8 Copywriting Secrets to Write Compelling Sales Emails[With Templates]

You are reading a magazine and realize that, for the last two minutes, you have been staring at an ad copy that popped up in the middle.

You are walking down the street, and your eyes wander to the big billboard across the road, because of a captivating line that caught your attention.

It’s not just you, but these enchanting ads could easily make anyone stop, turn and take notice!

Your sales email templates should be no different in your prospect’s crowded inbox.

They should get the prospects to engage with the email and get them to purchase your product.

How should you do that?

In a fantasy world, the Aladdin’s lamp or Harry Potter’s wand could have helped you;

But in the real world?

Copywriting Techniques.

The secret trick which advertising legends like David Ogilvy, John Caples, Gary Halbert used to create advertisements that worked like magic!

In fact, these copywriting techniques can become the keystone of your sales email templates and help the response rates of your email campaigns skyrocket.

Simply put, sales email templates crafted using copywriting techniques will result in high response rates!

In this post, we take a look at the 8 copywriting techniques and how can you use them to write sales email templates that get responses.

8 Copywriting Secrets To Write Killer Sales Email Templates

Technique #1 – Attention Interest Desire Action (AIDA)

Capture my interest and you don’t have to worry about my attention span

This is what AIDA technique achieves with perfection.

Developed by the legendary Elmo Lewis, AIDA is based on the stages that a customer goes through before making a purchase decision.

Why does the AIDA technique work?

The AIDA copywriting technique is an applied stimulus-response model.

As consumers move through the different hierarchical stages, they pass through both a cognitive processing stage and an effective processing stage before any action occurs.

How to use the AIDA Model in Your Sales Email Templates?

This is a great technique to use when reaching out to prospects for the first time and they may not even be aware of your company.

Attention:

Grabbing the prospect’s attention is the job of the subject line in a sales email.

A good subject line lays a strong foundation for the email to create interest. While a bad subject line can kill your chances right away.

To be effective, your subject line should be short, personalized that tells the prospects what they can expect from your email.

Interest:

At this stage, you have about 5 seconds to turn the prospect’s curiosity into interest on what your sales email has to offer.

Keep the focus of the first 2-3 lines on the prospect that will instantly get them hooked.

You can do this by addressing their pain points, referring to one of their recent posts or even highlighting a mutual connection.

Desire:

At this stage, the prospect has a basic idea on your product and how they can benefit from it.

Now, the goal is to turn their interest into serious consideration for your product.

In simple words, make the prospect ‘want’ your product.

Tell them your value proposition – how will their life transform after using your product, share success stories of your existing customers or even by offering special pricing.

Action:

This last stage of the prospect’s journey where you want the prospects to take the desired action.

And this is where you use a persuasive CTA that will drive them to act.

You can ask them to sign up for your product, request for a meeting or download a video, etc.

Technique #2 – Features Advantages Benefits

People buy on emotions and then justify the purchase with logic

The FAB technique counts on this – by reeling in people to take notice of your product by highlighting its stand-out features and then showing how they can benefit from them.

Why does the FAB technique work?

As Cialdini explains, “drawing attention to the favored feature is effective not only in getting audiences to consider it fully but also in getting them to lend the feature exaggerated significance.”

By highlighting the impressive features, you create a desire for the prospects to want to try out your product.

How to use the FAB technique in Sales Email Templates?

This is a great technique to use for prospects who are already aware of your product and will be more interested to know about what features it offers to see if it can be helpful.

Features:

Lead the email with the best features that your product has to offer.

The goal here is to impress the prospects with the amazing features that will make them excited about your product.

Advantages:

Now that you succeeded at getting the prospect to notice your product by showing the features, the next step naturally is to tell them how these features make your product a great choice for them.

Here, the focus should be to show them how these features make your product better than whatever they currently have.

Benefits:

Finally, end the email with what that will mean to your prospects’ business. It can be solving a pain point or hitting a target, etc.

Technique #3 – Fear Of Missing Out (FOMO)

Fear is a more powerful motivation than greed

Fear is a great motivator that drives you to do things that you normally wouldn’t do.

The FOMO copywriting technique taps on fear to drive people into making a purchase.

Why does FOMO technique work?

This technique stems from the psychological principle, Self-determination theory which describes a person’s innate desire to feel related or connected to what their others are doing.

How to use FOMO in Sales Email Templates?

FOMO works great for prospects who are in the latter stages of the buyer’s journey. Instill fear by focusing on what they will miss by not using your product and you can get them to take action immediately.

To drive the prospects to take action, use some form of urgency or exclusivity in your message, that invokes the fear of missing out on your product.

The email copy should focus on communicating what the prospect will miss out on if they don’t respond right away.

This can be done by giving special offers for a limited time, speaking about benefits that they will be missing, mentioning about the target they might miss, etc.

The goal is to use exclusivity and urgency to drive the prospects to take action swiftly, which is mostly to sign-up for the product.

Not only in the email message but you can use exclusivity and urgency in the subject line as well to get 22% higher open rates!

Technique #4 – Before After Bridge (BAB)

People don’t buy your products. They buy a better version of themselves.

This is the fundamental premise of BAB copywriting technique which emphasizes how people’s life will significantly improve by using your product.

Why does the BAB technique work?

BAB technique makes use of people’s emotions of wanting something better compared with what they already have – by portraying a bleak picture of the prospect’s current situation and simultaneously showing a glimpse of a great future, you tempt them to want to reach there.

How to use BAB in Your Sales Email Templates?

The BAB technique is very effective when reaching out to prospects who might be experiencing specific pain points. Clearly, describe the situation that the prospects are currently in, tell them about the better world they have to be in and how your product can help them get there.

Before:

Start off by explaining the pain points that the prospect is facing – the objective is to make them understand how it is severely impacting their ability to achieve their goals.

An effective way to communicate this is, opening up your email with a question that addresses their pain points.

After:

In this part, give the prospect a glimpse of a bright future, where the pain points don’t exist and they are able to achieve their goals.

This will tempt the prospects into looking for solutions that will help them get to that future.

Bridge:

Finally, end your message with your product, which acts as a bridge between the two worlds, alleviating the prospect’s pain points.

This part should focus on how exactly your product will help overcome these pain points.

To make it convincing, use facts, social proofs etc. to back up your statement and nudge the prospects into signing up for your product.

Technique #5 – Praise – Picture – Push (PPP)

I can live for two months on a good compliment

                                                                                   -Mark Twain

Throwing in a genuine compliment is one of the easiest ways to get someone to like you.

That is exactly what the Praise-Picture-Push technique is all about!

The copywriting technique focuses on getting the prospect’s attention by praising them and then using the opportunity to talk about your product.

Why does Praise-Picture-Push Technique Work?

By opening up with a compliment, the prospect becomes instantly more receptive to what you have to say.

The reason is simple; to the human brain, receiving a compliment has the same effect as receiving cash!

So it is easy to see why this is a great way to start a conversation.

How to use Praise – Picture – Push in Sales Email Templates?

This technique is very effective reaching out to prospects for the first time. It’s a great way to start building a relationship – with a compliment which can make the process of leading to a sale much easier.

Praise:

Open your email with a sincere compliment on the prospect’s achievements – you could mention one of their recent articles that you liked, congratulate on an award that they might have won, or even bring up their favorite hobbies!

The goal is to get the prospect interested in your message before bringing up your product.

Picture:

In this part, talk about your product and how the prospect can benefit from it.

To make a persuasive statement, show them a picture of how their life will look like in the future, without that nagging pain point that your product will fix.

Push:

Finally, nudge the prospects into taking action by ending your email with a compelling Call-to-Action.

Technique #6 – Problem – Agitate – Solve (PAS)

Pain is an even greater motivator than Pleasure

This is what the PAS technique counts on, to drive people into making a purchase decision.

Why does the PAS technique work?

According to psychology, we prefer avoiding losses even more than the chance of gaining something – people want to steer clear of pain, problems, burdens; anything that makes them uncomfortable.

You capitalize on this fear and agitate the prospects into taking action by showing the risks of not fixing their problems.

How to use the PAS technique in Sales Email Templates?

This technique is very effective when you have a clear idea on the pain points that the prospect is facing and tell them what exactly they need to do, to get rid of the problems – here, the prospects may/may not be aware of your product.

Problem:

Start off the email by highlighting/ reminding the pain points that the prospect is facing and how it is affecting their business.

You could even start off with a question right in the subject line that grabs the attention.

Agitate:

The next step is making the prospects understand the severity of these pain points and the potential risks of not fixing them soon.

The objective is to make the prospects realize why solving the pain point should be a priority.

Solve:

Finally, with the prospect understanding the need for an immediate solution, you swoop in with your product – the solution which will get rid of their problems.

Technique #7 – Star – Chain – Hook

Strong convictions precede great actions

The Star-Chain-Hook uses the same principle, where you make a powerful, persuasive statement about your product and back it up with facts, reasons, and benefits to get the prospect to take the desired action.

Why does the Star-Chain-Hook model work?

The power of conviction drives this technique – by making a grandstanding statement that your product will transform their lives and then backing it up with strong facts, your message looks highly credible, driving people to respond.

How to use Star-Chain-Hook in Sales Email Templates?

The Star-Chain-hook technique is very effective when reaching out to prospects in the Awareness stage – by making a great opening statement about your product and then backing it up with facts will make you credible and trustworthy.

Star:

Using this technique, open the email with a powerful statement, that puts your product on focus – the star of your email.

Describe what the prospects can accomplish with your product and how it will make their life easier.

This is followed up with a ‘chain’ statement that helps back your claims.

Chain:

With a striking opening statement that focuses the product as the star.

The chain has to substantiate that with a series of reasons, facts and social proofs that will add credibility to the message and show how they can benefit from your product.

The objective is to add credibility to your message, making it easier to drive the prospects to take the desired action.

Hook:

Finally, end the email with a persuasive Call-to-Action that will prod them into taking an action you want them to.

Technique #8 – Star – Story – Solution

Storytelling is the most powerful way to put ideas into the world today

                                                                                                    – Robert Mckee

This is the essence of the Star-Story-Solution technique developed by the great Gary Halbert to help people respond to ad messages.

Using this technique, your message revolves around a central character – the star.

Then you narrate how the ‘star’ faced the same situation/challenges as the prospect and finally end with how the challenges were overcome.

Why does Star-Story-Solution work?

Telling a story helps establish a relationship on a more personal level.

Because, when reading a story, we don’t really distinguish between the characters and us and subconsciously become a part of the story.

How to use Star-Story-Solution in Sales Email Templates?

Using the Star-Story-Solution technique, you reach out to prospects who are not aware of your product and get them interested in your email by telling them a compelling story that they can associate with.

Star:

Open your email by introducing the ‘Star’ of your story – this can be anyone; you, your company or even existing customers.

The only thing to keep in mind is, when the prospects read the message, they should be able to identify themselves with this character.

Story:

At this stage, reel them in by telling a story – the story should revolve around the same pain points that the prospect is facing.

Solution:

The last part of the email should say how the star overcame the challenges with the help of your product – the solution to the same problems your prospects face.

Here’s a playbook on cold email A/B testing to increase open, click and reply rates.

Conclusion

The ultimate objective of sales emails is to reach out to prospects and get them to sign up for your product.

This is possible only if you can convince that you can improve their business.

What better way to do that than by using powerful copywriting techniques which were specifically designed to persuade people into taking action.

Use these copywriting techniques to write compelling sales email templates that will nudge your prospect to turn your prospects into customers.