Words matter especially when you are writing marketing emails. From subject lines to introductions we are taught to use words that captivate, excite, intrigue and convey. But did you know that how end an emails is just as important as how you begin? Everyone who uses email marketing or simply wants more positive results from business emails, from a web design company to a plumbing business, will benefit from learning this simple yet effective lesson.
Always Be Closing
When you are in business an important lesson to learn is ABC or Always Be Closing. Alex Baldwin’s role in the movie Glengarry Glen Ross used this motivational strategy when trying to motivate and teach his sales staff and is well remembered in sales circles. ABC is a valuable lesson and it carries over to your emails as well. You should always be closing from the very beginning of your email, and just as importantly, at the end. A recent study from an email software provider suggests that the closing of your email is just as important, if not more, than the opening. Most emails you send for business want a response of some sort. Perhaps it is advice, maybe it is help, or possibly your email is trying to produce a lead. No matter what the reason, how you end that email could be the key to getting the response you want.
The Power of Gratitude
Gratitude is an extremely powerful concept. When you are thankful or you show appreciation, people often feel the need to reciprocate. It is not just because we are taught to do so, even though many of us are. There is also a psychological aspect to it where people feel more compelled to reciprocate. It is similar to how when someone smiles at you it is hard not to smile back. Following that line of thought, how should you close your emails? If you guessed with some form of gratitude then you are correct! From that study it was noted that closings using some type of gratitude such as ‘thank you’ were much more effective than neutral responses such as ‘regards’. In fact, in the survey it was noted when comparing multiple closings that ‘Best’ and ‘Best Regards’ rated the lowest. ‘Thanks in Advance’ and ‘Thanks’ rated the highest.
The Bottom Line
The bottom line is that you should always be closing if you want to be successful. That means how you end an email is just as important as how you begin because if they take the time to read that far then you need to close strong if you want to illicit a response. So rather than using something polite like ‘kind regards’, step up your email game try ‘Thanks in advance’ and see what a difference it makes.
