On average, each office worker receives 121 emails a day, and Radicati reports that, “In 2015, the number of worldwide email users [will be] nearly 2.6 billion.
By the end of 2019, the number of worldwide email users will increase to over 2.9 billion. Over one third of the worldwide population will be using email by year end 2019”.
As for marketing emails…44% of people make purchases because of a promotional email.
So there you have the stats. Email is very much alive and well, and nowadays is the preferred method of communication across the world.
Although email signatures have been around from the stone ages or so it seems, they now have the potential to not only be a digital calling card, but a powerful and ideal marketing tool, because call to actions can be included in a way that is not pushy or salesy. Now the email signature can tell a story without you needing to.
In this article, find seven sneaky and subtle ideas to prompt action from email recipients.
#1 Create pro email signatures
Instantly add trust and credibility to your brand by creating a super professional email signature.
To do this easily, use Wisestamp. It works with just about all email service providers.
Once created, simply plug the HTML provided into your email settings, and Bob’s your uncle. Because of how easy this tool is to use, it would be a good idea to take the next six ideas and plug them into an email signature that is created on Wisestamp. While a basic email signature like the one shown is free, some features can only be used with the premium package.
#2 Add a “what can I do for you?” video clip
If you are sending “cold” emails to prospects, add a video clip to your signature which explains, in a short and concise way, how you can help them. Take care that this clip represents your brand, so it needs to reflect quality and character.
Adding a clip to your signature makes it easy for people to find out what you do and how your product or service could benefit them, without the need for a time consuming face-to-face meeting.
Don’t let the video making idea daunt you…it’s easy to create a pro one with RendrFX (and you can even make your first one for free).
Upload the video to YouTube or Vimeo, and then using a tool like Canva, design the image for email that points to the video.
#3 Promote an event
Using a catchy call to action in your email signature, let recipients know about your event, conference or upcoming sales webinar.
Be sure to point them to a web page where they can find out more, or register.
#4 Advertise blog posts or case studies
Promoting a well written, informative and value-add blog post may be what convinces your prospect that the product or service you provide is credible and trustworthy. Adding a blog post or case study link to your email signature can be a powerful way to showcase your expertise.
#5 Add a link to customer reviews
Research shows that your prospects will trust what your customers say about your brand before they’ll trust what you say about it.
In fact, according to Vendasta, 68% consumers report that positive customer reviews make them trust a business more, and star ratings is the primary method by which people judge your business, so it’s a very powerful tool you can use to build brand credibility.
Granted, it’s not all that easy to incorporate reviews into your business when you don’t know how, so using a tool like Yotpo can be of great help. Yotpo helps you collect genuine customer reviews and works to get more of them. This tool gives multiple benefits, because not only does it collect reviews for you, but also drives more traffic to your site and boosts sales, as a result of incorporating reviews. Simply add a link to your email signature, that leads clicks to your reviews.
#6 Promote sales
If you’re having a sale, notify the people you email by simply including a link. People associate sales with red, so including a bit of red somewhere is a great idea, so that the eye is drawn to the notification, as the “sale” part shows in this example:
#7 Mini website-in-email
A website is like your business’ brick and mortar building: it’s a way for people to get a feel for the brand, and find out information about the business.
In this example email signature, Rex Weston provides a mini-website right from his signature, which includes all his details, as well as a virtual business card and a link to a PDF brochure. At the bottom, it also let’s recipients know of an event the company will be at, and where to find their booth.
All this arranged in a very smart, clean look.
If you really want to go to town, within minutes you can create a one page mini introduction website with WiseIntro, and link to it from your email signature.
This tool is especially helpful for personal branding and for getting more leads, as it includes a signup form on a webpage that is not filled with distracting elements as a website usually is. The result is that you’re likely to get more sign-ups than you might from a website.
Adding the page link into your email signature encourages recipients to find out more about you, and take the action you want them to take.
Summary
Email is the preferred method of communication, so marketers should optimize the opportunity by adding a call to action to email signatures.
Seven brainy ways of sneaking in a call to action, is by:
- Adding an introduction link which leads to a sign-up form on a standalone webpage.
- Including a link to a video demonstrating your product or service.
- Promoting an event by inserting a link to a registration page.
- Advertising your latest blog posts or case studies.
- Including a link to positive customer reviews and ratings.
- Promoting e-commerce sales.
- Adding a mini website-in-email signature by including lots of information about how your business can benefit the recipient.
