Email marketing remains one of the most effective types of digital marketing that you can use for increasing your sales and conversions. And one of the most important elements of any email is the subject line. Here are the ten greatest email subject lines for sales and conversions.
#1 How can the reader benefit?
The primary goal of virtually any kind of email is to bring some kind of value to your reader in order for them to be interested and read your email or at least skim through it. This is why putting some kind of value offer or benefit into the subject line is a sure way to spark their interest and make them open the email to read it.
The phrasing would probably go along the lines of “A Special Offer – Just for You” or “We Are Giving You A Discount!” Try to make the offer fall into one of the three categories: special gift (e.g. birthday present, holiday sale, etc.), downloadable content (e.g. images, tutorials, guides, e-books, etc.), or a percentage off their purchase (e.g. discount).
#2 How much does the reader know?
Another way to get your reader hooked and make them open the email is by suggesting that there is something important they don’t know about a certain topic. Of course, this should never come in an accusatory or strict tone, but rather something along the lines of “How much do you know about lemon cakes?”
A question immediately forces your reader to give an answer, even if they do it in their head. It engages the reader even before they decide to open and read the email. This technique is especially effective when you have created an extensive article or guide on a particular topic and want to share it.
#3 How can you reinvent a TLDR?
TLDR, aka “too long, didn’t read”, is a common way to sum up a long article for those readers who don’t have much time to spend on it, but want to get the gist of the piece. However, when it comes to emails, you can use a different form of a TLDR in your subject line to attract more attention.
If you think about it, a year in review is a form of TLDR. If you want to show your readers that you value them and treat them personally, then creating their “year in review” emails is a must. Make one for each subscriber and put it in the subject line: “Jack’s Year in Review.”
#4 What’s new?
A simple update is perhaps one of the most common types of emails right now even though not all customers like it. That being said, if you had a separate box for checking whether a subscriber wants to receive updates and news or not, then those who did check it will be more than glad to see such emails from you.
Try to be creative with the subject lines for such emails. It could be something like “We just added a new product in our catalog!” and that will be enough. If you want to go into more details, you could describe it a bit or send multiple emails about the occasion (e.g. “Check out the specs of our new mixer!”, “We will be launching our new mixer soon, and here’s what you should know!”)
#5 Has your reader tried this?
Writing emails is not the easiest way to talk about everything because emails have limited space. This is precisely why emails with questions in the subject line are so effective: they are proactive. Consequently, asking your reader if they have tried a particular product, service, brand or location could be a good subject line.
If it is one of the products that you want to promote, then asking your reader if they have tried that product is a good idea. Nevertheless, try to make it sound friendly rather than demanding.
#6 Is your reader new around here?
You won’t believe how nice welcome emails are. Once you get a new subscriber, always make sure to send them an automated email saying that you are happy to see them join your newsletter. Give them some tips on how to get started on your website and perhaps even send them some free downloadable content they will enjoy.
#7 Did your reader leave their shopping cart?
Cart abandonment is a real thing and you will actually see that there are quite many potential customers that simply abandon their cart either while they are shopping or when they are on checkout. This is exactly the time when you need to get the situation in your hands and start acting to do something about it.
Send an email telling your reader that they abandoned their cart and ask them if they would like to continue shopping. Such emails are a part of the group of emails that create urgency, so don’t limit your cart abandonment emails just to that. Add a phrase that says that your reader can get a limited discount if they check out soon – this will create urgency.
#8 Is your reader looking for a solution?
There are many problems that customers encounter on a daily basis. You are the one who can help them solve these problems if you offer the solutions in the right way. Giving advice is more than common nowadays, so including it in your email and then stating that in the subject line will only help you.
Consider using phrases like “tips”, “tricks”, and “ideas” for the problem or issue that you will be discussing in the email or the article linked to the email. In other words, you are offering value in the form of a guide or tutorial (or just a list of tips).
#9 Does your reader has something to say?
Collecting feedback is important for any and every business because it helps you as the business owner to improve how your company functions. The best source of feedback is your audience, of course, so collecting it through emails will be both cheap and easy.
Show that you want to “hear from” your reader – or rather, directly state it in the subject line by saying “We want to hear from you!” It’s an easy way to communicate exactly what your email contains and what you want from the reader.
#10 What are other things your reader can use?
Last but not least, you can offer some alternatives for your readers. For instance, there is a competitor of your brand that you would like to divert the attention from. Create an email with alternatives to that brand and make sure to include your own brand in the email. The subject line could be something like “Alternatives for Nike’s Running Shoes”.
Final Thoughts
All in all, your email subject lines should be unique, but that doesn’t mean that they should be too detailed. They need to be short, but they shouldn’t be too vague. Find the golden middle and try the examples from this article for the best results.