The Keys to Writing Effective Sales Emails

How many sales emails do you get each day? Now, be honest — how many do you actually open? And of those that you open, how many do you take action on?

Chances are high that your inbox is inundated with business, personal and sales offers each day, and so are the inboxes of your prospects and customers. A recent report by The Radicati Group shows that over 205 billion emails were sent and received each day in 2015, and that number is expected to grow to over 246 billion by the end of 2019.

In this digital age, sales strategies span all kinds of communication channels including social media platforms, but email is still a critical aspect of digital campaigns and an effective way for businesses to engage with customers.

According to Digital Marketing Ramblings (DMR), the mobile click-to-open rate for U.S. marketing emails is around 14% and 18% from a desktop. For professional services emails, open rates are around 21%.

But with all this overwhelming email traffic and competition for your customers’ attention, how do you create sales emails that people actually want to read and — more importantly — respond to? What is the right tone for an effective sales email marketing strategy?

What Makes a Sales Email Effective?

Sales emails are more effective when they are personalized and conversational. This starts with a personalized subject line, but it doesn’t end there. The actual content of the email should also offer something unique and personal to the prospect and her specific industry.

Do your homework and uncover what is relevant to your prospects and their current situations. Research them online and find out what their challenges are and how your products or services can help them.

A Good Subject Line

An email’s subject line is critically important because it’s the deciding factor of whether or not the prospect will open your email and see your message. Make it relevant and try to tease what the email will offer and why the recipient should read it.

For example, which subject line is more likely to get you to open the email?

Exciting Database Research, or

{Name}, are you leveraging customer data to meet your numbers?

Offer the customer something valuable she can only get from opening and reading your email. Avoid sounding too promotional or impersonal, and don’t use generic terms like “sale” or “special.” Identify a challenge and provide a solution. It might be a cliché, but it’s true — you only get one chance to make a first impression!

The Email Itself: Crafting an Effective Message

Once you get the customer or prospect to open your email, you’ll want to hook her with your opener. Use her name to make it more personal and talk about her — not yourself. This is your chance to develop trust and establish a relationship. You are trying to convey that you are here to help her succeed — not just to try to sell her something.

You’ll also want to keep your tone conversational. Don’t just mirror the language used in your marketing materials, or you’ll come across too formal and “salesy.” Instead, write how you would talk if you were having a verbal conversation with the prospect. 

Keep it short and simple and stay professional, but also keep it somewhat informal. You’re trying to open a dialogue with the prospect, not show her how awesome your products and services are or how many impressive vocabulary words you know.

The Call to Action: What’s the Point?

Remember, the goal of an effective sales email is to get your prospects or customers to take the next step with you. You want them to open your emails, read them and then take some kind of action. Ideally, you should offer them something that either requires them to give you more information — like filling out a form before downloading a free e-book, for example — or to simply contact you directly. You could say:

If you want to learn more about how our customer research is transforming the sales process and creating real results, download our free e-book here {include link} or give me a call at {phone number}.

After closing it out with a call to action, include a short, succinct email signature that tells who you are and how to get in touch with you. Include your contact information, as well as a link to your website and, even better, a link to a recent blog post the prospect might find relevant. For example:

I look forward to hearing from you!

First and Last Names
Account Executive

XX Database Research, Inc.
[email protected]
(XXX) XXX-XXXX

To learn more about trends in marketing research in your industry, check out our latest blog post {include link}.

Email marketing is a great way to reach out to existing and prospective customers to position yourself and your company as trusted advisers who can ultimately help them achieve their goals. Keep it short, keep it conversational and keep it about them.

We are a digital marketing agency with email marketing services, so if you have questions about how to craft more effective sales emails or how to create a winning digital sales strategy for your organization, schedule a consultation with us today.