20 Tips on How to Write an Effective Email

In this blog post, I’ll give you 20 tips on how to write an effective email.

Email is an essential communication (internal and marketing) tool in business.

Thanks to the over 4 billion email users worldwide, more than 300 billion emails are exchanged every day.

Sadly, despite the high volume of emails circulating daily, the average open rate is about 21%, meaning almost 80% of the efforts go to waste.

Some of the reasons behind the low open rate include non-compelling subject lines, non-personalized messages, subscribers not enthusiastic about reading a brand’s emails anymore, etc.

While work emails do not get as ignored as marketing emails are, especially where the information is job-related, statistics show that poorly written emails impact productivity negatively.

According to research, poor writing causes confusion and misunderstanding and wastes time and money.

In other words, whether you’re writing work or marketing emails, it’s crucial to follow the best practices to ensure the recipient is enthusiastic about opening and reading them.

This is especially important since email is one of the most powerful outreach channels, surpassing even the wildly successful social media.

For instance, in marketing studies, more consumers admit to having been influenced by an email message to purchase a product compared to those who have acted on the buy button on social media.

What does this mean?

The success rate of the 21% of emails that get opened is pretty impressive.

Thus, you need to leverage the benefits by writing compelling emails that trigger the right actions and bring the desired results.

Research shows that over 80% of small and medium-sized businesses use email as the primary customer acquisition and retention channel. And this is thanks to its high return on investment (ROI) year in, year out.

Apparently, email can rake in up to $45 for every dollar spent, which is a 4500% return.

In summary, writing effective emails;

• Improves open and click-through rates
• Eliminates misunderstanding and confusion
• Builds credibility and brand image
• Saves time
• Boosts productivity
• Increases conversions, and
• Improves profitability

That said, here are 20 tips to help you craft effective emails for successful internal communication and marketing.

1. Set a Clear Goal for the Email
2. Consider Your Audience
3. Craft a Meaningful Subject Line
4. Start With an Appropriate Greeting
5. Introduce Yourself Properly
6. Write a Strong Email Opening
7. Write Compelling Body Content
8. Structure the Email Properly
9. Use Appropriate Language
10. Use the Right Tone
11. Use Exclamation Marks and Emojis Sparingly
12. Beware of Cultural Differences
13. Keep It Brief
14. Attach a Video
15. Use Images
16. Optimize Call to Action
17. Use an Appropriate Sign-Off‍ and Signature
18. Add a PS (Postscript)
19. Always Edit and Proofread
20. Schedule Your Send Times

1.   Set a Clear Goal for the Email

Getting a recipient to open your email is a huge opportunity to get them to complete the desired action.

However, you can quickly lose them if the email lacks a clear goal.

The email copy (subject line, body content, and the call to action) should highlight your goal clearly. I.e., the purpose should be apparent from the time the recipient opens the mail and throughout the text.

The message should clarify what you want them to do and why they should bother, then climax with a strong call to action.

At the same time, you should observe the ‘one thing rule’, which basically means focusing the email around one goal.

For instance, if you want the audience to sign up for a webinar, the email should discuss that solely.

Even if you have another incredible offer (new product) that you think they would like to try or an exciting social media contest that’s underway, you should not bundle it up in the email.

Besides disorienting the reader, focusing on multiple campaigns dilutes their determination to take action.

In the best-case scenario, they might try only one thing, which denies you the opportunity to get their participation in the other drives.

In a nutshell, the email should have a clear and single goal to be effective.

As in the example above, the campaigns would be more effective if you sent separate emails for each goal – webinar signup, new product announcement, and social media contest.

2.   Consider Your Audience

Effective emailing requires a good understanding of the target audience.

Knowing your audience helps you craft messages they resonate with, enhancing their likelihood of completing the desired actions.

For instance, you wouldn’t communicate with your boss the same way you talk to a peer or customer.

You might not need to research your boss or peer to understand the best way to address them since you know them already.

But emailing customers requires more effort to understand them to communicate with them effectively.

At the same time, you should keep in mind that different audience segments have unique information needs.

This means you need to segment the audience (email service providers such as HubSpot, Sendinblue, AWeber, Constant Contact, ActiveCampaign, etc., provide the email segmentation solution).

Examples of segments you could create range from new subscribers to groups based on location, personal interests, demographics, email engagement (open rate, inactivity), purchase history, website behaviour, the amount spent, stage in the sales funnel, survey results, etc.

By so doing, you get to send highly relevant emails customized for the target audience.

This raises the chance of a high open rate and enhances the probability of getting the recipient to take the desired action.

3.   Craft a Meaningful Subject Line

The subject line is your opportunity to convince the recipient to open the mail.

While it’s true that many people read an email based on the sender, research has also found that 33% of recipients open emails based on the subject line.

However, you should be careful about the words you choose for the subject line. Clickbait terms (e.g., buy now) could cause the recipients to ignore the email, or it could get flagged as spam.

We know clickbait headlines are meant to trigger readers to click.

Though this works for website content, the email audience is different.

Especially with the high rate of spam emails delivered to people’s inboxes, they might ignore your message if it resembles one of those unsolicited spammy emails they receive.

Ideally, the subject line should be descriptive of the email content.

But you should keep it short and brief, not more than 60 characters.

If the email body has what the headline promises, it reflects well on you and fosters the reader’s trust, encouraging them to respond to the call to action.

On the same note, you should personalize the subject line to arouse the recipient’s interest further.

According to research, personalizing subject lines increases open rates by 50%. You can achieve this by using the user’s name, location, industry, or other unique information.

4.   Start With an Appropriate Greeting

Now that your email has earned the recipient’s attention, an appropriate greeting can captivate their interest for a little longer.

Moreover, a proper salutation may influence their perception of you. Besides creating a positive first impression, it sets the tone for the conversation.

Starting with a salutation such as ‘Dear [Name]’ would suffice for formal emails.

You could also use ‘Mr., Mrs., or Miss [Name]’ if you know their marital status.

But if you are unsure, then go with the former.

On the other hand, you could use ‘Hi [Name]’ for informal emails or ‘Hello [Name]’ if you prefer a more formal tone.

Similarly, when sending an informal group email, especially an internal workplace message, you could start with a salutation like a ‘Hi [Group Name or Everyone]’ greeting.

Another option is using time-based greetings such as Good Morning, Good Afternoon, or Good Evening.

Alternatively, you could add the recipient’s name, such as Good Morning [Name].

However, you should be careful about using time greetings.

Only use them if you’re sure the recipient will read the email at the right time.

For instance, if you’re circulating an urgent memo to team members and expect them to read it immediately, time-based greetings would sound okay.

Also, you should be aware of the recipient’s time zone. For example, if you’re billing a client on a different part of the globe, only use the time greetings if you’re sure it corresponds with their time.

5.   Introduce Yourself Properly

You may only have a few seconds of the recipient’s time, but you don’t want to delve into the body content without introducing yourself.

Otherwise, you might fail to establish a connection with them no matter how well you articulate your message in the body.

After the greeting, introduce yourself appropriately. Even if you’ve interacted with the recipient before, don’t assume they know you.

Start by mentioning who you are and probably how you know them.

For instance, you could say something like, “It was a pleasure talking to you about (abcd) the other day.” It helps jog their memory and lets them know you appreciate connecting with them.

6.   Write a Strong Email Opening

After you introduce yourself, you need to hook the recipient and get them to read the rest of your message.

Knowing your audience comes in handy here as it can help you throw in something that will really interest them.

For instance, if you’re following up with a customer who abandoned their cart, you could say something like, “We noticed you didn’t complete your purchase of abcd.”

That would surprise most customers, arousing their curiosity about what other information you know about them.

In the same way, if you’re sending a personal email to an individual, doing background research on them can help you connect better.

For example, if they have posted something interesting on one of their channels, you could reference it to pique their interest.

Everyone appreciates when others notice their actions, and the mere mention of their recent activity can earn you their attention, allowing you to deliver the rest of the message.

Remember, no matter how valuable your message is, if you don’t captivate the recipient’s interest with a strong opening, they might not spare time to read it. Besides, a personalized opening helps build rapport the moment the recipient learns you have drafted the email specially for them

7.   Write Compelling Body Content

If the recipient gets to read the email’s body, it shows you have succeeded in captivating their interest.

However, you’re still a shot away from convincing them to act on your message. That’s why it’s essential to write compelling body content to win them over and get a positive response.

Most importantly, the body copy should align with the subject line. As HubSpot puts it, the body content should deliver the promise of the subject line. Doing this boosts the click-through rate, which is a crucial step to achieving the goal of sending the email. Otherwise, if the subject line and body content are unrelated, recipients may feel shortchanged. Not only does this lower the click-through rate, but it can impact your future campaigns negatively.

Start by explaining the why of writing to let the recipient know why they should care. For instance, if you’re emailing a new subscriber, you could say something like, “We are pleased you have subscribed to our social media marketing tips. Here is a list of some posts we think you could be interested in.”

On the same note, you should write in the first person to craft more effective emails. You may be the person offering the service, product, offer, or whatever you’re writing about, but you shouldn’t expect the reader to care about what you do. Instead, you should make the conversation about them by using ‘you’ in the place of ‘we’. That shifts the focus from you to the customer, making it easy to convince them why they need to respond to your message.

Depending on the purpose of your campaign, you could elaborate on the benefits of your offer. For instance, if you’re upselling a product to them, you could mention how it would better their lives compared to the solution they already have.

8.   Structure the Email Properly

The main goal of sending an email is to communicate a particular message to drive the desired action.

As much as the structure is secondary to the purpose of the email, it can affect its effectiveness.

Generally, sticking to the traditional email format is one of the best practices you should adopt in all your emails.

Besides helping you stay organized, it ensures you capture all the essentials for effective communication.

The email format should contain;

• Subject line
• Salutation
• Opening line
• Email body
• Call to action
• Sign-off
• Signature

Other than the basic formatting, you should also organize the information in a way that enhances readability.

Here, we’re referring to font consistency, breaking down the content into easily scannable sections using subheadings, short paragraphs, and lists (bullets and numbers), adding a clear call to action, etc.

Like any other type of writing, people usually skim through emails.

Formatting for readability enhances the effectiveness of the message as they can quickly scan through the email, picking the essential details.

That’s why subheadings come in handy because you can use them to highlight the most critical information.

They help the reader grasp the message you want them to know without much effort.

Also, using bullet points and numbered lists allows the recipient to read through the message quickly.

In the same way, using clean fonts like Arial, Calibri, Helvetica, Times New Roman, etc., being consistent with the font size (10 or 12 points) and font color (black) makes your message look professional.

Otherwise, mixing font sizes and colors gives a poor brand impression. Besides failing to take you seriously, recipients could easily flag it as spam.

9.   Use Appropriate Language

As much as you have the necessary skills to articulate your message, you might not come off well if you use inappropriate language.

For instance, formal emails require formality – from the salutation to the body content and closing.

Otherwise, using informal language and writing styles in formal settings could easily get your email ignored.

Nonetheless, you should also maintain some form of professionalism, even in informal emails.

For example, when writing to customers, you do not want to come off as too casual, as it may reflect poorly on the brand.

You could exchange formal greetings for ‘hi’ or ‘hello’ and adopt a more relaxed style, including emojis and animations, but you shouldn’t overdo it.

The secret is to balance creating a fun experience for your recipient while remaining professional.

10. Use the Right Tone

The tone you use in your message can hinder its effectiveness.

You should avoid negative words or phrases that give off negative emotions.

Otherwise, the reader will interpret the message based on the tone, which may not have been your intention.

No matter the message you’re delivering, you should choose words that make you sound positive.

As a golden rule, you should be careful when writing an email while angry.

It might be tempting to bare your emotions and let the reader know how you feel (especially in work settings), but that’s never a good idea.

Besides masking your message, an emotionally charged email risks triggering the wrong response in the reader.

If you must write an email while still angry, ensure you distance your emotions and choose your words carefully.

Mastering the right tone requires practice. But using polite and respectful language helps keep the tone in check, especially when writing while angry or overexcited.

11. Use Exclamation Marks and Emojis Sparingly

We use exclamation marks and emojis to convey emotions.

Using them can make you sound overly enthusiastic or angry and frustrated, which may cloud the effective reception of your message. Hence, you should use them sparingly.

For instance, whenever you want to add an exclamation to emphasize a point, try to use a period instead.

This helps, especially when you’re delivering a strong message.

It takes the emotions off the message, allowing the reader to focus on the intent instead.

The same case applies to emojis.

While they help convey how you’re feeling, they can distract the reader and get their attention off the core of the message.

In other words, excessive use of emojis does not reinforce your message. Instead, it dilutes its purpose.

If you must use exclamation marks and emojis, do so sparingly.

But this should only be in informal or less formal communication, e.g., mailing a co-worker. Generally, you should avoid them entirely in formal emails.

12. Beware of Cultural Differences

When writing an email to a client or a colleague from a different part of the world, always keep in mind any cultural differences.

What you consider okay may be offensive to someone from a different culture.

This can hinder them from receiving the message as you intended besides severing your future relationship with them.

At the same time, you should be careful when using quotes or illustrations that isolate the recipient based on their background (religion, geographical area, etc.) You don’t want to alienate them and make them feel like the email isn’t meant for them.

Otherwise, they might end up not taking action as you expected.

That’s why it’s essential to research your audience.

Familiarizing yourself with their culture allows you to accommodate their preferences in the message, making it feel more personal, besides enhancing its effectiveness.

13. Keep It Brief

Brief emails are more effective than longer emails, notwithstanding the information contained.

It’s much easier for a recipient to skim through a short email, which yields a faster and higher response rate.

On the other hand, people often shove aside long emails to read them when they have time to make sense of all the information. This leads to delayed responses, and in some cases, they forget the email altogether.

One of the ways of keeping your message brief is to refrain from using unnecessary words.

For example, if you can express your point in a five-word sentence, you don’t have to explain it using ten words.

Similarly, even if what you’re sharing could fit into a long-form blog post, you don’t have to share all the information in the email.

Your recipients will most likely not read all that. Instead, summarize the message and share the most relevant points.

If you must write a long email, then ensure you break down the message into short paragraphs with subheadings highlighting the key takeaways. Also, use bullet points and numbered lists where appropriate to keep the email brief while fostering understandability.

Consider these five sure ways of keeping emails short, as suggested by Grammarly.

• Impose a length limit – Adopting a standard length for your emails can go a long way in helping you summarize all the information you intend to share to fit within the set word limit. For example, boomerang maintains that 75-100-word emails garner the best response, while HubSpot suggests the ideal length should be 50-125. Generally, aim to keep your emails below 200 words to boost your click-through rate.
• Edit thoroughly – Once you create your draft, you should go through it a few times, trimming any unnecessary phrases and words and rewriting the sentences for brevity.
• Cut out unnecessary pleasantries – As much as you need to introduce yourself properly, ensure you do so in as brief words as possible to avoid consuming too much space.
• Stick to one goal – If you have several offers that you would like to invite the recipient to, consider sending separate emails to avoid congesting too much information in a single message.

14. Attach a Video

Attaching a video to your email is a smart way of boosting email engagement and raising your brand appeal.

Generally, most people prefer watching videos over reading text content.

As such, video has been known to increase open rate, click-through rate, and, ultimately, conversion. For example, research shows attaching a video can increase the open rate by 300%.

Below are some possible ways of using video in email, as suggested by HubSpot.

• Providing bonus content to subscribers
• Displaying company culture
• Publicizing an event
• Announcing a new product
• Accompanying relevant newsletters
• Guiding leads down the sales funnel

Once you identify a relevant video, you can either embed it directly on the email or attach a thumbnail with a link to a landing page hosting the video. While the former option allows the recipient to watch the video without leaving the page, it has certain limitations.

For instance, some email providers do not support video embedding.

In this case, you could add a thumbnail.

15. Use Images

Using images in your email is a smart way to capture the recipient’s attention and increase engagement. However, you must use them cautiously as cramming too many images can have the opposite effect. Attaching an appropriate size is also essential as too large images could slow the loading time.

To avoid the possible drawbacks of using images, here are some best practices to guide you.

• If you’re using free images, go for the royalty-free ones to avoid copyright issues
• When editing the images to get the ideal size, use the right tools to avoid distorting them
• Align the image elements to your brand identity to avoid ruining the brand perception
• Ensure the image is relevant to the rest of the copy (subject line, body content, call to action)
• Make the image clickable by linking it to the target landing page to increase the click-through rate

Besides using static images, you could also use animated GIFs to create some motion on the email and get the recipient interested.

However, you should attach them strategically so you don’t distract the recipient.

Some of the ways you could use GIFs include;

• Demonstrating a product in action
• Showcasing a new feature
• Announcing a soon to be released product or resource

16. Optimize Call to Action

A compelling email message requires a strong call to action to achieve its purpose.

Leaving the message hanging without clearly instructing the reader what they need to do next makes it less effective.

The call to action should reinforce the benefits you explained in the body content and explain what you expect them to do using phrases that create urgency to get you results. For instance, if you send an email announcing a new product feature, you should accompany it with a call to the reader to upgrade and enjoy the benefits of the new feature. The button should contain catchy words to entice them to take immediate action.

However, Campaign Monitor recommends steering clear of friction words to minimize barriers.

As they explain, friction words are calls to action that obligate the readers to do what they may not necessarily be willing to do.

Examples include words like download, order, submit, apply, etc.

Instead, you could use phrases that emphasize the benefit to remove the perceived effort. These could be expressions such as ‘Enter to win a free ticket, ‘Learn more’, ‘Get your upgrade’, ‘Start your free trial’, ‘Book your free assessment’, etc.

17. Use an Appropriate Sign-Off‍ and Signature

The email sign-off and signature are additional opportunities to create a good impression and reinforce your message.

Usually, the sign-off emphasizes the mood underlying your message and sets a foundation for future communications.

Meaning it should be consistent with the tone and language used throughout the copy (subject line, greeting, body content, call to action).

When choosing an appropriate sign-off, you should consider your relationship with the recipient.

For instance, if you’re sending a work email and your relationship with the recipient is strictly formal, you should avoid coming across as too familiar by closing with an overly friendly sign-off such as cheers or take care. Instead, you could explore equally warm but formal sign-offs like sincerely, regards, or best wishes.

But for other less formal emails, you could use the following sign-offs as appropriate – best, cheers, thanks, thanks in advance, talk to you soon, and so forth.

On the same note, using a professional signature helps add a personal touch to the email and leaves a good last impression.

Moreover, it could help you raise brand awareness and build brand identity, besides providing easy access to your contact information.

Overall, using an appropriate sign-off and signature helps build trust and increase the response rate.

18. Add a PS (Postscript)

Ideally, a postscript is an afterthought added to a letter after it has been completed.

In the days before email, it saved a sender from the trouble of rewriting the letter to include an omitted detail.

But fast forward to the era of digital letters, PS is still relevant, even though you could easily edit the email and add the omitted information.

Why do people still include PS in electronic mail?

Readers skim through content, be it a website or email copy.

Apparently, once they open an email, a PS is one of the things that catch their attention, among other catchy elements such as images or videos.

Actually, studies have shown most people read the PS first after opening an email.

According to HubSpot, you could use PS in the following ways;

• Hook the reader by emphasizing the email goal
• Make a final plea
• Create urgency
• Provide a testimonial
• Introduce a bonus

19. Always Edit and Proofread

Grammar errors can compromise the effectiveness of your message. Unfortunately, you cannot recall an email once you send it.

Since some errors could leave the recipient confused, wondering what you meant, you don’t want to waste their time as they try to comprehend your message. Besides, this can ruin your brand image.

But the worst part is that the recipient will probably ignore the email, rendering your efforts fruitless.

After crafting the email, take the time to edit it several times.

Look for spelling mistakes, punctuation errors, incorrect capitalization of proper nouns, formatting inconsistencies, etc. Also, analyze sentence structure and rewrite where necessary for brevity.

Writing tools such as Grammarly and Hemingway come in handy here.

Grammarly checks for spelling and punctuation errors, clarity and delivery, among other issues, while Hemingway helps you improve your sentence structure for clarity and conciseness.

Overall, the tools can assist you in polishing up your text for a more engaging and error-free copy.

After editing, proofread the text word for word as a final check to ensure it’s clean and reads well.

At the same time, you should not send before ascertaining all the information you have provided is accurate and factual.

If you’re unsure about a particular fact, you should strike it out rather than sending potentially misleading information.

Not only does this hinder the effectiveness of the message, but it can ruin your credibility.

20. Schedule Your Send Times

When you send your emails, you do so, anticipating positive metrics (high open rate, click-through rate, etc.) However, despite crafting an email that meets all the best practices, it might not be as effective with the wrong timing.

It’s factual email is more reliable than social media in message delivery.

Unlike the latter, where posts are quickly buried under new feeds, an email lies safely in the recipient’s inbox, allowing them to access it once they sign in. However, research has shown that the average person receives more than 100 business emails daily.

It becomes increasingly difficult to read through all the emails with this high volume, especially the earliest ones lying under the pile.

What does this mean for you?

If you knew when your audience is likely to open their inbox, you could schedule the emails to be delivered around that time to secure priority viewership, right? While there are studies on the best possible hours and days of sending emails, there’s no conclusive study on the exact time.

Besides, the open rates and click-through rates vary from industry to industry.

However, the inconclusiveness of the ideal send times does not negate the importance of optimizing your mailing schedule.

This calls for running A/B tests to learn the optimal times, especially for sending marketing emails.

To guide you, here are findings from different studies;

Sendinblue

• Overall – Tuesday and Thursday at 10:00 am or 3:00 pm
• Professional services – Monday or Tuesday 8:00 am – 10:00 am
• Offline retail/hospitality – Thursday 8:00 am – 10:00 am
• Ecommerce – Tuesday or Thursday at 10:00 am
• Marketing services – Wednesday 4:00 pm
• Software/SaaS – Tuesday or Thursday 2:00 pm – 3:00 pm

CoSchedule

• Best hour in order of popularity – 10:00 am, 8:00 pm – 12:00 midnight, 2:00 pm, 6:00 am
• Best day in order of popularity – Tuesday, Thursday, Wednesday

GetResponse

• Best hour for click-through rates – 6:00 am
• Best hour for open rates – 4:00 am
• Best day for click-through rates – Tuesday
• Best day for open rates – Friday

As you can see, each study had differing findings, probably due to the different industries surveyed.

But looking at the reports closely, you can identify a helpful pattern.

For instance, Tuesday seems to be pretty popular in all studies.

Also, morning hours seem to have better engagement, maybe as professionals in 9-5 jobs start their workday.

Nonetheless, you cannot be sure of your best time until you run the tests on your audience.

Fortunately, you can easily automate the sending by scheduling using available email automation solutions for a more convenient experience. For instance, you could use HubSpot, GetResponse, Mailchimp, Sendinblue, etc.

Conclusion

Email is an important marketing tool.

With its return on investment (ROI) surpassing even social media, which has a broad and cross-demographic following, email is no small feat.

At over 4500% ROI, it’s no wonder most businesses and marketers use it as their primary customer acquisition and retention strategy.

However, the average email open rate remains pretty low at slightly above 20%, which depicts the modern consumer’s preference for valuable communication. Thus, it’s crucial to learn how to write effective emails to boost your open rates and, hopefully, better click-through rates.

We hope this guide will help you craft better emails for effective internal communications and marketing campaigns.

From setting a clear goal to understanding your audience, aligning your copy message (subject line, body content, call to action), crafting a compelling, brief, and well-formatted copy, adding appeal through images, video, and PS, and editing and proofreading thoroughly, implementing each of these tips will help you write more refined and effective emails.

Finally, you should keep testing and optimizing your send times to ensure you deliver the emails when they’re most likely to be viewed and opened.

With that said, it’s a wrap from us. We wish you the best as you refine your email writing skills.

Resources

https://grammar.yourdictionary.com/grammar-rules-and-tips/five-tips-to-writing-an-effective-email.html

https://drexel.edu/graduatecollege/professional-development/blog/2018/October/12-tips-for-writing-effective-emails/

https://jerz.setonhill.edu/writing/e-text/email/

https://www.mindtools.com/CommSkll/EmailCommunication.htm

https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/email-writing-for-international-teams

https://business.tutsplus.com/tutorials/write-effective-emails–cms-29621

https://www.statista.com/topics/1446/e-mail-marketing/#dossierKeyfigures

https://optinmonster.com/email-marketing-vs-social-media-performance-2016-2019-statistics/

https://www.constantcontact.com/blog/email-marketing-statistics/

https://optinmonster.com/email-marketing-statistics/

https://kinsta.com/blog/email-marketing-statistics/

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https://business.tutsplus.com/articles/how-to-write-clear-and-professional-emails–cms-20939  and more…