According to 80% of professionals, email marketing is an efficient tool that drives customer acquisition and retention. Since your audience opts in to receive these messages, they’re one of the most certain ways to reach your audience – that is, unless they unsubscribe.

In order to maintain your subscriber base and increase your open rate, compelling copy is crucial. Your readers need to look forward to receiving your newsletters, whether it’s because they’re informative or contain compelling reasons to interact with your brand.

Whether you’re planning your first newsletter or want to revamp your current strategy, here are some email copy tips that will help improve conversions and retain subscribers.

Keep It Concise

“Don’t write lengthy email copy, and don’t overwhelm with too much imagery surrounding the copy, or you’ll get the flick of the thumb,” suggests Alex Kafure, a digital marketing consultant.

If your readers find your emails to be winding or irrelevant, they’ll end up in the trash or routed to spam. However, being concise can be a difficult part of the writing process for many.

Think of what information your readers will find important, and cut out the fluff. This includes the timing of your emails. Don’t have an email newsletter for the sake of a newsletter, and only send out a message when you have something important to say.

Try this one brave tip: Write out everything you need to say, then slash it in half. This is often all you’ll need in order to get your point across.

Pay Attention to Your Subject Line

Nailing the subject line is probably one of the most important email copywriting tips you should heed. You’ll have a hard time getting someone to read your impeccable newsletter if they’re not compelled to open it in the first place. In fact, 35% of recipients will open your email based on the subject line alone.

The best subject lines for email copy using actionable language such as “download,” “reserve,” “buy,” or “ask,” along with a hint to what newsletter topic lies within. Alternatively, it provides a hint to the reader about what they’ll find inside. Call out whether or not your email includes an infographic, video or other type of media. For example, a compelling subject line for a gym might be, “These 5 Total-Body Workouts Can Be Completed In Just 20 Minutes [VIDEO].”

Personalize Your Message

“Always personalize subject lines when possible, and never forget to include someone’s name at the start of the email, even if it’s a promotion,” says Kafure.

It might seem like a small detail, but personalizing your email makes all of the difference. It’s so easy to include your reader’s name in your salutation, to the point where not using it is just kind of lazy.

In addition to including their name, consider tailoring your email to reference a recent purchase or transaction that your customer made. These kinds of segmented and targeted emails generate 58% of all revenue.

With these tips in mind, you’ll be well on your way to creating emails that your subscribers will actually look forward to receiving. Remember that there is no cut-and-dry formula for newsletter success, and you should take your cues from your audience to see what they respond to best. And if your email copy could use some love, we can create a newsletter for you that will never make its way into the trash.