What's in a name? Or, more accurately, what's in an email subject line?

Like many companies large and small, we use Constant Contact (an online marketing company program) to create emails for our readers and accounts. We use it to send out a monthly newsletter to a nice number of subscribers, email readers each time we have a special offer on a new book or an announcement about an upcoming author event, and to send pitches to media suggesting authors as source/guests.

We give a lot of thought to email subject lines. What works? What doesn't? What makes people click to open it? This post on the Constant Contact blog has great examples of different types of subject lines, their purpose, and how to use them to engage your audience. (Or, let's face it, just to get them to open the email.)

I looked back through our archive of marketing emails and here is a handful of different types of subject lines we've used recently:

• Civil War presentation in NYC - or get a signed copy no matter where you live!
• Only $3.99 for U-boat book Steel Boat, Iron Hearts - Limited time only! 
• Interview Idea! New York City, the Civil War, and the 150th Anniversary. Wait--What? 
• 150th Chickamauga Anniversary Offer - SIGNED copies of the new book!

The majority of our email subject lines use "The command" or "The teaser" approach. Maybe we should give "The list" a try . . . "Top Five Savas Beatie books that should be on your Christmas list" perhaps?