5 Tips to Create an Excellent Email Subject Line

Successful emails have something in common: killer subject lines. Otherwise, who would know they were good? As the one thing standing between your recipient and your message, subject lines have a tough job. To get someone from their inbox to your email.

And, as you’re probably aware, for mobile device users, that one inbox is probably a catch all from multiple email addresses. In fact, in a US survey done by Statista in 2021, most respondents had at least 2 email addresses—with 28% of those people having over four.

So, even if your subject line is as good and clever as it gets, standing out in a crowded inbox is just half the battle. Now you need to make your recipient open it.

Luckily, here are some simple tips to help you improve your subject lines and increase your open rates.

Tip 1: Clear + Concise Message

There’s a reason you created your email, so be sure and let your recipient know what that it is. It doesn’t have to be all the details, which most likely wouldn’t fit anyway, but your job is to make your recipients want to take action.

And speaking of what fits, most email platforms have a limit on subject lines. For example, Constant Contact recommends no more than 40 characters or four to seven words.

Tip 2: Know when to create a sense of urgency

Want people to open your email? Don’t let them think they can come back to it later. They could have over 4 email addresses, remember? How would they possibly find it? OK, there are ways, but that’s an even bigger ask. Communicating why they want to open your email and why they should open it now are excellent motivators.

With the exception of a false emergency. Not everything ends today.

In fact, according to Klavio, emails that use urgent language, exclamation points, and all caps can be annoying for those who haven't engaged with you in a while.

Tip 3: Make it fun!

Subject lines are not one size fits all and the more unique they are, the more chance you have of standing out. In addition to being a gatekeeper of sorts between your audience and your email, they’ve also been referred to as your first defense against spam.

So be witty, clever, authoritative, passionate… whatever it is that makes your brand shine through in your subject line. Maybe it’s just one word, maybe it’s a phrase or an engaging question. It could even be a hilarious pun. Whatever it is, just make sure it doesn’t water down why this email should be opened.

Step 4: Make use of your preview text

Most major email platforms will fill in preview text for you if you leave this area blank. The copy from the body of your email is automatically added. This probably explains why you sometimes see weird things in preview text like a repeated subject lines or worse, unsubscribe here.

So instead of giving up control of your copy, take advantage of it. Preview text is perfect for enhancing your subject line and offers valuable space for adding in a secondary message. It’s even a nice go to for helping you A/B test your message hierarchy—which brings us to our next point.

Step 5: Test everything!

Forget what you think you know. Emails change. People change. Your audience changes. If you’re looking to really see what works and what doesn’t, test it.

For example, according to CRMlab, emojis can increase open rates by 56% and boost engagement. But is it right for your company? And, is it the right emjo for your audience? A simple A/B test of the same subject line with and without an emoji is one way to get metrics. Which has higher open rates, click throughs, conversions? The important thing is to continue testing, since other variables like the copy, timing, and message all go into play as well.

When good subject lines go bad…

Here’s an example of a well intended subject line meant to pull at your heart strings, gone wrong:

Last year, I adopted a kitten named Cash. I took him home, introduced him to the dog, renamed him Leo… life was good. Except for the drapes, those were definitely ruined.

Leo, aka Cash, was chipped. So, I was told to be on the lookout for an email with instructions on how I could update the info. It never came. So they sent me another email and another…. all of which I never received. And yes, I checked my junk folder.

Come to find out, I blocked that first email because of the subject line.

What wouldn’t you do for Cash?

As you can imagine, that went straight to spam. I didn’t look at the sender. I definitely didn’t open the email. I didn’t even care that the “C” was capped like a proper noun. After all, spammers aren’t known for their grammar.

So, while this was a very special circumstance, it should be noted, they didn’t need to work for my click. I wanted this email. I was looking for it. And, I would have opened it, Cash or no Cash. If only I knew what the email contained.

The same rings true for almost everything from order receipts and shipping details to new product drops and massive sales. In other words, clever subject lines can be awesome as long as they’re clear.

Looking for copywriting help?

Whether you are looking for help writing emails, social captions, or maybe even video scripts, we’ve got a team member for that. Reach out to us at info@ideadrenaline.com or visit our contact page, and let’s chat about what all you need when it comes to marketing. We can customize a solution just for your company.