Subject line
<4
words in the subject line
Short phrases that look like an internal note beat full sentences and headlines.
Takeaway: “lobby refit”, “banquet seating”, “bodrum opening”.
The key numbers from Gong, 30 Minutes to President’s Club and Jason Bay’s study of what actually books meetings — subject lines, length, personalisation, the ask and the follow-up. Keep it open next to your outbox.
Top reps get a few more opens, many more replies — and by the time it reaches the calendar, 8× the meetings. Not by working 8× harder: by writing differently.
Six rules for the message itself. Each one comes straight from the data.
Short phrases that look like an internal note beat full sentences and headlines.
No subject looks like clickbait. Lowercase, priority-based subjects win; buzzwords, numbers and name-dropping lose.
Short enough to read on a phone without scrolling.
Personalisation → problem → solution → ask. That’s the whole email.
Top reps write far more “you / your team” and far less “we / our”. Pitch words measurably lower replies.
Ask for interest, or offer something useful they get even if they never buy — a quote, a sample, a moodboard.
Most replies don’t come from the first email. Six numbers on how to follow up without becoming noise.
Never send one email and stop. Replies keep coming through the sixth email or so.
Past four weeks it’s time to rest the account and spend the effort on fresh prospects.
Reply in the same thread with one line — “any thoughts?” — not a re-pitch.
Asking for a clear yes or no nearly doubles reply rates on later emails.
A short voicemail that points to the email turns a cold name into a reply.
Prioritise high-intent accounts, then reference a business problem — not their university or hobby.
Tap each line as you check your email. Eight yeses and it’s ready to go.
The complete study with every chart. Plus the training that turns these numbers into habits.
The data keeps landing in the same place: a four-sentence email in their language, an easy ask, and a handful of short follow-ups across channels.