Email: how to make your signature file work harder

Are those few lines that appear just below your name on your emails working as hard for you as they could?

Provided that your business or other activity offers verbally expressed advice and other help, it shouldn’t be hard for you to carve out, say, 10 top tips that you could include in your signature file.

In the spirit of sharing value to clients, prospects and others, here’s an idea that might work for you and your business, charity or other activity…

Use your signature file to add value to all your emails

It’s a no-brainer for me, because I write about how to write better.

But actually it doesn’t really matter what you do:  you, as an expert in your field, can share some valuable quick tips with your readers that will keep them interested and loyal.

And where better to share those tips, than in the email signature you share at the bottom of every business/activity email you send?

Here’s how I am building up my email signature tips…

Some examples:

TIP: Before you start to write, be sure you know your readers very well

TIP: Write as people speak: as if you’re talking to a friend over coffee

TIP: Don’t just get to the point: start with it, so it grabs readers’ attention

TIP: Write what you mean and don’t waffle or use pompous, fuzzy language

TIP: Don’t write more than one idea per sentence: keep sentences short

TIP: Always write so that one sentence flows logically into the next

TIP: Use bullet points to list more than 2 or 3 items in a sentence

TIP: Avoid jargon when you write: you know what it means, but do your readers?

TIP: Try to avoid clichés when you write: they make your ideas seem unoriginal

TIP: Avoid writing superlatives that smell phony, e.g. “best,” “fastest,” “exciting”

TIP: Avoid writing long, unbroken blocks of text: they’re uninviting, especially online

TIP: Write frequent sub-headings in your text: they make it much easier to read

TIP: Proofread your writing backwards: it sounds ridiculous, but it works well

TIP: When writing on a device, print it out to proofread: mistakes show up better

TIP: With little time to proofread, change the font: that shows mistakes up better

And there are many more to come.

How does my email signature look?

S u z a n   S t  M a u r   A M I P A
———————————————————–
Author Coach, Publishing Consultant
———————————————————–
Best-Selling Author
———————————————————–
Website HowToWriteBetter.net
Call or text +44 (0) 7767 354 090 
Email suze@suzanstmaur.com
—————————————————————————-
TIP:  Want people to act on your email? Stick to
one topic and write a powerful subject line

Nice and simple. No clutter.

How you benefit from sharing your tips in your email signature file

Provided that your business or other activity offers verbally expressed advice and other help, it shouldn’t be hard for you to carve out – maybe – 10 top tips that you could include in your signature file.

The idea is to rotate them: maybe once a week or even once a day, depending on how many you have.

In fairness, unless you email dozens, hundreds or thousands of people you’re unlikely to see brain-blasting results from this tactic within short times.

But as a cost-free tactic that acts on a drip-feed basis in terms of promoting your brand, what have you got to lose?

And as I have seen recently, it works … it increases awareness of what I do, as well as increasing the number of enquiries into how I can help people.

What experiences have you had with using an email signature file for promotional purposes?

Please share your thoughts here!

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