Emotion is more powerful than reason. And you can trigger these emotions to improve your email marketing results.

We have previously written about the nice little helpers that are trigger words, aka power words, and shared some tips on how to increase email open rate by using them in email subject lines. In this article, we’ll go deeper into what trigger words are, what science says about their effectiveness, and how you can use them to enjoy a boost in email open rates.

Outline:

What is a trigger word?

A trigger word (also known as a power word) is an emotionally colored word or expression used to provoke a psychological reaction in readers (in our case – email recipients) by involving their imagination.

Power words appeal to all types and shades of human emotions. In email marketing, trigger words are used to urge a person to open the email, read it, click the link in the letter and perform the desired action – buy, share or subscribe to something offered by the sender, etc. The first and hardest task is to draw readers’ attention and spark their curiosity by emotional, intriguing subject lines.

The (real) science behind emotional triggers in human decision making

We, people, like to consider ourselves logical creatures. We have to make thousands of both simple and complex decisions on a daily basis – and we try to apply rational thinking to make the best choice.

In fact, Researchers at Cornell University suggest that an average adult makes about 35,000(!) relatively conscious decisions every day. And, of course, each decision brings certain outcomes, both good and bad.

However, we can’t make decisions without taking into account emotions, claims Antonio Damasio, Professor of Psychology, Philosophy, and Neurology, at the University of Southern California. In fact, in 1994, he conducted research which led him to the hypothesis that “emotion and its underlying neural machinery participate in decision making…”

Damasio continued the study and formulated a revolutionary theory, which he described in his famous bestseller, Descartes’ Error. The theory asserts that “..humans do not make decisions by delegating such tasks to purely cognitive, or reason-oriented, parts of their brain. Instead, there is an interplay of the emotional governing center (the limbic system, primarily the amygdala) and the more evolved area of contemplation (pre-frontal cortex)”.

Therefore, Damasio asserts that humans are not thinking machines, but feeling machines that think.

What is even more interesting to marketers, the survey of Jonah Berger, professor at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, demonstrated that strong emotions nudge people to sharing content with others. He highlights the importance of high-arousal emotions: “Anger and anxiety lead people to share because, like awe, they are high-arousal emotions. They kindle the fire, activate people, and drive them to take action.”

So which emotions can we engage? In 1980, professor Robert Plutchik visualized a wheel of eight emotions. They are a useful starting point for connecting with people’s emotions in your writing. They are: joy, surprise, trust, fear, anticipation, anger, sadness, and disgust. This palette of human emotions can be used to attract the attention of your audience and make them want to learn more.

Emotional mechanisms behind popular trigger words

Let’s review several examples of trigger words and their effect on human consciousness and subconsciousness and try to analyze what logical links help them capture human attention and make readers open the email. If you practice it regularly, this exercise will help you select the most suitable subject lines for your email drip campaigns.

Example 1. Free



“Free” may be the most effective of all trigger words. Everyone wants to get more benefits and also to save time, money and effort. People love free stuff – that is why lead magnets are so popular in marketing.

Including a “free” opportunity in your headline will make your letter more attention-worthy and attractive, boosting email opens and click-throughs. The only drawback of this word is that it is getting overused and is now at risk of getting caught by spam filters.

Beware that some power words tend to gradually slide to the risk group and later get filtered as spam markers. You can download our massive list of 550+ spam words to stay safe when composing your subject lines.

Example 2. New

As curious beings, humans are always looking for novelty. Something in our nature drives us to seek out the brand-new, latest, and most exceptional goods on the market. Experiment with the trigger word “new” in your email subject lines and other types of marketing copy. Let the readers pause and pay attention.

Example 3. Proven

Evidence-based power expressions can work remarkably well when you plan to build an image of a trustworthy business. When used in a headline or a call to action, the term “proven” implies the confirmation of the efficiency of your approach. Apply it only when you can prove your ideas.

Example 4. Easy

People can sacrifice a big chunk of their life and work to achieve something, but who doesn’t prefer a simple solution? We choose to take the easy path if one’s open. Using the word “easy” or its variations like “easiest” in your subject lines can convert your reader into an engaged prospect. It’s that simple.

Example 5. Secret

People love secrets more than news due to our incredible curiosity. Secrets may imply profit, exclusivity, intrigue, or valuable information, depending on the context the word is used in. Of course, your content has to satisfy the reader’s thirst for knowledge. In other words, if you promote a mystery, you’d better deliver.

Example 6. Because

This is a power word that bears a strong positive connotation. It implies a solution or explanation to a problem and always appeals to readers who are trying to find an answer to a hard question caused by their pain points.

Example 7. Now

The word “now” demands an instant response. It lets your prospects know that you’re sharing something of imminent significance. Besides, it’s an effective way to boost conversions on time-limited offers.

Example 8. Everyone

Like other creatures, people tend to flock in crowds. Humans usually don’t like to be the first to do something as we don’t know if it’s right or wrong. To put it simply, most people don’t like to feel like lab rats in an experiment. People are more inclined to get profit from something if they know that other people have done it many times before them. That’s why social proof is so convincing. The idea that all the people are doing something can evoke the FOMO and boost email open rates and conversions.

Example 9. Want

What unites all the humankind? One of the answers is that we all desire something. It can be wealth, prestige, knowledge, goods, services, or relationship, we all want something.

Apply trigger word “want” to encourage readers to determine what they wish to have or to help them understand what they really want. For example, your prospects might not realize that they want to know how to read more pages every day or learn to play the guitar. Give them a suggestion.

Example 10. Win

Who doesn’t like winning something? This emotional trigger is comparable to “free” but in addition to that, it implies scarcity.

It’s easy to get something if it’s given for free to anyone. To win, however, you have to be the favored one or few. That’s an efficient way to get people to open your email and interact with your brand.

Trigger words and phrases to use in email subject lines in 2020

As we have mentioned, the list of trigger words can never be complete – it’s constantly renewing, as some words get popular and others get out of use. And some triggers are so abused that they start triggering spam filters.

Below you can find an emotional trigger words list you can apply in your email subject lines and email body to attract readers’ curiosity.

(You can also download this list)

Sensory power words #1: Visual words

1. Bulky

2. Crooked

3. Drab

4. Gigantic

5. Glittering

6. Gloomy

7. Glow, glowing, to glow

8. Hazy

9. Shadowy

10. To shimmer, shimmering

11. To sparkle, sparkling

Emotional power words #2: Trust

12. Absolutely

13. Admiration, to admire

14. Authoritative, authority

15. Facts, factual

16. Faith, faithful

17. Fool-proof, sure-fire

18. Guaranteed

19. Proven

20. Reliable, reliability

21. Research-backed

22. Saint

23. Scientific, science

24. Trustworthy

Emotional power words #3: Fear

25. Abuse, abusive

26. Anxiety, anxious

27. Banned

28. Burning out

29. Despair

30. Failure, to fail

31. Freaking out

32. Horror

33. Miserable

34. Pussyfoot

35. Sabotage

36. Steal, stolen, plunder

37. Threat

Emotional power words #4: Surprise

38. Awe

39. Jaw-dropping

40. Mind-blowing

41. Mesmerizing

42. Spectacular

43. Remarkable

44. Enchantment, enchanting, to enchant

45. Astonishing

46. Terrific

47. Breath-taking

48. Spellbinding

49. To beguile

50. To bewitch

Emotional power words #5: Sadness

51. Austerity

52. Envy, envious

53. Grief-stricken

54. Heartbroken

55. Hostile

56. Lovesick

57. Resentful

58. Shame

59. Sobbing, to sob

60. Tearful

61. Teary-eyed

62. Troubled, trouble

63. Weepy

Emotional power words #6: Disgust

64. Crap, crappy

65. Icky

66. Junk

67. Lousy

68. Nasty

69. Obscene

70. Outrageous

71. Repellent, to repel, repulsive

72. Ridiculous

73. Scuzzy

74. Shit, shitty

75. Trash, trashy

76. Vulgar

Emotional power words #7: Anger

77. Annoying

78. Bitter

79. Flare up

80. Frenzy, frantic

81. Fury, furious

82. Grumpy

83. Hatred, to hate

84. Hysterics

85. Irritating

86. Panic

87. Rage, raging

88. Tantrum

89. To sulk

Emotional power words #8: Anticipation

90. Charming, to charm

91. Craving, crave

92. Discovery, to discover

93. Enthusiasm, to enthuse

94. Forgotten

95. Inspiration, to inspire

96. Little-known

97. Longing, to long for

98. Lust

99. Mystery, Mysterious

100. Passion, passionate

101. To woo

102. Yearning, to yearn

Try adding emotional trigger words to your copy

Emotions are engaged in the purchase of almost any product. Can we use emotions to make our clients buy, click, share or read more? Yes, but the first thing your prospect needs to do is to open your email. And to catch their attention, you can use emotional triggers in your email subject lines.

We encourage you to use these observations and research to invent your personal secret list of emotional trigger words that will skyrocket your campaigns’ open rates. Use dictionaries to discover even more trigger words and pick the ones that suit the tone of your message.

For now, you can save this handy infographic to boost every email you send:

Do you use emotional triggers in your writing? Share your experience in the comments.