How To Write A Great Cold Email Subject Line

Writing a cold email subject line for your email is like creating the title of your book; It’s better to write it after you know what your story (or in this case, email copy) is going to include.

Your subject line is a key aspect of getting someone to open your email; it's the first thing they'll see, and the reason they'll open or trash your note. So let's go over the five main strategies to writing a strong and solid cold email subject line:

Inspire Curiosity

Make it sound like something of interest to them, and something that other similar individuals and buyers like them are already using. For example: “One simple tip to...” or "Three easy steps to help you..." You get the idea - Make it compelling.

Offer Value

This kind of springboards off of the previous point; If your prospects feel they’ll benefit from your message, they’re more likely to open it. For example: “One simple tip to increase workforce productivity." Now, who doesn't want to know what that tip is and how they can apply it to their own business? You want the first thing that your prospect thinks to be that you can help him make his life a little easier. Another example would be, if working with a business that deals with sales prospecting services, you could say "Optimize your sales prospecting service in 3 easy steps." Keep your value proposition relevant to your desired target.

Pose a Question

Questions are intriguing and conversational, but make sure your question is relevant to your prospects. “Is your workforce productivity being tracked?” - Good. "What's the secret to losing belly fat?" - Try again.

Create Fear

This sounds more extreme than it really is. What we mean is, if your prospects think they or their businesses are at risk of missing out on something - whether it be advice, information, or a valuable service - they’ll want to take protective action. For example: “Not tracking workforce productivity is terrible.” The sense of their actions (or lack thereof) being a misstep in some way will press them to respond and take action.

Be Informal

You have a couple words to get their attention and convince them to open your email and care about what you're saying. Now isn't the time for formalities. People often read emails in a hurry, so writing a brief subject line has proven to be effective in many cases. Try something like “Hello, {FirstName}”

Review Your Copy (Before You Send It)

After you’ve drafted your email, read it out loud and listen for any parts that don’t make sense or are difficult to read. Look at every sentence critically. Remove all the filler and jargon. You don't need to make your message overly complicated or time-consuming to read. Keep it simple and make sure it’s conversational, simple, and concise.

Going deeper with cold email subject lines

Check out the first four parts of the series if you haven't already done so:

Part 1 - Buyer Persona Research:

How to research your prospects, build your buyer profiles, and learn more about your potential buyer.

Part 2 - Building The Framework:

The importance of knowing not only your competition but your own business and services, as well as how to craft great cold email copy.

Part 3 - Email Tone and Look:

How to build your email with the most effective tone, and what design components should (and shouldn't) be featured in your emails.

Part 4 - The Elements of a Great Cold Email:

Learn all about how to demonstrate value oriented proposals, create clear call to actions, perfect email signatures and more!