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If you send emails, you’ll know this, but it’s also a tad confusing:

Why is keeping attention tough if folks have signed up to hear from me?

You may be asking yourself this right now. But it’s not a simple not that simple.

Think about the human mind as, essentially, a high-performance computer.

Like any computer, it has a finite amount of RAM (that crucial short-term memory that handles immediate tasks).

And your subscribers' inboxes can be seen as a complex program running on this computer, constantly fighting for precious RAM alongside numerous other apps.

And, to add to this, your emails aren't just competing with other emails.

They're up against that constant barrage of notifications, social media updates, and all of those other endless streams of information, trying to grab a piece of attention.

Each of these is also a program running in the background, eating up valuable mental resources.
 

This leaves you with two goals for every email you send:

Today we’re revisiting this topic to chat briefly about how to get your emails to stand out in crowded inboxes, capture reader attention, and deliver your message effectively – all while respecting the constraints of your reader's mental RAM.

Here’s the first question you need to answer:

Do my emails stand out in a crowded inbox?

Now, you may think they do, but there are two fundamental components to getting this right:

The first component is both a promise and a perception.

Is your audience there because they were promised value, and do you follow through with this?

Also, has enough trust been built that your audience would be willing to part with their attention (and time) by reading your emails?

This is where your content, its relevance, and how you deliver it come into play.

Though this will differ based on the types of emails you send, if you're simply sending to tick a box or to get that damn promo out, then you're potentially lowering your chances of future emails being opened (and diminishing trust).

If you’ve promised something of value to your audience when they signed up, this is likely the most critical component to keeping folks reading not just your next email, but your next hundred emails.

Next, your subject lines (and those AI summaries) need to do some work.

Quirky or catchy subject lines also only go so far. There are multiple emails we could send on this topic alone,

If you've answered no to any of these, then you'll need to get to work.

Here are a few free tools we use to check and refine our subject lines:

It’s not only about your content, but how it’s structured (especially when people are skimming through). Here's our next question for you:

Can your readers quickly grasp your message?

This is where basic elements of structure, such as short paragraphs, bullet points and subheadings come into play.

Begin with these quick points:

The goal for each of these elements is to help your readers quickly grasp your message across devices and attention span lengths.

Keep their RAM. Don't forget this.

Here's one more question for you:

Is your content set up to feel like it’s just for that reader?

This is one of those times where the “Rule of One” we’ve spoken about comes in. This hinges on two key elements:

If you get this wrong, not only does the content you share feel “generic”, it also means you aren’t showing your audience you care enough about their interests.

Think about this as you plan your content for 2026 and let it guide the way you segment and send.

It sounds obvious, but as email senders, we don’t often consider this enough.

Personalisation also doesn’t just mean having someone’s name mentioned in an email. It’s sending relevant content that’s tailored to the context and relationships you have with your audience.

These are almost basics, but a good reminder as you begin planning for your best year in email yet!

P.S. What do you think is critical for capturing and keeping attention in your emails? Pop over a mail, say hi, and let us know here!

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If we had a Dollar for every “Hope you’re well” email intro, we’d be sending these from a private yacht.

How about this (somewhat unhinged) approach by our friend, Dale Dupree.

A sure-fire way to capture attention indeed 😅