Writing A Kick-Ass Email Subject Line

Do I now have your attention?

Normally, I don’t like to curse in my blog posts. Vulgarity can be overused to the point where it’s white noise.

In this choice situation, my title caught your attention. It got you to click on this blog post. It encouraged you to scroll down the page and read more.

And it probably would have enticed you to open an email.

Writing an email subject line is like crafting the gate to your campaign. You want it to be enticing. You want it to engage your audience. You want it to start a connection.

To be an email marketing ninja, you must know the basics of writing an email subject line.

Kick Out The Wrong Words

The goal of writing an email subject line is to have the reader open the email. But that’s not going to happen if the email lands in the wrong place.

Your inbox is smarter than you think. If it smells the slightest hint of fraud, it tosses your email into the reader’s spam folder.

Your email is most likely not spam. But your email subject line could read that way. Make sure you’re not using these spam trigger words when writing an email subject line:

• Affordable
• Apply Now
• Extra Income
• Dear Friend
• Free
• Mortgage Rates
• Opportunity
• Remove
• Save $
• Weight Loss
• Work from Home

These are the most common spam trigger words, but other industry-related words can kick your email out of your reader’s inbox. Review this list before writing an email subject line.

Pack The Punch Quickly

Size does matter. Well, at least when it comes to writing an email subject line.

An email subject line that’s too long results in the famous … where your readers can’t read the end of the sentence. A lengthy subject line also takes away space that allows the reader to preview the first words of the email. If your reader can’t verify that your email is indeed not spam, will they want to open it?

When writing an email subject line, aim for 80–130 characters or 6–10 words. Like Goldilocks, anything less or greater can result in fewer clicks. Here are the stats to back me up.

Grab Their Attention

Keep it simple (stupid). Writing an email subject line with high click-through rates means getting down to the nuts and bolts of your message.

First, review your email content. Can you message boil down to one sentence? What are your message’s key takeaways? What should your readers walk away with after reading this email?

Next, make it presentable. Do your readers have a funny bone? Do they like being shocked or insulted? Do they like questions and conversations? Know your audience, then appeal to their email reading habits.

Not sure where to start? Check out these examples of kick-ass email subject lines.

How do you make writing an email subject line kick-ass? Share your ninja strategy below.