Email signatures are a communication opportunity to promote your message. In the 1990s, most people used the email address given to them by their Internet service providers but it wasn’t readily accessible on any device or browser. Hotmail changed that by adding a simple “Get your free email at Hotmail” at the bottom of every email sent from a Hotmail address, leading to 12 million users in 2 years and a $400 million sale to Microsoft. While branded email signatures are fairly common now, there’s no underestimating the power of email signature branding. In this article, you’ll learn how to write a signature that can reach your business prospects with branding, clear messaging, and social proof.
Why have a brand email signature?
Email signatures can demonstrate a sense of professionalism and enhance brand awareness. Some reasons why a brand can benefit your company include the following.
Email signatures can make your brand look professional. Ending your emails with a professional signature will make them look more credible and trustworthy. Your recipient can verify your business identity based on the details you’ve provided.
Professional email signatures contain important contact details. This makes it easier for potential customers to contact you on their preferred channel. A good signature may include an email address and a telephone number.
Email signatures can attract new social media followers. If you link to your business’s social profiles, including your Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn profiles where your business has a strong social media presence, your recipients can check you out on your social media platforms and learn what your business is about. It can also increase the trust that your recipient has in you and your business, and possibly make them keener to engage.
A branded email signature can showcase your brand personality. It can show off your brand personality through images, layout, colors, and fonts. These crucial design elements can help you and your organization stands out from the other businesses that your recipients may also be getting emails from.
How to represent your brand with your email signature
Designing a branded email signature is similar to how you would manage your corporate branding in other aspects.
You could see your email signature as a marketing opportunity. Adding social proof to your signature can be a great way of showing your email recipients the positive experiences that clients and partners have had with your products and services.
Add a short “featured in” blurb if you’ve been published in top-tier publications, or mention any awards you’ve received. This can help to build trust and credibility.
You may also want to add testimonials, case studies, or excerpts from any positive reviews you’ve earned.
Here are a few general guidelines:
- Make it simple and personal
- Add social proof
- Change it up to reflect seasonal events
- Be clear and concise with your call to action
Why is Email Signature Branding Important?
There are many reasons why email signature branding matters.
Email signature branding increases brand awareness while ensuring that your brand is easily recognizable. A professional email signature will showcase your company’s mission and values with both text and visual elements, helping your company to stand out. If recipients find that the values and branding of the company in the email resonate with them, that can leave a lasting impression.
If consistently used, branding can generate referrals simply from emails that you send to external parties that may in turn be forwarded to others.
What does your email say about your brand?
Does your current email signature say anything about your brand? You could be missing out on an opportunity to show off your branding and leave an impression, especially because many of us send emails to multiple external parties on a daily basis.
Here are some questions to think about when evaluating what your emails say about your company brand.
- Do all employees have the company logo in their email signature?
- Will there a consistent use of the color palette and font in email signatures used throughout the company?
- Is there a proper email header that can improve brand recognition?
- Is the design of the email signature optimized for mobile devices?
Ready to do more business with email marketing?
Email marketing isn’t just about sending emails and newsletters to subscribers, although a good branded email signature design can help you connect and build a strong relationship with them.
It can also help you market to third parties both inside and outside your industry, potential clients, and partners. This, in turn, can generate referrals because your brand has created a deep impression on the people that your employees have day-to-day communication with.
Email is about relationship building – so be real
Simply including your company logo and creating a generic design is not enough. It’s important to create a personalized signature that shows off your unique personality in addition to your brand. This can humanize the brand and help people relate to it better. You can also add links to two or three social networks where you’re most active so that people can find out more.
If you’re an industry expert or thought leader, you could add a link to an article you’ve previously written to demonstrate your authority in a particular field. You can also add a call-to-action inviting prospective customers to visit the company website or feature the latest updates when you email clients.
Lastly, make sure to add an attractive image. People tend to remember visuals more than words, and images are one of the most memorable design elements.
What to Include in an Email Signature
Convinced about the need for a branded one? Here’s what you need to know.
How to Write an Email Signature
A good email signature design should be simple, concise, and appropriately targeted to your audience.
Here are a few elements to keep in mind:
A closing
Great email signatures include a closing. General examples include “Sincerely”, “Kind regards”, and “Best regards”. Make sure to consider the context of the message before creating your closing.
First and last name
Type your first and last name as usual, or use bold letters so that your recipient knows who sent the email. Include your title in your email messages so that people know your role in the company.
Phone number
Write your phone number in the signature so that people can easily contact you. Even if they don’t call you, it can build trust and legitimacy if you include your telephone number.
Keep it short and simple
In addition to keeping your signature design simple and consistent, you can use one or two attractive colors to make it stand out from other parts of your email.
Designing A Simple, No Frills Email Signature
Here are a few guidelines and tips on what to add to an email signature:
- Consider using icons that link to your social media profiles, especially if they help enhance brand recognition.
- Ensure your signatures have accurate contact details, including a telephone number, and company logos.
- Add a link to your website to encourage recipients to visit your website. You can add the full URL and hyperlink text in your email signature..
- Include your brand logo in HTML format and not as an attachment.
- Including a disclosure statement is great for compliance, but be sure to format it appropriately so it doesn’t overshadow your email message.
- Stick to a maximum of two key colors.
- Use the same font size and type throughout the email body so that there is consistency with your email signature.
Your email signature can (and should) go beyond contact information
Think about the best ways to express your brand personality and make your company mission, vision and values clear. You can include logos, slogans, simple banners, images or links to articles or resources that your recipients may be interested in. In some cases, it might be appropriate for your employees to include personal details that express a little bit of their own personality.
You can also craft different signatures for different recipients depending on what they would be interested in.
Social media is certainly part of your brand. Should it be part of your email?
Yes, but use social media icons and links sparingly. Only include links to profiles that you are most active on. Clicking on to a dead profile can leave a negative impression.
Want The Bells & Whistles? Use an Email Signature Service.
Not sure where to start when it comes to branding your email signature? Determined to hire an expert in signature management? A public relations firm like Murnahan Public Relations can help.
We can help you ensure that you present the best brand image possible to the public, including working to create your branded email signature and guidelines with you. A well-crafted branded email signature template that is used by all employees across the business can be highly impactful because of the number of people and emails that are going out from your corporate email addresses every single day.
Contact us today for a consultation.