Subject lines are the gatekeepers to your B2B emails, and like it or not, they can make or break them. The average attention span is about eight seconds, so your subject lines must work, and they must work quickly.
Our content team has created a list of top tips and a few pointers on what to avoid.
SUBJECT LINE TIPS
- Create a Sense of Urgency – Using the words like “this week”, “limited time offer”, “first come, first serve”, etc. create a sense of urgency and increase the likely that the email will be opened. Examples include:
- Register Today: [insert name of event] Sept. 20
- Entry deadline fast approaching
- 3 more days to register for our webinar
- Reserve your seat today
- Keep it Simple – This may be surprising, but it’s best practice to keep your subject line simple enough that an 8th grader can understand it. Why? Because people are pressed for time and previewing email on their phones while multitasking. Following are a few subjects that are short and to the point:
- Success Tip: 5 Ways to Save [xxxx]
- Inside: [important topic in your newsletter]
- The ultimate guide to [your product]
- Experiment with Exclusive – Using words like “private” or “secret” convey exclusivity and can positively impact open rates, consider the following:
- Sneak peek of our new white paper
- Private workshop: [insert name of event] Dec. 11
- Your exclusive access to gated content
- Ask a Question – Asking a question is one tactic but if you use it, keep it short and to the point. Subject lines with 6-10 words typically works best. A few thought starters include:
- Busy? We can take something off your plate
- Struggling with sales? Let’s connect
- ROI keeping you up at night?
WHAT TO AVOID
- Steer clear of fancy formatting, such as, T e x t W i t h G a p s
- Don’t over promise and under deliver. Your credibility could take a hit if you promise one thing and your email delivers something else entirely. Be authentic.
- Avoid ALL CAPS. A subject line that is all caps is more likely to end up in the spam folder.
- Don’t use exclamation marks or excessive punctuation.
- Using “Newsletter” doesn’t do you any favors. In fact, it has been shown to decrease open rates.
- Not only do grammatical errors and spelling mistakes create a bad impression, they can trigger spam filters too.
Feel free to use the examples and inspiration above to create your own subject lines. And let us know what works for you!
