First-article headline as email preheader: -12% clicks
Test run byMarketingExperimentsResearch publisher
Commentary byLiftArchiveOur analysis, not theirsUsing the newsletter's first article headline as the preheader cut clicks by 12% relative to the control, a statistically significant drop, with no significant change in opens.
MarketingExperiments (MECLABS) ran and published the test on one of its email newsletters.
- Clicks: -12% relative to the control, and the drop was statistically significant.
- Opens: no statistically significant difference.
- Verdict: a loss. The preheader did not change who opened, but it lowered how many acted on the email.
Control
The preheader, the preview line shown under the subject line, pulled in general link text from the email template.
Variant
The preheader used the headline of the newsletter's first article as a teaser.
Why it likely lost
Our reading of the result, not the practitioner's claim.
- A single headline can narrow how readers see the email. The post suggests this headline framed the newsletter around one topic that didn't appeal to many readers.
- When the preheader promises one story, readers who don't care about it may skim past the rest of the issue.
- In the same post, a different preheader that spelled out value lifted clicks by 104%, which suggests the wording, not the presence of text, drives the effect.
Caveats: The newsletter was not named and sample size and duration were not shared. The test dates from 2015, and how email apps show preheaders has changed since.
Who ran it
MarketingExperiments ran this test for a MECLABS email newsletter and published the results (MarketingExperiments). The numbers are theirs; the summary and commentary on this page are ours.
Read the original case study on MarketingExperiments →
How to run this test on your site
- Hypothesis
- If we write a preheader that sums up the value of the whole issue instead of teasing one article, then more readers will click because they see more reasons to engage.
- Primary metric
- Click rate from delivered emails
- Guardrails
- Open rate
- Unsubscribe rate
- Who should test it
- Newsletters with several articles per issue and a mostly mobile audience, where the preheader is shown prominently. Single-topic emails may see little difference.
Questions
What is an email preheader?
It is the preview text shown below the subject line in many inboxes, especially mobile apps.
If you don't set it, the inbox pulls the first text it finds in the email.
Do preheaders affect opens or clicks more?
In these MECLABS tests, preheader changes moved clicks a lot while opens did not change significantly.
That matches what the author saw in subject-line tests.
What should a newsletter preheader say?
Aim to make the value of the email clearer.
In this test, teasing one article headline hurt clicks, while another preheader in the same post raised them.