Stay Away from these 6 Email Writing Mistakes

Let's face it, we've all been there – fingers flying over the keyboard, hearts pounding with excitement, and the creative juices flowing like a waterfall. You craft the perfect email, dot the i’s and cross the t’s, and can’t wait for the sales to roll in.

You proudly hit send, tuck yourself in bed, ready to dream about success and suddenly, all the mistakes you made hit you like a truck. 

The truth is, mistakes can happen anytime. Sometimes, we might not even be aware that certain habits are undermining the performance of our email campaigns.

Let’s address some common email writing mistakes that could be holding you back and see how we can rectify them:

1. Not using unique subject lines

A subject line is like the gate to your email. If your gate looks unique, interesting and generates curiosity, your readers would want to know what’s inside. 

Is it going to be a new product launch, or a guide on “how to use/not use”, or a making video or, reviews for a product? 

Use captivating subject lines for different campaign types. For example, Use “A shoe lover's ultimate shoe care guide 👠” instead of “Shoe care guide!“. 

Aside from this, Avoid using words such as “FREE”, “Free Trial”, “Best Price”,”Special Promotion”, “Discount” and many more that are considered spam under the eyes of email providers.

Here are some subject lines that you can refer to.

2. Not following a brand tone

Your emails should have a consistent tone of voice. It gives your readers a sense of familiarity which helps in connecting with your brand faster. The tone also affects customer perception of your brand. 

It’s almost like receiving a text from your friend, you know how they talk and you know how to respond. A change in the tone can make you feel like you’re talking to someone else. Take a look at these two different emails from Harry’s which have a similar tone.

3. Not making it scannable

Scannability means that the reader should be able to get what the email is trying to convey without having to read the entirety of it.

This can be achieved by considering:

• The number of sentences in each paragraph.
• The number of fonts used.
• Highlighting key points and important words (Using underlines, colors blocks, etc.) 
• Having proper structure with the help of headings, subheadings, bullet points and other formatting elements.

Here is an amazing example from Lumina:

4. Not personalizing

Beyond just adding the recipient’s name, personalisation talks about how you can tailor emails to each contact. This comes with better segmentation of your contacts. The more granular your segments, the more personalized your email campaigns will be. 

If you collect your shopper’s preferences, write emails promoting their preferred products. For the “non-buyer” segment, write abandoned cart emails that build trust. For customers from a certain region, write emails that resonate with their culture. 

Hawthorne has a highly personalized email based on preference:

5. Not adding appropriate Links and CTAs

Use actionable CTAs in your email to guide the reader towards the next step, be it visiting your website, exploring a collection, a product page or blogs. 

For effective use:

• Hyperlink relevant words
• Insert hyperlinked images. 
• Position the CTA button in a way that makes it easier for the reader to see it. Make it stand out by keeping it large and legible.
• Use short words and keep it in first person if possible. 

Be careful not to confuse the reader by having multiple CTAs. Make sure the buttons lead to relevant pages before sending the emails. 

6. Misspellings and other errors

After you’ve written your email, check for any misspellings or other mistakes that could have gone past initially. Errors like these play a role in the authenticity of your brand. Readers might not consider your brand seriously if your emails have spelling or grammar errors. Also, see if you can convey the same message in fewer words. 

Pro tip: Apps  like Grammarly and Hemingway App can help you with better words and phrases.

Look at your previous emails and see where you can improve. Consistently check the performance of your next emails to keep track of your improvement. Do not stop here, always have a look out for mistakes and keep making your emails better. 

Here’s a handy checklist for you before you send the next email.