name is a familiar individual or organization. If your company name is more widely recognized than your own name, then use the company name as the From Name. For example, a Starbucks coffee drinker is more likely to open an email sent from Starbucks, as opposed to an email sent from “Kyle Rhodes,” the author of that particular Starbucks message.

Once you select a From Name, be consistent. Your subscribers will become familiar with that name (if they aren’t already) and they’ll also expect future messages to come from that From Name.

The Subject Line
Before you select a Subject Line, you need to assess (or set) your recipients’ expectations. Are your readers expecting a newsletter or a special promotion? Recipient’s opt-in to receive “newsletters” when they’re looking for relevant news, information and updates. Alternatively, when recipients opt-in to receive “promotions and offers,” they are interested in special discounts, savings, and incentives.

These expectations should dictate what type of Subject Line you use. Traditional newsletter recipients will appreciate headlines such as: “Company XYZ: Quarterly Update” or “Company XYZ Newsletter – November, 2009.” On the other hand, subscribers interested in promotions and offers will respond to the following headlines: “Save 20% – Company XYZ Winter Sale” or “Last Minute Gift Ideas from Company XYZ.”

All Subject Lines – for newsletters or promotions – must be clear and to the point. Don’t confuse or mislead your subscribers. And don’t try too hard. Simply let your subscribers know the subject of what they’re about to read.

More About Expectations
A familiar and consistent From Name, paired with a clear and appropriate Subject Line, will encourage your subscribers to read your emails. But your email content must deliver – or your readers will eventually learn to ignore your emails, regardless of the relevant From Name and Subject Line.

For instance, when you send an email with the subject line “November Newsletter” to a subscriber that opted-in to receive “newsletters,” you’d be wise to make sure that your email, is in fact, a newsletter! Obvious? Perhaps. But the idea is important. Your content must match your reader’s expectations, while also matching the Subject Line and the From Name.

Until Next Time
You’re now on your way to increasing the effectiveness of your email marketing efforts. With the right From Name, Subject Line, and overall content, you’ll find that more people are reading your emails. We hope this helps!