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RSSNow to be clear from the start, I'm not calling for the end of subject lines or suggesting that they serve no purpose anymore. What I am saying is that with the growing adoption of preview panes, the role and value of the subject line is also changing. In fact, the subject line may now be third in importance behind the from/sender line and preview pane in terms of its ability to motivate recipients to take action.
The preview pane itself is beginning to supersede the subject line as the driver to conversion. More specifically, it is the content inside the preview pane that motivates the recipient to open the full message, or to scroll further and take action without ever even opening the message.
This, in fact, is not a new issue or idea. Many of us in the industry have been preaching for the last three years about the realities of preview panes and blocked images, their favorite dance partner.
Preview panes typically give you only a few inches of space to state your case. Add to that the double whammy of images that are disabled by default -- and you end up with a big blank space if you rely heavily on large images to relay your message.
The preview pane is prime real estate -- the Boardwalk of email messages for those of us who grew up playing Monopoly. Optimize that "hot zone," the top few inches and left corner of your message, and you greatly increase your chances of conversion with recipients.
But, when I look at the emails in my inbox every day, the vast majority of marketers don't treat the top any differently from the bottom of their messages.
On second thought, they do. In many cases the bottoms are better optimized. Putting aside those few messages with well-optimized preview panes, most fall into two other camps:
1. Image Intensive: The top of the email is taken up by one or more images -- often logos or mastheads. Which means when I scan my over-full inbox, I see either nothing or red Xs.
2. Instruction Overkill: You know what I'm talking about. What probably started out as a good idea a few years ago has gotten out of control. Look at the top of many emails today and you'll see variations of the "View Web version" and "Add to address book" instructions. Some now also include unsubscribe directions, how you got added to the list and other administrative information.
Countering the Arguments
I expect my argument will raise at least three major disagreements or counterpoints:
To the first two claims, I cite studies by MarketingSherpa and my own from 2005, that show preview pane use is on the rise. Consider these Sherpa findings, all from 2007:
o 64% of people who are offered preview panes start using them as their default.
o 80% of at-work users in the U.S. rely on Outlook, which offers preview panes.
o 38% of online consumers now use email clients that offer preview panes.
The trend is also on the rise for email clients offering preview panes. Beyond Outlook, Lotus Notes and Thunderbird, Yahoo Mail and Windows Live Mail now offer preview panes. If the trend continues, AOL and Gmail will also add this functionality in the next few years, which will mean that 90% or more of your B-to-C recipients will at least have the option of using a preview pane.
It's true that most mobile email viewers don't have a preview pane as we have come to know it, though the iPhone apparently had a two-pane screen in a beta version. As mobile devices become more email-centric, some form of a preview pane is likely to become standard on all smart phones.
Even so, the tiny screen area one sees when "opening" an email on a mobile device captures only a fragment of the email message's real estate. That is, in essence the "preview pane."
As I write this column and look at my BlackBerry, it is in fact the "from" or "sender" line that motivates me to open an email. The subject lines are mostly unintelligible, with most truncated after only one to three words.
As a result, it is this second-screen real estate (the first being the inbox) that determines whether I read further or take some form of action.
The era of "pretty" email is over. Function is the key, and the preview pane is now where the battle for your recipients' attention is taking place.
What do you think? Click the comment link below and have your say.
P.S. The preview pane is yet another reason why I don't believe the open rate is a great measure of subject-line tests and effectiveness.
Meet Loren McDonald at Email Insider Summit Utah!
Loren McDonald will be there speaking during "Looking Past Email Measurement" on December 09 at 9:45 AM. Top executives will be there. Will you?
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RSS FEEDS
Email Experience Blog: MAKE IT POP!: The Preheader Express - http://blog.emailexperience.org/2008/01/make_it_pop_the_preheader_expr.html
RetailEmail.Blogspot: Preheader label - http://retailemail.blogspot.com/search/label/Preheaders
Bronto Blog: The Underutilized Preheader / Snippet Text - http://blog.bronto.com/2008/02/19/the-underutilized-preheader-snippet-text/
Cheers.
dj at bronto
I've seen some other studies that indicate in the B2B realm, where Outlook is dominant, that upwards of 75% of readers use the pane. I set up preview pane criteria at my last company for our eNewsletters, to wit:
Must include these four elements: 1. Snippet text (pre-header text) must include a. a link to an online version of the newsletter b. whitelisting instructions 2. Branding--a recognizable logo (or in the case of a text version, a brand or company name) in a prominent position 3. Editorial Content: A TOC, Part or all of a Lead/Feature story abstract with strong headline. Avoid too much text in pane, readers want to skim.
Also: • Header image or logo must be linked to website. (Not true for Media Post) • Header should be no more than 60 pixels tall. • Leader board ad tag should never be placed above header; header always first. (Media Post is far from the only violator of this principle.) • If the header and leader board tag is in place, avoid additional images. • Add alt-text tags to counter image suppression.
As to the leaderboard ad, this of course is problematic. In an ideal world, I'd forbid it in the pane, for two reasons: 1) It supplants relevant content in a limited space 2) It's not the best image for the brand.
The 2008 Sherpa Email Benchmark Guide shows that 49% of consumers who use a pane configure it horizontally with a small viewing area, maybe about 1-2 inches tops, while 29% in a hoz configuration use a larger view area, maybe 3-4 inches tall.
I'd suggest that we don't want to 49% to see not much more than a leaderboard ad.
Of course, the nature of the pushback would be obvious, and not only from the advertisers or the sales staff. But I think it's best to begin with your branded header.
And regarding the snippet text, I did see some effort by web editors to add additional admin info to it, such as unsub or even contact links. This is not a good practice. However, in a B2B environment, I think it's becoming less critical to ensure whitelisting instructions are included in every post, even though this at first may seem counterintuitive; but it is still critical to include it in site confirmation pages and all transactional messaging.
It is necessary, however, to keep the link to an online version.
But I am intrigued by suggestions in our industry that we use the snippet text as sort of a second subject line or for an additional promotional blurb. In an eNewsletter, one could promote another hot article or review, or tip/trick teaser. In an etail message, one could promote a special offer, a discount, or a hot new item, product or service.
This would be a great test, in addition to testing sender line, subject line, etc.
In any case, I think snippet text should be kept to two or three lines max.
--Arthur Cohen Dymaxion Consulting
B
From one who reads messages through the preview pane, one caveat is that the subject line may impact the priority of when which messages are read. With that I still believe that the subject line does play an important role.
Using myself as an example, while I look forward to receiving EmailInsider, the topic - as implied in the subject line - determines if I "open" it now or later. Therefore I believe that while the preview pane and what the recipient sees in it at first glance are determining factors as to what follows, the subject line still holds weight in drawing the recipients attention in a crowded inbox.
With my 1440x900 display and preview pane at the bottom, I see the ad banner, header, article title, byline, and first sentence. That may be sufficient to draw in the reader. But when I switch to 1024x768 (still the most common resolution), I see the ad banner, half the "email insider" header, and lose everything below it.
Now, if I switch the preview pane to the right, it works much better. But isn't the default usually is at the bottom?
Some promotional mail is absolutely terrific, as if they've been considering and testing the concept very carefully. It seems there's little middle ground, though. In today's batch, the remainder was pretty poor and I use a pretty big (787 x 605) pane.
For example, if the pixel gif is positioned near the top of the preview pane, the email client will get it and that could register as an "open," even if the user never reads below what's visible in the preview.