25 Irresistible Email Subject Lines to Boost Open Rates (Part 2)

04.May.2020 Georgie Vineeth - Marketing

Writing compelling subject lines is both art and science. Getting your recipients to open the message and take action is not a child’s play. Successful marketers spend a significant amount of time researching and experimenting with different subject lines to find the right way to convey their message. We’ve studied hundreds of email campaigns and closely examined the performance metrics to arrive at a valuable conclusion. However, to understand the full scope of the subject, we recommend you refer to the part 1 article of our subject line series before you read further. 

Now, as we discussed previously, there is more than one reason to have a winning subject line strategy. Not just the open rates, but a lot more than that. A subject line can entice the users to open the message, but it plays a vital role in boosting your click-through and conversion rate too. So, how do you come up with a subject line that works wonders for you? Read on to learn more. 

How to Write the Best Email Subject Lines that’ll Drive More Engagement?

In addition to the subject line length and keywords, there is a psychological aspect to it. The answer to the question of what triggers the recipients to engage with an email is far more sophisticated than the length of the headline or the preview text. This is what we’ve found from anatomizing marketing emails. 

Promise Something-  Make a promise, offer value to the recipient. This is the first rule when writing a subject line. Here’s an example: “Follow these 10 steps and it’ll double your Youtube subscribers.”

Highlight a Benefit- Offer something your subscribers really care about. Here’s an example, “Learn how to boost your eCommerce revenue by 30%.”

Connect Emotionally- We allow emotions to bring the best out of us. Building an emotional connection with your subscribers is the key to improve engagement levels. Here’s an example, “Why I left my career in law and decided to be an entrepreneur.”

Build Curiosity- Appeal to the recipients’ curiosity. It works. Here’s an example “Here’s why your marketing efforts are falling flat.”

25 Best Email Subject Lines to Improve Your Open Rates

While experimenting and exploring the novelty are crucial, learning by example is the epitome of sure success. Thankfully, our marketing and research team has already compiled a list of 25 email subject line ideas from successful eCommerce brands and have carefully analyzed how they go about writing email subject lines.

Question-based Subject Lines

Question-based subject lines have a way of arousing curiosity in readers. But, the most important thing about this type of subject line is that it has to align with the recipient’s interests. An example email will remove the confusion. 

Besides merely instilling curiosity, this email clearly provides some value to recipients. Also, it gets a story started in the recipient’s head. And in doing so, will draw them closer to your message.

Here are some “Question-based subject lines” you can use: 

• How to win friends and influence people?
• Why should you not expand your business territory too soon?
• Do you know why 3 out of 4 eCommerce businesses fail?
• How do I get the best wholesale deals?
• Which is correct “I am in the bus”  or “I am on the bus?

 Subject Line With a Story Telling Flavor

Everybody loves a good story. But, obviously, you can’t tell an entire story with just a subject line. And guess what! This is exactly why a storytelling subject line works. 

Incorporating the notion of storytelling into your email subject line is based on the “open loops technique.” The idea is to open a story in your subject line but never close it with a satisfactory ending. Kind of like opening a loop but never closing it. It works because human brains are hardwired to seek out the information we are interested in. In fact, studies have shown that as societal beings, we often get feelings of anxiety when there’s a gap between what we know and what we want to know, and we’re compelled to seek out the information to reduce those feelings.

SitePro News doesn’t give a full picture of what they are offering to readers, but merely enough to build curiosity. 

Here are some examples of “storytelling subject lines” you can refer to. 

• How I got 100 thousand Instagram followers in just 6 months
• What [celebrity name] can teach you about content marketing?
• This not well-known formula can improve your open rates 4X time more
• The secret route to eCommerce fortune
• 10 tips to improve your digital magazine readership

Vanity-driven Subject Lines

Everybody has a bit of vanity. People love to be liked, accepted, and respected by others. It’s just about being part of society. 

To implement this, you can either promise something that makes the subscriber look better to their peers, or invoke the fear of being shamed. 

Here are some great examples of email subject lines that leverage the concept of vanity. 

• You will look so great in these [product name]
• Don’t miss out on a trend
• We’d really love to have you here
• Your playlist looks charming. Subscribe for our premium today to get a 30% Off. 
• Gift inspiration for a fashionable shopper

Subject Lines that Offer Shortcuts

Our minds are biased towards anything that requires less effort. Finding shortcuts is a common trait of humans. This is why subject lines that offer easy and smart ways to achieve something are effective. These subject lines are perfect for lead nurturing too. 

Here are some great examples of email subject lines that offer shortcuts. 

• Grow your email list 5X times ⚡ faster with these content upgrade ideas
• Create and send an email campaign in 10 minutes or less
• 121 blog post ideas
• How did I get 100 thousand Youtube subscribers in 6 months
• Taking notes in a meeting has never been this simple

Subject Lines that Include Offers

Freebies signify one of the best ways to get your recipients to open and click through your messages. Send free offers and discounts to your email subscribers. It will keep them happy, and draw them closer to conversion. 

There are several ways and occasions when you can use free offers to boost your open rates. For instance, if you are an online retailer, and are battling cart abandonment, you can include discounts or free shipping in your abandoned cart email subject line. 

Here are some great examples to show how to use free offers in your email subject lines.

• Free shipping extended
• Ends today: Get buy 2 get 1 free offer on your favorites
• Complimentary gift on all purchases
• 24 hours left: 1 year of [service name] unlimited for free
• ????????Get FREE lifetime access (up to 15 users) to [product name]

Final Thoughts

In simplest terms, subject lines are marketers’ portal to email conversion opportunities. This is precisely why it is imperative to have a robust subject line strategy. So, what are the prerequisites for a comprehensive subject line strategy? In addition to having a firm, clear understanding of subject line structure and keywords, marketers should also nurture their willingness to perform intensive testing. 

The purpose of this blog is to facilitate the culture of subject line testing. Now it’s your turn. Modify and experiment with the above-given subject line examples to find what works best for you. And the sooner you discover this, the faster you will cultivate a flair for writing subject lines that drive opens, clicks, and conversions.