Five Step Framework for Emails that Work

Are you tired of always trying to find a new and clever way to get your email message "out there" and heard well? I think we've all been there (I've been there, and it sucks). The difference is that I've been doing just that for myself and others for over two decades and have gotten pretty good at it. That's not to say you're not good or that you're not getting better; it's to say that I've figured out how to craft messages that create engagement following a five step framework that anyone can remember (and it works 🙌). If that sounds like something you'd like to have in your back pocket, then read on and save this framework as your own!

You know what's funny? The framework was already in the initial paragraph, but you missed it... or did you? That's kind of the thing: your framework should be so automatic to you, that it makes engagement automatic for your audience.

1

Play into their Pain Point (share their stress)

Every person and organization has a pain point, a wart that is a constant source of irritation, or a hurdle they just can't jump over. You've been here too, so lean into that. It's simple to send an email message that sounds good to you, but if it doesn't connect and help them move past an objective, the message serves you more than anyone.

2

Connect with their Context (them)

There are multiple ways that people connect with you, via marketing on-ramps. Every non-profit or unicorn has these on-ramps—spoken and unspoken—that take an audience member from their immediate context to a shared context with you. Marketing used to be seen as a top-down funnel approach, but today it's multiple funnels (on-ramps) connecting to multiple places, all at once (almost like a giant oak tree). Therefore, be specific with a hyper-nice approach to your audience (segmentation).

3

Personalize the Pitch (the "unique" you)

If you're connecting with the context appropriately (segmentation), then you need consider this and do the same for you, being your true self from the start. There are a lot of orgs that do the same exact thing, but all of them have a unique approach to their work. The problem is that most don't communicate their uniqueness and therefore fail to differentiate themselves from others who look 90% like them and become like a white noise machine, drowning themselves out unintentionally.

Russ_Cantu_Mustache

4

Define Your Deliverables (value proposition)

Everyone has either pain, a wart, or a hurdle. Your objective once you've connected with them on a personal level and shared your unique identity is to tell them with specifics and measurables, how you will save them time, money, or effort (even in an email). In short, this is laying out the case for how you will make their lives better. Identify one of those growth factors and narrow your focus on a pitch that erases their pain.

5

Active "Call to Action" (passive can't convert)

Once you've made a case for your unique work and offering, you need to cause them to act. Make an appeal that will make their lives so much better that they cannot wait and pass this up. The one hurdle I have seen on my own end here is confidence. What I can say to you that directly addresses this is to be certain that everything you've done that has gotten you to this point, will certainly carry you through and help improve people's lives as it has done for you.

Bonus Time

  1. Make them smile. No one likes professional-only email messaging. Like a good speaker, if you can get them to laugh within the first 30 seconds, you've got them for free for the next five. In a culture where everything and everyone is so anti, be a pro.
  2. Transformation > Information, every day of the week... but also give specifics 😉. Most orgs (for profit and non) tend to focus on information over transformation in their messaging. This means they present you with information and give you space to make you own decisions. Transformation means you are presenting information through stories, and those convert much higher on average.
  3. Automate All (funnels). Everything that can be automated, should be automated. If it's an email funnel that is used to support information, set that to send! If it's a funnel that helps further convince people, line it up. But if your appeal is asking for a direct reply, make sure you make yourself available to the audience you just asked to reach out to you.