Inbox Presence
Permission email marketing now accounts for 27 percent of the email that consumers receive in their primary personal inboxes -- up from 16 percent in 2003. The "from" and "subject" lines are the most important factors in making your emails stand out among other email inbox clutter. Seven in 10 U.S. internet users said they judged these "from" and "subject" lines when deciding whether to report an email as spam.
Two key elements of creating a powerful inbox presence:
1. From Line -- All the candidates need to better leverage the brand power of their respective names to differentiate their emails from the inbox clutter. Gov. Huckabee's campaign was the only one that consistently used the same "from" line in all email communication: "Governor Mike Huckabee." Many emails are sent from campaign staff members, which are more likely to be considered trash or spam. There are a few notable exceptions to this rule including a public endorsement from another politician or celebrity with similar brand name recognition.
2. Subject Line -- The subject line needs to tease the contents of the email without telling everything, as well as elicit intrigue to open it. Thirty-five percent of email users open messages because of what's contained in the subject line. For the most part, each campaign does a great job of using the subject line to tell what is in the content of the email. Sen. Clinton often uses simple subject lines that intrigue the recipient to open and read more, including "What happens Tuesday," "Early returns," "35,000" and "Something amazing." These subject lines, when compared to ones used by Sen. McCain, "Must Read: McCain and The Supreme Court" or "John McCain Addresses CPAC," create more of a sense of urgency to open the email and see to what the subject is referring. If the recipient is not concerned with CPAC or Supreme Court issues, then the email fails to generate any interest in being opened.