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7 Bad Email Subject Lines to Avoid — and How To Fix Them
Award-winning writer Kathy Widenhouse has written 9 books and garnered 800K+ views for her writing tutorials.
Posted 10.9.26
A couple of times a day, I click open my email inbox, skim the subject lines, highlight 20–30 emails … and hit “Delete.”
Bad email subject lines make it easy for me. And I bet for you, too.
But there’s another side of the coin. And it’s particularly important if you publish your own newsletter or create email campaigns for writing clients.
Bad email subject lines prevent Opens
Like you, I work to make the content of my emails useful … inspiring … occasionally, even funny. I pack my emails with valuable information my readers need.
None of that matters if my reader never clicks “Open.”
That’s the power — and the problem — with email subject lines.
Your subject line has one job: Convince your reader that opening your email is worth a few seconds of their time.
Unfortunately, plenty of perfectly good emails get saddled with perfectly awful subject lines.
Fortunately, those bad email subject lines are easy to spot.
Here are the ones to replace so you can avoid the Delete key — and what to write so you get the Open instead.
7 bad email subject lines to avoid — and what to write instead
1. The Generic Newsletter
Also known as …
XYZ Newsletter
Monthly Update
XYZ News
[Month] Newsletter
There’s nothing technically wrong with these subject lines. And that’s the problem. They’re simply not interesting.
Your reader already knows it’s an email from you. And unless your newsletter is so eagerly anticipated that people are panting by their inboxes for it to appear each week, the word newsletter doesn’t give them much reason to click.
How to fix it
Use the subject line to sell the content inside the newsletter. Your email may be a newsletter. But that’s the format, not necessarily the benefit.
- For instance, if your newsletter includes three quick ways freelancers can find new clients, try: 3 ways to find your next freelance client
- If you’re sharing a surprising lesson you’ve learned, try: The writing mistake I made for years
Lead with what readers will get, learn, discover, or enjoy.
2. The Fake Reply
These subject lines can be tricky to recognize. At first glance, they appear genuine.
RE: Your account
RE: Quick question
FW: Thought you’d want this
There’s just one problem: You never sent the original email. The sender added RE: or FW: to make the email look like part of an existing conversation, hoping the message stands out in a crowded inbox.
Not cool. The Fake Reply makes readers feel tricked. That’s a lousy way to begin a relationship — or maintain one.
How to fix it
- If you really have a question, simply say so: Quick question about your writing goals
- If you want to share something, say: Thought you might find this useful
You don’t need to manufacture a conversation. Write like a real person and start one.
3. CAPS AND PUNCTUATION GONE WILD!!!!!
OPEN NOW!!!!!
DON’T MISS THIS!!!
LAST CHANCE!!!!!
All caps feels like you’re shouting on paper. A parade of exclamation points makes the bellowing even louder. Yelling rarely pulls in readers.
Instead, it marks you as an amateur. You’re relying on tricks rather than words to create urgency. One exclamation point occasionally is fine. But five? Your keyboard needs an intervention.
Plus, all caps and exclamation points are trademarks of spam. Email providers filter signals to direct a message to an inbox or spam folder. An overly promotional subject line indicates an unwanted email, which lands in spam.
Yet even if your email sails straight into the inbox, you’ve still got a human being that must be convinced to click Open. And people generally don’t like being yelled at.
How to fix it
Instead of: LAST CHANCE TO REGISTER!!!!!
Try: Registration closes tonight at 11
Give a hard deadline. Same urgency, less screaming.
Get your FREE Email Subject Line checklist here.
4. The Spammy Sale
A spammy sales pitch is much like its cousins, All Caps and Punctuation. You’ll recognize it in your inbox with subject lines like …
Earn Cash Fast
100% Guaranteed
Act Now and Win
Yes, these subject lines make a promise. That’s an important prerequisite for an email subject line — or any headline, for that matter. But what makes these promises so spammy is that they’re too good to be true. They promise the world for nothing. And as we all know, there ain’t no free lunch.
How to fix it
Use your subject line to show value, rather than something for nothing. A spammy headline moves to the engaging category when it becomes believable and useful.
Compare: FREE OFFER — ACT NOW!!!
With: Your free writing checklist is inside
The second subject line still uses free. But it sounds useful and believable rather than like something a Nigerian prince sent in 2003.
Your subject line’s goal isn’t to eliminate every potentially promotional word. Your goal is to sound trustworthy. Be useful rather than vague, and readers will believe you more.
5. The Nothing Subject Line
Hi
You won’t believe this
Important
Guess what?
Check this out
Check what out? Readers shouldn’t have to open your email to figure out what you’re talking about. So they won’t.
Curiosity can be a powerful writing tool. Confusion isn’t. There’s a difference between creating a curiosity gap and withholding so much information — even no subject line at all — that your reader has no idea why the email matters.
How to fix it
Write a subject line that shows why the content matters to the reader. Give them enough information to understand the value while leaving a little room for curiosity.
Instead of: You need to see this
Try: The 10-minute writing trick I’ve been testing
Instead of: Important
Try: One change to make before you send your appeal
Now you’ve created a reason to open. Good subject lines create curiosity with context.
6. The Paragraph Wannabe
And now for the opposite extreme. You try to cram the entire email into the subject line, as in …
Here are seven simple strategies you can start using today to improve your fundraising letters
It’s too long. By the time readers get to improve, their phone has chopped off the rest.
Your readers don’t always see your carefully crafted subject line exactly as you wrote it. Screen size, email app, device, font size, and other factors can affect how much appears.
How to fix it
Write shorter subject lines. And don’t make every word fight for survival. Front-load the important information.
Instead of: Here are seven simple strategies you can start using today to improve your fundraising letters
Try: 7 ways to improve your fundraising letter
Or even: Is your fundraising letter donor-friendly?
Shorter isn’t always better. Clarity is. But if you can say the same thing in eight words instead of 18, eight will usually have the advantage.
7. The Emoji Parade
One emoji can add personality. Seven emojis can make your subject line look as though your keyboard just discovered confetti.
Compare …
🔥🔥🔥 HUGE SALE!!! 💰💰😱🚨
With …
🌱 5 things to do in your garden this weekend
The second emoji actually has meaning. It provides a visual cue that reinforces the topic. That’s a useful test.
How to fix it
Ask yourself …
- Does this emoji add meaning or personality — or am I just decorating? If it’s decoration for decoration’s sake, you probably don’t need it.
- Does the emoji fit the reader? Emojis may feel perfectly natural in a casual gardening newsletter but out of place in an email to a foundation program officer.
- Am I adding an emoji because I don’t know what words to use? Experiment with different types of email subject lines before using an emoji crutch.
Like exclamation points, emojis are seasoning. A little can make your writing more interesting. Dump in the entire container, and nobody can taste the food.
Use these ready-to-go templates to reach out to prospects.
What good email subject lines have in common
Avoiding bad email subject lines is only half the battle. You also need to know what to put in their place.
Fortunately, good subject lines don’t need to be masterpieces. They simply need to do 3 things.
- Be clear. Your subject line isn’t a generic title (XYZ Newsletter) or a Nothing Title.
- Be specific. You’ve avoided writing an entire paragraph in the subject line or making a spammy sales pitch.
- Give the reader a reason to care. You’re specific. You’ve offered value. Or you’ve created urgency with a deadline or other limit. You may even tease with an emoji, if it’s appropriate.
You don’t have to dream up the most dazzling subject line anyone has ever seen. You simply need to answer the question your reader is unconsciously asking while scanning an overflowing inbox:
Why should I open this?
Answer that question clearly, specifically, and honestly.
Then, let your terrific email do the rest.
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