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You’ve heard about AI. You know you should probably use it. But what do you actually do with it?
Here’s your answer … one practical task, step-by-step, that you can complete in the next 5 minutes.
We’re going to use AI to generate email subject lines. Because you probably write these every week, and it takes longer than it should.
Ready? Let’s go.
What You Need:
✅ A free ChatGPT account (chatgpt.com) OR Claude account (claude.ai)
✅ 5 minutes
✅ An upcoming email you need to write
That’s it. No credit card. No tutorial videos. Just those three things.
Step 1 :: Open the AI tool and copy this prompt
Go to ChatGPT or Claude and paste this exactly (then customize the parts in [brackets]):
I’m writing a marketing email for [your company or product].
[copy this prompt to paste into your A.I. tool]
Our audience is: [describe who you’re emailing – be specific]
The email is about: [what’s the main point or offer]
Our brand voice is: [pick 2-3 words: casual/professional/playful/direct/friendly]
Generate 10 email subject lines that would make this audience want to open the email. Include a mix of curiosity-driven, benefit-focused, and urgency-based options.
Step 2 :: Fill in the brackets with YOUR information
Example – here’s what I actually typed:
I’m writing a marketing email for a B2B project management software company. Our audience is: Marketing managers at mid-size companies who are overwhelmed and looking for ways to work more efficiently The email is about: Announcing our new template library feature that saves time on campaign planning Our brand voice is: helpful, straightforward, slightly witty Generate 10 email subject lines that would make this audience want to open the email. Include a mix of curiosity-driven, benefit-focused, and urgency-based options.
[This is what I actually wrote to accompany the prompt]
Step 3 :: Hit enter and see what you get
The AI will generate 10 subject lines in about 5 seconds.
Here’s what it gave me:
- “Your Tuesday just got 3 hours shorter”
- “We built the templates you’ve been Frankensteining together”
- “67% of marketing teams are using this. Here’s why.”
- “Stop recreating the wheel (we made you 50 wheels)”
- “New feature: The thing you’ve been doing manually for years”
- “Your campaign templates, minus the chaos”
- “What if planning Q1 didn’t take all of December?”
- “Marketing templates that actually match how you work”
- “Finally: Templates for people who hate templates”
- “This kills 4 hours of weekly busy work”
Step 4 :: Pick your favorites and edit them
Read through all 10.
Choose which ones …
- sound like something your brand would actually say?
- would make YOUR specific customers curious?
- feel authentic, not gimmicky?
Circle 2-3 that have potential.
Then edit them. AI gave you raw material, not final copy.
For example, I like #2 and #10, so I might combine them:
Final version: “We built the templates you’ve been recreating every week (4 hours back on your calendar!)”
Step 5 :: Test it
Use your edited subject line in your real email. Or A/B test your top 2.
Then do your actual job … see what works and what doesn’t.
You Just Used AI. That’s It!
That wasn’t scary. It didn’t replace you. It gave you 10 starting points in 10 seconds instead of staring at a blank screen for 20 minutes.
That’s what AI does : it handles the first draft so you can focus on the strategy, the nuance, the judgment calls that actually require a human.
