When and how to use emojis in the subject line of your email marketing

Published in 04 de agosto de 2015


You know those nice little guys widely used in messaging via WhatsApp or even SMS? The special symbols known as emojis may also appear in the subject line of the email marketing campaigns and they can generate more openings and clicks when applied correctly and in moderation.

In today's post we’ll show how you can take advantage of this trend to capture the attention of your target audience. After all, with the daily arrival of so many emails in the inbox, you must find a way to differentiate yourself from others.

A little bit of history...

What is turning into a trend now for email marketing campaigns began in 1990 in Japan. Since then, emojis, word derived from the Japanese language through the junction of image (e) + lyrics (moji), they are widely used in social media like Snapchat and Instagram, and messaging services such as WhatsApp.

The term can also be found in English by the name emoticon, the junction of emotion + icon, or smiley.

When use emojis in email marketing

In the email marketing campaigns, the use of friendly faces aims to draw the reader’s attention and consequently get them to open your messages. However, you need to dose the application to not end up creating the opposite effect.

Know your audience

Understanding who your audience is and what are their needs is the first step, after all the emojis are not suitable for all types of business, but can be well applied, for example, for B2B communication between company and consumer.

Evaluate the different platforms

In addition to knowing your audience, you need to think about the different platforms on which your email marketing campaigns can be opened: desktop, tablet, smartphone. iOS and Android offer good support for emojis. So it’s worth investing more in fun emails for the mobile. However, you should also take into account the email server available. In Outlook 2003, 2007 and 2010, for example, the symbols are not displayed correctly.

Choose well-aimed symbols

To hit the target, you must choose the right emoji for the right campaign. The image needs to make sense for your business, be placed in the context of the content that will be sent and should not be used in exaggeration. Following this path, your company will draw a positive image, besides increasing the level of engagement.

How to apply special characters in the subject

Normally, emojis are used at the beginning or end of the subject line in order to draw attention in a crowd of ​​emails that reach inboxes daily. They can even create that sense of urgency in last-minute offers emails, for example, or add empathy with promotional discounts.

Avoid multiple emojis at once. The titles already must be short, 40-60 characters so regardless of the device the reading is integral, and still we have that saying that “less is more”. If you use too many symbols, rather than attract, they may end up dispersing attention.

Adding special characters in the subject line can bring a touch of personality to the communication of your brand, approaching potential customers and clients.

It’s also worth remembering that visual information further stimulate the brain and also generate more engagement. Tied to content, emojis cause this effect, besides being a funny way of interaction.

Conclusion

Test each email marketing campaign before the sending to make sure that the special characters you have chosen will appear correctly in all email providers and devices. As the feature is still a tendency in the area, it’s worth applying A/B testing to evaluate the effects in your digital marketing strategy and track the Open Rates.

Remember also to write a great text to accompany the symbol, taking into account a relevant content and that generates value to who will receive the email.

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