How to craft a great email subject line

Even with the digitalisation of everything digital marketing is still very much a ‘human’ thing.  Before your email is even opened its very quickly scanned by a person before they decided to open it or toss it in the dreaded junk mail folder.   People make very snap decisions when it comes to the possibility of wasting their time and attention by opening emails that are of no interest to them.  The old phrase ‘time is money’ has never been truer when it comes to email marketing.

So, how do you make sure your email gets past the dreaded junk mail folder?  The best advise is to choose your words in the email subject line wisely – extremely wisely otherwise your is destined to be deleted without even being opened, never mind read.

Needless to say, there’s a whole lot of pressure on the person who writes the all important subject line.  It’s such a fine line between your mail being trashed or read and just one word in the email subject line can make all difference.  So, again, choose your words wisely.

Complete a digital marketing course that covers all aspects of email marketing campaigns and of course the email subject line.

First impressions matter

Although the ‘from’ line in an email is also important, the subject line indeed is the most vital factor of an entire email.   First impressions count and what’s written in the subject line is the very first impression of what the email is all about the reader will see, so make it count.

Personalisation contained in the email subject line often works well.  For example, ‘John Smith you’ve got more data on your smartphone.’ The impact of personalising the subject line has been proven to increase the open rate – now that’s positive.  It’s also noted that using the first and last name of the recipient also increases the open rate.

The average person receives hundreds of emails a day, so this fact makes the need for a great email subject line even more important to get your email through the clutter and noise of the average email inbox.

Email subject line writing tips

Now that we understand just how important crafting a great email subject line is to the chances of your email being read, let’s take a closer look at some subject line writing tips according to copy witting best standards.  

According to many email and list building service providers email subject lines have to be brief, descriptive and even contain a short call to action.  That’s a whole lot of important information to cram into a small subject line. Sounds tough, right? Absolutely.  

This is why knowing how to craft a great email subject line is a skill that is worth acquiring and learning about all the time.  

Here are a few tips and tactics to help you craft a great email subject line:

• Keep it brief – Short and sweet applies to many aspects of life, but it could easily be the golden rule when it comes to getting your email opened.
• Know your audience – Understand exactly who your audience is when writing your subject line.  Chose words that will appeal to them and the tone that suits their interests.
• Personalise – Nobody wants to be a number, and this especially applies to the person who receives your mail.  Generic emails perform much worse than personalised emails. Get personal and you’ll get results.
• Show value – Make your email recipient want to open your mail by showing its value in the subject line.  The second something of value is shown the likelihood of your email being opened shoots up.
• Get numerical – Numbers work well in subject lines, for example – ‘5 Top tips to get noticed at a party’.
• Use phrases – Try using well known phrases to help create an interest.
• Sense of urgency – With an average of a 100 emails being delivered to inboxes daily, it’s crucial to convey a sense of urgency in your email subject line, even if its subtle.
• Ask a question – By asking a question in your subject line, you’ll spark an interest, which is a good way to get your email opened.  The simpler the question – the better. As with all aspects of email marketing – short and sweet applies.