TEST RESULTS (do not share)

This is surprising.

A few weeks ago…I did a test.  I wanted to see how much a “subject line” in an email would make a difference.  You may remember the email.  It had a subject line of   Salon Owner Attacked…

Well, here are the results.

When I look at the average of the last 10 emails that I sent out (to the same list) the average number of emails that got opened was 724.  When I sent out the email with the subject line “Salon Owner Attacked…” the number of emails opened was 1067.

So, just by changing the subject line…I got a 48% increase in the number of emails being opened.  I must admit…that even shocked me.

Look, if an email never gets opened…they never get your message.  Whether that message is a sale, a deal, some great information that you wanted to share, etc.  It doesn’t really matter.

Email not opened equals lost opportunity.

That got me to doing a little research on what subject lines would work the best for emails…and this is what I found out from one of the best email marketers in the business.

Question Marks: This one’s pretty simple. An email subject line that ends in a question mark usually gets a higher open rate than one without this valuable piece of punctuation.

Example: Want to Make Your Friends Jealous?

Percentages (%): These work by harnessing the curiosity factor. People simply love percentages and want to know where they come from.

Example: 87% of our Clients Loved this.

[Video]: Having a “[Video]” in your subject line is a great way to add interest. It’s basically a pattern-interrupt as someone scrolls through their inbox; it causes them to pause.

Example: [See Video] Get the Style that Everyone wants

Personal Pronouns: Personal pronouns (You, Your, etc…) help create the sense that you’re speaking directly to the recipient. It’s a way of being conversational and engaging.

Example: Why YOU need to update your look

Open Ended Statements:  Again, anything that raises a person’s level of curiosity will improve results.

Example: Test results enclosed…  or   This is Important…

So, if you’re going to do email marketing…which every salon should be doing…why not get the biggest bang for your efforts.  Cleverly change the subject lines to get the emails opened.

Just don’t try and fool people into opening the email.  If they think you’re consistently lying to them…they will start disregarding your emails.  My subject line of “Salon Owner Attacked…” was to make a point.  It should not be used to promote something else.

P.S.  Important.  You have to have a good client email list to take advantage of email marketing.  And the best way I’ve ever seen the get a great email list is by using HairMax 11.6 with it’s connection to emailing client receipts.  You can see all about it (video) right here…

http://www.hairmaxsalonsoftware.com/credit-card-processing/

As always, aim high…and dream even higher…

Steve Sampson