The Email Marketing subject line is what prompts the contact to open the email. It is very important, because, in addition, it responds to all the next user experiences. When creating an email subject, you should consider several factors such as interest, relevance, reputation, urgency, and emotion.
How do we deal with increasingly less accessible and more information-filled inboxes? How to work with people with an increasingly valuable and rare interest? How do we create email subject lines that spark curiosity?
Those are the questions that we ask ourselves every day here at RD Station before launching an Email Marketing campaign and that led us to the following conclusion:
The subject of the emails is as important as the content. A subject does not only generate opens, but is also responsible for the entire subsequent experience of the user.
Factors Affecting Email Subjects
When creating the subject of your email, you have to take into account several factors. In this item, we will discuss the most important ones, how to use them correctly and how to understand them to create more relevant emails.
1. Interest = Benefits + Curiosity
That is the factor over which we have the most control. To generate interest, we need to clarify the benefits and sharpen the person's curiosity when reading that issue.
2. Relevance
This factor has a lot to do with the continued openness, the involvement of your contacts with the emails, and with their experience with their emails. When opening the message, is the subject delivering the content it promises? Is there a healthy relationship between the subject and the email?
To address these issues, the email must meet the expectations generated. Otherwise, it will bring frustration to the users.
3. Reputation = Relevance – Frustration
Reputation is a long-term influencer. To build it in a positive way, you must focus on increasing its relevance and reducing frustration.
Beware: do not create subject standards. Standards often negatively influence reputation.
4. Urgency
It is important, in some cases, to use this factor to optimize your affairs, mainly in cases of promotions or specific actions.
Examples:
- Last Hours, RD Summit
- 10 minutes left: promotion with up to 50% OFF
Observation: worry about maintaining your relevance and reputation. Always deliver what has been proposed in the matter and do not standardize.
5. Emotion
It is scientifically proven that emotions generate more lucid memories. Obviously, we want to generate positive emotions in our contacts, right?
If your email generates positive emotions, your user will stay with that offer or that content for a longer time. In addition, their learning process becomes lighter.
Begin by inducing that experience through the title.
Examples:
- Surprise!
- Women's Day ♥
8 Tips for Creating Email Subjects
After taking these factors into account, we can proceed to producing themes with assertiveness, knowing, through the tips below, why they improve performance and how to use them in the correct context to capture the user's attention.
1. Personalization
In principle, the best suggestion is: personalize your email subject line. Personalization is accompanied by interest, relevance, reputation and positive emotions – almost all the factors of a good email subject line.
Let's assume the example: A virtual store for pets. I have, in my email base, the following buyer personas:
- Dog owners.
- Cat owners.
Through segmentation, for each person I can use a different subject:
- Your puppy is going to love it!
- How cuddly that cat...
The performance of both would increase significantly with the option of sending them all the same issue, for example:
- Products for your pet
2. Use a supporting text (preheader)
The preheader is the first sentence to the right of the email subject line. You have the possibility of including it in some email providers, such as Gmail, for example.
How to insert the preheader in my email?
It can be inserted in two different cases:
- When your email is plain text, providers will read the first few words contained in the email.
- If your email is in HTML, after the <body> tag insert this code:
<div style=»overflow:hidden; display:none; max-width:0px; font-size:1px; line-height:1px; max-height:0px; opacity:0; mso-hide: all;»>Escribe aquà tu texto de preheader.</div>
3. Keep the subject line as short as possible
Long subjects often get cut off on mobile and also don't stand out in the crowd of emails in customer inboxes. Therefore, keep the title as short as possible. The ideal, according to surveys, is between 20 and 41 characters.
4. Include numbers or percentages
By writing numbers you engage logical reasoning, which consequently demands more attention. Thus, by using numbers or percentages you will be inducing the focused attention of the user. Use that suggestion when you can contextualize with your title.
Examples:
- The entire store with up to 45% OFF.
- 15 devastating looks!
- 3 practical ways to capture Leads.
5. Ask questions
Questions prompt and, like numbers, demand focused attention. When we see a question mark, we are prompted to solve that problem.
Examples:
- Do you know this look?
- How to generate more Leads?
6. Usa emojis
The emojis end up generating an emotional and visual relationship with the email headline, which combines well with the opening factors.
It is important not to keep sending emojis as standard, because they may lose relevance if done often. Use them in the proper context and in moderation.
7. Use keywords from your business
Include in the title words appropriate to your acting segment.
Let's take the case of a fitness ecommerce. Uses: lose fat, diet, fitness, body building, supplements, etc.
This will always generate a context for the user and will end up maintaining good relevance standards, as well as always reinforcing interest in your products/services.
8. Avoid very commercial words
Free, promotion, click, open, free, credit, offer, buy, watch, verify, etc.
Those words are used a lot in emails and the possibility of generating frustration is high.
recap
Always maintain an identity for your affairs, avoid the most standards and keep the affairs relevant.
The important thing is to have a creative process when producing your issues. These must enchant the client and show a preview of the experience they will have when opening that email. Do not forget that you are always communicating with people.
Remember:
- Interest.
- Relevance.
- Reputation.
- Urgency.
- Emotion.
- Personalization.
- Supporting Text.
- As short as possible.
- Numbers or percentages.
- Questions.
- Emojis.
- Keywords.
- Do not use commercial words.
Bonus: 30 subject line templates that convert
In addition to this manual on how to create email titles, we have brought various templates ready so that, in case you are lacking in creativity, you can develop themes that respect the "good practices" discussed in this post.
It is important to understand how your issues are formed with the elements presented in the text. That can give you various ideas for future opportunities.
event promotion
When to use? In launches or events proposed by your company.
- Formula: Started! [Event/Year]
- Example: Started! Summit 2018
Product Promotion
When to use? By offering special discounts on products, collections or services, for example.
- Formula: [Promotion] with up to [Number]% OFF
- Example: Autumn Collection with up to 45% OFF
Launch
When to use? When you launch new products.
- Formula: [New [Product]] [Title]
- Example: [Launch] New functionality in RD Station Marketing!
Final warning
When to use? When there is a need to create urgency for a certain action. It can be used in various segments.
- Formula: Last notice: [Title] ends in [Number] hours
- Example: Last notice: Reservations for a hotel in Florianópolis end in 2 hours
Birthday
When to use? In cases of actions for clients who have a birthday. Those campaigns are even performing well above average.
- Formula: Happy birthday, [Name]!
- Example: Happy birthday, Maria!
List
When to use? When there are a certain number of topics/benefits contained in your email.
- Formula: The [Number] [Rating] ways of [Benefit]
- Example: The 15 Best Ways to Write Impactful Subjects
Welcome
When to use? In your first contact email with your client.
- Formula: Welcome to [Company]!
- Example: Welcome to RD Station!
Before you read this
When to use? When you want to advertise some rich content by email
- Formula: No [Action + Product] before reading this
- Example: Do not write email titles before reading this…
Case study
When to use? When the content of the email brings the same case explained.
- Formula: [Case Study] [Result]
- Example: How RD Station has increased its revenue by 300%
How to do?
When to use? This issue is good for generating curiosity in users. Care must be taken with the relevance of the question and with how to answer it through the content of the email.
- Formula: How to [Achieve the result]?
- Example: How to write better subjects?
Matador
When to use? When there is shocking content.
- Formula: How [Action] [Matador]
- Example: How to Create Killer Subjects
And yes?
When to use? This template is useful in cases where the email brings the solution to the hypothesis.
- Formula: What if [Solution]?
- Example: What if your affairs improved by 10%?
good vs bad
When to use? When the issues are controversial and that comparison generates curiosity or interest.
- Formula: [Title] X [Title]
- Example: Good Hotels X Bad Hotels
Mistakes
When to use? This subject line performs well when the content of the email has the errors explained.
- Formula: [Number] [Issue] errors you are making
- Example: 10 mistakes when selling that you are making
To avoid
When to use? Like the previous one, this issue performs well when the content of the email contains the errors that the reader may be making.
- Formula: Avoid [Number] [Errors/Tragedies] [Theme]
- Example: Avoid these 10 ways to write subjects
authority on the matter
When to use? Taking into account the keywords dominated by your company, it can be used both in products and rich content.
- Formula: [Secret] [Authority] [Topical]
- Example: The secrets of the Pets Store in the care of pets
Learning
When to use? When the content of the email brings up a case that you have really experienced. Some positive result that your product/service has brought.
- Formula: What I learned after [Result]
- Example: What we learned after selling 700 supplements
Results
When to use? This template follows the same line as the previous one, but instead of talking about learning, we will talk about the results obtained.
- Formula: How [Result] in [Time]
- Example: How we grew 70% in our sales in 3 months
Imagination
When to use? Following the line of the previous issues, use this template when you have a success story to give as an example, but stimulating the client's imagination.
- Formula: Imagine [Result]
- Example: Imagine growing your sales rate by 70%
Test
When to use? It can be used when the information that is brought up is related to the issue and is really tested.
- Formula: Proof that [Product] works
- Example: Proof That Running Works
Ask
When to use? When the content you bring answers the question indirectly.
Note: Never directly answer the question in the email.
- Formula: [Question]
- Example: Have you already thought about your next happy hour ?
- Example of what not to do in the content of the email: Didn't you think? We have a solution for you!
little known forms
When to use? Align this subject line with the content of your email. Exactly that should be displayed.
- Formula: [Number] little-known forms of [Action]
- Example: 10 Little-Known Ways to Increase Open Rate
Hacks
When to use? The word hack is not very well known, but it generates curiosity, even more when inserting a list. Like the previous template, it is important that the content exists in the email.
- Formula: [Number] hacks for [Result]
- Example: 15 Hacks to Write Better Subjects
Amor
When to use? In special cases, when there are offers, discounts or actions. This template performs well in ecommerce.
- Formula: You are going to ♥ that [Promotion or Action]
- Example: You are going to ♥ those offers!
TRUE
When to use? When creating emails putting links in posts or content, it is valid to use this template.
- Formula: The truth about [Theme]
- Example: The truth about email subject lines
The art
When to use? It is worth using this template in emails with links to materials on the subject or that have the same content.
- Formula: The Art of [Theme]
- Example: The art of selling real estate
Surprise!
When to use? In specific and important actions, when you are sure that the content of the email will impact the client.
- Formula/Example: Surprise!
The best
When to use? Like the previous template, it is used when you are sure that there is a differential in the email.
- Formula: Best [Theme/Brand]
- Example: The best of the week!
Increase
When to use? Apply this template when your content brings the solution/answer for the issue.
- Formula: From [Bad] to [Good]
- Example: From 10% to 20% in opening rate
War
When to use? This template works well on blog titles.
- Formula: War against [Enemy]
- Example: The war against the bad seller
Beyond the creation of Email
Marketing subjects
As we said at the beginning, a good topic is just as important as the content. However, it just doesn't work. The content needs to be relevant and segmented for your buyer persona .
There are many Email Marketing techniques that can be worked on to guarantee the success of your campaigns.
For a full overview of how it works and other good tactics, download our eBook The Ultimate Guide to Email Marketing . A material with everything you need to know to strengthen the relationship with your clients and generate business results!
This post was originally written by Renan Fernandes in Portuguese and contains adaptations made by the author for the Latin American and Spanish markets.
