How to write a good subject line
What is the objective of a subject line?
The most common answer is:
“To get as many opens as possible.”
There’s logic in that answer. More opens should lead to more clicks, and more clicks should lead to more purchases.
The problem with this thinking is that it assumes everyone in your database has an equal chance of converting.
In reality, people have all sorts of things going on in their lives. Some are actively looking for what you’re offering, some are mildly interested and some simply aren’t interested at this moment in time.
My answer to the question is slightly different.
The objective of a subject line is:
To get as many potential buyers as possible to open the email.
How do we do that?
Many people will tell you that you need to be clever. Use curiosity. Create intrigue. Make people feel like they’re missing out.
If your objective is simply to generate opens, these types of subject lines can work.
For example:
Here’s an offer you don’t want to miss
That subject line will probably generate opens.
But here’s the problem.
If the email doesn’t actually contain an offer the recipient feels they can’t miss, you’ve just tricked them into opening it.
They were never going to buy.
They weren’t interested in the content.
And now they’re slightly less likely to engage with your emails in the future.
Personally, I prefer to be boring, obvious and transparent.
Here’s a great example:
I don’t even need to open the email to know what the offer is.
I know exactly what’s being offered and can decide whether I’m interested before committing my attention.
Even if this results in fewer opens, the people opening the email are more likely to be genuinely interested in what the email contains.
Nobody feels tricked.
Nobody feels disappointed.
The subject line has simply helped the right people identify relevant content.
Even when you’re not trying to be clever, the subject line deserves just as much attention as the email itself.
I regularly see perfectly good emails let down by vague subject lines.
For example:
Latest news from ABC Company
This could be about absolutely anything.
The people who would genuinely be interested have no reason to open because they don’t know what’s inside.
I always try to include specifics wherever possible.
For example:
Kids eat free this Sunday with every adult meal
or
40% off all bookings until the end of June
The people interested in those offers immediately know what they’re getting.
The people who aren’t interested can safely ignore it.
That’s exactly how it should work.
A good subject line doesn’t maximise opens.
A good subject line helps the right people decide whether to open.