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April 2007 |
Published by Dianna Huff |
Volume 7, Number 4 |
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Welcome to the new subscribers from the Visual Thesaurus and various other blogs! How to Write Email Subject Lines for BlackBerries
Everyone, it seems, owns a BlackBerry or smart phone of some type. You see people answering email at lunch, in meetings, and at conferences. Not being tethered to one's desktop computer is grand -- but did you know you now have to write subject lines especially for the BlackBerry screen? No, I didn't know that either, until Karen Gedney gave her fabulous presentation on email marketing at NEDMA's B2B Marketing Workshop last month. Karen, by the way, is Click Z's B2B email marketing expert, plus she has her own marketing and copywriting business. What follows are her tips for writing subject lines that get noticed in a BlackBerry inbox. 1. Pay attention to the first 15 characters. According to Karen, conventional wisdom holds that most email inboxes show 45 characters of the email subject line. However, this is dependent on how the user configures her inbox. (I checked mine -- it's 48 characters.) "A lot of people, like myself, will give the "From" line more room onscreen, to identify real email from sp*m, and truncate their subject line area," says Karen, "So frontloading your subject line is really a good idea." With the BlackBerry and other portable devices, the inbox space shrinks -- to about 15 characters -- so you really have to make those first 15 count. Karen recommends using important keywords upfront. 2. Be familiar. Busy people scan -- and an email subject line that's relevant or important to the recipient will get opened -- and acted on. One way to get people to take action is to make the email subject line read like an internal email. Karen recommends using phrases such as "Due Today," "For Your Review," or "Filling Fast!" if you're trying to get people to register for a Webinar or other event. Using Karen's tip, I wrote an email for one client who does training; the client wanted the people who registered for a class to take a self-assessment. The subject line read: "Action Item Regarding Your [company name] Training Class" -- a subject line that stands out against the more typical, "Thank you for registering for class." 3. Write your subject line -- first. Karen advises that marketers write 10 -- 15 possible subject lines before writing the email copy. "The subject line is the make or break element for email marketing," she says. "Many copywriters will labor over the body copy and then spend a minute or two on the subject line. It should be the other way around." When composing an email for another client last week, I took Karen's advice. I spent a good chunk of time writing out 15 subject lines and worked hard to make the first 15 characters count. I was surprised at how the really compelling subject lines popped out at me -- and how much easier it was to write the email copy once I had the subject line in place. 4. Test your email. This isn't Karen's tip, but one I learned last week, too. While writing, I would send the email to myself. How did the subject line look in my cluttered inbox? Was the copy that appeared in the preview pane compelling enough? Did it clearly and quickly communicate the message with zero gobbledygook and jargon? Did I have it formatted correctly? Sums up Karen, "Remember that with an inbox, it's rows and rows of subject lines with no formatting or graphics. Busy people scan quickly and make instantaneous judgments about what's important/relevant and what's not, so you have to grab them immediately. Use keywords (which also helps them find an email more easily), write for the shortened BlackBerry inbox screen, and compose your subject line first." Thanks, Karen! For more information about Karen Gedney, visit her Website, Karen Gedney Communications.com. |
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Revised! 36 Ways to Grow Your E-Newsletter ListI'm pleased to announce that I've completely revised and updated my e-book, 25 Ways to Grow Your E-Newsletter List. Now with 36 tips (hence, the new title) this e-book is chockfull of easy-to-implement tips such as adding RSS as another delivery method, using SEO strategies for archiving your newsletter, and commenting on other people's blogs in order to help prospective subscribers (and customers) find you. Purchase your copy today using the link to the right. |
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What's New with DH Communications, Inc.It's been a busy first quarter here at the office. In addition to speaking gigs about SEO and moderating NEDMA's conference blog, DH Communications also completed the following projects:
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By Dianna Huff|
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Mangled Newsletter? |
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Get brownie points! |
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In this Issue |
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Worry-free MarCom You'll get someone who 1) understands how to write copy that generates leads; 2) delivers copy that needs little revision; and 3) won't miss your deadline. Ever. Dianna Huff--She makes you look good. |
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Contact DH CommunicationsTelephone:
603-382-8093 |
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Revised! By Dianna Huff
Completely revised and updated, 36 Ways To Grow Your E-Newsletter List features common -- and not so common -- methods for growing an ezine that turns subscribers into customers. |
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Previous Issues Jawitz Hits Home Run with Site Revamp What's the ROI on a Super Bowl Ad? High Performance Writing Starts with a Positive Mental Attitude |
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Contact Dianna todayTelephone: |
Copyright 2007, DH Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.