Email Subject Lines That Grab Attention

Since I send about one email per week to my list of email subscribers, I am always trying to write email subject lines that grab attention. I want my reader to be scrolling through email, stop on mine, and feel like they have to read it that very moment.

Guess what? It is hard to accomplish that because email inboxes are overfull and people skim like crazy. One simple way to write email subject lines that grab attention is newsjacking.

What the what? What the heck is Newsjacking?

Newsjacking allows you to piggyback a viral news story for massive engagement. Author and marketer David Meerman Scott coined the newsjacking term. He explains it as “the process of leveraging trending news to elevate your brand’s message.” This practice also gives your offer credibility when done properly. So just when do you high-jack newsworthy events and headlines to improve your email marketing?

The website NewsJacking.com has clearly identified the perfect place in the life of a news story to attract the most attention to your business. Shortly after a story breaks, write and send a broadcast email to your subscribers. Add words and phrases relevant to the story in your email subject line to create relevance and interest.

Example of Email Subject Lines that Grab Attention

Here is an example of newsjacking. Perhaps there is breaking news about a wide-spread power outage during one of the biggest sporting events of the year. Let’s pretend you sell cookies. How in the world can you piggyback this seemingly unrelated story to create exposure to your yummy tasting cookies?

Think creatively.

When a massive power outage happened in the middle of the 2013 Superbowl, the Oreo cookie company acted quickly. Their message was simple … but extremely effective. They posted a 2 sentence, 4 word tweet on Twitter that received over 15,880 retweets and more than 6,200 favorites. What was the message?

“Power out? No problem. You can still dunk.” followed by a link to the Oreo website, and a dimly lit picture of an Oreo cookie.

The company is now seen as a newsjacking leader. A simple picture and Tweet (the message was not really that creative when you think about it) resulted in over 20,000 actions taken by Twitter users.

The cost of the Tweet? Nothing, zero, zip, zilch, nada.

That is the incredible power of newsjacking, and you can use it in your email campaigns as well as on social media.

How to Put Newsjacking Into Action

Using the Oreo example and applying it to email, Oreo could have sent a broadcast email to all of their subscribers with the following subject line, “Missing the Big Game? Take an Oreo Break”. Or maybe you could try “While the Game is Blacked Out, Accept This Free Gift”, and offer a free trial subscription, discounted offer or coupon for a later purchase.

The key is to quickly send an email to your subscribers integrating some “late breaking” news item into your marketing message.

This harnesses the respect and trust your captive email audience has for you, possibly creating a viral social media situation that can expand your brand presence and reach while your competitors sit on the sidelines. Not to mention boost your sales at an unexpected time.

More Email Copywriting Tips

If you are frustrated with the results of your email marketing, feel like you’re wasting your time when you spend hours trying to craft the perfect marketing email, or you just aren’t getting many sales from your emails, then the Email Copywriting Workbook can teach you how to craft the right structure and copy for every email.  If you know what to write and how to write it, your emails can effortlessly convert prospects to customers and build a lasting, profitable relationship with your current customers.