Email Copywriter

When writing emails all day for work and personal life, it can be tempting to take shortcuts. Skip a signature, skip proofreading–we’ve all done that at some point. But when it comes to email copywriting in marketing campaigns, you simply cannot afford it!

Email marketing provides an average return of $42 for every $1 spent, making it a powerful tool for any business.

Email copywriting Tips — Are Email Campaigns Effective?

Email marketing remains a powerful tool.

In this post, we’ll provide all the information you need to begin improving your email copywriting immediately – including:

What email copywriting is
How you can improve your email copywriting

What Email Copywriting Examples Do You Need to See?

Let’s dive in.
What exactly is email copywriting?

Email copywriting is the practice of crafting an email for current or potential customers with the goal of encouraging a conversion. This could include anything from replying to signing up, signing up for your trial offer, reading blog posts–whatever it may be, all copy in the email should be tailored towards achieving this outcome.

Remember, not every email sent with a purpose requires excellent copywriting. Replying to your boss’ email about changing the meeting time? Not with email copywriting. Sending out weekly newsletters with business updates and content suggestions? Email copywriting required.

Now that we understand email copywriting, let’s move on to our top tips for improving your email performance with stronger copy.

Free email templates!
30 Free Small Business Email Examples and Templates!

7 Ways to Perfect Your Email Copywriting

Email copywriting is essential for businesses when communicating with prospects or customers. Not only does it reflect your brand, but also provides an opportunity to engage your readers and meet marketing objectives.

Here’s how to optimize your email copywriting and maximize this marketing channel for your business.

1. Define Your Goal
Without setting objectives, how will you know if your email campaign is successful?

Though this might appear to be a trick question, there’s actually no way of knowing. Without having determined what success looks like for you, there’s no way of knowing if your email was successful or if a copy change worked better if you haven’t made up your mind on what success looks like for yourself.

Every email should have a specific goal, such as free trial sign ups, blog post views, content downloads or demo bookings. Setting this objective is best way to measure whether or not your email was successful.

That is also the best way to guarantee all of your email copywriting works towards achieving the same goal. Take this automated email I received from Semrush after signing up for a free trial.

Email Copywriting Tips and Semrush Email Has One Goal

Here, the copy is all focused on driving a demo of one aspect of their product. The email subject link is captivating, the copy asks about progress with some supporting information provided. While I would not advise hiding a link in your signature, we’ll discuss more ways to improve CTAs soon.

2. Revise all email copywriting

Content editing is critical, but so too is copywriting–including email copywriting–for its effectiveness.

Your emails should be written clearly and concisely, free from any unnecessary punctuation, grammar mistakes or stilted sentences. Furthermore, this round of editing should guarantee that all your emails make sense together.

Take this email subject line that caught my eye recently in my inbox.

Email copywriting tips about dog walks

What about those dog walks you do by yourself? An edit would have prevented this needless and confusing repetition from entering into your email copywriting. Make sure all emails are proofread thoroughly to avoid any mistakes in grammar or style.

3. Be concise–very concise
Over 300 billion emails are sent daily – it’s truly staggering when you stop and consider it. I personally get around a dozen to my personal inbox daily, at least another few to my work email, and that doesn’t even include all of the promotions tabs Gmail filters out for me anyway!

It seems only natural that there would be hundreds of billions of emails sent daily if that were the case.

What’s the takeaway here? With so many notifications coming our way daily, keeping it short and to the point is key for increasing open rates on email copywriting. Keep it concise, and get to your point quickly for the best chance at having it read by recipients.

For assistance, consider these copy and paste email templates tailored towards small businesses.

4. Stay on Brand
When writing an email, remember that the person is opening it on the other end will be engaging with your brand. That interaction should be meaningful and easily recognizable – written in your brand voice, using colors from your brand palette, and adhering to all branding guidelines. That way, your email remains true to what you want it to say and remains consistent across platforms.

When crafting email copywriting, the brand voice should always be taken into consideration.

As if your brand voice is formal and authoritative, then your emails should include crisp, professional language. On the other hand, if it’s playful, feel free to incorporate jokes or puns – Madewell offers a great example.

Email Copywriting Tips That Stay on Brand With Puns
Want to stay on brand with email copywriting tips that stay true to your brand? Look no further than Madewell for help.

This “seams” wordplay is an expertly executed wink. It conveys an effortless cool and playful attitude, yet just slightly off-kilter – just like Madewell’s brand!

5. Utilize Email Preview Text
Email copywriting presents many challenges–subject lines must not be too long and body copy should be concise. That’s why it is essential to make use of all available space, including email preview text.

Inbox view of email programs such as HubSpot and Marketo, you may notice a small text bubble appearing next to or beneath your email subject line. Most email marketing tools allow for editing this text within these spaces for enhanced impact.

One of the best way’s to make use of extra space in your subject line is by treating it as an extension of your subject line that clarifies what will be included in the body of the email, answers a question asked in your subject line, or simply follows up on something said earlier.

Here is an impressive example from Drybar.

Email Copywriting Tips Drybar Email Preview Text

The email text preview line cements the idea expressed in the subject line and links it directly to the offer in the email: to book an appointment for a blow out.

6. Craft a compelling CTA
Your call-to-action (CTA) may be the most essential piece of copy you write. If all other elements in your email copywriting are working towards one goal, then this CTA serves as the final push that encourages readers to convert. Therefore, ensure it’s creative and persuasive enough for them to want to take action.

Here are a few tips for crafting the perfect CTA:

Use active words. Active phrases are more engaging, and you want your reader to stay invested in your CTA long enough to click and commit.

Be specific. Ditch overused, vague verbs and bland descriptors like “See More,” and describe your offer instead, such as “Generate Better Leads Now” or “Save 10% Today.”

Stay consistent. Consider your CTA as another opportunity to showcase the personality of your brand, using words and ideas related to that identity.

Email copywriting tips Air Bnb Email CTA On-Brand

AirBnB’s “Explore More” CTA is an excellent example of their brand staying true to its promise.

7. Never stop testing
Once your email workflow or weekly newsletter template is in place, it may seem like you’ve nailed down email copywriting perfectly. But the reality is, testing never ends; in order to keep improving, you must keep testing.

Testing copy and A/B comparisons is an excellent way to refine your emails and copywriting. Start by testing two subject lines, two CTAs, and then email headlines–then start over from the beginning and keep testing until you get more opens, reads, and conversions.

Check out more email copywriting examples for inspiration.

Now you understand email copywriting and how to improve, but what does great email copywriting look like in general? To give you some inspiration, we’re sharing some excellent email examples.

1. Asana: “Make Your Next Deadline”

This email’s subject line sets the tone for its copywriting: It is concise, encouraging, and to the points.

With phrases like the “next big deadline” and “adjust as needed,” Asana understands the reality of working on a team today. Things evolve, so you need a calendar that can adapt along with you.

Asana takes advantage of the extra space in the first image to include a compelling title: “Mission to the Moon.” That’s how much Asana believes in your projects–they’re likening launching your next campaign or product with taking off to the moon!

Above all else? Your copy is concise and focused – great job!

See examples of email copywriting techniques using Asana Email

2. Postscript Results for March

This email example features an eye-catching emoji in the subject line, but it’s even better because of how it’s followed up with confetti in the background heading.

One of the greatest aspects of email copywriting is its formatting–bold, italics and headings ensure all essential information is communicated clearly even if you aren’t reading everything from beginning to end.

If so, then you’ll appreciate the straightforward language, on-brand data references, and multiple opportunities to engage with Postscript.

Plus, that signature sign off? Chef’s kiss.

Email Copywriting Examples Postscript Email Examples

3. David’s Tea: “You’re the best!”

I absolutely adore a direct address in the subject line of an email, especially one as personalized as this one from David’s Tea (we’ve even talked about David’s Tea before on the WordStream blog!).

The language is inviting, with all lower-case copy and no punctuation emphasizing this point. Overall, the tone elicits warm, fuzzy feelings – something not all brands or circumstances can achieve; however, in this instance of celebrating a long-term customer relationship, it works and feels genuine.

Playful examples like buying a chipmunk’s weight in a tea is adorable, and telling me what kind of tea I would be based on my purchases is entertaining.

Examples of email copywriting includes Davids Tea.

Increase Your Conversions with Better Email Copywriting

Email marketing is an effective tool to reach your audience and build a community, so it’s essential that you pay close attention to the copywriting. Engaging readers is key, so follow these tips for continued improvement.

Here are our go-to email copywriting strategies:

Create your goal
Edit your copy
Be concise
Stay on brand
Use email preview text
Get your CTA right
Continue testing
Now use these tips, get inspired by the examples, and write stronger email copywriting now!

Today, many marketers struggle to craft email copy that engages readers and motivates them to act. As a result, businesses are turning to copywriters for assistance. But email copywriting is more than just crafting an enticing subject line or compelling copy; it requires all these things plus more. With this in mind, let us take a more closer look at how to become an email copywriter.

First of all, what exactly is email copywriting?

How can we Become an Email Copywriter – Copify Blog 3Email copywriting is no different from other types of copywriting, but it requires the ability to express ideas persuasively so recipients take action according to what you want them to take.

Email copywriting, like other short-form works (no more than a page), requires a conversational tone. For all email copywriters, regardless of who the recipient is, the challenge lies in crafting messages that will be opened and read.

Email copywriting offers several unique characteristics, such as:

Succinctness
Demonstrating a high degree of persuasion.

No filler copy or fluff
A strong focus on the connection between the CTA and subject line

However, it’s essential to remember that email copywriting comes in many shapes and forms. Generally, there are two primary types: transactional and engagement. Transactional emails focus on making and closing sales while engagement emails aim at captivating the reader through storytelling. Therefore, an email copywriter could be asked to craft welcome emails, tutorials, newsletters, brand stories, cart abandonment reminders, receipt emails, time-sensitive promotions – the list is endless!

Now, that we are understanding what email copywriting is, here’s everything you need to become an email copywriter.

How to Become an Email Copywriter
Are you interested in learning how to become an email copywriter? Check out these tips on becoming successful!

These steps lay the groundwork for a rewarding career in email copywriting:

1. Accumulate as much copywriting experience as possible.

How should we become an Email Copywriter – Copify Blog 1Email copywriting is no easy feat, so don’t try it at first. Good writing takes practice and refinement; make sure that you’re creating as much material as possible, whether that be web content, blogs, marketing copy or anything else – agencies such as Copify and job boards are excellent places to begin your journey.

Though a degree in English or journalism can be beneficial when working in copywriting, it isn’t required. You might find more success by taking an email copywriting course such as Hubspot’s ‘How to write emails that sell’ or IDM’s Copywriting for Web and Email course.

2. Acquaint yourself with the fundamentals of email marketing

Email marketing offers many opportunities, from building relationships and increasing brand awareness to product marketing and lead nurturing. Therefore, it’s essential that you comprehend the fundamentals of email marketing are in order to craft copy of that engages recipients effectively. These fundamentals include:

Determining Your Audience: For email copywriting to be successful, it must be tailored towards the recipient. That way, your message is relevant and tailored towards them.

Understanding Your Client’s Goals: Your client should provide you with specific details regarding the objectives of their email campaign, so it is your responsibility to read these carefully in order to guarantee that you are helping your client achieve better email marketing result – leads, sales, customer loyalty etc.

Give recipients a clear action to take: People scan emails, so make sure your call-to-action is easily recognized, succinct and action-oriented. Ultimately, you want to make it as effortless for them to buy it or get in touch.

3. Learn how to craft an email that resonates.

Crafting an effective email requires adhering to certain best practices in both the subject line and body of the message.

1. Be Personal
To make sure your email copywriting resonates with readers, make it personal. The great way to do this is by presuming you are writing an email for one specific individual – like a friend, family member or customer. What would you say if they were sitting opposite you? Make sure they understand what you want them to know and provide instructions on what action should be taken next.

2. Be Short and Concise
Remember, people only skim emails, so do not waste your time writing several hundreds words of copy. Get straight to the point. Additionally, don’t feel obligated to use full sentences and paragraphs; bullet points, questions and short sentences can all work just as well. This ensures your message gets across effectively.

3. Include a single call-to-action button.

How can we become an Email Copywriter – Copify Blog 5You may be tempted to insert multiple CTAs into an email in the hopes that subscribers will click on at least one, but this strategy rarely works. When providing them with too many buttons or links to choose from, chances are they won’t click any.

Make your copy concise and include one clear call-to-action. After all, no one has time to consider which action they should take if there are too many options available.

4. Get the subject line correct

Like the headlines of an article or blog post, your email subject line should be captivating and pertinent. Studies suggest that subject lines should range between 41 characters (ideal for portrait view on an iPhone) and 70 characters (suitable for Gmail).

Be sure to include action words in your email subject line, as this will help recipients understand what action is expected of them before they even read the rest of the message. Phrases like ‘don’t miss out’ or ‘act now’ are great examples that create a sense of urgency.

Develop your skills as an email copywriter today!

If you’re new to email copywriting, be sure to get as much practice as possible before pitching clients. At Copify, you can gain valuable experience crafting various types of content such as emails, blog posts, webpages and articles.