Has your company found success through your email marketing campaigns? If your emails have a low open rate, chances are your recipients aren’t finding your subject lines very compelling. It’s important to remember that one of the most important parts of any email is the subject line. Right away, recipients will look at your subject line and judge whether or not your email is worth opening. With so much riding on the subject line alone, it’s important that you avoid these common mistakes. Here are a few things to keep an eye on when crafting your emails.
#1 Using Spam Trigger Words
Including certain words in your email subject line might cause your email to go directly to your recipient’s spam folder. If you want to ensure that your recipients even receive your emails to begin with, make sure you avoid spam trigger words. Here are a few words you should avoid: free, money, percent off, buy, cash, click, winner, and sign-up. For a full list of spam trigger words, feel free to check out this HubSpot article. Spam filters might not block all emails with these words, but on the slim chance it does get through, the recipient still might classify these emails as spam if they see certain words in the subject line.
#2 Missing Spelling and Grammatical Mistakes
Not checking for spelling and grammatical errors in your email subject line can be a huge mistake. If something is misspelled or is grammatically incorrect, that could significantly lessen your chance of your emails being opened. You might also give the impression that your company is unprofessional, so why should your recipients waste their time opening your emails? Marketing Land offers some helpful advice by explaining, “Providing text that can be copied and then pasted in the transition from an email concept-to-build eliminates the need to retype content — removing a step where errors are commonly introduced.” If you’re careful when composing your emails, you’ll have a better chance of avoiding spelling and grammar mistakes.
#3 Using ALL CAPS or Excessive Punctuation
Some email marketers believe the best way to catch their recipients’ attention is to use ALL CAPS or add extra punctuation. This is usually a mistake. Adding several exclamation points to the end of your subject line will not help increase open rates, and trying these tactics will only increase the chances of your emails triggering spam filters. If you want your emails to look professional and enticing, focus on creating subject lines that are clever, instead of using cheap tricks.
#4 Being Vague
In order to increase the chance that your recipients will open your emails, make sure your subject lines are specific. If you write vague or misleading subject lines, not only will you be dangerously close to violating CAN-SPAM laws, but people are very likely to delete your emails or mark them as spam if they feel that they’ve been tricked into opening them. Being honest and clear in your email subject lines lessens the chance of your recipients feeling tricked by your emails. Make sure your subject line always matches the content of your email.
Are there any subject line mistakes you’d add to this list? Has your company experienced any problems with your email subject lines? Share with us in the comments!