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How to Craft the Perfect Newsletter Subject Line for Maximum Engagement
Why Testing Newsletter Subject Lines Can Improve Your Campaigns
Linda Hwang
January 22nd, 2025
You’re sitting with your marketing team, and your supervisor says, “We are going to venture into email newsletters.”
You think, how exciting!
Your supervisor continues with, “An email newsletter is a great way to engage your leads and customers, sell more products, and keep your brand ‘top-of-mind’ for your target audience.”
Then your supervisor asks, “Who wants to head this initiative and draft the email newsletter?”
You feel your hand shoot straight up because you’re a go-getter, and you think, how hard can this be?
Once the dust settles, you realize, “What did I get myself into?”
When I first started in marketing, I found myself in this exact situation. I was completely unaware of the important KPIs and what really attracts the audience. Although email newsletters are one of the most common types of emails to send, they are one of the hardest to write.
Getting one reader to open your email takes a mix of finesse with subject lines and perfect timing.
But don’t you worry!
In this article, we’ll teach you the processes of writing a captivating newsletter subject line that will entice your audience to open and read your email.
Table of Contents
TL;DR
Importance of Subject Lines: Your subject line is the first part of an email your reader sees. This first impression can determine whether your email is opened or ignored.
Elements of Good Subject Lines: Focus on the main point of your email, avoid generic terms, and use specific and actionable language.
Personalization: Personalizing subject lines can increase relevance and open rates, using techniques such as the recipient’s name and referencing past interactions.
Best Practices: Keep subject lines short and to the point, avoid spam triggers, and always be testing to optimize performance.
Use Emojis: They should be used judiciously to avoid appearing unprofessional.
Understanding the Importance of a Good Newsletter Subject Line
Jack Appleby, founder of the Future Social newsletter, once shared, “One of my core beliefs is if you want to be successful within content, whether you’re a creator, or you’re working for a brand, or you’re a marketer, your ability to generate really incredible hooks and really incredible content—that’s what ultimately drives your business.”
Writing a subject line that engages the readers is essential.
Subject lines play a pivotal role in determining whether your email gets opened or ignored.
Why Subject Lines Matter
Imagine your email sitting in an inbox, surrounded by countless others.
What makes yours stand out?
The subject line.
Subject lines are your first impression, and the words you choose can make or break your email campaign.
Write compelling subject lines that interest your subscribers and pique their curiosity so they click and read the entire email.
When writing a subject line, focus on the main point of your email.
Avoid generic phrases like ‘Important’ or ‘Please read.’
Use specific language and actionable language such as ‘Learn more about [X].’ This gives the recipient a clear idea of what to expect from your email.
So, how do you write a good newsletter subject line?
By adding a few key elements that we will discuss below!
Personalization
“Just like authors spend significant time making sure we get the cover of our books right, newsletter creators have the same chance to make a powerful impression with their design,” Jon Finkel, creator of the Books & Biceps newsletter, says.
“The Design Lab makes that possible to do on your own, even if you’re not a great designer.”
Finkel is a well-known writer and fitness enthusiast and one of beehiiv’s established creators.
Take it from him; when you personalize your newsletter design and subject line to your brand, your email can feel more relevant and increase open rates.
It's a simple yet effective way to connect with your audience on a personal level.
Some ways to personalize your newsletter:
Brand Voice and Consistency
Brand the colors, texts, and tone to your brand’s voice and style. Your brand voice should reflect your company’s personality and values to maintain consistency across multiple channels.
Why is brand consistency important?
It’s hard to remember, recognize, and trust someone who is constantly changing. Keeping your subject lines consistent with your brand will help your subscribers connect and easily spot you in their inboxes.
Personalization Techniques
Personalization techniques include using the recipient’s name, referencing past interactions, or tailoring content to their interests or location. In 2023, 64.7% of marketing professionals sent out campaigns with subject line personalization.
Here are some examples of personalization:
Curiosity and Intrigue
Did you know humans are genetically wired to be curious?
That’s why curiosity and intrigue are powerful tools for your email campaigns.
When you craft your subject line and even your introduction paragraph, you’ll want to build some curiosity and intrigue.
Try to hype up that something big is here (or coming soon) with a solid hook and let your readers know they’ll want to stick with you to hear what the announcement is. Because your readers are required to open the email to get more information, this can result in a higher open rate.
But make sure the subject line, while enigmatic, still aligns with your brand. Too obscure, and it could end up being seen as spam.
Here are some great examples of adding curiosity and intrigue to your subject lines:
Urgency and Scarcity
If you were notified that your favorite shirt was almost gone, would that make your heart race?
Not wanting to miss out on an opportunity would make me buy while stocks last.
Many marketers know that people always want what they can’t have because they think the grass is greener on the other side.
Creating a sense of urgency or scarcity can prompt readers to act quickly.
Phrases like "limited time offer" or "only a few spots left" can drive immediate action.
Here are some awesome urgency and scarcity subject lines to use:
Relevance and Timeliness
Normally, when you subscribe to an email list, it’s because you want to be kept informed.
Keeping subject lines relevant to current events or trending topics can capture the reader’s interest and make your newsletter feel timely and important.
Here are some ways to use relevance and timeliness in your subject lines:
Why Trust Me
Linda Hwang has extensive experience in B2B marketing and previously worked at a renowned international facilities management company. There, she played a crucial role in creating effective content and social media marketing plans. Now, Linda is a marketing consultant who helps small businesses create compelling brand stories.
Emojis Are the Secret to a Click-Worthy Inbox
We’ve all heard that a picture is worth 1,000 words, right?
Good thing for emojis, then!
Not exactly. Like everything marketing, injecting emojis in your subject line is equal parts art and science.
Pros of Using Emojis in Email Marketing
There are some positive statistics out there about how emojis improve email marketing.
The open rate of emails with emojis in the subject line is 56% higher compared to the plain subject lines.
44% of users are more likely to purchase products advertised using emojis.
Using emojis in the subject line can lead to an increase in unique openings by 29%.
Mind-blowing 🤯 stats, right? (See what I did here?)
Cons of Using Emojis in Email Marketing
With the good comes the bad, so how bad are emojis for your email marketing strategy?
Unprofessional and tacky: Many arguments have led to emojis having a negative impact due to their unprofessional look. While emojis grab attention, it doesn’t necessarily mean this attention is positive.
Detrimental to your brand image: If you use incorrect emojis, you risk your emails having the wrong tone and getting interpreted not the way you want them to.
If you’re unsure how your audience will react to emojis—test!
As an email marketer, always test your audience.
Take it from one of beehiiv’s exceptional creators, Rohan Mahtani, founder of the Resume Worded newsletter, who said, “A/B testing is super useful.”
He continued, “I know how important subject lines are, but at my old [newsletter platform], I would just come up with a subject line on the fly and send it out. I wouldn’t really care or think twice whether or not it’s the best subject line to use.”
Tips and Best Practices for Writing Effective Subject Lines
For you to create a successful email, start with a subject line that grabs the attention of your audience. Good subject lines are often personalized and give your readers a reason to click on your email and check out your content.
During our research, we at beehiiv found these tips and best practices when it comes to effective subject lines.
Here are some strategies and best practices to add to your subject line repertoire:
Keep It Short and Concise
Subject lines should ideally be under 50 characters to ensure they are fully visible on mobile devices.
A concise subject line is more likely to grab attention quickly.
beehiiv publications perform the best when the subject line is under 40 characters. The highest open rates go to newsletters with subject lines under 20 characters.
Segmentation
Another way to make sure your content gets to the right people is through segmentation.
Segment your email list to make sure each reader is getting relevant information you’re providing. This is crucial in addressing deliverability challenges and maintaining engagement rates, especially considering recent changes to email providers like Gmail and Yahoo.
“beehiiv’s segmentation feature ensures I am delivering the right messages to the right people at the right time,” boosted Tyler O’Shea, the founder of Joker Mag and The Underdog newsletter.
Use Questions
When you ask a question in your subject line, you can draw your readers in—especially if you’re asking a question you know is relevant to your reader’s buyer persona.
Engaging your readers with questions in the subject line can prompt them to open the email to find the answer.
Here are some excellent questions to use in your subject lines:
Do you know what your website is doing wrong?
Who are Wonder Woman’s Role Models?
What Can You Afford?
Avoid Spam Triggers
When I first started in email marketing, my CEO asked me to create an internal promotional email for the company. I was so excited to work on my first-ever project.
I worked with the marketing team on content, and when it came to the subject line, we used “Earn $XXXX Today!”
We ran a test with a handful of emails.
Less than five minutes later, my email was flagged, and I was locked out of my inbox.
An hour later, I was able to regain access to my emails, and my CTO pulled me into his office and told me my communication was triggered as spam.
It was so embarrassing, but it was a great lesson learned.
My CTO told me never to use “spam trigger words” in your subject lines.
Be mindful of common spam trigger words that could send your email straight to the junk folder. Words like "free," "guarantee," and excessive use of exclamation marks should be avoided.
Say “no” to these words in your subject line:
Money Back Guarantee
Lose 120 pounds without changing a thing!
Earn $1,000 in a day!!!!
You Hit the JACKPOT today!
100% FREE! Claim NOW!
Spam Subject Line Tester
It’s important to remember spam filters when crafting your subject lines. Most email service providers (ESPs) have built-in spam filters that detect potentially malicious content before it reaches recipients’ inboxes.
These filters check for certain words and phrases that spammers commonly use to protect users from unwanted messages.
Use a spam subject line tester tool to check whether the words in your newsletter will trigger any of these filters before sending them to your readers.
Here are some additional things to avoid when crafting your email subject line:
Poor grammar and spelling (spell check, spell check, spell check!)
All capital letters in your subject line.
Lots of exclamation points in your subject line!!!
The subject line mentions anything about money (remember the story I told!).
Test and Optimize
With so much riding on just a few short words, how can you make sure your email stands out from the crowded inboxes?
Test your subject lines!
So, how do you do this?
You can use beehiiv to run A/B testing on your subject lines, or you can use subject line testers.
You may be wondering what the subject line A/B testing is.
Subject line A/B testing is the process of sending out two (or more) different versions of an email with different subject lines to see which one performs better.
It’s an essential part of email marketing!
You can apply A/B testing (also called split testing) to almost any aspect of your content, but your subject lines are most likely to have the highest impact on the open rate.
beehiiv
When you want to conduct A/B tests on your email subject lines, content, personalization, timing, and mobile optimization, turn your sites to beehiiv. With beehiiv, you can create and measure different A/B tests to implement in your email marketing campaigns.
“I love the A/B testing of subject lines. That’s been really cool,” mentioned Mady Maio of Camber App and her newsletter LA Happenings by Camber.
TestSubject by ZURB
Mobile email readers and devices can often truncate subject lines and sender names, leading to sometimes hilarious but frequently disastrous results. ZURB realized there was a need for a tester who could compose perfect subject lines quickly and easily.
TestSubject is a simple tool for testing how your email subject line and sender name look on the most popular mobile devices and email clients.
Send Check It
If you're looking for an email subject line tester that thoroughly reviews your subject line, Send Check It takes the win.
For those who love analytics, Send Check It gives an overall score assessment of your subject line, then analyzes your subject line against 16 criteria that subject lines are measured against, showing you where your subject line ranks against those criteria.
Conclusion
Crafting an effective email newsletter is not just about sending out information; it’s about creating a connection with your audience.
As we’ve explored, the right subject line can really impact your open rates and engagement levels.
Now that you’re equipped with these strategies, it’s time to take action!
Don’t let your newsletter get lost in the clutter of inboxes any longer.
Join beehiiv now to access tools that make A/B testing and subject line optimization a breeze.
Your audience is waiting—let’s make sure they don’t miss your next newsletter!
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