Why Isn’t Anyone Opening Your Emails?

by Infinity Concepts | Jan 8, 2021 | Creative, Digital, Fundraising

How do you get someone to actually open your email? We all know what it’s like. We get hundreds (maybe thousands!) of emails every day. What do we do? Delete. Delete. Delete.

As a marketer, your first goal is to get your recipients to OPEN your email.

People’s inboxes are increasingly cluttered, so you need to stand out. Big time! And you’ve got fractions of a second to make an impression.

If you’re like most nonprofit fundraisers and marketers, you spend a lot of time writing the perfect email body copy, selecting compelling images and designing just the right layout that will entice someone to respond to your call to action. Then, at the last minute, when you’re ready to hit send, you quickly come up with a subject line.

But did you know that nearly 47% of email recipients open emails based on the subject line?

Even worse, 69% of email recipients report email as SPAM based solely on the subject line.

Not only do subject lines create your first impression, they also form a first impression on your ISP (Internet Service Provider), that’s actively scanning for engagement cues to determine if you’re spamming.

And that is why you need to be concerned with, and aware of, what works/doesn’t work when it comes to sending out emails.

Most emails don’t get opened because the subject line is boring or vague. There are two things you can do today to increase your open rate (and bring in more donations or sales!).

Tell me what’s in it FOR ME!

Are you having a 50% off sale? Tell me about your 50% off sale. Can I double my donation because you have a matching gift available? Tell me! Can I provide a poor child with a brand-new coat just as winter is starting? TELL ME!

So many marketers say things like “It’s that time of year again!” instead of “Shop our 50% off Black Friday Sale!” When you’re vague and unclear, people don’t know what you’re talking about and they’re much more likely to hit that delete button.

Make it personal.

In short, personalization lifts open rate. Recent studies show that emails with personalized subject lines are 22% more likely to be opened.

So how do you personalize an email subject line?

Include the recipient’s first name by using your email software’s merge function.
Speak to the things that your recipient cares about.
Use terms like “You” and “Your”
Include the name of a product they ordered or a campaign they donated to.

Take a look at the subject lines of emails you’ve sent out over the last several months. Did you tell the recipient what’s in it for them? Did you make the subject line personal to the recipient?

If not, try these tips and see what happens to your open rates!

If you want to engage your donors through email marketing and generate revenue for your organization,
then let our team of experts help you today! CLICK HERE or call us at 724-733-1200.