Because we're all dealing with busy inboxes and making split second decisions whether to read now, later – or delete,it's important to craft an email that is immediately recognised by the recipient as they are scanning through new email.

The sender line in the from field is your key to getting opened. What are your choices? There are a number, actually – and the one you select should correctly reflect the relationship you have with each recipient.

    * From your company – The from field works well when personalised, but if you don’t have enough information about the subscriber (e.g. who their point of contact is in your company) or if they are a prospect, you’ll most likely choose your company name. Your goal should be to achieve personalisation as the relationship deepens.

    * From a brand associated with your company – If you have a wide variety of products and services, you’ll want the email to come from the brand the subscriber has purchased, or has indicated they’d like to hear more about the products/services of the brand.

    * From someone at your company - Here’s where the personalisation opportunities kick in. For example, the email could come from the customer’s Account Manager, from the sales person or the Customer Service rep, etc. Avoid using a personal name that means nothing to the subscriber – it can at best just get deleted as unknown, or at worst be perceived as a spammer’s ploy.

Don’t forget you have the technology at your fingertips to test the from field. Take advantage of this technology to confirm you are making the right choices.

denise cox, Newsweaver

An addendum: Sean Duffy has posted a comment about the success he has had with Name AND company. And that testing included the use of a generic name and the company name. Interesting results. Thanks for reminding me about the fourth choice of name and company (In fact, I already use that format in my own newsletter). What your post really drives home – testing is essential to find out what works best for your own business.