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usability of email subject lines



Please forgive the cross-posting.

Here's a report that could be of interest to records managers and archivists:

WebWord: Usability of Email Subject Lines
http://webword.com/moving/subjectlines.html

The full report is $40, but the free version provides a taste of the findings (basically, short and
personal is better).

Since we manage email messages with the intention of facilitating possible future access to them, such
research can tell us a thing or two about how to advise records creators.

As an aside, good subject line authoring can facilitate communication through this mailing list as
well.  Those of us who decide whether or not to read a message are given no guidance by subject lines
such as "request for help" or "an interesting article".  I would suggest that, like a newspaper
headline, a subject line should indicate to the potential reader what the message will contain.

=========================================================
 Cal Lee
 University of Michigan
 School of Information
 Phone: 734-647-0505
 http://www-personal.si.umich.edu/~calz/
 "How can I know what I think because I forgot what I said?"
                                         - Karl Weick, 1979

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