The important subject line

Can email marketing really drive sales? The answer is absolutely. However, there are many pitfalls, so it is important to think carefully before sending an email to your contacts. The most important element is the subject line.

The subject line is the first thing the recipient sees, after the sender. For physical, out-of-home advertising, there is a concept known as the “5-second rule”. This is the time you have to generate interest from the recipient through copy and layout on, for example, an article, magazine, or flyer. But in the context of email, the reality is slightly different.

Email marketing has a mixed reputation, as many people experience receiving a large volume of advertisements, often with a strong element of spam. Consequently, many will automatically delete your email if it is perceived as spam in any way, or simply leave it unopened.

If you have a compelling subject line, more recipients will click open immediately. If your subject line is lost in a sea of generic subject lines from other senders, it will remain unopened and untouched.

Once you have successfully prompted a recipient to open your email, the 5-second rule begins, requiring you to get to the point and capture the customer's interest quickly. But in this article, we will address the critical first 0.5 seconds: the subject line.

Did you know that using AI in Make can help you generate variations of your subject line and preheader? AI-generated variations can be enabled under «Settings > General > Other».

POWER WORDS in the subject line

A quick search online will provide hundreds of articles highlighting the importance of “Power Words”. This technique is so effective that it warrants its own section. Power Words are terms that evoke emotions in the recipient, which in turn drive a desired action. But what does this mean in practice?

Power Words align with the concept of Pathos, a classical term referring to the art of appealing to the emotions of the audience through powerful speech, messaging, metaphors, and imagery. By using high-impact words that evoke real-world events and scenarios, you create an emotional response in the reader.

The reason Power Words are so effective is because they appeal to natural human curiosity and emotion. When placed strategically and in the right context, they make it difficult for the recipient to resist opening the email. Research shows that curiosity is the single most important element to trigger in a recipient, and carefully selected Power Words are highly effective. Below is a selected list of words to help increase your open rates and inspire your copy:

• Limited

• Expert

• Fantastic

• Unique

• Tailored

• Exclusive

• Luxury

• Glamorous

• Ultimate

• Tricks

TIP: Remember to log and analyse the open rates for all emails you send. In Make, you have tools to analyse sent emails, allowing you to gradually determine and refine what works best for your specific customer base, target group, and product or service.

Establish clear objectives, such as the number of actions, purchases, or clicks to a destination page you want to achieve within a specific timeframe.

Creating a compelling subject line that meets all these criteria can seem challenging, but it is a skill developed over time. Observe which emails catch your attention in your own inbox to gather useful ideas.

You can also subscribe to newsletters from other companies in your industry to monitor their approaches. If they are well-established in the market, there is a strong chance you can learn from their methods.