Want an easy strategy that will actually get your travel agent e-newsletters opened? No more screaming (erhm, writing) into the void! It’s called closing the loop.
I first learned this tip from master copywriter Joanna Wiebe at Copyhackers. It’s a simple — but oh-so-powerful — way to easily up the ante in your email subject lines.
Think of your subject line and email content as a loop, where you “open the loop” by hinting at something in the subject line, which will entice people to open the email to “close the loop” and satisfy their curiosity.
Let me explain it with an example. Say you wrote a your travel agent e-newsletter about the new over-the-water bungalows at Sandals Royal Caribbean in Jamaica. Your e-newsletter’s feature article is all about how the bungalows would make the ultimate romantic getaway for Valentine’s Day.
The Loop in Action
Take a look at these two (very similar) possible subject lines:
This resort will make you fall in love all over again.
Or …
This will make you fall in love all over again.
Which subject line do you think your readers will be more likely to click open? Chances are, it’s the 2nd one — by a long shot.
That’s because the 2nd subject line leaves the loop of information open, and since we’re all curious by nature, we’ll be dying to “close the loop” by clicking the email and reading to learn more.
The open loop creates instant intrigue. Just by removing the word “resort,” you’ll have your readers thinking, “What will make me fall in love again???? Tell me more!” But with the first email, you’ve answered the question (to an extent) in the subject line itself. There’s less of a payoff when folks open the email.
Here’s another example:
Pack this sleep mask for the most relaxing long haul flight ever.
Vs.
Pack this for the most relaxing long haul flight ever.
Which subject line do you think creates more intrigue? Yep — the 2nd one!
An open loop subject line creates an itch, which your readers can only satisfyingly scratch when they open the email to learn what the heck you’re talking about.
The best part? It’s so simple to implement. Just remove the noun in your subject line! Try it with your next couple of travel agent e-newsletters and see what happens.
[…] Actually, scratch that — pay the most attention to your subject lines. Why? Because even if you’ve written the most strategic follow up campaign ever, nothing’s going to come of it if no one opens your emails in the first place! Subject lines should never be an afterthought. Check out this blog post with a proven strategy for writing subject lines that get clicked. […]