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The Best Church Subject Lines You Aren’t Using

LPi • Jan 07, 2021

As technology advances, and parishes become more and more reliant on electronic communications, it’s necessary to become more creative when writing and sending out important (and not-so-important!) emails to parishioners, visitors and potential members. As firewalls become sturdier, and people become choosier in what kind of mail they want to receive, parishes need to convey that the messages that come from the office — whether that be from the pastor, deacon, leader of a ministry or the parish secretary — are important to receive.

According to the Radicati Group , the total number of business and consumer emails sent and received per day exceeds 293 billion in 2019 — and is only expected to grow. What does that mean for parishes that rely on email to get their message out? That they have a lot of competition.

Luckily, if you have a church member’s email address, chances are they are already invested. They are involved in a ministry that sends them updates, or they receive their financial statements on the regular from the parish administrator. Maybe they even receive semi-regular updates from the pastor. But … do you know if these people are actually opening the email you send them? Until you know for sure it’s worth it to spend the time you spend writing, editing and sending email communications, it’s important to know who is opening what.

A Case Study

St. Michael Parish has been sending out a blog from the deacon to all registered parishioners each Wednesday. It takes nearly four hours for the deacon to write his reflection, the parish secretary to edit it, and then send it off using an email platform. However, when they checked email statistics, they noticed that of the 600 emails they’ve been sending to, only 40-50 actually open it. This naturally leads to many questions: is this reflection worth it to send? Is there an issue with the firewall? Could it get a better reception using a different delivery method?

After checking the stats and seeing no issue with addressee firewalls, the parish staff started to look at ways to better entice people to open the emails, and the subject line became front and center. According to Oberlo , the average email open rate is 20.81%. But if you personalize your emails, you’ll start to see the incredible impact that personalization can have.

Emails with customized subject lines generate 50% higher open rates, according to Yes Lifecycle Marketing. A great email marketing tip would be to customize your subject lines to include individual names when you send out emails. Depending on the type of email platform you subscribe to, you may already have the ability to do this. It’s also beneficial to customize your inside copy, too, like adding a personalized salutation to your messages.

50 Best Email Subject Lines for Churches

The next time you must send out an email to members, visitors and prospective parishioners, considering using one of these unique subject lines to increase your open rate.

Personalized

  • Tracy — We have a favor to ask you
  • Fr. Michael has requested a meeting with you, Rick
  • Marti, are you available for dinner tomorrow?
  • Christy, we couldn’t have done it without you
  • Todd, someone mentioned you’d be interested
  • Fr. Michael suggested you read this, Doug
  • We’re praying for you, Katie!
  • Rita, you ready for that coffee?
  • Matt, the results are in!
  • Colleen, your raffle tickets are in
  • Manny, how can we pray for you today?

Asking for Volunteers/Donations

  • We heard you’re good with kids — can you spare an hour?
  • We need your help with dinner tomorrow!
  • The festival is coming up this weekend — can you make it?
  • You forgot your raffle tickets!
  • Got any peanut butter to spare?
  • Desperately Seeking Mac & Cheese!
  • Can you man a ring toss? We need you
  • Looking for fresh ideas — can we count on yours?
  • 10 volunteers needed: Want to join the fun?
  • All it takes is one person — can you lend a hand?
  • You can make change happen
  • Can we count on your help this weekend?
  • Coats + Mittens are needed — have any to donate?

Invitation to Mass/Reconciliation/Event

  • Coming to Mass? We’re saving a seat for you!
  • Team Saturday Mass or Team Sunday Mass — where do you fall?
  • An invitation to a clean heart is within
  • Do you believe He has a purpose for you?
  • Where will God find you this Sunday?
  • Visit our Lord in Eucharistic Adoration
  • Need a faith boost? We can help with that
  • Are donuts calling your name?
  • Pizza with the pastor is next week
  • Our fundraiser is next week, and we need your help!
  • Need a midweek refresh? We’re open!
  • How can we pray for you?
  • Coffee + Donuts = Sunday Gathering Fun
  • It’s been a pleasure to have you at Mass — let’s make it official!

Financial Giving

  • Tired of forgetting your envelope? We’ve got a solution for that
  • For the cost of a cup of coffee, you can transform our church — here’s how
  • There are multiple ways to give to our church
  • $20 a week is all it takes to make a difference
  • Give online in less than five minutes
  • Give to our parish whether you’re in the pews or not



Updated: 3-11-2024

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