Best Subject Lines to Pitch Health & Wellness Writers

The realm of health and wellness isn’t just broad; it’s a large umbrella encompassing a seemingly endless supply of topics relating to human well-being. It’s one of those verticals that I genuinely enjoy pitching to due to its incredible versatility. Whenever a health and wellness journalist picks up my pitch, I’m often surprised by the unique spin they bring to their stories and how they seamlessly weave in the information I provided.

This diversity highlights the breadth of this vertical which can pose a challenge when crafting an irresistible subject line for someone who covers “health and wellness.”

Fear not – we embarked on a mission to demystify this puzzle. In this blog, we’re going to dissect the dos and don’ts when it comes to creating engaging subject lines for health and wellness writers. These insights are directly from our own research, conducted earlier this year.

What do Health and Wellness Writers Cover?

Health and wellness writers cover a wide range of topics relating to people’s well-being: From medical advice, physical fitness, food and diet, mental health, holistic healing practices, self-care, healthy lifestyles, or the latest trends in the wellness industry. 

Think of these writers as maestros orchestrating a symphony of information, catering to the diverse needs and interests that define holistic well-being. 

What health and wellness writers look for in a pitch or press release

Health and wellness writers often look for research and experts to provide support for their writing, along with sharing personal experiences, tips, or advice. 

Whether it’s sharing new exercise routines, looking into nutrition and diet trends, or furthering the conversation on the importance of self-care, health and wellness writers often cover trends that impact people’s everyday health, or focus on new research and tips. 

Why it’s important for PR specialists to understand the range of health and wellness topics

Understanding the topics that health and wellness journalists write about allows PR specialists to tailor their pitches and press releases to align with the interests and preferences of these writers. 

It’s also helpful in establishing stronger and more meaningful relationships with these writers. 

By offering them relevant and engaging content that fits their niches, PR specialists increase their chances of capturing their attention and attaining media coverage.

How to Write Subject Lines for Pitching Health and Wellness Writers

Good subject lines are crucial when pitching to health and wellness writers because they help grab attention, increase open rates, show relevance, and create organization. 

Your subject line gives journalists a preview of what your pitch is about. By clearly and concisely conveying the relevance to the journalist’s health and wellness beat, can help them understand why they should bother clicking through to read it. 

With health and wellness writers, we’ve found utilizing keywords within a subject line can offer huge advantages. Why? Keywords are key to coverage, even if it’s later down the road. 

Health and wellness writers often have longer turnarounds from pitch to publish. If you’re producing evergreen content in their vertical, making a keyword-optimized pitch and subject line makes it easier for them to locate your pitch later if they want to refer back to it or follow up.

A well-crafted subject line can also significantly increase the open rates of your pitches. When writers see a subject line that piques their interest, they are more likely to prioritize opening and reading your email amid their busy inbox. It sets the tone for your pitch and can influence their decision to engage with your content. 

What you should include in your subject line

To find what resonates with writers, we conducted our own analysis of over 450 subject lines that have been sent by Digital Third Coast’s DPR team. In this analysis, I broke down the specific findings of subject lines sent to health and wellness writers. From our analysis, based on a number of factors, we found health and wellness writers often lean toward formal and reliable subject lines that show credibility and authority. 

Formatting your subject line in sentence or title case

One effective approach is to format subject lines in title case, which means capitalizing the first letter of each word. 

This formatting style gives a professional and formal impression, aligning with the expectations of health and wellness publications. Our analysis found subject lines using title case had higher open rates among health and wellness writers than those that used sentence case.

Referencing the research

If you’re pitching health and wellness writers, information that was found by some form of research, including keywords such as “report,” “study,” “data,” or “survey” at the beginning of the subject line perform incredibly well.

These key terms signal that your pitch is supported by research, evidence, or credible data, which adds weight and legitimacy to your story.

How long your subject line should be

In the intricate dance of engaging health and wellness writers, the subject line length isn’t necessarily the star of the show, but rather an important supporting player. 

Unlike some other niches that might showcase a clear preference for brevity or a liking for lengthier lines, health and wellness writers seem to embrace a wider spectrum, showing no specific preference.

 But, within this opportunity, it’s important to remember one cardinal rule: clarity and conciseness always stand as a safe bet.

The best way to phrase health and wellness subject lines

How do you phrase a compelling health and wellness subject line? 

In our analysis, we looked at five prevalent subject line structures: the factual statement, the enticement of ranking data, the curiosity of a question, the complexity of a compound sentence, and the straightforward power of a concise statement.

When it comes to the subject line’s content, here’s the scoop: health and wellness writers were particularly drawn to subject lines that flaunted a statistic or a ranking. Think of it like revealing a captivating nugget of information upfront, enticing them to delve deeper. 

For instance, a winning subject line could be something like: “Unveiling the Top Health Concerns for Parents in the Upcoming School Year.” 

What to avoid when crafting subject lines for health and wellness writers

Our analysis found subject lines that are vague and cluttered with unnecessary words can – and most likely will – get overlooked. 

Because these writers look for credible information, subject lines that are formatted in sentence case without any indication it is supported by experts or research, it will likely not get opened. 

• Avoid questions: Posing your subject line in the form of a question resulted in a significantly lower open rate than non-questions. This finding suggests that posing a question in the subject line can create a vague and indirect impression regarding the nature of your pitch. 
• Avoid the casual sentence case: Writing health and wellness subject lines in sentence case lacks formality, which isn’t good when you’re pitching to writers who look for credibility. While a sentence case subject line won’t necessarily make or break the chances of enticing writers to read your pitch, it’s better to be safe than sorry. 
• Failing to reference research: Subject lines that don’t reference the type of content you’re pitching (if it’s research or expertise) can create doubt in a journalist’s mind on whether the findings you’re presenting are legitimate. If you have an expert quote, a research-backed study, lead with it in the subject line. 

Conclusion

Understanding the range of topics health and wellness writers cover is crucial for PR specialists to tailor their pitches effectively. Subject lines play a vital role in grabbing attention, increasing open rates, and showing relevance. Health and wellness writers prefer formal and reliable subject lines that demonstrate credibility and authority. Formatting subject lines in title case and including keywords like “report,” “study,” “data,” or “survey” can catch their attention and enhance the perceived value of your pitch. Avoid being vague, cluttered, or using question-based subject lines, as they may result in lower open rates.

By providing clear and concise subject lines that offer valuable insights or rankings, you can increase your chances of engaging health and wellness writers and securing media coverage.

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