{"id":10543,"date":"2025-11-06T16:50:58","date_gmt":"2025-11-06T22:50:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/attentionmedia.io\/?p=10543"},"modified":"2025-11-06T16:50:58","modified_gmt":"2025-11-06T22:50:58","slug":"6-steps-to-writing-emails-that-get-opened-and-acted-on","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/attentionmedia.io\/?p=10543","title":{"rendered":"6 steps to writing emails that get opened and acted on"},"content":{"rendered":"<div><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" src=\"https:\/\/martech.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/ChatGPT-Image-Effective-emails-800x450.png\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-post-image\" alt=\"A marketer sits at a desk surrounded by floating, glowing email icons\" loading=\"lazy\" \/><\/div>\n<p>How many unread emails are sitting in your inbox right now? I have 10 in one inbox, 23 in another and about 98 in my personal one \u2014 and all of them stress me out. The average American, by the way, has <a href=\"https:\/\/allaboutcookies.org\/digital-clutter\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">more than 1,000 unread emails<\/a>. Yikes.<\/p>\n<p>Still, as cluttered as your inbox may be, you do read emails. Some make you think or feel something. Every now and then, one even makes you click. How do you send more of those emails?<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How an effective email actually works<\/h2>\n<p>The relationship between the subject line, preview and body looks like this:\u00a0<\/p>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Contrary to popular opinion, your subject line isn\u2019t just about grabbing attention \u2014 it\u2019s about relevance. Relevant, timely messages get opened. Irrelevant ones get ignored.<\/li>\n<li>Your preview text (or the first line of your email, if you\u2019re sending cold campaigns) should reinforce that relevance and timeliness.\u00a0<\/li>\n<li>Finally, your email body should deliver on the promise of the subject line and preview text with a clear, compelling message that leads naturally to your call to action.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Simple enough, right? Now let\u2019s actually write the email.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Step 1: Clarify the objective<\/h2>\n<p>Every email you send should have one objective. It should get your readers to book a meeting, register for a webinar, watch a video or listen to a podcast. In other words, what are people reading this email supposed to do or feel?<\/p>\n<p>Whatever your objective, every part of your email \u2014 from the subject line to the P.S. \u2014 needs to support it. Be clear on this before anything else.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/martech.org\/the-most-underrated-b2b-channel-your-newsletter\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Newsletters<\/a> can include all of these actions and more, but even your newsletter should have one ultimate objective. For most companies, that objective is relationship-building.<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>Dig deeper: <a href=\"https:\/\/martech.org\/email-marketing-strategy\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Email marketing strategy: A marketer\u2019s guide<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Step 2: Clarify the key and supporting performance metrics\u00a0<\/h2>\n<p>Once you\u2019ve set your objective, decide how you\u2019ll measure success. Unique opens? CTR? CTOR? Replies? Unsubscribes, even? (List hygiene is important \u2014 not all unsubscribes are bad.)<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Step 3: Prepare the brief<\/h2>\n<p>You should have an email-specific brief, just like you would for any other channel. Ideally, it should serve two functions: operations and messaging.<\/p>\n<p>Operations covers the campaign logistics, namely:<\/p>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Lists.<\/li>\n<li>Segments of the lists.<\/li>\n<li>Target personas.<\/li>\n<li>Call to action.<\/li>\n<li>Links.<\/li>\n<li>Assets\/resources (images, GIFs, video, etc.).<\/li>\n<li>Sender name and email.<\/li>\n<li>Where KPIs will be found.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Messaging is how you prime readers for your objective. What do they need to think and feel to act? The messaging part should include:<\/p>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Your unique mechanism or solution.<\/li>\n<li>Claims and promises.<\/li>\n<li>Background story.<\/li>\n<li>Testimonials, reviews or case studies.<\/li>\n<li>Scarcity elements, angles and hooks.<\/li>\n<li>Subject lines.<\/li>\n<li>Preview text.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>You won\u2019t use every part of the brief, and that\u2019s fine. Its purpose is to outline your email and structure your message.<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>Dig deeper: <\/em><\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/martech.org\/fix-your-webinar-emails-before-your-next-campaign-flops\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong><em>Fix your webinar emails before your next campaign flops<\/em><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Step 4: Outline your email\u00a0<\/h2>\n<p>Now we get to the writing part. When done well, a solid brief will more or less outline your email for you. I usually start by choosing a copywriting structure based on the message and objective of the email. <\/p>\n<p>If the message targets a pain or struggle, I\u2019ll use frameworks like pain, agitate, solution (PAS) or attention, interest, desire, action (AIDA). If I\u2019m speaking to an aspiration or mindset shift, I\u2019ll use desire, obstacle, solution (DOS) or picture, promise, prove, push (PPPP).<\/p>\n<p>I often begin by taking the messaging elements from my brief and dropping them into a basic outline in a Google Doc \u2014 subject line, preview text, body copy and so on. From there, I rearrange or refine as needed.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Step 5: Draft the email<\/h2>\n<p>Depending on how well trained your LLM is, you can use AI for this step too. But drafting is where you add flesh to the bones of your structure.<\/p>\n<p>The stronger your structure \u2014 and the more assets, stories and testimonials you have \u2014 the easier this part becomes.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Step 6: Edit your email\u00a0<\/h2>\n<p>This is the most important (and often the most underrated) step in the writing process. As Ryan Law says, \u201cediting is the process of improving the performance of written content.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>This is where you audit and refine your copy to ensure it\u2019s primed to accomplish your objective. Review your email and ask yourself:<\/p>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Does it support the objective?<\/li>\n<li>Does it evoke the right emotion or make a compelling argument?<\/li>\n<li>Does it back that emotion or argument with the right stories or proof?<\/li>\n<li>Is the CTA congruent with the copy and the step we want readers to take? (If people are expecting pricing, show them pricing. If they\u2019re expecting a webinar registration form, show them the form.)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>When you do this well, you get an email like this:<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1600\" height=\"1322\" src=\"https:\/\/martech.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/image-1.png\" alt=\"Sample email\" class=\"wp-image-404228\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p><strong><em>Dig deeper: <a href=\"https:\/\/martech.org\/they-did-it-so-we-should-too-isnt-an-email-strategy\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">\u2018They did it, so we should too\u2019 isn\u2019t an email strategy<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The subject line demonstrates relevance and timeliness by leading with a topic many marketers are thinking about and trying to navigate. The opening line builds on the subject line without repeating it and sets up the body beautifully. The body itself addresses a real challenge, promises clarity and closes with a congruent, compelling call to action.<\/p>\n<p>It looks simple \u2014 but meaningful emails like this only happen with a solid copywriting process. Kind of like the one above. Try it out and see how it goes.<\/p>\n<p><!-- START INLINE FORM --><\/p>\n<div class=\"nl-inline-form border py-2 px-1 my-2\">\n<div class=\"row align-items-center justify-content-center nl-inline-container\">\n<div class=\"col-12 pb-1\">\n<p class=\"inline-form-text text-center mb-0\">Fuel up with free marketing insights.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"col-12 col-lg-auto pb-2 pb-lg-0\">\n<p class=\"inline-form-text text-center mb-0\">Email:<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"col-12 col-lg-8 pe-lg-0\">\n<div class=\"form-nl-inline\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"col-12 col-lg-auto\">\n<p class=\"text-center mb-0\"><a class=\"nl-terms\" href=\"https:\/\/martech.org\/terms-of-service\/\" target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"opens in a new tab\">See terms.<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><!-- END INLINE FORM --><\/p>\n<p>The post <a href=\"https:\/\/martech.org\/6-steps-to-writing-emails-that-get-opened-and-acted-on\/\">6 steps to writing emails that get opened and acted on<\/a> appeared first on <a href=\"https:\/\/martech.org\/\">MarTech<\/a>.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>How many unread emails are sitting in your inbox right now? I have 10 in one inbox, 23 in another and about 98 in my personal one \u2014 and all of them stress me out. The average American, by the way, has more than 1,000 unread emails. Yikes. Still, as cluttered as your inbox may &hellip; <\/p>\n<p class=\"link-more\"><a href=\"https:\/\/attentionmedia.io\/?p=10543\" class=\"more-link\">Read more<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;6 steps to writing emails that get opened and acted on&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10543","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"featured_media_urls":{"thumbnail":["https:\/\/martech.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/image-1.png",0,0,false],"medium":["https:\/\/martech.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/image-1.png",0,0,false],"medium_large":["https:\/\/martech.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/image-1.png",0,0,false],"large":["https:\/\/martech.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/image-1.png",0,0,false],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/martech.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/image-1.png",0,0,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/martech.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/image-1.png",0,0,false],"inspiro-featured-image":["https:\/\/martech.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/image-1.png",0,0,false],"inspiro-loop":["https:\/\/martech.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/image-1.png",0,0,false],"inspiro-loop@2x":["https:\/\/martech.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/image-1.png",0,0,false],"portfolio_item-thumbnail":["https:\/\/martech.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/image-1.png",0,0,false],"portfolio_item-thumbnail@2x":["https:\/\/martech.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/image-1.png",0,0,false],"portfolio_item-masonry":["https:\/\/martech.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/image-1.png",0,0,false],"portfolio_item-masonry@2x":["https:\/\/martech.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/image-1.png",0,0,false],"portfolio_item-thumbnail_cinema":["https:\/\/martech.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/image-1.png",0,0,false],"portfolio_item-thumbnail_portrait":["https:\/\/martech.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/image-1.png",0,0,false],"portfolio_item-thumbnail_portrait@2x":["https:\/\/martech.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/image-1.png",0,0,false],"portfolio_item-thumbnail_square":["https:\/\/martech.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/image-1.png",0,0,false]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/attentionmedia.io\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10543","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/attentionmedia.io\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/attentionmedia.io\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/attentionmedia.io\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/attentionmedia.io\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=10543"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/attentionmedia.io\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10543\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/attentionmedia.io\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=10543"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/attentionmedia.io\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=10543"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/attentionmedia.io\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=10543"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}