3 Email subject lines that increase engagement

We all know that text messaging has a MUCH higher response rate than email. I will be the first to admit I have email fatigue. Too many words = I don’t want to read it. I know that sounds horrible, but it’s the truth. And candidly, the majority of leads are in the same boat. It’s not uncommon to see threads on Facebook where your friends are sharing screenshots of how many un-read emails they have. I currently have just over 62,000 unopened emails. Not proud of it, but it’s true. If it isn’t my family, transaction/staff related, or urgent, I really don’t feel like reading it.  

This current reality means the subject line of your emails are more important than EVER. Below are some of the emails I currently send via my drips in Follow up Boss. I am including their open rates and my rationale behind why I use these subject lines. 

Scenario 1

Property Specific Inquiry- This email is sent to a lead that asked for info on a specific property.  

Email Subject: Did you want to see the inside of %inquiry_address% 

Out of 1,435 emails sent 49% of the emails were opened.  

Why the high open rate? The lead wants info on a house. My subject line gets straight to the point. Wanna see it? And I list the address so it looks like I typed it out myself. When really, merging fields via Follow up Boss does this automatically. 

Scenario 2

Lead has gone unresponsive. They haven’t responded to any drips or attempts to reach the lead. Here, I am attempting to use different “bait” to capture the interest of the lead: 

Email Subject: Here are a few foreclosed listings that could be interesting? 

Out of 2,105 emails sent, 45% have been opened. More importantly, 32% of those opens clicked the link directing them back to my website. 

The high click through rate is due to the fact that EVERYONE wants a good deal. Especially with the largest purchase of your life. For many buyers, foreclosures are an enigma and the fact that you have a list on your website sets you apart! 

Scenario 3

Nurturing a lead into possibly meeting. Being top of mind and not being annoying is challenging. You can only say, “Do you want to see the inside of the house?” 

Email Subject: %contact_first_name%! I found a home similar to %contact_address% 

Out of 959 emails sent, 80% of them were opened. 

Here you are reminding the lead of the house that you were originally contacted on and trying to move them on to the next set of houses.  

The above scenarios and their results vary based on lead quality, timing, and a hint of luck. But generally speaking, if your email subject line has some customization and character you will find a higher open and click through rate. 

My next article on email engagement will be on the content themselves. But here is a hint: write your emails like you would write a text message–SHORT and to the point.