Front-Load Your Value Props

Everything you’ve been taught about writing is wrong when it comes to subject lines.

In school, we learned to build up to the point. Set the scene. Add context. Then reveal the payoff.

Marketing doesn’t work that way.

If I write:

Give yourself the gift of 50% OFF [Product or Service]

It’s… fine. But I’m willing to bet I’ve already lost a good portion of the audience.

But if I write:

50% OFF [Product or Service]? Yes, please.

NOW you’re paying attention.

Why? The reason to buy is at the beginning of the sentence (and your inbox). 

Your most important information can’t be polite. It can’t wait its turn. And it definitely can’t hide in the second half of the sentence.

Discounts, deadlines, benefits, transformations — they belong up front, not buried inside your story like a movie or a novel.

Promotional copy isn’t about sounding “well-written.”

It’s about getting to the point quickly.

Lead with the hook. 

Pique their interest. 

Then tell the story.