For Email Marketing, the first impression is the most important. If you don’t have a catchy opening line, you’re never going to get someone to stop scanning their inbox, let alone open your email out of the dozens they receive every day.
First of all, your subject line should convey the core information of what’s in your email or offer. If you want to add secondary information or details, you can make use of the preview text option that is available in HubSpot.
If you're looking to create the perfect overall email, check out this blog post. But if you want to focus solely on subject lines, keep reading!
Discover our 4 top tips for crafting clickable email subject lines below:
1. Put the most interesting or important words at the beginning
Don’t wait to get to the point – make your point immediately! Onlyso many characters fit in our email inboxes, and even less on smartphones. If you’re not starting with your best words, your audience will get bored and jump to the next email.
For example, for your monthly newsletter, it’s better to use
“7 expert content tips bound to blow your mind in mbudo's monthly newsletter”
rather than
“Monthly newsletter with 7 expert content tips from mbudo”.
To start out, “monthly newsletter” is too generic and it will get repetitive or bore the reader.
Second of all, you want to tell your audience what they will find inside your email. 7 expert tips? Wow that’s interesting! Monthly newsletter…snore.
Lastly, if your brand name is valuable, it should be as close to the beginning as possible.
2. Don’t use over-worked catchphrases in your email subject lines
Click now!
Don’t miss out on our amazing offer!
Hi [your name here]!
URGENT!
Only today!
FREE…
Often termed click-bait, these action-oriented words are intended to excite or even trick readers. They’re usually loaded with tons of exclamation points, a sense or urgency, or a discount/offer.
While urgency, discounts, and number can work, it has to be done in a way that doesn’t seem like an over-used subject line.
Using the same example as above, it’s better to write:
“7 expert content tips bound to blow your mind in mbudo's monthly newsletter."
rather than:
“CLICK HERE to discover our 7 expert content tips!!!"
Using the number 7 at the beginning tells the viewer exactly how much content they will find in the email and uses numbers is a simple, yet non-threatening way.
Be careful with words like “free” because it’s a tell-tale sign of spam.
Also avoid using all caps, too many exclamation points, and emoji overload.
3. Numbers and discounts can work… Sometimes
As mentioned earlier, numbers need to be used in a simple, yet non-threatening way. And you need to be honest. If your audience feels tricked, they’re not going to trust your company or future emails.
Increase your CTR 7% with mbudo’s awesome email tips.
How far can a $70 discount on our email services take your company?
7% isn’t good enough! Discover how to achieve 10% growth with mbudo.
These are all subtle ways to use percentage and monetary figures in an interesting way, without looking like click-bait.
Remember, using numbers needs to add value. Don’t do this:
“$70 DISCOUNT! Get this offer today only!”
It looks fake and doesn’t give the viewer much information about the offer, how it can benefit them, or even seem remotely intriguing.
4. Email subject lines can play with questions and intrigue
Intrigue! Attraction! Lingering questions!
Yes, these are all time-tested ways of crafting a catchier subject line.
“How far can a $70 discount on our email services take your company?”
This example is both a question and intriguing. After reading it I’m left wondering: how far?
“Our superpower is email marketing. Let mbudo transform your company!”
Superpower…oh that’s interesting. Using descriptive language and beautiful or attractive words will make your email stand out from the all the generic ones. But be careful not to use too much lingo or little-known words, you don’t want to alienate potential readers.
There are dozens of tips for writing great email subject lines, but sometimes it all comes down to trial and error with your audience. Do A/B testing, study the data, and always keep learning. That's the essence of Inbound Marketing!
If you're still having trouble with your content strategy, read this post. Or let mbudo take a crack at it. Feel free to reach out to us for help, anytime, anywhere: info@mbudo.com.
Mary Swick
Mary is a professional copywriter with over 10 years of experience in Marketing and Advertising. As an American expat in Madrid, she enjoys the relaxed Spanish culture, hiking, and the latest shows from Netflix and HBO. Mary also loves cats and music (she's the office DJ!)