Email Sender Name

Have you ever considered the true impact and importance of the email sender name? Its importance goes well beyond simply being an identifier of who sent you an email and is actually just as important as that catchy subject line that grabbed your attention.

This post will take a look into the role of the email sender name and explain why it should receive just as much care and attention as your subject lines.

What is the Sender Name

The sender name is the first thing a recipient sees when an email arrives in their inbox. 

It's the name displayed before the subject line and often decides whether an email is opened or ignored. This name can be a personal name, a brand name, or even a combination of both. 

What you choose for your sender name will depend on your overall email marketing strategy and relationship with your recipient.

You’re probably thinking that a catchy subject line has the biggest impact on whether a recipient opens an email or not. If so, you’d actually be wrong. 

According to Litmus, the majority of email recipients (42%) actually look at the sender name first and foremost when considering whether to open an email or not (compared to 34% for the subject line). 

Sender Name importance

The sender name plays a pivotal role in your email marketing efforts. Why is the sender name important? It’s simple:

  • Trust and Recognition: A familiar and trustworthy sender name encourages recipients to open the email.

  • Brand Consistency: Consistently using a brand name builds recognition and loyalty.

  • Personalization: A personalized sender name can foster a sense of connection, especially in B2B communications where this is harder to form.

How a sender name is used will vary from company to company. Are you an individual? Are you a brand? Are you sending a product update email? Are you sending a newsletter? 

All of these aspects (and more) should be considered when deciding on your sender name. 

As you can see above, there is no one size fits all when it comes to a sender name.

“Stripe” - a brand that has opted to keep things strictly on brand and professional.

“Chris at Loops” - an email from a B2B company but Chris wants you to know it’s coming from himself as the CEO to help form a lasting relationship.

“Tommy Clark” - an email newsletter with an actual name (Social Files) but the author has decided his personal brand > the newsletter brand.

And these are just a few examples. You know your audience the best. Get creative with your sender name to ensure that they continue to engage with your emails.

Sender Name best practices

You’ve decided that your sender name is important. That’s great! Now, here are some best practices to follow in order to maximize the effectiveness of your sender name:

  • Avoid a Misleading Sender Name: Ensure the sender name accurately represents who is sending the email.

  • Test and Optimize: Experiment with different sender names and analyze open rates to find the most effective one. 

  • Combine with a Strong Subject Line: A compelling sender name, paired with an engaging subject line, increases the likelihood of email opens.

By following these best practices, your emails are more likely to be opened and engaged with on an ongoing basis. 

Key takeaways

The sender name is the displayed name in an email inbox that identifies who the email is from.

The majority of email recipients actually look at the sender name before the subject line when considering whether to open an email or not.

Sender name 🤝 subject line

There is no “correct” sender name. Choose one that fits your brand and audience.

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Have you ever considered the true impact and importance of the email sender name? Its importance goes well beyond simply being an identifier of who sent you an email and is actually just as important as that catchy subject line that grabbed your attention.

This post will take a look into the role of the email sender name and explain why it should receive just as much care and attention as your subject lines.

What is the Sender Name

The sender name is the first thing a recipient sees when an email arrives in their inbox. 

It's the name displayed before the subject line and often decides whether an email is opened or ignored. This name can be a personal name, a brand name, or even a combination of both. 

What you choose for your sender name will depend on your overall email marketing strategy and relationship with your recipient.

You’re probably thinking that a catchy subject line has the biggest impact on whether a recipient opens an email or not. If so, you’d actually be wrong. 

According to Litmus, the majority of email recipients (42%) actually look at the sender name first and foremost when considering whether to open an email or not (compared to 34% for the subject line). 

Sender Name importance

The sender name plays a pivotal role in your email marketing efforts. Why is the sender name important? It’s simple:

  • Trust and Recognition: A familiar and trustworthy sender name encourages recipients to open the email.

  • Brand Consistency: Consistently using a brand name builds recognition and loyalty.

  • Personalization: A personalized sender name can foster a sense of connection, especially in B2B communications where this is harder to form.

How a sender name is used will vary from company to company. Are you an individual? Are you a brand? Are you sending a product update email? Are you sending a newsletter? 

All of these aspects (and more) should be considered when deciding on your sender name. 

As you can see above, there is no one size fits all when it comes to a sender name.

“Stripe” - a brand that has opted to keep things strictly on brand and professional.

“Chris at Loops” - an email from a B2B company but Chris wants you to know it’s coming from himself as the CEO to help form a lasting relationship.

“Tommy Clark” - an email newsletter with an actual name (Social Files) but the author has decided his personal brand > the newsletter brand.

And these are just a few examples. You know your audience the best. Get creative with your sender name to ensure that they continue to engage with your emails.

Sender Name best practices

You’ve decided that your sender name is important. That’s great! Now, here are some best practices to follow in order to maximize the effectiveness of your sender name:

  • Avoid a Misleading Sender Name: Ensure the sender name accurately represents who is sending the email.

  • Test and Optimize: Experiment with different sender names and analyze open rates to find the most effective one. 

  • Combine with a Strong Subject Line: A compelling sender name, paired with an engaging subject line, increases the likelihood of email opens.

By following these best practices, your emails are more likely to be opened and engaged with on an ongoing basis. 

Key takeaways

The sender name is the displayed name in an email inbox that identifies who the email is from.

The majority of email recipients actually look at the sender name before the subject line when considering whether to open an email or not.

Sender name 🤝 subject line

There is no “correct” sender name. Choose one that fits your brand and audience.