37 Reminder Email Subject Lines That Get Results

Follow-up emails are quite effective at persuading subscribers and readers to take action. But, for people to open your follow-up emails, your subject line should be pitch-perfect.

You need powerful reminder email subject lines that resonate with your audience, invoke FOMO, and nudge them to open your emails — all without being too salesy.

Not an easy feat …

In this blog post, we’ll explore the secrets behind successful reminder email subject lines and look at 37 examples to inspire your own.

Let’s go!

Table of Contents

The Psychology Behind Successful Reminder Emails

What’s behind every great email subject line? That’s right, it’s emotion.

Whether AI-written or crafted by a talented copywriter, the best reminder email subject lines tap into a reader’s emotions.

Weaving emotions into your subject line language can work wonders for your open rates. A survey from RKD Group Thinkers found that these emotions drove the highest open rates:

Relief (40%)
Pride (39%)
Gratitude (39%)
Optimism (37%)
Excitement (37%)

Now allow me to add to that list. FOMO, or fear of missing out, is another powerful emotion to use. Everyone wants to feel “included.”

Curiosity is another excellent emotion to trigger in your reminder email subject lines. Asking a question is a surefire way to get readers curious, especially if it’s a question with no easy answer or an off-the-wall question (that’s still within the realms of your brand, of course).

So, why do emotions work? They’re an element of personalization, for one. They also help strengthen customer relationships.

Dos and Don’ts of Writing Reminder Email Subject Lines

Are you ready to write reminder emails with subject lines that sing? These dos and don’ts are packed with strategies, tips, and best practices to help you nail the art of producing high-converting subject lines.

DON’T send general email blasts

First things first. Who are you sending your emails to?

The answer should never be “anyone” or, worse yet, “everyone.” You must segment your audience before you press send. If you don’t, your messages will lack that personalized punch that drives people to open and engage with them.

Follow-up or event reminder emails are only useful if people take action based on receiving them. When you send reminders to everyone, they get lost in the shuffle between relevancy and irrelevancy.

DO test your subject lines

Even though you might have had moderate success with your first set of subject lines, you’re not guaranteed to hold an audience’s attention or engagement. You can’t skip testing reminder email subject lines.

A/B testing is a direct comparison of two versions of your subject line. Test the subject lines among two similar audiences with roughly the same makeup, such as size, pain points, interests, finances, etc.

Give enough time for a preference to develop, then select the subject line that tested better among your sample audiences. This one has the most staying power in your target market.

DON’T skip the personalization

Personalizing your subject lines is a must, especially reminder email subject lines. You have plenty of personalization methods at your disposal once you segment your audience groups, such as:

Adding the customer’s name
Incorporating their transaction history
Mentioning a birthday or important anniversary
Touching on their pain points

DO get right to the point

Clarity and conciseness are critical when writing subject lines. If you don’t get to the point quickly enough in your subject line, your audience won’t trust that you’ll do the same in your email body.

They will lose interest quickly and likely stop reading future correspondence. You can also forget about them following up about the tickets, free trial, demonstration, or the occasion for sending a reminder email.

DON’T exceed character limitations

Your reminder email subject line is limited to no more than 60 characters, which is roughly nine words (it depends on the length of the words, though). With so many free character-checking tools on the internet, there’s no excuse not to know how many characters your subject lines are.

If your subject line exceeds the character limit by even one character, your message will get cut off on mobile and desktop. If your readers can’t get the gist of what you’re saying because your subject line is too long, they won’t bother opening the email.

Worse yet, you could lose subscribers if you make long subject lines a habit.

DO ask a question

As I discussed earlier, an evocative question in your reminder email subject line will go a long way toward increasing open rates. You can’t use this trick too often, because then it becomes less effective, but questions work because they inspire curiosity.

You’ll recall that’s an effective emotion for email marketing campaign success.

DON’T use spam words

Many words that seem otherwise innocent are considered spammy by internet service providers or ISPs. If an ISP blocks your email, your recipients will never see it, no matter how good the subject line otherwise is.

I’ve reviewed many spam words to be on the lookout for across several of my posts, but here’s a rundown of some to avoid:

Urgent
Free
Earn money
Guaranteed
Special promotion
Order now
Limited time offer
Winner
Act now
Order today
Bonus
Click here
Congratulations
Fantastic deal
For free
Certified

As you can see, many of those words might already be on your vocabulary list when sending emails. If your open and click-through rates are lower than your industry average, it could be because ISPs block your emails for spam.

Cut the above words out of your subject lines ASAP!

DO build a sense of urgency

The whole point of a reminder email is to make a customer act sooner rather than later. You don’t want them to do something three days or two weeks from now, but today. Your language should push them toward a decision without being too salesy or spammy.

DON’T forget relevant dates and deadlines

If you’re messaging your audience about an upcoming festival or an open enrollment period that concludes at the end of the month, incorporate the relevant deadlines and dates into the reminder email subject line.

I recommend using an abbreviated date format like 2/7 rather than February 7^th. You’ll save on characters that way. There’s no need to type in the year in most instances unless you’re selling early-bird tickets for next year’s event.

DO double-check compliance regulations

With more compliance rules regulating how we send emails, you must review the relevant laws in your country and follow the rules. If you violate consumer privacy laws, you will destroy your audience’s trust.

You’ll lose subscribers, likely by the thousands, if not more, as these kinds of violations usually become big news stories. Your reputation will take a hit, affecting product and service sales.

Most importantly, you might be fined or face other legal consequences for violating the rules, so always comply.

DON’T ignore sender reputation

Your reputation dictates how trustworthy ISPs perceive you, which serves as a good indicator of whether your emails will go through without an issue.

A high bounce rate, sending spam traps, a high unsubscribe rate, low email list quality (by buying email lists), and many spam complaints associated with your business email annihilate your sender reputation. You’ll usually end up blacklisted.

Cleaning up your email hygiene and getting your name removed from blacklists will help you get back into an ISP’s good graces. That’s the great thing about this metric – it’s never set in stone.

DO limit punctuations

Reminder email subject lines should convey urgency with their copy, not excess punctuation. I’m not saying omit punctuation altogether (unless you’re short on character space and the lack of punctuation doesn’t muddle the message).

However, if you’re using a period, question mark, or exclamation point, you only need one.

DON’T use emojis excessively

An emoji or two can underscore your message, such as the yellow triangle with a black exclamation point inside, the red and white megaphone, the red exclamation point, or the red alarm.

These emojis convey urgency, but since they’re so bright and attention-grabbing, there’s no need to use too many. Littering your subject line with emojis can make it look spammy.

DO review KPIs

You’ll never know how well your email marketing campaign performs without tracking metrics such as:

Open rate
Click-through rate
List growth rate
Bounce rate
Subscriber growth
Unsubscribe rate
Conversion rate

If some of your metrics are up and others down, you’re on the right track and have only a few kinks to work out with your email marketing.

DON’T use humor if it doesn’t suit your brand

I’m all for incorporating humor into your reminder email subject lines (and the body content), but you have to use PG humor that gels with your brand and audience. Trying too hard to tell a joke can fall flat and erode customer trust and perception.

37 Reminder Email Subject Lines to Try Today

Let’s go! 37 reminder email subject line examples to inspire your own:

Did you hear our latest podcast?
These deals are going fast
Don’t miss your exclusive coupon code inside
Buy early bird tickets for this year’s fest, Saturday, 5/11
The deadline is approaching
It’s time to get your taxes filed
Hey [name,] have you seen our latest video?
Invoice [number] is due today
The last tickets for our gala are up for grabs
Mark your calendars for this year’s big games
[Name,] are you coming to our event?
The biggest sale of the year starts tomorrow, 10/2
Is there anything we can do to make your purchase easier?
We’re looking forward to seeing you tomorrow!
Our registration is OPEN! Sign up today.
Be there or be square – your last chance to buy tickets
We’ve extended our sale for 24 hours only!
Hi, [name]! Did you know you left items in your cart?
Get excited! Our event is one week away (upcoming event reminder email)
We’re processing your order (follow-up email)
Still haven’t made up your mind? Time is running out.
Register for [webinar event name] by this Thursday (webinar reminder email)
Don’t forget: Next week is our annual gala
We go live in three hours…
Happening now! You won’t want to miss out
Hey, [name]. Did you miss this?
Make today the time to get it done.
Last call for registrations to this year’s event!
Happy birthday, [name]. Enjoy this special gift from us.
Don’t let your 20% off special offer expire!
Don’t forget to join us for today’s live webinar!
Feel the energy – The countdown to our event is on!
Act fast! There’s still time to buy tickets
Aren’t you coming to [appointment name] this weekend? (upcoming appointment reminder email)
Have you RSVP’d yet? You still have time
Can we count on you to be there?
It’s time to party! One week until [event name] (friendly reminder email)

Wrapping Up

Writing reminder email subject lines that inspire your audience to take action requires panache, creativity, and personalization, and should have strong emotions. You want to create an urge so strong in your readers that they must open the email to learn more.

Remember that the basics of great subject line writing all apply. Keep your reminder subject lines within the character limit, use split testing, comply with privacy and security regulations, fall back on excess punctuation, use emojis sparingly, and keep your content on-brand.

EngageBay is an all-in-one marketing, sales, and customer support software that lets you personalize and A/B test your email subject lines. You can also track various email metrics, use our free email templates, and automate your follow-up campaigns with ease.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

1. Are there any words besides spam words that scare readers off?

There are! The RKD Group study I cited before mentions that three words can substantially tank your open rates (into the negatives!).

The word “meeting” led to a decrease in open rates by 213%, “member” by 244%, and “reminder” dropped open rates by 308%.

This shows that if you want to grab your readers’ attention or even try to remind them of something (like a meeting), you must choose your language wisely.

2. I sent a lot of emails, and my sender reputation tanked. Why?

ISPs watch for your email send rate. If it’s too high, it alerts them that you might be mass-emailing people with spammy content. The best way to avoid hurting your sender’s reputation is to warm up your emails, which refers to gradually sending more and more.

Your ISP will increase your email rate allowance, allowing you to expand your email marketing campaign by sending more messages while maintaining your sender reputation.

3. Can I use AI to write reminder email subject lines?

Sure, you can! AI can help in a pinch when you’re feeling creatively stifled. You might not use the AI-generated subject lines as is, but the tech is useful even if it helps you and your team generate some ideas.