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Myth 11: All the subjects must include emojis

Imagen Myth 11: All the subjects must include em

Language evolves, and companies must adapt their style to continue speaking like their customers. Emojis are a good example because they are very present in personal communications and have managed to make their way into email marketing. The subject of a campaign is the first place where you should consider inserting them, but it is a myth that they all have to have it because it is neither the only possible place nor does it guarantee a higher open rate than other emails that do not include them.

Why to include emojis in your campaigns

There are several reasons why it is true that using emojis is a good idea. The main one is that they serve to connect with an audience accustomed to reading and using them in their daily lives. Precisely because conversations are informal when exchanging messages with close contacts, brands can benefit from this more personal relationship to try to connect better with their audiences.

Other reasons to include emojis in your campaigns:

Grab attention: this justifies the myth that they should be in all subjects, and they indeed manage to stand out in the inbox. Among so much text, adding a visual element will make the message more eye-catching. But it is also true that it is not useful to put just any emoji because more and more companies are using them, and you have to seek differentiation.
Brand identification: when there is one that represents who you are, not just your products, because the competition can also use those, showing it regularly is a benefit so that it can easily be recognized as you send. They will become part of your style, and you can use them in both email marketing and social media.
Simplify the message: they are very practical to save space, which may be a priority in the subject, but also to convey a feeling difficult to explain with words, to reinforce an idea, and to facilitate understanding, for example by visually highlighting a discount percentage with number emojis.

The same reasons can be read in reverse and justify not using emojis if the audience does not understand them, either due to age or culture or if you prefer to maintain a more formal tone in communications. Also, when the inbox is full of them, the perception may be one of rejection, considering it an overtly promotional message. Therefore, you can gradually incorporate them into your communication and see the reaction of your subscribers before giving them too much prominence.

Where to include emojis in email marketing

The subject, in combination with the pre-header, is the favourite place to include emojis. It is where the first impression is made, where attention must be drawn, and where openings are achieved. Highlighting the message theme with an emoji is a way to encourage the recipient to open it. For example, using a cake for their birthday, a gift for a promotion, or a champagne glass for a special celebration.

But the claim that the subject must always have emojis is as false, as it should only be used in that campaign element. Others can equally take advantage of the advantages we have just discussed.

A good place is the greeting and farewell, two moments that demonstrate the relationship you want to have with your contact list. Using a "Hello" or "See you next week" along with the waving hands emoji is not the same as "Mr./Mrs." or "Sincerely."

The conversation will have different tones depending on the sender's personality. Think about what the following emojis convey to you, whether you have seen them in corporate environments, or if your brand would use them: waving hands, thumbs up, winking, kiss, face sticking out tongue, heart... All serve to greet and say goodbye, but they have different meanings and will set the overall tone.

If you want to introduce emojis in the body of the message, in addition to considering the previous questions, you must also assess that they have a single interpretation to avoid misunderstandings, but above all, they reinforce what you want to express. From this perspective, they are elements of non-verbal language that can indicate emotions such as sadness or surprise, or complicity or irony.

Emojis are also simple visual elements, for example, they work very well as substitutes for icons or alternatives to separators between sections. In these cases, they all must have the same style to maintain consistency in that email and in the following ones where they can be used.

How to write the subject to increase the open rate

If the only reason to use emojis in the subject is that you want to increase your open rate, forget about this myth because there are other ways to achieve it using copywriting and persuasion. And all begin with having a clear campaign strategy.

Knowing what you want to achieve with the email will influence all elements, not just the subject, but also images, text, or call-to-action buttons. Planting the seed of that goal in the subject is a way to manage the expectations of recipients. That's why it's so important to know their preferences well and customize messages so that their needs can be satisfied.

A subject that is clear and direct will likely be short and catchy because it will use specific and easy-to-understand words, without ulterior motives that make you think too much and, therefore, consider whether to open the email or not. Getting to the point has more chances of capturing attention than resorting to more deceptive wording. For example, "20% off your next purchase" is more honest than "Discover how much you can save on your next purchase," and it also takes up fewer characters.

Choosing the right words also helps to get more openings. The more specific or related to your sector, the more interest they can arouse. Additionally, you can add numbers or hashtags (yes, even for an email) that will be more eye-catching in the subscriber's inbox. To increase the chances of the message being opened, add an element of urgency to persuade, such as "today only" or "Last units."

If after all this, you want to add an emoji, go ahead! We are not saying they don't work, just that there are many other elements to achieve a good open rate. Therefore, choose wisely when to insert them in the subject or any other place in your campaigns.

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