E-mail Anatomy 101: Using the Subject Line
Susan Manley, Bradley University
Peoria, Illinois

So you’re ready to send an important e-mail message – how do you make sure that it gets noticed? While you cannot guarantee that any e-mail will be read, you can use the subject line to increase the odds that the recipient will decide to open and read your message.

When an e-mail message arrives, a recipient typically views summary information including the sender’s name, date and time sent, and the subject of the e-mail. Good e-mail etiquette dictates that you give your recipient a clue about the message topic by putting something in the subject line. Unfortunately, some message writers do not accurately convey the message topic, or they leave the subject line completely blank. As a result, important messages may not be read until too late to take necessary action. If you craft your subject line effectively, your recipient will know what you have written about and, hopefully, read the message.

The primary advantage of using the subject line effectively is that your recipient may realize the importance of your message. You may think that marking messages “Important” or “High Priority” will give your message the attention it deserves. However, if you send everything “High Priority,” your recipients will eventually learn that nothing you send is really important – and they will act accordingly. So, how do you let your recipient know your message is important? Fill in the subject line with a few essential details.

For example, if you are sending a message within your company to cancel a sales team meeting, don’t type “Meeting” in the subject line. This type of entry in the subject line leaves too many unanswered questions. In fact, the recipient may believe that the message is just a reminder about the meeting. If you type “Meeting canceled” in the subject line, the recipient may not know which meeting is canceled.

Instead, briefly convey the essential details of the message by typing something like, “3:00 sales meeting canceled” or “Sales team meeting rescheduled.” If meeting participants have more than one meeting scheduled, they will be able to glance at the subject line and immediately know which meeting was canceled. From there, they can read the entire message to find out why the meeting was canceled and what action, if any, is required.

Always use common sense in deciding whether e-mail is the best way to communicate. Sending a quick e-mail to cancel a meeting within your company where everyone has continuous access to e-mail may work well. However, if you are canceling a meeting at the last minute, a courtesy phone call would be in order, especially for someone who is coming from offsite.

A secondary advantage of using a brief but accurate subject line is that the recipient may eventually attempt to search for your message among thousands of saved messages. If you have placed an effective title in the subject line, your message will be found more easily.

So, the next time you compose an e-mail message, use the subject line to your advantage, and your message may get the attention it deserves.