INSTANT MBA: Here's One Trick For Getting Busy People To Open Your Emails

Instant MBA

June 16, 2014

Want more people to open your emails?

You’ll need to write the perfect subject line.

“There is no doubt that the email subject line is the first impression to be taken into account, and whether a person will proceed to open the email or not depends a lot upon subject line,” writes Madhu Gulati, president of marketing agency ShowMeLeads, in a recent LinkedIn post. And, a huge part of what makes a subject line work is its length, she says.

Gulati says research conducted in this area has found that subject lines with six to 10 words have the highest “open rate,” at 21%.

Subject lines with five words or fewer have a 16% open rate — and that number drops to 14% for those with 11 to 15 words. Yet, more than half of all emails fall into this final category, she says.

According to Gulati, this information is especially important to those in marketing.

“It cannot be denied that the email subject line is the most critical component to ensure the success of an email marketing campaign, as people make their decision to read the message or not accordingly,” she explains. “The study shows that succinctness is useful to attract customers and engage them with the offers, as they read the line and gain interest. Ultimately, the probability that the email will be opened and convert leads to customers increases.”

In addition, she says, concise subject lines are optimal for mobile users, “as they could easily be displayed on their mobile gadgets, further emphasizing the value of utilizing such practices.”

Click here to read the full LinkedIn post.

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