Did this title lure you in? It must have! Otherwise, why are you still reading this?

Highlighting the idea of secrecy as a way to entice your audience is a wonderful marketing strategy. It is a proven technique for brands to pique audience interest and capture their attention. It also heightens demand, sometimes for the product, and other times just for the knowledge and topic that is being sworn to secrecy. Because of course, you will want “to be in the know,” and more so, a member of the exclusive club of those who know, you know?

Not convinced yet?

Take a look at Coca-Cola and their secret recipes. The Coca-Cola soft drink is a beloved and popular drink, however, the recipe to make it is a trade secret that is very closely protected.

A natural effect for consumers when they are missing a piece of information is the desire to want to know more. Looking at our Coca-Cola example, lovers of the drink are curious as to what exactly is in the formula, and have theories and hypotheses. It is a good way to capture your audience’s attention and lead them to putting in more work to find out more.

Another way to look at secrecy is to think of it as an extension of the “scarcity principle,” which is the notion that information and products are more valuable to consumers when there is limited availability. To be part of the exclusive club of knowing a company’s secrets, is to be in control of that limited availability of information. It is valuable to know the secrets.

This secrecy tactic is easy to use with emails. To create exclusivity, include words such as “secret” or “shhh” in your email subject lines. Subject lines with words such as these will lead to a higher opening rate. To be specific, a 31% higher opening rate.

Thirty-one percent higher opening rate.

Another option is to tease the secret. For example, say you’re organizing a pop-up event for your new product line. You spread the word about when it will take place but not exactly where, this will create buzz about the mysterious event. After all, mystery sells! And word-of-mouth advertising has a large payoff for little pay in.

Be aware that the power of secrets will be most valuable when they lead to consumers interacting with the brand, rather than just hunting down the facts. Make discovering the mystery and secrets an interactive experience to retain the attention of your audience for a longer period of time. This will also allow you to build upon your relationship with your consumers.

Which of course, is the real secret to success.