Without a doubt, email marketing is still one of the best ways to reach your users and boost conversions.

First, I want to share with you, some initials thoughts of the email structure, some people get confused:

The subject:

"Sells the email content", hence its objective is the user`s click

The first paragraph:

"Sells the hole email". If you cannot delight your user in your first sentence, they will bounce. So you have to say something that stick the user to continue reading.

The CTA:

An elemental part of the email. The CTA "Sells the clic to the website", that´s its objective. So you have to optimize for that goal.

What you have to be take into account when A/B testing your email marketing?.

Subject

Short or Long subject line

There were numerous researches that were performed to determine what is the best length for the subject line-and there is no a definite answer . It seems that best results have been received with either very long (60-70 letters) or very short subject lines (under 50 characters). I suggest you start with just few words in a subject line, sticking to the short version first.

Conversational or Keywords subject line

This one depends on wether you have connection, a personal link with your target audience, or if they are complete strangers whom you still need to attract. So, if you are sending mails to familiar users then you can use subject likes with the personal appeal, such as "Consider this before you choose your shoes...", or "I have the best party idea for you!". On the other side, for new users of your emails, for industrial users you will want to put something stricter such as "20% discount", or "Free shipment".

Questions or Answers in a subject line

Both of the options are good, as long as you formulate it well. For example, if you formulate a subject line "do you need tasty meal?" and send mail in a time when people are hungry and go for a lunch or dinner you will probably get desired reaction.

Formal or Funny subject line

This is another dilemma as with long versus short subject lines. In some cases, when you are sending professional and technical emails, you will surely go for a formal subject line. This is even expected in certain type of conversation. On the other side, when we are speaking about marketing activities, your audience might very well be pleasantly surprised if you pop in occasional funny subject line. Of course, there is no other way to discover how this will work, until you try it out!

Email Content

Plain or Templates

Plain text can look boring for some users, but on the other side, using templates to create catchy content and attract attention can result impersonal. Simple text can look easy-going, friendly and warm. Another thing to keep in mind is that on some screen resolutions some templates won't look good. Lots of users open emails on mobile devices and if these users don't see content well, they will simply delete them.

Images or Text

Its a truth that people first respond on visual content. But before you go for strictly visual content, do test how it appears in emails. Some clients by default block images which could cause complete lack of appearance of your email. Additionally, images upload slower than plain text which could also negatively affect user's attention and interest. Researches have proven that plain text do give better results.

Positive or Negative

These are two different approaches in your email that should provoke your users to get your products. You can outline why your product is the best for your user and how good it is for him. Negative approach on the other side outlines how negative your life experiences are without your products. Both approaches have their positive sides and can be used in your email marketing.

Call to Action

One or Several

My rule of dumb is. If your call to action is a button, only include it once. If they are links, you may include them several times.