You are not alone.

I recently read something that truly shocked me. And I am not easily shocked. Four words nearly guaranteed to get your email opened are “You Are Not Alone.” It’s known to bring an average open rate of 90%, often stretching to even 100%, and for a wide range of audience groups and subject areas.

Now, isn’t that interesting? I think it says something we, as marketers, should pay attention to.

The most common piece of advice about email subject lines is to identify the company sending the email. It’s a matter of integrity and transparency. Above all else, it sets a context for the communication by saying first who it’s from. We generally advise against trying to be “cute” in subject lines. They so often confuse or turn people off. Clarity should be the priority. But “We are not alone” breaks that rule and yet still manages not to sound salesy, pushy or unwelcome, and it completely breaks the clarity rule. So why does it work so well?

It’s a universal concept.

It seems that not wanting to be alone is a universally recognized feeling that everyone can relate to. It resonates and, as a result, people feel a connection to you and will click to satisfy their curiosity about it.

The feeling of having their back.

Reassuring your customers and customers-to-be that you understand what they’re up against and have the expertise and knowledge to get them passed it is what they seek most. You have to be careful not to trivialize what they have to accomplish yet, or make it seem unrealistically simple to solve. But by setting the tone that you feel for and empathize with them, you create connection and commonality between you.

High response rates, too.

Also interesting is that fact that “You Are Not Alone” also has a very high email response rate. It seems to appeal to a person’s sense of human connection and community, which prompts interaction and response.

If we take it one step further, and take our email and other marketing messages as opportunities to relieve our customers feelings of isolation, doesn’t that offer a fantastic way to connect to our customers and customers-to-be in a very human and authentic way that can help us build trust with them?

Where will the connection break?

If what you offer the reader is not a real need that they know they have, the connection is likely to break there. So the caution is not to disappoint them. Make sure that your message is as on-point for them as it can be and that it addresses a real need they have and know they have.

What I especially like about it as a starting point is that it puts you — the writer of the content — in the right frame of mind to write your message. It sets you into a mindset of real conversation, and helps you focus on the big picture of helping, not manipulating or convincing. I ask you, how more real can you get than to acknowledge that we are all in this together and should help each other?

— Chris Quinn, principal and brand strategist

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