Expert email marketing tips on how to write the best subject lines
When it comes to email marketing, writing the best email subject lines is an art unto itself – especially the short, pithy ones. One of the best places to look for great ideas is right in front of your eyes. So much so, that you’ve probably seen a good dozen already today. Where, you ask? I’m talking about your favorite news site or feed. Look, see, and analyze those headlines for good ideas.
In essence, the headline of a news article is akin to a subject line. Both are trying to lure the viewer in. So, the first thing to do is put yourself in the reader’s seat – think like your subscribers.
Now, obviously using personalization like the user’s first name is a good piece of advice, but we’ve been doing that since 2005. And you should continue with that, but we all know that you have to mix things up – you cannot use the same subject line for every email. So, how do you write those mic-drop-good best email subject lines for the 2022 holiday season? Having written and analyzed thousands of subject lines, here are some of my tricks.
1. One-word wonders
Shocking. Ridiculous. Crazy. You might be thinking this right now, but if you’re continuing to read on, it shows that these one-word wonders are effective. Plus, in an inbox that’s packed to the gills with emails and subject lines, sometimes negative space is your best friend.
2. Today’s date is…
True, you probably know what today’s date is and the date comes up in the send date field; however, most of us don’t pay attention to this. So, using the date in the subject line coupled with an urgent message or warning signals that the email is super time sensitive and requires the reader’s attention. Try this on an autoresponder for an even greater effect – assuming your email service provider can merge in dynamic date content. This is one of my personal secrets in creating the best email subject lines for my clients.
3. Total disconnect
In email marking, logically your subject line should describe what the email is all about. For example, if you’re selling widgets and have a 50% off sale, you’d think that stating the obvious (e.g., 50% off sale!) would give you the best mileage, but try dabbling around with subject lines that make a case to open the email (e.g., Why THIS email is different than all the rest). I am particularly fond of this style, particularly when it comes to a resend campaign. Remember, there are many different types of email marketing campaigns and there’s a time and place for everything.
4. Cliffhanger
Remember the Batman TV series? Every episode was 30 minutes, but in reality, the storyline was spread over two episodes leaving a cliffhanging, to be continued after the first installment. Now, this had a good effect in that it coaxed the viewer to come back a few days later for the “surprising end” (SPOILER ALERT: Batman wins). Although, by the time I was watching this on reruns, it was the Batman hour.
I digress and back to the point of killer subject lines in email marketing, a cliffhanger gives the reader half of the story… but when you use this it has to be half of a great story! Like, “I can’t believe it’s not…”
5. Top 10 list
No, you don’t have to come up with a Late Show Top Ten List popularized by David Letterman. Even 5 or 3 will do just fine. The reason why a list is a great idea is that it piques interest and elicits a response from the user. Another added bonus to having a top 10 list is that we can’t always wow our audience, we can’t get a 100% engagement rate (unless you’re sending it to yourself), so by mixing it up and tossing in layers of varied content you’re broadening the chance that your message will resonate with more people.
The last word on the best email subject lines
One more thought on why lists perform very well in the world of subject lines, articles, or for that matter most pieces of content. In this article, I could have just gone on about one type of subject line; however, if I would have dedicated one whole piece to one reason, it could be a hit with 20% of my audience, but by giving 5 of my top techniques for crafting the best subject lines for email marketing, I hope that you will come away with at least one new idea that you can implement in your email marketing efforts today.
Finally, the last thing you want to do is to remember when trying to craft the best email subject lines is the “what.” As in, what are you testing. Remember, it’s imperative to understand the what; without this, you’ll never be able to fully analyze the “why.” This is basic A/B split testing fundamentals, but even if you’re not going to split test in a single campaign, it is important to be able to look at a subject line and define it correctly.
Did I miss anything? What’s your favorite subject line? Leave a comment below and let me know.
