The best emails have three core elements:
👀 An attention-grabbing subject line
🤔 A thought-provoking body
🖱️ A click-worthy ending
Many sales and marketing specialists only focus on the first two. And who can blame them when so many email how-to guides do, too?
But emails can only make their maximum impact when each element gets the attention it needs to do its job correctly.
So in this guide we’ll zoom in on that last part, leading you through creating closing phrases that drive action — as well as making sure you start off on the right foot by delivering more emails in the first place.
First Thing First: Find Any Email Address You Need
The most effective emails are those that go directly to the email recipients they’re meant for, not general company inboxes and not outdated or fake addresses.
So before we can even get to ending a great email, we have to start where all great emails begin: with the right email address.
If you’re unsure as to how to find someone’s email address, here’s the quick and dirty version of some of our top tips:
- Go straight to a tool meant for the job — an email lookup platform where you can search for email info based on someone’s LinkedIn profile, name, phone number, company, etc.
- A step up from an email lookup tool is a B2B database, where you can purchase bulk contact information based on industries, roles, and more — no particular names needed.
- Deploy Google advanced search operators such as “[first name] + [surname] + gmail” to find email addresses that may have been shared online somewhere.
- Check social media profiles, especially LinkedIn, to look for contact information or links to personal websites where leads may have shared their email addresses.
- Fill your network with “gatekeepers” such as assistants and office administrators. You’d be surprised how small the word is in certain industries and how these connections can pay off in the form of shared contact information.
For the unabridged guide to sourcing just about any business email you could desire, check out How to Find Anyone's Email [New for 2023].
Next: Make Sure Your Emails Land
Above we mentioned the importance of avoiding old or downright fake addresses.
That’s because every time an email you send is undeliverable, it erodes your sender reputation.
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) pay attention to these reputations. In the case of a bad one, they can choose to send your messages straight to spam — or not deliver them at all.
Undeliverable emails often result from incorrect, expired, or temporary addresses. That’s why we built NeverBounce to ensure email deliverability from three directions.
1. Verify is the first line of defense — a platform you can use on a one-off basis to confirm that a few email addresses are valid.
(You can also integrate Verify into your forms via API, JavaScript, or Zapier to ensure that email addresses are accurate the moment you collect them.)
2. Or, upload your larger lists to Clean. The NeverBounce software will quickly review them to identify duplicated, invalid, inaccurate, and risky email addresses (aka ones that are likely to report your message as spam).
Lists that come up with an excessive number of questionable email addresses during this process will get an additional check by the NeverBounce team, personally.
And if you deal with an especially large number of email addresses on the regular, use NeverBounce’s API to add Clean into your workflow to quickly verify millions of addresses.
3. NeverBounce also features Sync, the only automatic list cleaner available.
To save time substantiating email addresses, link Sync with your customer relationship management (CRM) platform or email provider. Sync will automatically verify your email lists on a regular basis. No need to manually double-check your data before sending off timely email campaigns.
Finish Strong: Create Actionable Email Endings (How To & Examples)
Now that you have a current email list that ensures maximum deliverability, let’s move on to the third and final element of crafting emails that elicit responses: powerful closing remarks.
If you want to rewind and learn more about other important email features such as the subject line and body, go ahead and read our article on how to write a professional email.
But in this section, we’ll focus on creating a call to action, sign-off, and signature that, together, inspire the recipient to take action and get you to the next stage of the sales cycle.
The Moving Call to Action
One of the best ways to personalize sales emails is to be thoughtful about your call to action (CTA).
Although getting a recipient to schedule a meeting or, better yet, make a purchase is the eventual aim of most email campaigns — pointing recipients straight to these actions is often premature.
Instead, consider a CTA that’s:
- Of value
- Easy to act on
- Customized to the email and type of recipient
Email closing phrases that make for good CTAs include:
- An invite to register for a high-value, private webinar in their industry
- A link to download helpful content (such as an ebook or study) that aligns with the persona
Including a thoughtfully-personalized, value-adding prompt in your professional email closing builds rapport and also gives recipients an outlet for diving deeper into your offering.
And why focus on making sure your CTA is exceedingly easy for them to interact with? It’s simple — to elicit action before they close the email never to open it again (Something we’ve all done!).
You increase the likelihood that your email will induce immediate action when you include a CTA that’s right at the end of the email, easy to complete, and customized based on the type of reader.
The Thoughtful Email Sign-Off
Your email sign-off is what comes right after the call to action and right before your email signature — which we’ll cover next.
This final email closing line should flow naturally and be consistent with your usual voice and the tone of the rest of the message. And if you’re really set on getting an action from this email, you can even use the sign-off as a subtle, secondary CTA with wording that invites them to engage or reminds them you’ll make contact again soon.
For a professional email closing, try these more formal closing messages:
- Thank you in advance for your attention to this matter
- If you need any help or support, please do not hesitate to reach out
- If you would like to schedule a meeting, I am available Tuesdays and Thursdays
- Looking forward to your response
- I'll be in touch
- Sincerely yours
- Best wishes
- best regards
- kind regards
- warm regards
If a highly-professional closing doesn’t fit the voice of your message or brand, try these informal yet still appropriate sign-offs:
- Thank you (or Thanks)
- If you need any help, just let me know!
- I’m free next week if you want to meet
- Keep me posted
- Chat soon
- Yours
- Cheers
- Take care
- Have a great weekend
Whether sending a formal email or informal email, try to avoid these terms:
- Thx
- Xoxo
- Love
For even more examples and instructions on email etiquette when closing out your email message, don’t miss our guide to crafting a great email sign-off.
The Robust Email Signature
And for the final act of a striking and professional email ending that gets results, we have the signature.
There’s a shocking amount of information that can be shared in a robust email signature. While what you choose to include will be unique to your brand and the goal of your email campaign, there are some core pieces most email signatures should feature:
- Your full name and title: It's a matter of respect to let recipients know who they’re speaking with, so It's a good idea to include both your name and your job title front and center.
- Your contact details: Slide in another sly CTA, and inspire trust by way of transparency, by including your most-used contact information as well.
- Your company name and logo: Just as recipients are interested in learning more about you personally, they also need to know what business you represent. Add professionalism, aid in brand awareness, and again go for transparency by including a high-quality business logo.
- Your company website and social links: Especially in the case of cold emails, some recipients will want to dig for further information before they interact. You have nothing to hide, so make it simple for them with links right to your company’s website and other digital platforms.
Use the above template as well as the following examples of email-closing signatures to create a lasting impression of your own.
1. Shout about your achievements
Provide some social proof that your company is trustworthy and an industry leader by displaying any awards, certifications, and even testimonials that show off your expertise.
Again, in the case of cold emailing, this can be especially helpful in getting recipients interested in your brand and responding to your CTAs.
2. Provide visuals where applicable
Pictures can be a crucial tool for businesses that offer visual products and/or services.
In this example, we see how a dermatology company has embedded Instagram into employee signatures, which makes perfect sense for their industry. Photographers, lifestyle brands, and even companies with visually-pleasing products should lean on images in their signatures to stand out and pique reader interest.
3. Make space for one final CTA
A signature is a final space where you may be able to squeeze in a CTA.
If you’re able to incorporate it as seamlessly as the CTA banner in this example, you should be able to avoid being seen as too “pushy” and even grab a few clicks last thing.
Looking for more ideas? Then be sure to read 15 Email Signature Examples (and How to Write Your Own).
Now Go Send Those Action-Inspiring Emails
With this guide to finding any and every email address you could need, ensuring address validity with the help of NeverBounce, and crafting awesome email endings — you’re all set to finalize and send those engagement-driving campaigns that move your business forward.
Happy emailing and good luck!
