Best Out of Office Subject Lines for Emails and Samples

In this article, we will focus on out-of-office subject lines. Subject lines are extremely important because this is the first thing an email recipient sees whenever they receive an email.

Technology has given people the tools to communicate with one another without boundaries, without limits, and with little to no waiting period. Over 300 billion emails are sent daily and delivered within seconds, minutes at most.

You rely on emails to communicate effectively as a business owner or someone with a stake in the corporate world. Irrespective of the profession, everyone relies on emails for effective communication. Sometimes, your career success depends largely on how efficient and effective your email communication is.

Regardless, there are times when you don’t have access to your email mailbox, are too busy or on vacation, and cannot respond as promptly as you should. In this case, your best option would be to set up an out-of-office auto-responding email.

Out-of-office response emails help you communicate with whoever sends you emails whenever you’re out of the office, as the name suggests.

Before deciding what to put in an out-of-office email, the first thing to decide is what to put in the subject line.

Subject lines can be likened to the titles of books; they decide if it’s getting taken off the shelf or not. In this case, it decides whether or not it’s getting open.

It dictates whether or not your email will go ignored, read immediately, or be deleted. Hence, it should be informative, relevant, and grab your reader’s attention.

How to Write the Best Out-of-Office Subject Lines

Email overload is a problem in today’s extremely fast-paced world. Everyone’s inbox is constantly barraged with a fusillade of emails, and it’s become a battle to gain their attention.

Your out-of-office subject line is meant to cut through this noise and make sure your email gets taken off the shelf.

People spend seconds scanning their email subject lines, deciding whether they will open it.

If you’re sending a client an oof email, it means they’ve sent you an email, and you’re merely responding. This is why your subject line must cut through the noise.

1. Personalize your subject line

Your subject line is about you: why you’re unable to reply and when you get around to replying.

The recipient of an email would like to know enough about your email from the subject line before they proceed to read everything. This could be as simple as “Out of office for a few days.”

2. Get specific with your subject line

While the first point talks about getting personal, getting specific is walking the same lane, but with a little more information. This is best for customers or recipient that you’ve developed a certain level of rapport.

Usually, a specific subject line gives up most of the information concerning why you’re out of office.

It could be something like, “Out of office on a business trip” Or “Out of office on vacation.” subject lines like these serve as a more detailed response to your recipient. So much that they don’t even have to open your email to get it.

3. Capitalize the important words in your out of office subject line

Capitalizing every word in your subject line is not advisable as this could be seen as you shouting at your readers.

Better still, pick out the most important words and capitalize these. Capitalizing words in your subject line helps in drawing your reader’s attention. This way, you grab their attention and your email isn’t just a random email in their mailbox.

What to Avoid When Writing Your Out of Office Subject Lines

Your OOF subject line should be realistic and professional. Here’s a list of things you’d want to avoid when writing one.

1. Don’t give too much detail

It should be simple, straight to the point, and shouldn’t contain any unnecessary information.

2. Refrain from giving specific information as much as you can

Giving specific information may be harmful to your brand as you may not be able to meet the expectations you’ve set.

Giving a specific date when you’ll reply to all emails or saying you’ll “get back to them immediately” when you return can be unrealistic. As much as you can, try to make your responses vague but reassuring. This way, you can account for and adapt to any unforeseen occurrence without harming your reputation.

3. Do not commit to anyone without talking to them first.

A common practice with oof emails is committing to a colleague in case of emergencies.

While this is a standard and encouraged practice, you must do it with the consent of whoever would be handling the inquiries.

Samples of Out of Office Subject Lines

Out of office subject line for when you’re out on Vacation —

“Out of office on vacation”

Ooo Subject Line for Hospital Emergency

“Out of office at the doctor”

NB: If you have a medical emergency, you might want to add it to your subject line as your contacts would understand and not intrude on your privacy as you heal.

Out-of-Office Email Subject Line

"Out of Office: [Your Name] - [Dates of Absence]" (The standard and clear out-of-office subject line.) 

 "On Vacation: [Your Name] - [Dates of Vacation]" (Specifically mentions that you are on vacation.) 

"Temporarily Unavailable: [Your Name] - [Dates of Absence]" (A more general notification of unavailability.)

"Away from the Office: [Your Name] - [Dates of Absence]" (A variation that conveys you are not in the office.)

"Out of the Office - [Dates of Absence] - [Your Name]" (Reverses the order but still communicates your absence and return date.)

Vacation Responder Subject Line

"Out of office. On vacation till (include date)]" (A clear and informative subject line.)

"Away on Vacation: [Your Name] - [Dates of Absence]" (Mentions your absence and the reason for it.)

Out of Office Subject Line Template

Out of Office: [Your Name] Away from Desk: [Your Name] [Your Name] is Out of Office [Your Name] is Unavailable [Your Name] is Not Responding to Email

Funny Out of Office Subject Line

"Gone Fishing: [Your Name]'s Out of Office Adventure" "Not Here: I'm Off Chasing Unicorns!" "Out of the Office: Probably at the Beach, Definitely Not in the Office" "Sorry, I'm Not Ignoring You on Purpose: I'm on a Coffee Quest" "Wanderlusting, Not Working: [Your Name]'s Out of Office Escapade"

If you want to shake things up, you could use a funny subject line that says, “Been abducted by aliens! Don’t send help”

The post Best Out of Office Subject Lines for Emails and Samples appeared first on Woculus.

Ayo Oyedotun is a professional blogger and freelance writer. He reads, writes and talks about business. You can follow him on Twitter @Ayo_Oyedotun[http://twitter.com/#!/Ayo_Oyedotun] or read Business Owners’ Bible[http://woculus.com/].