Seven Best Email Subject Lines

by Cameron Botterill

Pencils ready… here are our very own best performing subject lines so far this year (you’ll want to swipe some of these!)

This year we’re sending between 500,000 and 1,000,000 emails every single MONTH (in August we sent 1,018,493).

Why is that important?

  1. We have a LOT of ‘data’ to see what’s working and what’s not…
  2. When you’re sending 1 million emails a month even a 1% increase in open rate is another ten thousand people reading your email(!)

So, we’re VERY focussed on finding the BEST subject lines that grab people’s attention and get emails opened.

And now you can benefit from our analysis and testing because I’m going to share the TOP SEVEN subject lines we’ve run so far this year.

IMPORTANT: for this article we’re classing BEST as the subject lines that generated the highest open rate (because that’s the subject lines job!).

The average email open rate is just 18%… so let’s see how we compare:

Subject line #7: Nigel

OPEN RATE: 35%

Yep, that’s right – it’s just your name (to be clear, it’s the recipient’s name, not always yours!).

This subject line is great because it never fails to get attention and opens – PLUS it’s so versatile you can use it for almost any email you’re sending – try it.

Subject line #6: I blame Kevin Costner…

OPEN RATE: 38%

If you’ve been around EC for a while you might be familiar with this one. This has been a staple subject line for us for many, many years (because it works!).

The email this opens talks about how most business owners don’t focus on marketing and live by the philosophy that “If you build it, they will come” as quoted from Kevin Costner’s 1989 film ‘Field of Dreams’ (hence the subject line).

The intrigue and curiosity peak people’s interest and make them click to see what on earth we’re talking about!

IMPORTANT: do not do what some people have done and just whack ‘I blame Kevin Costner…’ as your subject line on an email that has nothing at all to do with Kevin Costner.

Subject line #5: Nigel’s Envelope

OPEN RATE: 42%

It turns out, people are really interested in emails about them (who’d have thought!).

If you have a letter to send out, a PDF you want people to read – or anything to do with sending things in the post at all – this subject line is golden.

Subject line #4: Nigel, About Yesterday…

OPEN RATE: 45%

There’s a pattern emerging here… and it’s got your name written all over it!

Once again we’ve used the recipient’s name in the subject line.

This subject line is great to use if people have missed a deadline, offer, event or appointment. This subject line (like all the best one’s – looks like an email that could be from a friend and so get’s opened (a lot!).

Subject line #3: ❌ FINAL NOTICE ❌

OPEN RATE: 51%.

Can you tell what makes this subject line so successful?

Two things:

  1. FINAL NOTICE in block capitals gets a lot of people’s attention (for obvious reasons)
  2. The red cross emoji’s – they add colour to the inbox, draw the eye straight to this email and make it almost impossible to not open it!

Subject line #2: Important Message for EC Members

OPEN RATE: 56%

This email was sent to the majority of past and present EC members.

Calling out directly to the audience so they can see that the email is very clearly for them is a great way to get lots of people opening your email.

You can see how, as an EC Member, it would be very hard to not open this email if it popped into your inbox!

Subject line #1: Have I upset you Nigel?

OPEN RATE: 61%

An email open rate of 61% is unheard of nowadays (remember the average open rate is 18%!) but this subject line wins the award by ticking almost every box possible…

We actually send it to people who haven’t responded to any other emails in a campaign, so it’s up against a tough audience!

If someone hasn’t clicked through to the web page we want to send them to after 5 or 6 emails we’ll crack out this email as the ‘big guns!’

The email itself asks if we’ve upset them because they haven’t taken advantage of this amazing ‘thing’ that we’re offering etc.

What’s interesting is that this email not only gets a LOT of opens, but a tonne of responses and replies as well!

People reply apologising for not getting in touch with us sooner, making excuses for not clicking through, some get quite heartfelt! But it starts conversations with people that were otherwise ignoring us.

The subject line itself is personalised – so it grabs attention, AND plays on people’s basic human instincts of not wanting to upset people.

So, the next time people aren’t responding to your emails, whip out “Have I upset you ~Contact.FirstName~?” and just see what happens…