Businesses of all sizes rely on customer surveys to gather customer insights and feedback. The information you glean can be used to improve processes and strengthen the customer experience.
However, it’s difficult enough for small businesses to drive decent open rates, especially with a tiny email list. Then, there’s the struggle of getting your target market to participate in the survey.
Fortunately, you have a reliable strategy for improving open rates, which can, in turn, help survey participation rates. The strategy is simple: write good subject lines.
Well, I say it’s simple, but producing survey email subject lines that connect with your audience is sometimes easier said than done.
As a small business owner, mastering this trick early on is integral to helping your business gain an edge over the competition and become a bigger fish in the pond. Join me as I share actionable tips for creating survey email subject lines that boost response rates, including real examples!
Table of Contents
Key Takeaways for Small Business Owners
- Crafting survey email subject lines that work requires personalization, a sense of urgency, curiosity, clarity, and conciseness.
- Mentioning a reward for participation will increase your email open rates and lead to higher survey participation rates.
- Use A/B testing to refine your subject lines, as this will produce better results.
The Importance of a Compelling Subject Line for Survey Emails
All emails must have a subject line, but only compelling ones achieve the results you seek, such as high opens and survey participation.
So, what motivates people to open emails?
Numbers help, with sales engagement software Klenty reporting that subject lines with numbers averaged an open rate of 20 percent.
Using currency values is also good, as the open rates for those emails were 29% versus 13% without. Asking a question increases opens by 20%, while it’s only 12% if you forego the question marks.
Even emojis can help your survey email marketing, as emojis have an open rate of 20%. Skipping the emojis produces an open rate of only 12%.
Key Elements of Effective Survey Email Subject Lines
What does it take to connect meaningfully with audiences, encourage them to open your messages, and enthusiastically engage with your surveys? Your survey subject lines must go above and beyond, exemplifying these elements.
Clarity and conciseness
In 60 characters or fewer, you must express that you’re issuing a survey, when the survey is due, and why your audience should take it. Is it easy? No, of course not, but it’s doable.
I’m not saying this skill will come naturally to you at first, especially if you’ve never written short-form copy before. With enough practice, you can begin eyeballing what 60 characters look like and tweak your messages.
However, as you edit, remember not to sacrifice clarity in the name of brevity. If your subject line has too many elements and you can’t fully explain them, narrow it down.
For example, rather than saying, “Take our socioecological study and help us out; due 7/9, more information,” write, “Will you take our ecological survey? Due 7/9!”
A subject line doesn’t have to achieve everything. Its job is merely to warm up a reader for what’s to come in the email. That’s where they’ll expect to see the full details.
Personalization
Survey email subject lines benefit from personalization. Truly, all subject lines do.
You’ve already identified a subset of your audience for the survey. Use their name in your subject line to make them feel even more special and individualized. You could even briefly mention criteria that made them eligible for selection, character length permitting.
Why is personalization so important? In addition to the customer satisfaction element, Mailmodo found that 72% of people will interact exclusively with personalized messaging.
You can achieve open rates as high as 29% and click-through rates of over 40%, ensuring more of your audience opens your message and can take your survey.
Curiosity
Emotional elements are one of the biggest drivers of high open rates in email marketing campaigns. You especially need all the tricks you can get when writing survey email subject lines. Unlike other email campaigns, where you’re giving people something (like a discount), you’re asking for something from them.
This is an excellent time to wield the power of curiosity responsibly. One of my favorite ways to do that is through asking questions.
Now, almost any type of question will do, but you want to think up some good ones that make the recipient take a moment to ponder over your email. That’s the power of a good question. It grabs attention and keeps the recipient from scrolling.
Once they’re curious, they’re inclined to open the email. Then, it’s just a matter of convincing them to complete your survey.
Urgency
You’re surveying your target audience to propel your small business forward. Maybe you just hosted an event and want to hear what the attendees thought. Perhaps you’re brainstorming a new product or service and want to know how much need and interest your target market has.
Whatever the purpose and goal, you don’t have forever to wait for survey responses. You have business objectives to complete, and that means getting answers in a timely manner.
Convey that sense of urgency in your emails by using these terms:
- Deadline
- Urgent
- Hurry
- Need
- Now
- Critical
- Important
- Crucial
- Big
- Immediate
Another way to express the urgency around your survey email is to use capitalization and punctuation. However, the key here is to go sparingly with both.
For example, let’s look at a last-call email survey subject line: “Survey Deadline Is TONIGHT! Have You Completed Yours Yet?”
Capitalizing the word “tonight” underscores its significance. That’s the word the recipient’s eye will naturally drift to first because it’s capitalized. However, that’s the most important word in the entire subject line, so it’s fine that you capitalized it, as that’s the takeaway the recipient will walk away with.
Let’s rewrite it just for the sake of example. “Survey DEADLINE Is TONIGHT! Have YOU Completed Yours Yet?”
Now, there are three capitalized words that have changed their importance. As a result, the first sentence means less, although capitalizing “you” in the second sentence is a nice touch.
Numbers
Writing survey email subject lines is very numbers-driven. From your email introducing the survey to recurring reminders and last-minute messages, you should consistently mention the deadline and other relevant numbers in your email’s subject line.
You’ll recall that emails with numbers usually have a higher open rate, which will benefit you nicely.
Emojis
That’s right, I’m recommending you use emojis. Strange, right?
Not really. Like capitalization and punctuation, if you are careful when using emojis in email subject lines, they can be a valuable asset in driving better open rates.
The question I’m sure you have is which types of emojis are okay for survey email subject lines? There are no specific survey emojis, but you can’t go wrong with the following:
- Desktop computer – 🖥️
- Laptop computer – 💻
- Keyboard – ⌨️
- Computer mouse – 🖱️
- Email – 📧
- Incoming envelope -📨
- Open mailbox with raised flag – 📬
- Chart increasing – 📈
- Calendar – 📅
- Speaking head – 🗣️
- Alarm clock – ⏰
- Clock – 🕑
- Money – 💰
- Present – 🎁
70+ Survey Email Subject Lines To Boost Your Response Rate
What better way to explore the vast world of email subject lines than to share some of our own? The following survey-centric subject lines are courtesy of EngageBay. Feel free to use them or modify them to your heart’s content!
- We Value Your Feedback: Take Our Quick Survey!
- Got a Minute? Help Us Improve [product/service name]! 🕑
- Share Your Thoughts, Get a Reward! 💰
- Your Opinion Matters: Shape Our Future Services
- Exclusive Invite: Join Our Feedback Club
- Help Us Help You: Quick Survey Inside
- How Did We Do? Quick Survey + Thank You Gift 🎁
- Be Heard: Your Feedback Drives Our Innovation
- [Name], Can We Ask for Your Feedback?
- Your Voice, Our Direction: Quick Survey 🗣️
- Can We Ask You a Favor, [Name]? Complete Our Survey
- We Want Your Feedback: Take Our Survey and Win!
- Help Us Improve: Take Our Quick Survey Now
- Due Next Week 📅 Have You Taken Our Survey Yet?
- URGENT: 24 More Hours to Complete Our Survey ⏰
- Due [date]: Complete Our Survey Today
- We Want to Hear Your Opinion! 🗣️ Share Our Survey
- Give Us the Deets: Share Feedback on Our Survey
- We Value Your Input. Participate in Our Survey
- We’re Listening! 👂We Want You to Complete Our Survey
- You’ve Been Chosen for Our Latest Survey!
- Take Our Survey and Make a Difference Today
- Your Voice Counts 🗣️ Complete Our Survey
- Shape Our Future with Your Insights
- Tell How We’re Doing: Take Our Survey Today
- Customer Feedback Wanted: Complete Our Survey for Rewards 💰
- Shape Your Experience: Take Our Quick Survey Now
- Survey Time: Share Your Thoughts to WIN 💰
- Feedback Requested – Take Our Survey for Exclusive Benefits
- Customer Satisfaction Survey: Your Input Needed!
- Have You Taken Our Customer Satisfaction Survey Yet?
- We Want YOU to Complete Our Survey!
- REMINDER: One More Week to Complete Our Survey 📅
- Join the Conversation: Participate in Our Survey
- You Can Win – Answer Our Survey Today
- Unlock Rewards: Share Your Feedback in Our Survey!
- Your Opinion Counts: Complete Our Survey for Exclusive Perks
- Participate and Win: Take Our Survey for Prizes 🎁
- Get Rewarded for Your Thoughts – Take Our Survey Now!
- We’re All Ears! 👂Share Your Feedback in Our Survey
- Your Experience, Your Say: Complete Our Survey Today!
- Join Our Research Panel – Complete Our Survey for Benefits
- Elevate Your Experience – Share Your Thoughts in Our Survey
- Survey Alert 🚨Your Input Needed to Enhance Our Services!
- Win Big by Sharing Your Opinions: Take Our Survey Now!
- We’re Listening – Complete Our Survey for Exclusive Rewards
- Help Us Get Better – Tell Us YOUR Thoughts
- Unlock Perks: Share Your Feedback in Our Survey
- Feedback Needed: Please Complete Our Survey
- Shake Up the Status Quo and Fill Out Our Survey Now
- Survey Safari: Roam Through Questions and Unlock Rewards
- Opinion Odyssey: We Can’t Wait to Hear Yours
- Embark on a Journey with Our Survey
- Explore Our Survey and Chart New Paths
- Take Our Survey and Trek into New Insights!
- Survey Safari: Hunt for Truths and Uncover Prizes
- We’re on a Quest for Quality. Will You Help Us?
- [Name], We Haven’t Heard from You About Our Survey Yet
- Do You Still Plan to Take Our Survey, [Name]?
- We’d Love to Hear from You About Our Survey
- Blaze Trails and Make Your Mark in Our Survey!
- We’re on a Quest for Insight and Need Your Help
- Opinions Are Powerful. Are You Ready to Share Yours? 🗣️
- Our Yearly Survey Launches in Two Weeks. Are You Ready?
- Join Our Survey Journey and Lead the Way!
- Help Us Paint a Better Picture: Complete Our Survey
- Our Survey Drops at Noon Today [date] 📅
- We’re LIVE! Take Our Survey Now
- Fuel Our Future: Participate in Our Survey
- Use Your Voice! Take Our Survey and Be Heard
- Insights Wanted. Can You Help Us Out, [name]?
- Join Our Survey Today and Make a Difference!
- Discover, Share, Reward: Take Our Survey Now!
- Survey Spotlight: Your Chance to Shine and Win
- We’re on a Journey to Improvement and Need YOU
- Help Us Navigate with Your Valuable Feedback
- We Got Your Results! Thanks for Participating
- It’s Voices Like Yours That Matter Most 🗣️
Best Practices for Maximizing Survey Email Open Rates
If you follow these steps when formulating your survey email subject lines, you can achieve high open rates.
Segment your audience
You might think that sending your survey to everyone will maximize participation, but it can do the opposite. Those who shouldn’t receive the survey because they’re a new conversion or have only purchased from you once or twice won’t be able to provide valuable insights.
Instead, focus on your longest-term customers with the deepest purchasing history. They have been with you the longest and can offer the most value to your survey.
If you want to hear what your new customers have to say, then issue a separate survey.
Mention the reward
You don’t have to be specific about the reward; none of the examples I shared with you do that. However, even the mention of a gift or reward, especially when used in conjunction with the money bags or wrapped gift emoji, really drives home that something good awaits the recipient for participating.
Ultimately, it’s that reward that will inspire their participation the most, so you need to make it apparent in your subject lines, although not to the point of repetition.
Keep it on-brand
The subject lines presented in the last section are yours for the taking. You have the best grasp of your brand, so feel free to change any verbiage to suit your tone. After all, if your subject lines shift away from the brand you’ve worked so hard to cultivate, you can alienate your audience.
As a small business still establishing your presence, you need a rock-hard brand that you never deviate from. That applies to minor communications like email subject lines.
Make participation feel important
Lots of the survey email subject line examples above mentioned words designed to make the recipient feel like a million bucks. Writing personalized subject lines and catering to the fact that you chose this person specifically now drives up their interest and—dare I say—a sense of obligation to complete the survey.
They feel you’re counting on them, so they won’t want to disappoint you. Suddenly, they’re not only driven by the reward but almost ensuring survey participation.
Use A/B Testing
As readymade as those subject lines are, I recommend split testing before launching your survey email marketing campaign. You need to test everything, not only the subject lines but the CTA verbiage and placement, the body copy, videos, images, and links.
You also need to give yourself enough time to do this. If your survey is supposed to launch next Friday, you’re cutting it really close with your A/B testing.
You should have several weeks of leeway in between to ensure you can take your time to test and improve your email content as needed.
Determine the right timing and frequency
When is the right time to send survey emails? The first email in the drip campaign should be launched when you announce the survey. Maybe it will go live about a week after the first email mentioning the launch.
And how often should you send emails? Well, you first have to announce the survey, including when you’ll send it. After you do that, you can give your email survey recipients about a week to respond before sending a follow-up.
Depending on how long they have to send in their survey responses (which should be between a week and a month), you can send another follow-up.
The max number of follow-up reminders should be three, so make sure you space them out. If you send too many reminders, your audience will get annoyed and could report you for spam.
You’ll also de-incentivize anyone who was maybe thinking of completing the survey but had waited.
Conclusion
Small businesses should harness the power of well-written survey email subject lines early to improve the success of their feedback collection efforts. The strategies outlined throughout this guide are here for you to enhance audience engagement and elevate your insights, so please give them a try!
FAQ
What makes a survey email subject line effective?
Personalization is a leading force in email marketing success. It increases open rates by connecting personally with the recipient, whether by making them curious, inspiring them by mentioning a reward or making them feel important.
How can I increase the open rates for my survey emails?
Besides the strategies discussed throughout, optimize your subject lines for mobile, maintain your email list so more engaged people will receive your survey notices, and use a familiar sender name.
Is it beneficial to include incentives in my subject line?
It is, but remember, you can’t have too many elements in your subject line at the same time, or it will get too crowded. At the very least, mentioning a reward and elaborating more in the email copy can be effective and beneficial.
What are some common mistakes to avoid in survey email subject lines?
There are so many mistakes to be aware of when writing survey email subject lines, including surpassing the character limit, overloading your emails with punctuation and caps, using too many emojis, not checking for basic grammar and spelling, using spam words, and sending emails too often.
What percentage of responses should I aim for with my survey?
You shouldn’t expect a 100% response rate. If you achieve 50%, that’s well above average. Instead, as a small business issuing a survey for the first time, aim for a 5-30% response rate.
