Subject Lines for a Reconnecting Email: 70+ Examples to Boost Your Open Rates 

If you’re like many business owners, you know how crucial personal connections are to success. You’ve probably spent countless hours getting to know your customers, understanding their needs, and building relationships that go beyond mere transactions. 

But between keeping up with daily operations and tackling unforeseen challenges, it’s all too easy for those once vibrant relationships to slip through the cracks. 

Now, faced with the desire to reconnect, you’re struggling to come up with a fitting subject line for a reconnecting email. You want to bridge that gap without coming off as insincere or opportunistic.

So, how can you convey that your intention to reconnect is genuine and not just a business tactic?

There’s a way to maneuver this delicate situation with grace and authenticity. Let’s explore how you can craft that perfect subject lines for a reconnecting email that reopen doors and rekindles those precious connections.

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What Is a Reconnecting Email?

A reconnecting email is a friendly message you send to someone you haven’t talked to in a while. The goal is to catch up, share updates, and bring back the warmth and rapport you once shared.

You should remind them of who you are and express your interest in what they’ve been up to since you last communicated.

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The Power of Reconnecting Emails 

When you successfully reconnect with someone through an email, it can lead to great benefits.

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77 Reconnecting Email Subject Line Examples to Try

If you’re looking to grab the attention of old customers and initiate meaningful conversations, you need to consider the context of your relationship and the nature of your update. Let’s cover six different types of emails and give you some ideas to guide your creative process:

Catching Up After a Long Time

When reconnecting with a customer who hasn’t engaged with your business in months or years, your email subject line should resonate with a tone of professional warmth. Aim to reference a positive past interaction or their previous interest in your services while expressing a sincere interest in their current needs or preferences.

A touch of personalization can go a long way in making your email stand out in their inbox.

Following Up on a Past Conversation

Your subject line should reference the previous conversation with your client, reigniting their interest in a professional yet engaging manner. Resume the dialogue by acknowledging the time that has passed and inviting them to pick up the business discussion where it was left.

Your aim with this type of subject line for reconnecting emails is to spark their memory and curiosity. Highlight a specific topic or idea from your last conversation to make your email feel relevant and immediate. Then expand on the idea in your email copy. 

Sharing Updates or News

To broadcast new products, services, or significant updates about your business, your announcement email subject line should spark curiosity and excitement. The subject line needs to make your old contact feel like they’re in the loop and stand to benefit from this information. 

Think about what aspect of your news will be most interesting or relevant to your audience and lead with that. Use email power words to convey a sense of exclusivity or insider knowledge to make your old contacts feel special for being among the first to know.

A Real-Life Example From Google 

When Google wanted to introduce updates to their AI, Bard, they sent out an email to the previous subscribers. The message covered Bard’s newest features and gave tips on how to use it best. 

But the most interesting part was the beginning part: 

Celebrating a Milestone or Achievement

Sharing news about your business success with old contacts can re-establish their interest in your brand. Your subject line should highlight the achievement in a way that gives the recipient pride. Make them feel that they’ve been a part of your success. 

Offering Help or Support

Reaching out to offer support to past customers shows that you care about more than just sales.

Introducing a New Product or Venture

When launching a new project, reaching out to old contacts can build momentum and garner support. Your subject line should spark intrigue and invite recipients to be part of something fresh. 

Whether it’s through early access, exclusive insights, or a special invitation, the goal is to make your old contacts feel like insiders and valued parts of your new journey.

A Real-Life Example From Athletic Brewing

Athletic Brewing makes non-alcoholic beers and sparkling water. To announce its Sweet & Sour pack, the company sent out an email that focused on the idea of spring and the new season. 

Besides the email content referencing spring, the design used sharp green and orange colors to evoke a sense of freshness. What’s clever about the email is that it also reinforces the company’s environmentally-conscious branding. 

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What Is a Good Email Subject Line for Reconnecting?

The subject line is what gets recipients to open an email. About 35 percent of people decide to open an email just by looking at its subject line. On the flip side, about 70 percent might mark an email as spam just because of the subject line.

The most effective strategy for boosting open rates is using personalized subject lines. 

According to Experian, personalizing your email subject lines can lead to a 26% higher chance of your email being opened. Plus, personalized emails can improve click-through rates by 14% and conversions by 10%.

Even a simple reference to a shared memory can significantly increase the chances of your email being opened. Think about what personal touches you can add to show the recipient that this message is truly meant for them.

4 Extra Tips to Amp Up Your Subject Lines 

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Reconnecting Emails vs. Re-engagement Campaigns 

Reconnecting emails are messages you send to someone you haven’t contacted for a while. The aim is to pick up where you left off, whether it’s with a former customer, a colleague, or even a friend. 

Re-engagement campaigns refer to when you reach out to a group of subscribers who haven’t interacted with you for some time. The goal here is to remind them about your brand and what you offer. 

Both types of emails aim to re-establish a connection. Reconnecting emails are usually personal and target specific people, whereas re-engagement campaigns target broader audience segments. What’s more, re-engagement campaigns are an effective tool for segmenting email subscribers into active and inactive categories and maintaining a clean email list. 

The table below summarizes the key differences: 

Feature	Reconnecting Emails	Re-engagement Campaigns
Purpose	Re-establish personal connections with individuals.	Awaken interest in a broader audience.
Content strategy	Highly personalized, referencing past interactions.	More general, aiming to appeal to wide segments.
Ideal usage	For high-value contacts who’ve become inactive.	For larger segments of inactive subscribers.
Success metrics	Open rates, direct responses, re-engagement in dialogue.	Open rates, click-through rates, overall reactivation.
Personalization level	Often includes the recipient’s name and specific references.	Slightly less; uses broad messages that resonate with general experiences.
Frequency	Sent on a case-by-case basis to rekindle specific relationships.	Part of a scheduled campaign targeting all inactive users.

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Re-engagement Email Examples 

To better illustrate the purpose of a re-engagement email, let’s consider three examples from different companies. 

Example 1 — Mode Chocolate 

This re-engagement email from Mode Chocolate uses a clever, playful approach to capture the recipient’s attention. 

It’s designed to look like a personal message. The funny subject line “Your cursor brushed against me (online)” is an excellent play on words, which suggests the recipient has interacted with the brand before but hasn’t become a customer. The email uses psychology principles to keep the recipient engaged. 

The email closes with a light-hearted promise that there are no hard feelings if the recipient isn’t interested. This easygoing email sign-off, paired with a clear call to action, provides a low-pressure invitation to test the product.

Example 2 — Busuu

Busuu is a language learning platform with 14 different languages. The re-engagement email starts with a friendly greeting and congratulates the user. 

This is smart because it acknowledges the user’s commitment to their language learning goals — even though they may have not been actively learning. 

The automated campaign uses dynamic content to create a fully personalized experience and follows the proper email format. So, each user receives this email exactly three months after joining the platform. Plus, it remembers the language the user picked to learn and brings that up in the email. 

Example 3 — Graza 

This campaign reaches out to customers who’ve had a taste of Graza’s olive oil but haven’t come back for more. The direct email marketing message grabs attention and gets the reader thinking about the product’s taste. 

The real strength of this email lies in its straightforwardness. It sticks to the point — encouraging the customer to buy again. The design is tidy and puts the olive oil front and center, which helps with brand recognition through email. The clear question, inviting image, and simple Buy Again button prompt the reader to make another purchase. 

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Reconnect and Re-engage with Confidence Using Campaign Refinery

Reaching out to reconnect with old customers can breathe new life into your relationships, open doors to renewed collaborations, and remind them of the unique value you offer. 

Rekindling relationships with your customers doesn’t have to be complicated. Let Campaign Refinery help you send emails that matter and make every reconnection count.

Apply to join today and reignite your lost connections!