Sell by Caring

Just like voice mail, email can be deleted quickly and easily.  It is worth the time to carefully craft your message giving attention to all aspects of your email.  Be thoughtful when composing the body and subject line. Written communications are an extension of your marketing efforts. You need to get their attention and hold it in a brief 2-3 paragraphs.

Consider the communication style of the recipient – are they short and to the point or more interactive and talkative.  Will they catch every misspelling or punctuation error?  Not that your communications would have either of these.  Compose your message in a style that will be similar to theirs.

Here are some things to consider as you draft your email.  The Sales Tool Kit has more suggestions.  Request a copy by entering your name and email address in the box in the right sidebar.

1. Subject line: put great thought into what will be attention getting, accurate and appropriate for the content.  Use searching through your inbox as a guide to crafting this header.  Would you know what the content is by reading the subject line?
2. Greeting: until you have a relationship with the recipient keep to a more formal tone and you will have less chance of alienating them.
3. Content: get to the point quickly and capture their attention.  Consider this similar to a voice mail message.  Know your objective for the communication – do you want an appointment, identify potential prospects, or your literature/attachment read.  Be cognizant of their time.  Don’t make them read through multiple paragraphs to figure out what you want.  Get to the point in a warm, inviting professional way.
4. Signature: this block should include all information of how to reach you – email address and phone number as well as your full name are essential.
5. Tone: be warm but not overly friendly until you know the person well enough to be on friendly terms.
6. Stationery:  be conservative and keep it simple.  Pictures, stationery and graphics hoard bandwidth and inbox space, which the reader may not appreciate.
7. Attachments:  use descriptive labels and keep them to a minimum.  PDF files can be opened without a specific program (Word, PowerPoint, Excel…) and most everyone has Adobe already downloaded.

Emails live on so be accurate with information and keep in mind this communication may be forwarded to others.  Always be professional and present your best image.

I have increased my response rate considerably (>20%) by ending with a direct question written to elicit a response from the recipient.  Try it and let me know if you see a change in your response rate too.

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