Make your email signature work harder
Is it time to take a fresh look at this everyday tool?
Most businesses, large and small, make use of email communications. And most have some form of signature which contains at the very least the relevant company contact details, but usually includes a logo as well.
When one considers that it is not merely your customers – existing and prospective – who receive your emails but suppliers as well, then perhaps the lowly email signature deserves some more thought. Because every email can be used as a marketing opportunity. And every email can potentially be forwarded to someone else, increasing the scope of viewership.
The elements that can be considered for inclusion on your email signature are:
Your name (obviously!). You can even add a handwritten signature that’s been scanned in. This makes it look even more personal and less “electronic”. What about a photo of yourself?
Your job title. This immediately conveys your role and standing – or that of staff members – within an organization.
Personal qualifications. The general guideline here is to include it when it is relevant to your type of business or the importance of the sender’s skill-set to the email recipient. In such cases listing one’s credentials helps establish credibility as being an authority in a certain field. Taking a gas supply company as an example, including a technician’s safety qualifications is essential.
The department the message represents. This helps to focus the relevance of the message to the recipient. If an individual is used to receiving emails from a sales person, for instance, identifying it as coming from the service or after-care department will tell them this is not a routine message.
The telephone number, including a cell phone number if desired. The latter is especially important if you or a staff member are frequently out of the office yet need to remain available to your customers. And don’t forget about the extension number if you have one.
Your email address. You might question the need for this because the recipient can see it in the “from” field, can’t they? Or, can’t they simply hit the “reply” button? Well, the problem is that some email software clients use display names instead of the email address. Also, when an email is forwarded to someone else your full email address can become truncated. So rather play it safe by writing out the full email address with a “mailto” link for easy clicking.
Physical address. Because your email messages are directed at a wide spread of recipients not everyone will know where your business is located. Save them the effort of enquiring by including it in the first place. This is especially important if your message has perhaps been forwarded to someone who is not a client.
Slogans. If this is a strong component of your branding, then include it.
Social media icons/links. If your company is active on social media platforms, include the links to these.
Advertising banners. There’s no reason why you can’t have a number of signatures – as long as the general appearance has some consistency. You could have a variety of advertising banners to promote new or add-on products, special offers, upcoming sales events. Just about any sales message can piggy-back on your email signature. I have found a scrolling marquee at the bottom of my emails to be quite effective. Some of my clients use banners to link to download pages on their websites, where clients and prospects can download free technical guides or useful booklets.
The Disclaimer. Including this and determining what type depends very much on the nature of your business. Its purpose is simply to help avoid you attracting legal issues. So it’s best to find out if there any local, regional or national requirements that must be catered to. More importantly, are theere any requirements specific to the industry sector in which your business operates? Have a look at what others in your sector say in their disclaimers. Also visit websites such as www.mail-signatures.com (Opens in a new window) for examples and templates.
The overall effect. Once you know what you want included on your email signature, take a step back and give thought to its overall appearance, because there is firstly the critical aspect of branding to be considered. The appearance should be consistent with that of your other stationery such as letterheads, business cards, website, invoices and signage.
Who prepares your email signatures? Bearing in mind the importance of branding and the possible use of links and even response mechanisms, creating an email is usually a task beyond the capabilities of the average business owner – or their staff. A variety of email clients may be used by recipients, as well as tablets and smartphones, each with its own way of looking at HTML coding. And, strange things can happen when an email is forwarded.
A professional designer will know how to cater to this and also how to ensure that images such as logos appear consistent to whoever receives your emails, so it is really worth going this route. If you’ve found a designer you’re comfortable with and who understands your branding requirements, cut costs by planning your promotional needs for at least the next 6 months, then negotiate a package deal for a variety of signature to be provided in one go.
As mentioned earlier, visit websites such as www.mail-signatures.com (Opens in a new window) for examples and if you find something you like, show it to your designer as an example of what you’re after. The more you guide your designer, the lower the charge should be.
All photos and artwork used in my articles are fully licensed and were purchased from stock photo sites such as Dollarphoto, Fotolia, Adobe Stock, Depositphotos.
Planning on starting a new business, or Planning on starting a new business, or feel your company name and logo is not working? Starting my Business: My Name, Logo & Slogan provides all the information you need to consider when it comes to these three elements of your new enterprise. Find out more at Books 2 Read (Opens in a new window)
Or, if you prefer the PDF version (Opens in a new window)
