I hear this all the time.
What the heck do I write for a subject line for our email?
How do I know what’ll get people to click?
What if we send the same email newsletter out every week?
While there’s never really a guarantee that any given subject line will get huge click rates, there are some reliable rules that consistently get emails opened.
Take a look at some of the following highly effective subject lines:
What do you notice here? Any patterns emerging?
Here’s what all these lines have in common:
They all start a story but don’t finish it – they hint at what’s to come in the email but don’t give it away just yet.
They use conversational English and informal capitalization – these emails don’t say “latest news from an institution” but “hi from a friend”; they’re casual and friendly, and that makes people want to read.
Some use emojis – the numbers don’t lie: people like seeing emojis in their email subject lines. Makes us feel like something fun is inside.
They’re hyper-relevant to the community’s interest – where it’s a faith-based community, they address things their congregants want to know: “What does God say about THIS?” Where it’s a community support organization, they make sure we know, “It is okay to feel sad.” They’re meeting their audience’s needs right there in the subject line.
And, they avoid subject line no-nos:
What’s not gonna get your email read is a line like, “Weekly News from Our Board” – yaaaawn.
They Don’t Capitalize Every Word in the Sentence – that’s for impersonal corporations and the IRS.
And they steer clear of giving you all the content upfront: people get overwhelmed with long lines like, “Come to our annual carnival that has treats, rides, puppies, and more! Happening this weekend!”
When it comes to effective subject lines, keep it brief, keep it personal, and keep it interesting.
Got a question about email subject lines? Wanna share what’s worked for you? Comment below and let me know!
And if you want my key to a winning email strategy, check out Get People to Read Your Emails. It is a masterclass in successful email marketing for community-based nonprofits.