GiveBIG is King County’s annual day of giving. Spearheaded by The Seattle Foundation, this is a stupendous opportunity for local nonprofits to get donors engaged and get in on some matching fund action.
HOWEVER, there are 1600+ nonprofits vying for people’s attention leading up to, and on the day of, this Give-a-Palooza. Standing out from the crowd is a must.
This is an online campaign, so eblasts are flying like crazy. You’ve got to nail your subject line. Not to sound alarmist, but it can make or break the success of your GiveBIG efforts.
Here are 3 tips for writing click-worthy subject lines:
- Make it a question: Subject lines written as questions have an open rate that is, on average, double that of other types of subject lines.
- Use ‘you and your’: These are called “self-referencing cues”. Using them makes it about the reader. And academic research tells us that’s a good thing.
- Use the word ‘why’: For example, ‘Why you should care about next Tuesday’. It suggests that by opening the email, the reader will find out why. Our brains feel out of sorts until we know the answer. And therefore your readers are motivated to find out.
Here’s how you could super size your success by putting these tips together (like combo meals for your subject lines):
Do you know why next Tuesday is such a big deal?
Why you’re our hero.
You and your awesomeness needed next Tuesday
BONUS TIP
Here’s the headline you should NOT write: “GiveBIG to [insert the name of your organization]”.
It’s not about you and your organization. It’s about the difference you’re making in the community, on behalf of the people you serve. Make it about them and how the donor can be part of that awesome work. They are the heroes.
GOOD LUCK!!!