Email Preheader

Email preheader is the summary text that follows a subject line when the email is viewed in an inbox. In many cases, it’s used to provide a short summary of the email, and is typically one sentence long.

Email preheader text is what many mobile, desktop, and web email clients show readers to give them an idea of what’s inside the message before they actually open it. In many cases, this powerful line of text can be the difference between someone opening and not opening an email. 

Your subject line and preheader text can—and should—work together to create interest and encourage readers to open your email. If you do not specify any preheader text, often your brand, disclaimers, site navigation or any other initial text will show in your subscribers’ inboxes. While there’s nothing wrong with this, not including preheader text is a missed opportunity to capture your subscriber’s attention.

Email is one of the most effective tools in a marketer’s skillset. However, even the world’s best-designed email won’t get results if no one ever reads it, making preheader text a crucial element of your email design.

When writing preheader text, it’s important to note that different inbox providers have different limits to preheader text. Similarly, subscribers will see different amounts of preheader text depending on the device they use to view their inbox. 

In order to be sure your subscribers see all your clever preheader text, keep it short and sweet. While preheader text should be between 40 and 130 characters long to be seen on both mobile devices and desktops, keep your most important points toward the beginning. That way, if your message does get cut off, your subscribers will still understand what you mean.