Pick your sender name

Contributors

@jamaicawinshipgmail-com @andreea-macoveiciuc-content-expert @danielisler1gmail-com


Business Benefits

Boost email open rates, increase clicks, and avoid triggering spam filters.


Keep your sender name under 26 characters, including spaces - the shorter, the better.

Most people now access their emails via mobile devices. Every app, device, and platform has its limits. For the best results, stick with a sender name that’s 20-25 characters long.

Consider what the recipient of your email expects in terms of the purpose of the email and why they might have subscribed to it.

For example, did they subscribe to:

  • Get updates about a specific program? The name of the program may be best.
  • Access a specific newsletter? The newsletter name may be best.
  • Receive a specific type of update from your company? The update itself may be best.

Ensure the sender name is recognizable for your brand and avoid using a person’s name, do-not-reply, or generic, technical jargon.

These choices may sabotage your open rates or trigger spam filters. Unless the person associated with your brand is a celebrity, like Oprah or Bill Gates, don’t use an individual’s name because the receiver is unlikely to know - or care - who the person is.

Verify that your sender name correlates with your brand and looks professional.

Trust is a key factor for open rates and click-through rates. Avoid:

  • All capitalized letters or all lowercase letters
  • Typos and poor grammar
  • Strange punctuation
  • Unrecognizable abbreviations

Choose two sender name options that follow the above guidelines and do an A/B test. The best sender name is the name that generates the best open rates.

To test your sender name:

  • Segment your list into two. Most email list platforms will have an automatic option to set this up when creating your next email update or newsletter.
  • Send the same email with the same subject line to each segment. The only difference between the two emails should be your sender name.
  • For all future outgoing emails, choose the sender name that generates the best open rate.

Last edited by @hesh_fekry 2023-11-14T11:25:28Z