Mini-Series: How to get your cold emails opened

Your subject line = your first impression.

Mess it up, and your email dies unopened.

This is Part 1 of our mini-series on how to boost your cold email open rates. Today, we’re diving into subject lines - what to avoid, what to copy, and how to write a damn good one that has to be opened.

Your subject line is your first impression

It’s one of the three factors that determines whether your email gets opened at all.

Make it count!

Avoid this

SalesPort x Microsoft

{{your Company}} x {{their Company}}

Overused. Uninspiring. Screams “template.”

Daniel from SalesPort

{{your Name}} from {{your Company}}

Too formal + impersonal = instant skip.

For Bill: about verified contact data

For {{their Name}}: about [topic]

This one just says: “mass outreach.”

Do this instead

Write in all lower case

Casual, approachable, and looks like an internal email.

Keep it to a MAXIMUM of 3 words

Brevity is key. At 4+ words, open rates start to tank - we’ve tested it.

Ensure it’s related to your email content

Relevance wins. Always.

A/B test relentlessly...

to understand what resonates with your target audience.

Come up with a number of subject lines and test what works best for your ICP. Then make decisions based on real data.

Lacking inspiration? We’ve got you. Check the end of this post for a broad set of subject line ideas.

Target open rate: 50-90%

Data shows that short, punchy subject lines can boost open rates by up to 30%.

It’s about grabbing attention in an instant.

Yours is below 50%? Likely a deliverability issue (more on that in Part 3 of this series).

Next up: Intro lines

Make sure the first sentence doesn’t kill your email.

Stay tuned for Part 2 next week.

Subject line ideas

[Referral name] shares

[Reference to interest] expert

[Reference to interest] fan

[Referral name] endorsed

[Product/service] upgrade

[Your company] growth

[Problem] solved

[Goal] achieved

[Topic] tactics

[Industry] news

[Topic] trends

[Topic] insights

[Goal] unlocked

[Topic] tips

[Goal] accomplished

[Referral name] secrets

[Referral name] approved

[Your company] progress

[Your company] proposal

[Topic] hacks

[Problem] fixed

[Industry] trends

[Product/service] launch

[Your company] strategy

[Your company] pitch

[Product/service] release

[Topic] strategies

[Reference to interest] devotee

[Topic] optimisation

[Referral name] recommended

[Goal] nailed it [Topic] updates

[Topic] solutions

[Topic] trends & stats

[Reference to interest] fanatic

[Referral name] suggested

[Referral name] method

[Your company] advances

[Referral name] approach

[Your company] milestones

[Topic] secrets

[Goal] exceeded

[Topic] ideas

[Problem] fixed quickly

[Your company] results

[Industry] insights

[Problem] resolved fast