How to get people to open your emails (even when you’re selling)

A lot of technical ink has been spilled on the subject of getting your emails opened and read.

Read-rates!
Conversion!
Click-throughs!

Today, I’d like to take a different approach to getting people to open your emails.

I call it: “Being someone people want to hear from.”

I know, it’s less technical. And honestly, it’s a cheaper technology.

Case in point. Last night, as I was wrapping up my day, I was going through my ritual of deleting and unsubscribing from emails.

But there was an email from my best friend.

I immediately stopped my psychologically-gratifying email deletion spree, and read her note.

It was actually a group email, letting her circle of people know that she is running a half marathon for heart disease, and given that several of her relatives succumbed to the illness, would I want to donate a few bucks?

Here’s the thing. She could have been asking me for money for a hamburger. But I read her whole email, stem to stern, and had a moment of “man, she’s such a good person.”

Did I give?

No. Didn’t feel moved to. It just so happens that I’m running the race with her, so for me, somehow that is enough this round.

My point is, I opened the email because it was from her.

I got an email from her last week, that I read before everyone else’s emails, too. She told me that I may see news about the shooting at University of South Carolina (where she teaches)… and she’s okay.

(Man, I’m glad she’s okay!)

Now, you may be saying, “Stella – she’s your friend. I want to send emails for my business. It’s different!”

Yes.

And no.

Yes, it’s different, because Sarah doesn’t make her livelihood from me buying her stuff.

But no, because it’s all about the relationship that we have that makes me want to open her emails to hear from her.

So how do you start becoming a person other people want to hear from?

1. Understand how to write a promotional email. Promotional emails are different than newsletters. Newsletters have different sections. Promotional emails are all about ONE offer. You can’t just follow a template, like so many people do – it ends up sounding wooden and fake. For those emails to actually sell, you need to understand the points you need to hit… and then put more of your real personality into it.
2. Learn to shape what you know into content – and share it regularly with your audience and list. I call these your “bite size teaching nuggets.” They are the tips, tools, and ideas you share – gratis – with people who are not just customers. Sharing regularly builds the relationship. People get to know you as someone who has valuable information.
3. Realize that, just because it’s a promotional email, you can still connect, entertain, tell stories and delight people. When you write a string of promotional emails, it can be just as important to have people reading your emails and enjoy them… even if they buy nothing. Because that often sets the stage to buy from you the next time. If you burn your list out on sales-heavy emails, you make it harder for yourself in the future. Some people are okay with that. Just know what feels right for you and your list.

At the end of the day, I do wish more business owners wrote emails as if they were writing personal notes to their friends. It would help relieve so much of the woodenness and fakery that we see in so many emails.

When it comes to writing emails, what’s your biggest challenge? Tell us in the comments below.

Mighty thanks to TPorter2006 flickr photostream for the E-mail Me photo.