Food email marketing is just like any other type of email marketing: you need a compelling subject line that stops the reader in their tracks and persuades them to open the email.
Just as your food needs to entice consumers, so must your email subject lines. These words may make up a small portion of your email content but they’re the most important words in it, so it’s worthwhile to take time crafting your email subject line.
It should contain at least one element that will capture your audiences’ attention for them to click open and say “Tell me more about it”.
Of course, this is easier said than done. That’s why we’ve created this guide to help you formulate subject lines that drive opens and boost conversions.
You only need to look at successful food brands for inspiration for your newsletter and we’ve collected the best examples in this list.
Check out our snacks ecommerce marketing playbook if you want industry-specific best practices and examples for the snacks industry. You can download it here.
Without further ado, let’s dive into the emails:
- Calling all lovers subject line
- Oops email subject line
- Share important news
- Use the concept of future to offer deals
- Send something good for your customers
- Spark curiosity
- Ask them if they have tried
- Showcase fan favorites
- Use the powerful question - Why
- Hear from your audience
1. Calling all lovers subject line
All of us are lovers of something in particular – food, style, occasion, weather, hobby, etc. This type of email subject line naturally targets a specific group of audience. You can never go wrong when you speak directly to someone who innately loves the thing you put forward. Your email will sound like an irresistible offer to them. Let’s say you offer pizza to a pizza lover – you won’t get a “no” and that’s for sure.
- Peanut Butter Lovers? [Muddy Bites]
- Calling All Choklad Lovers - 22% OFF 🍫 ❤️ [Nick’s Ice Creams]
- Calling all antipasti lovers [Brightland]
- CALLING ALL VEGGIE LOVERS [Snow Days]
2. Oops email subject line
No one is immune to making email marketing mistakes. But this type of email is usually not a real mistake, but an engagement strategy. You behave like you’ve done a mistake, but in reality, you didn’t – because people tend to notice these kinds of emails. You can reclaim back customer loyalty using an “oops” expression in your subject line. That’s kind of clever with a little bit of humor. As we know, humor strengthens audience engagement. Also, the oops subject line makes your email look more human.
- Oops...we made a mistake! [Schoolyard Snacks]
- Oops, we sent you the wrong code [Behave]
- Oops! Let's try that again… [Factor_]
- Oops, we got our delivery times mixed up 📦[Thorntons]
3. Share important news
Content pieces that have the word “news” in the subject line generally perform well. People love to hear the news. No one wants to get left behind any important and relevant information that’s happening. So if you have an important announcement around your brand or product – a new offer, new flavor, new store – pretty much anything new, go tell the world. They would love to hear it. Just, be extra creative in your subject line so that your email will sound interesting and entertaining too.
- 🥰 BIG. NEWS. 🥰 [Schoolyard Snacks]
- Good news and bad news … [Chomps]
- Big news at allplants, Antonio [Allplants]
- News That Will Make You Hallå 🎊🗞️[Nick’s Ice Creams]
4. Use the concept of future to offer deals
To most people, the future means something to look forward to. It connotes something new to excite their senses. As a marketer, you can take advantage of the word “future” and its concept in your email subject lines when catching your readers’ attention.
- We've seen your future [Hungryroot]
- Give a gift (+ savings) to your future self [Hungryroot]
- Your future fave meal + a DEAL [Factor_]
- A message to future you [Perfect Keto]
5. Send something good for your audience
One thing is common among businesses (whatever industry they may be) – that is, the customer is the heart and soul of it. It should be made clear to your audience that you care for them, ultimately. One way of showing that is through sending them good emails and offering them good products. It is always a good idea to involve your customers’ welfare in the subject line of your email. Here are some good examples from different food brands. As you would notice, the words “good”, “care”, and “you” are commonly used.
- Food that cares for you [Hungryroot]
- Feel-good flavors that keep you on track [Factor_]
- Some foods and drinks are not just good for your body, but even better for the brain [Neuro]
- This email is good for you 💪 [Allplants]
6. Spark curiosity
Curiosity is something that works wonders. In email subject lines, it can spark curiosity if you would use phrases like “Did you know” and “Do you know”. It serves as clickbait since it seems to challenge their knowledge about something. So if you have juicy info or trivia about your brand, your product, ingredients, etc., it’s essential to use a good subject line so the readers will open your email out of curiosity. And, be sure to offer something informative and interesting once they click through (so you won’t disappoint them).
- ♳ Did you know about the plastic in regular gum? ♳ [TrueGum]
- The Heroes You Didn't Know You Needed… [Allplants]
- Did you know this? [Schoolyard Snacks]
- Do you know what Umami is? [Bokksu]
7. Ask them if they have tried
You are not literally asking your audience if they have already tried your product but, you are actually encouraging them to try it out. Only that, you are using a better approach – a question to make them realize that yeah, they have not yet tried something. That could be pleasing and they might have been missing out on something really good. Sometimes, questions can be a sweet disguise for an aggressive approach.
- Have your tried Dark Chocolate? 🤔 [Muddy Bites]
- Have you tried our combo pack? [Graza]
- Have you ever tried Uji Matcha? [Bokksu]
- You’ve tried Matcha KitKat, right chandao? 🍵 [Immi]
8. Showcase fan favorites
Your offer could be more enticing if you show that your product is someone’s favorite. And by saying favorite, it means that out of other products, it is particularly chosen by someone. What more if you could relate it to a popular personality like celebrities? It would serve as social proof as well.
- Jing’s favorite Chili Crisp Vin recipes 💌 [Fly by Jing]
- "My favorite Hot & Savory yet" 🧡[Huel]
- TRUFF on Oprah’s Favorite Things 2022 🎁 [Truff]
- Gwyneth Paltrow's favorite olive oil [Brightland]
9. Use the powerful question - Why
As some would say, there is great power in inquiry. Indeed, questions (from marketers' point of view), create change and inspire transformation from the customers’ end. There are plenty of ways in which we can use the question Why. Take a look at the examples of email subject lines below. All of them would most probably result in change (conversion) – whether an action, an understanding of certain things, or a decision to choose a product.
- Why Pick Just One? [Snow Days]
- Why early harvest matters [Brightland]
- Why you'll love Wildgrain [Wildgrain]
- WHY… [Schoolyard Snacks]
10. Hear from your audience
Occasionally, you can send emails for the sake of knowing your audience and checking if you’re on the right path in relation to their preferences. When you take the time to listen attentively to your audience, you will learn more about them (their likes, dislikes, shopping behavior, etc.). The information you will gather will help you create a more meaningful marketing effort. It is, therefore, crucial to craft a catchy email subject line to make them click through. It should be humble enough to make your audience spend time giving important feedback.
- Help Us Improve Bokksu! [Bokksu]
- We Want To Hear From YOU! [Snow Days]
- We need your help :) [Schoolyard Snacks]
- Florine, we want to hear from you [Huel]
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