4 Tips for Crafting the Perfect Email Subject Line

4-tips-for-crafting-the-perfect-email-subject-line

[[p]]A subject line may seem like a minor detail in the overall scheme of your [[a href="https://digitalmarketinginstitute.com/blog/the-ultimate-email-marketing-guide-for-beginners" target="_blank"]]email marketing[[/a]] success but it can make or break a campaign.[[/p]]

[[p]]Your emails should focus on adding value to the customer experience, delivering the right message, at the right time. They should also&nbsp;answer questions and resolve your customers&nbsp;&#39;pain points&#39;. A value-first strategy in your email strategy will lead to increased sales, better brand recognition and higher open rates.[[/p]]

[[p]]Plus email marketing has reach and influence. Especially when[[strong]] [[/strong]]93% of people say&nbsp;they use email every day and&nbsp;42%&nbsp;check their inboxes three to five times a day, according to ZeroBounce&rsquo;s Email Statistics Report for 2025.[[/p]]

[[p]]So, don&#39;t let your emails go to waste. Read our top X tips for crafting the perfect subject line to&nbsp;increase open rates, boost ROI and [[a href="https://digitalmarketinginstitute.com/blog/how-to-optimize-your-email-campaigns" target="_blank"]]optmize your email campaigns[[/a]].[[/p]]

[[p]]Whether you&rsquo;re working for a small business selling custom t-shirts or sitting pretty at a leading, multinational brand, there are a few key best practices for email subject lines that are universal.&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[ul]]
	[[li]][[strong]]Create urgency: [[/strong]]Making subscribers feel like there&rsquo;s a time crunch can work wonders. But beware, too many of these can lead to list exhaustion, so use them sparingly.[[/li]]
	[[li]][[strong]]Promote offers:[[/strong]] People love new things and experiences, so play on that. Offer them a something free, or give a substantial discount. They&rsquo;ll see the value in continuing to subscribe to your email list.[[/li]]
	[[li]][[strong]]Reward loyalty: [[/strong]]Value your customersby giving them something back for thei loyelty such as VIP discounts, early bird deals or exclusive competition offers.&nbsp;&nbsp;[[/li]]
[[/ul]]

[[p]]Here&rsquo;s one example of a loyalty/reward&nbsp;email from McDonald&#39;s that should drive engagement:&nbsp;[[/p]]

McDonald's loyalty email example Credit: Reallygoodemails.com

[[ul]]
	[[li]][[strong]]Curiosity:[[/strong]] Pique your recipients&rsquo; natural curiosity by making them open the email to get more information.[[/li]]
	[[li]][[strong]]Self- interest:[[/strong]] Use these subject lines most frequently; they are usually direct and speak to a specific benefit your audience will receive by opening the email. Self-interest subject lines also help pre-qualify openers by hinting at your email&rsquo;s body content.[[/li]]
[[/ul]]

[[p]]This email promises to tell the subscriber the answer to the question in the subject line:[[/p]]

[[ul]]
	[[li]][[strong]]Use Industry know-how:[[/strong]]&nbsp;Show authority in an industry (fashion, tech, etc.) to build credibility and keep your open rate high. These work especially well when paired with a curiosity statement.[[/li]]
	[[li]][[strong]]Tell a story:[[/strong]] Teasing a story in your subject line is a unique way to highlight a benefit and increase open rates.[[/li]]
	[[li]][[strong]]Leverage social proof:[[/strong]] As humans, we look at what others are doing to justify our own decisions. Leverage this knowledge in your subject lines by mentioning success stories, highlighting how others are using your products or services, or even mentioning familiar names.&nbsp;[[/li]]
[[/ul]]

[[p]]Here&#39;s a great example from Yellowbird Sauce that shows off two testimonials with a CTA button to buy right udnerneath.&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]]Just following best practices for crafting subject lines isn&rsquo;t always enough. You still need to test and revise to determine what&rsquo;s working for your audience.[[/p]]

[[p]]Regular&nbsp;[[a href="https://my.digitalmarketinginstitute.com/resources/toolkits/a-b-testing-tool" target="_blank"]]A/B testing[[/a]]&nbsp;of your subject lines can help you get insight into what your audience reacts to. Make sure to use statistically significant sample sizes so the results are meaningful and split your audience randomly to ensure test and control groups are representative of your whole list.&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]]You can also test your subject lines before you even send them. For example, CoSchedule offers a free headline analyzer that helps you evaluate the power of your headlines, and it works great for subject lines as well. Just&nbsp;put your subject lines into the analyzer, and you&rsquo;ll receive a score for how well the subject line/headline is likely to perform.[[/p]]

[[p]]The analyzer also identifies what types of words you&rsquo;re using (common or uncommon) in your headline and how effective these words are at catching the eye of readers or evoking an emotional response.[[/p]]

[[p]]Questions are a great way to get your followers thinking about how they would answer a question (and how you could help them answer it!).[[/p]]

[[p]]Here&rsquo;s a good text-based&nbsp;example from [[a href="https://neilpatel.com/" target="_blank"]]Neil Patel[[/a]].&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]]When you use a question in your subject line that&rsquo;s relevant to your buyer personas, you pique the individual&rsquo;s curiosity and make them want to learn more.[[/p]]

[[p]]According to Kelnty research,&nbsp;emails with question marks in subject lines had an average open rate of 20%, while emails with subject lines without question marks had an open rate of 12%. However you need to make sure the question is relevant to the audience and has context. It shouldn&#39;t just be used as a way to get them to open as this could affect click-through rates&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]]The art of asking a question is to have it be specific about what the copy/products/offer is about. This way, the question in the subject line sets expectations and then meets them. If you do it right, great questions could set you apart from your competition.&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]]Most people scan their inboxes very quickly. That means that the more concise, clear, and action-oriented your subject lines are, the more likely they are to click on your email. When you&rsquo;re creating a concise subject line, you need to think about how your email will benefit your recipients, and make that benefit clear immediately. For example, &ldquo;Increase your open rates by 40%&rdquo; is more compelling than &ldquo;How to increase open rates.&rdquo;[[/p]]

[[p]]Action verbs are important because they inspire people to take action, especially when they&rsquo;re included at the beginning of the subject line. Here are a few examples from popular brands:[[/p]]

[[ul]]
	[[li]]Pop Physique: &ldquo;Get Ready. Keep the Pie Off Your Thighs Returns.&rdquo; (also appeals to self-interest)[[/li]]
	[[li]]Digital Marketer: &ldquo;Check out my new &ldquo;man cave&rdquo; [PICS]&rdquo; (also appeals to curiosity)[[/li]]
	[[li]]Topshop: &ldquo;Meet your new jeans&rdquo; (also appeals to self-interest)[[/li]]
[[/ul]]

[[p]]Keep in mind that you don&rsquo;t always have to be super-creative with your subject lines to see a great performance. Actually, straightforward, honest email subject lines actually work really well. Remember to test whatever you create, and don&rsquo;t forget to bring your team in for a brainstorm. When it comes to creating titles, a team effort can be extremely helpful.&nbsp;[[/p]]

Yellowbird email example Credit: Reallygoodemails.com

[[p]]By using these tried-and-true tricks, you can ensure your subject lines will get some extra attention. You can even combine two of these tactics for even more email power.[[/p]]

[[p]]Also consider using artificial intelligence tools such as GPT models to brainstorm ideas for subject lines. Through good&nbsp;[[a href="https://my.digitalmarketinginstitute.com/resources/toolkits/chatgpt-prompt-guide-for-your-digital-marketing-plan" target="_blank"]]prompting on ChatGPT[[/a]] you may get an angle you had not thought of before to test on your audience.&nbsp;[[/p]]

4 Tips for Crafting the Perfect Email Subject Line

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