Tips for writing the very best email ads that actually sell (think: 5-second rule)

Think of your email headline as a stop-watch with a 5-second timer.  Because five (5) seconds is about all that you have to reach out and get somebody's attention as he or she scans through email-after-email for eye-catching headlines.  Notice that the watch in the photo to the left is set to ten seconds.  That's to remind you that you only have HALF that much time!  By the way, you're also limited to fifty(50) characters. That’s all the space that you have available for creating a credible, tantalizing, valuable, appealing, relevant, descriptive and/or interesting headline that will result in a high open rate. Doesn’t sound like too much to ask… I mean, 50 characters is plenty of room. Granted, it’s 15 less than you’re allowed to see for titles on Google’s SERPs, but still, it shouldn’t be that hard. Right?

High Conversion, Low Open Rates and Clickable Email Ad Headlines

Did you know it’s possible to have a high conversion rate (how many people click on the links within the email and buy, sign up, etc.) and a low open rate (how many people click on the headline to read the email)? It’s true! No matter how poor the headline is, you can probably get at least a 3% open rate, and those 3% may have a 80 – 90% conversion rate.

Diagnosis: The inside of your email is a lot better – more persuasive – than the outside.

There’s a lot of pressure on those poor little 50 character headlines. It’s not even 50 characters, really, because you have to count the spaces. So what can you do to beef up your email subject line and get better open rates? Here are a few tips:

1. Tell the reader what to expect - It’s not nice to tease. When readers click on a headline, they expect to read in the email what the headline promises. Think about the last headlines you read and why they grabbed your attention. Most of the time, I’ll be the headline sums up an important fact or promises something.

Example: Electronic Arts Acquires Playfish for $400 Million

Now, when you click on that link, you’ll not be surprised to find out that, my goodness, Electronic Arts spent a ton of money to buy Playfish.

2. Don’t be misleading - Sure, you want a kick-butt, grab you by the ears, interesting headline. However, don’t work so hard for it that you step over the fine line from “interest” to “misleading”. Being misleading is a good way to lose would-be loyal autoresponder subscribers. In fact, studies have shown that straightforward subject lines tend to show higher open rates than creative, “interesting” ones.

3. Don’t recycle - Sure, going green and recycling is a wonderful thing… but not with emails. Don’t reuse your subject line; each one has the same five seconds to interest, impress or entertain. Each one has to stand out from the rest.

4. Make sure you don’t repeat yourself - You have a “from” line and a “subject” line. If your “From” line has your newsletter or company name, don’t include it in the subject line. The good thing about this is it clears up some of those 50 characters for better headlines.

5. DON’T YELL - You make think using ALL CAPS is an excellent way to gain attention. However, this is like a flashing neon sign that says “spam” to filters and people alike. Use proper capitalization.

6. Make sure your subject line isn’t cut o… - Most email marketing companies allow you to send yourself a test email. Use this feature! You don’t want to assume all of the subject line will be seen just because it’s under 50 characters.

Of course, the final tip is to always test. Another feature most companies offer is split testing. Test your headlines, test your content… and remember, you can always get better email open rates!  Naturally, TrafficWave's adtracker feature is excellent in this regard.