This year I have received 650 emails (not from friends, family or people I know) with my name in the subject line (and to be honest none of my friends, family or people I know are going to put my name in the subject line). 

If you are quick with maths (or use a calculator like I do) that is an average of 81.25 a month (and we aren’t even at the end of August). Last year I received 1286 (give or take a few from ipoints that I might have deleted), an average of 107 per month but this does include 119 in Nov 08 and 123 in Dec (the long build up to Xmas).

Why do we still have this obsession with personalising subject lines and does it make a difference? In a welcome, thank you or order confirmation email it is a nice touch but to repeat again and again in day to day marketing messages is this a wise move? Are we potentially turning the subject line into another area that a viewer glazes over (like banners)?

Does having my name in a subject line prompt me to open up an email from a sender? For me it doesn’t. It is the brand or the content of the subject line I am interested in, not knowing that they know my name. So shouldn’t this be what companies should focus on? Showing they understand my interests, needs and sending me targeted offers and subject lines based on this.

Ryanair sending me an email telling me Kirsty, 1 million seats from £5 could be much stronger if they looked at their database, see I like to fly to random European cities and include some ideas in the subject line. Or, if I was a repeat booker to Dublin then including this as one of the destinations available in the subject line is going to get me clicking quicker than you can say lucky charms.

However, I do reserve the right to change my mind. If you are going to send me an email telling me that Gerard Butler wants to take me for dinner or Joseph has a 90% sale on, feel free to put my name in the subject line!

Kirsty Montgomery
Senior Global Account Manager
e-Dialog