Email marketing tips: Not all subject lines are created equal
Reading Time: 5 minutesThis article was last updated on June 7, 2021
You can have the best email marketing campaign in the world, but if it doesn’t have a catchy subject line, there is a good chance that the email will never be opened. If you don’t think the subject line is the most important part of your email, think again. Nearly 70 percent of email users report email as spam based on subject lines. Additionally, over 30 percent of recipients open emails based on subject lines alone. The fact is, if you want to enhance the success of your email marketing campaigns, you will need to master the process of creating the perfect subject line. Here are some types of subject lines that are successful:
Subject lines that make readers curious
When you are curious, you want to know more. When you have subject lines that interest readers, they will want to know more. In the subject line, you should not give away all of the information, just a bit of a tease. When your readers are curious, you have accomplished several things.
- Increase your open rate
- Increase your click-through rate
- Attract more traffic to your website
- Possibly increase conversions
Subject lines with a sense of urgency
Have you ever received an email that gave you a deadline? This email by Minted makes excellent use of the phrase “expires tonight!” This gives readers the push they need to take advantage of the limited-time discount offer. Urgency is so important because most people don’t like making a decision; especially when it comes to buying. To make that decision-making process a bit easier, marketers can give readers the push they need to purchase something that the consumer has had their eye on.
Hotels master creating a sense of urgency. Chances are, you have probably received an email from a hotel saying, “only 4 rooms left for these dates.” This sense of urgency makes consumers feel like they must act immediately. You can also create a sense of urgency by stating how quickly items are going out of stock. Some websites show you how many items are left in stock when you are looking at the item. You can do the same for your subject lines and let readers know that the items they are interested in won’t be available for long.
Subjects with free offers
Everyone loves anything that is free. Especially if it is coming from a brand that they love. Free offers make your customers happy. Readers are more likely to open emails that include the word “free” because they know they are getting something for free and they are curious to know more. You can even emphasize on the word free by capitalizing the word. This one word will help to grab your subscriber’s attention and it will help to generate clicks.
Subject lines that are personalized
If you are sending out email campaigns, you should be as personal as you can with your customers. By doing so, you are able to create a long-term relationship. Personalized emails increase click-through rates and improves conversions. Email marketing has become so advanced that there are several ways to create personalized emails. Rather than addressing each email by “Hey there subscriber,” include their first name. Here are some other ways you can include personalization.
- Transaction history- Try including one of their favorite products in the subject line
- Birthday- On subscribers’ birthday, wish them a happy birthday or even better, include a special offer
- Location- Send an email that is specific to their location
- Browsing history: Send an email that is relative to their browsing history
These several ways to add personalization are ways to help create a personal feeling between your subscribers and your business. As a result, you will notice an improvement in your clicks on emails.
Subjects that include social proof
One way to help customers subscribe to your email is to provide them with social proof. For instance, if a customer recently purchased something and provided their email, send them an email that invites them to join your newsletter where subscribers receive all the latest news and top deals. Let them know just how many people benefit from your newsletter. This will show that other subscribers benefit from your newsletter and they won’t want to miss out on what everyone else gets. Some companies even use public figures to promote their emails. For example,” NFL star Tom Brady was spotted wearing out a product after the big game” is sure to grab your attention because of the influence public influencers have.
Subject lines addressing abandoned shopping carts
If you are not keeping track of abandoned shopping carts, you are missing out on sales. Abandoned shopping cart rates are higher when consumers are shopping from a tablet or cell phone. Here are a few reasons for abandoned shopping carts:
- Unexpected costs for tax and shipping
- Requirement to create an account to finalize a purchase
- Concerns about online payment and security
- A time-consuming checkout
- No coupon codes
If you find that your customers are abandoning their shopping carts, its time for you to take action. Here are some things to include in your subject line to grab your subscriber’s attention
- Offer free shipping
- Offer a discount code
- Create a sense of urgency by stating the product is selling out fast
Once a consumer leaves a shopping cart unattended, they might need a little push and motivation to finalize their purchase. Just because a customer has abandoned their cart, doesn’t mean that you won’t be able to close the sale. Try using some of these subject lines in your future emails and watch your cart abandonment rate decrease.
MailBakery: Crafting emails that will grab attention
Emails remain the most effective way to communicate with customers. The only way emails can be successful is to ensure the recipient opens the email. With the right subject line, you can meet the goals of your email campaign. Try some of these tricks and let our team at MailBakery craft the perfect email design to drive clicks to your website. Check out our sample page to browse hundreds of email templates!