AI Bot Subject Lines
I've noted a raft of strapline copywriting expertise bemoan the new wave of AI chatbots' inability to as of yet suitably come up with anything usable in the attention-grabbing, ad space.
I've also seen a fair few examples where someone has trumpeted their bot conjuring up a winning email on their behalf.
A tad sceptical, I thought I'd test this. So, providing a draft 130-word intro email for my own services around Video Meeting Delight - and keeping prompts to both contenders relatively the same - here's their suggested subject lines for such a cold, outward sales email.
ChatGPT
- Looking to Energize Your Video Sales Calls?
- Want to Maximize Productivity in Your Video Meetings?
- Seeking a Competitive Edge in Your Video Sales Calls?
- Interested in Enhancing Your Video Performance for Sales?
- Ready to Take Your Video Meetings to the Next Level?
- Could Your Video Sales Calls Benefit from a Boost?
- Considering Improvements for Your Video Meeting Effectiveness?
Bard
- Can I help you re-energize your video meetings?
- How can I help you boost your video sales calls?
- Are you looking for ways to improve your video meeting performance?
- Want to learn how to make your video sales calls more effective?
- Let's talk about how we can help you with your video meetings.
Not sure how Bard's fifth option wasn't a question, nor how come ChatGPT proffered two extra options.
I realise there's a paradox at play here too.
In terms of asking the 'right' question.
In time honoured RIRO fashion (rubbish in, rubbish out) the calibre of the answer often depends in the quality of the question.
Yet if you ask the perfect question, then, to quote one advertising author, "you've already cracked the brief". The inference being that without such starting point, any AI output is next to useless.
But wait. Let's compare these ideas to Google's favourite email subject jolters. Its top returned result being from Hubspot. Bard naturally followed suit when asked for its pick of further reading. ChatGPT also placed them top of their list of sources. (Are you both astounded and lament that a crm vendor 'owns' this podium right now?)
They've various lists of several choices. They imply gathering from real world feedback. Here's a sample of eight such "cold" templates.
- Question about [goal]
- Hoping to help / Hoping you can help
- A [benefit] for [prospect company]
- X tips/ideas for [pain point]
- Idea for [topic the prospect cares about]
- 10x [prospect company]'s traction in 10 minutes
- This is a sales email
- Saw you're focused on [goal]
I suspect that the bots could have liberally inserted terms akin to 'video calls' among the square brackets. (Although strangely chose not to really use any of these directly.)
Hubspot also updated a 2010s favourite, 'appropriate person?', with the more blunt, "Who is in charge of X?"
Most solution seller approaches to someone they don't know tend not to be of the frozen variety. No matter the degree of actual chill, there's usually some level of referral. Which lend themselves to mentioning that contact upfront.
But there can be occasion for the warmer contact attempt.
In which case, how many of those above would you consider actually using?
Despite my specialisms not extending to writing direct mail copy, one main issue struck me. What I have found the angle most giving rise to dialogue does not feature anywhere. Despite explicit reference within my guide prose.
It's along the lines of;
Happy your video sales calls are more distinctive than your competition?
Maybe it's just me, then....