Playing with the AI-Powered Stensul Email Subject Line Tool

I saw an email pop in my inbox last week from our pals at Stensul. The subject line read “Simple and quick subject lines? The Stensul way it is.” Inside the email was a link to try out an AI-powered email subject line generator.

I had to check it out.

I spend lots of time in my role at Sercante writing and editing copy for marketing assets like emails, blog posts, landing pages, and social media posts. And I can’t tell you how many times I’ve gotten in an editing hole testing different variations of words for email subject lines until I find the perfect one.

That’s what got me so excited about the tool.

Email Subject Lines that Inspire Action and Curiosity

Each email you send through your marketing automation tool has such a small chance to get people to do the things you’re asking them to do. So, it’s especially important to write an impactful email subject line to get people curious about what your email has to offer. You also have to provide value by offering your reader clear expectations about what’s inside the email. 

I’m thinking the Stensul email subject line generator will be helpful for achieving those goals. I’m also thinking we can use it to create subject line variations for A/B testing.

Trying the Stensul Subject Line Generator on Sercante Emails

I guess the best way to see how this thing works is to dive in. First, I went to the subject line generator landing page and traded my info for access to the tool. A few seconds later, I got an email with my magic link to use it.

Here’s what it looks like:

You’re prompted to enter the text of your email along with details like your company type, industry, and tone of voice along with word limit for the subject line. 

The tone of voice options range from average to entertaining. Here are the options:

• Enthusiastic
• Funny
• Informational
• Casual
• Professional
• Pirate-Like
• Yoda
• Shakespearean

I tested it out using a few older Sercante emails to see what subject lines it produces.

Here are examples from my exploration:

Sercante 2022 Year in Review Email Example

Here’s what I got when copy-pasted the content from our 2022 year in review email and asked for 10-word subject lines.

Original subject line: ➡️ Join Us In Celebrating Our Milestones ❇️

The email:

Results with Enthusiastic Tone:

1. 🎉 Celebrating a Year of Growth & Opportunity with Sercante! 🚀
2. 2022 Highlights: Sercante’s Unforgettable Journey 🔥
3. 🌟 Sercante’s 2022 Milestones: Thanks for the Support!
4. ✨ Sercante’s Incredible Growth: Join our 2023 Adventure!
5. 🚀 Cheers to Sercante’s Success: Let’s Make 2023 Even Better!

Results with Funny Tone:

1. Hold Our 🍾: Sercante’s Wild & Wonderful 2022 Recap!🎉
2. 🚀Blast Off! Sercante’s Stellar 2022 Highlights Inside😄
3. Unleashing the Fury: Sercante’s 🐉-Filled 2022 Adventures
4. 🎂Sercante Turns 5: Our Side-Splitting, Record-Breaking Year!😂
5. Brace Yourself: Sercante’s 2022 Rollercoaster Ride Awaits!🎢

Note: I love that it’s intuitive enough to throw a dragon emoji in there.

Results with Yoda Tone:

1. Growth & Opportunity, 2022 We Celebrate, Yoda Says
2. Memorable Year, Sercante’s Journey, Learn You Will
3. Gratitude and Success, 2022 Recap, Stronger Together
4. Salesforce Support, Sercante Achievements, Future Yoda Sees
5. Embark 2023, Marketers’ Galactic Adventures Await Us

The Spot & Jenna Molby Partnership Email Example

Here’s more email subject line generator exploration using an email we sent to announce Jenna Molby’s partnership with The Spot.

Original subject line: A shining Salesforce star is joining The Spot 🤩

The email: 

Results with Informational Tone:

1. Discover Jenna Molby’s Salesforce Insights on The Spot
2. Elevate Your Marketing with Jenna Molby & The Spot
3. Master Pardot: Jenna Molby’s Tools & Tips Now Live
4. Unleash Your Salesforce Potential: Jenna Molby & The Spot
5. Jenna Molby’s Salesforce Expertise Joins The Spot Library

Results with Informational Tone:

1. Jenna Molby Joins The Spot: Upgrade Your Salesforce Game
2. The Spot + Jenna Molby: A Match Made in Salesforce Heaven
3. Jenna Molby’s Salesforce Secrets Now on The Spot!
4. Boost Your Salesforce Skills with Jenna Molby & The Spot
5. Unleash Your Marketing Superpowers with Jenna Molby & The Spot

Results with Pirate-Like Tone:

1. Ahoy Mateys! The Spot & Jenna Molby’s Treasure Trove Unveiled
2. Sail into Salesforce Success with Jenna Molby’s Insights
3. Chart Yer Course with Jenna Molby’s Ultimate Salesforce Guides
4. Discover the Hidden Gems of Salesforce with Jenna Molby
5. Jenna Molby’s Swashbuckling Salesforce Secrets Unleashed

Results with Shakespearean Tone:

1. Behold! Thee Spot & Jenna Molby: A Veritable Pairing
2. Pray, Joineth The Spot for Molby’s Salesforce Wisdom
3. Salesforce Mastery: Jenna & The Spot Unite in Harmony
4. Rejoice! Jenna Molby’s Tools Now Grace The Spot
5. Hark! Jenna Molby’s Top Guides, Now on The Spot

My thoughts overall on the email subject line generator

This tool is super handy for coming up with subject line variations for emails. I especially see it being helpful when my brain is done and I simply can’t write another word — let alone something that grabs people’s attention.

And that’s the thing about email subject lines. Writing them is often the last thing we do in the email copywriting process. But we should be paying closer attention so we have greater chances of getting clicks from our email recipients.

The more copy the better

I did learn one caveat while using the subject line generator tool. It works better on emails that have a higher volume of copy. My first example was a true newsletter with 667 words of copy, while the second example had about 415 words of copy. 

The generator results were spot on in my opinion for the first email while I was underwhelmed by the results for the second email. That may be because the second example had significantly less copy and sections. It makes sense because the tool needs enough information to pull from so it can summarize into a short subject line. I’m also loving the emoji suggestions, but I didn’t get those with all of my results.

Where AI Tools Fit in Content Marketing

You’ve probably heard lots of talk lately about OpenAI’s ChatGPT tool and other AI-powered chatbots that we’re seeing in the content marketing world. The Stensul Email Subject Line generator belongs to the wave of tools that are powered by GPT4, which is the latest iteration of OpenAI’s chatbot. 

I’ve seen blog and social posts from people who aren’t seeing the potential in these tools. But I think these tools are giving more power to individual content creators.

I was recently discussing how AI tools affect content marketers with my fellow dragon, Marcos Duran. He brought up a great point that he heard in conversations with people at a martech networking event.

Someone said something to the effect of “ChatGPT turns a content creator into an editor.” And I couldn’t agree more.

I don’t know about you, but I’d rather fix a mediocre sentence than start from scratch. And that’s what these AI tools are all about. They create a starting point, and you still need highly skilled individuals to add the human touch. 

What are your thoughts on the impact of AI chatbot tools on content marketing? Be sure to let us know your thoughts on the AI debate in the comments section. Or reach out to team Sercante if you’re looking to add a human touch to your marketing campaigns.