Emails can be useful tools in your marketing program, but in order for an email to be effective it first needs to be, well, opened. With everyone’s inboxes overflowing with junk mail, it’s more important than ever to use subject lines that will grab your audience’s attention enough for them to actually open and read your email. Here are our top 3 tips for writing email subject lines that will increase your open rates, and ultimately conversions:
In a world where we have mere seconds to make an impression, keeping a subject line short, sweet, and to the point will always be your best bet. Not only is a long, rambling subject line less likely to keep the reader’s attention, but the text will likely get cut off on mobile, where most people are accessing their emails these days. Let’s take a look at some examples:
Blah:
SL: Get specialty bundles for V-Day or Game Day
PT: Restaurant quality eats for your February celebrations
It’s likely the reader didn’t get to the end of this one, and there’s a better chance that the end was cut off. We can do better.
Better:
SL: New dishes alert!
PT: Plus, a returning favorite
This simple, straight to the point subject line is much more effective (and had a 9.95% higher open rate compared to the first one).
FOMO is real - use it. Implying seasonality will make your emails feel topical, relevant and time sensitive for your audience. Using language relating to upcoming holidays or current events, or phrases like “for a limited time only” lets the reader know that the information is time dependent, so if they don’t act fast they might lose out on certain products or promotions. Let’s take a look at these examples:
Blah:
SL: Meals to brighten up your day
PT: Try these spring-tastic Lean & Clean dishes
With only a small nod to seasonality (and only in the preview text), this subject doesn’t come across as needing to be urgently opened. Let’s fix that.
Better:
SL: March meal madness
PT: Fresh spring flavors, seasonal brunches, and an Easter surprise
With mentions of more specific timeframes and holidays, this subject line lets the reader know that the information in this email will be time-sensitive, so they better read it before it’s too late. This subject line got a 13.6% higher open rate compared to the previous one.
Now at this point you may be asking yourself, what is preview text and do I need it? Preview text is the line of copy either below or beside an email’s subject line that shows up in your inbox that supports the subject to provide extra insight as to what the email is about. But, what shows up as the preview text may differ depending on the email client you use and the subscriber’s inbox settings. If you don’t set your own preview text, your email client will likely pull it in from either the first line of email copy, or from your first image’s ALT text. Which leads us to our next tip:
With the limited space (and time) you have to entice your reader to open your email, you want to make sure you make it count. So don’t neglect to write your preview text so that it is a deliberate, carefully crafted and purposeful extension of your email subject line, and not just whatever is pulled in by your email client.
Having discounts in your subject line is an easy way to peak your audience’s interest, and entice them to read on. Afterall, who among us can resist an opportunity to save money? Let’s see some examples:
Blah:
SL: Your family deserves better than delivery
PT: Check out our limited time offer!
Making no mention of the offer until the preview text, and not specifying what exactly the offer is, can be a big missed opportunity. Let’s change that.
Better:
SL: Spring Forward with 15% off EVERYTHING all April
PT: No April Fool’s, we promise
Having the offer details front and centre in the subject line is more likely to increase your open rate. In this case, the second subject line performed 6.38% better compared to the first.
If you’re able (based on your email client), personalizing your subject line to include the recipient’s name can be a great way to get your email to stand out in a full inbox as it suggests to them that the email has been crafted specifically for them. If you have both the recipient’s first AND last names, this could strengthen your subject line even more. Including the recipient’s name in a subject line can be especially effective when used for targeted emails such as exclusive promotions, birthday offers, or post-purchase follow-ups.
Once you get to really know your audience, and find what resonates with them most, you can make sure you write directly to that. Do they value directness? Humour? Trendiness? Emojis? Discount callouts?
You can learn a lot about your audience by performing tests.
By testing different elements (but only ever one at a time!!) and examining your data you can improve your practices for better results moving forward.
