The engagement game changer: testing your email subject lines for success

To emoji or not to emoji?  To capitalise or not to capitalise?

These are the questions on the lips of every marketer, as they seek to transform their email subject line strategy.

In a world where users make split-second decisions on whether to open an email, the pressure is on for marketers to perfect their subject line strategy. With 50% of the decision to engage resting on this single component, professionals are feeling the heat, as the delete folder looms threateningly over revenue and engagement.

While there’s no one-size-fits-all solution to capturing recipients’ attention, there are proven techniques that can help you craft winning subject lines that pack a punch.

Start by establishing a subject line formula tailored to your industry, whether you’re a travel marketing boffin or a retail comms wizard. Consistency builds familiarity and trust, helping to drive engagement. Begin with a verb, follow with compelling content, and finish with a sense of urgency, while ensuring accuracy is maintained.

But don’t stop there. The key to success lies in iterative testing. What works for one organisation may not work for another, and the perfect subject line is elusive. Customise your formula to match the behaviour of your unique contacts, and put in the effort to refine and evolve your strategies continually.

Test different variations of your formula with a small segment of your audience, analyse engagement metrics, and refine accordingly. For example, if including the word “NOW!” has a negative impact, consider a different adverb that strikes the right balance.

Inconclusive results are part of the testing process, but there are ways to overcome them. Ensure you isolate and test every variable, experimenting with the order of words or other elements. Hyper-personalisation is key in today’s consumer-centric landscape, so tap into the desires and needs of different segments.

Once you’ve conducted thorough research on your contacts and subject line strategies, it’s time to rely on intuitive automation tools. With the power to do the heavy lifting for you, these tools can supercharge your digital marketing efforts, skyrocketing engagement rates.

So, embrace the challenge of crafting captivating subject lines, experiment, and let automation take your marketing to new heights. It’s time to make your emails impossible to ignore.