Letter style sales emails: entertain and engage your audience

Sales emails aren't once-and-done deals. They help you stay on your audience's radar and build up their desire, so when they're ready to buy, they think of your product.

Written by: Sapphire Li, BA

Communications specialist, 8+ years writing and copywriting for companies
Uplevel your sales game
Table of contents

Funny reverse psychology: why your customers shouldn't buy the product

Subject: This weird magnet thingamajig
Hey {First name},
So I came across this weird magnet thingamajig called Magnetuck. Apparently, it keeps your shirt perfectly tucked in all day?1
I gotta admit, I thought Magnetuck seemed to be a more elegant solution than having to constantly retuck my shirt but then I decided that:2
・A puffed out shirt shows the world I'm not stuck in an office chair all day. I actually get to move around.
・An untucked shirt gives me that effortless cool look. Apparently in Italian it's called "sprezzatura".
・I enjoy making a big show out of tucking my shirt back in, just to see if anyone is watching (admiring?) from afar.

But in case you don't agree, you can grab Magnetucks here for your perfectly tucked shirt glory:
[Image link to product]
3
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1.   In a lighthearted way, explain what the product does and set up the context for the rest of the email.

2.   Humorously deprecate the benefits of the product, which draws attention to why it's actually useful.

3.   So your call to action fits with the rest of the story, frame it as if they don't agree with the joking reasons why they don't need the product, they can grab it for themselves.

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Relate your product to a relevant experience many people are familiar with

Subject: Are you ready to teleport?
Hey {First name},
I'm a teleporter. I can take you to the Gardens of Versailles, the cherry blossoms of Japan, the salty air of Cape Cod.1
Who am I? I'm DreamLuxe Diffuser. Every one of my spritzes takes you on a journey.
Pss...you're frolicking through the lavender fields of Provence.
Pss..you're floating on clouds of cotton candy.
For the next 72 hrs, you can bring me home with a free essential oils starter pack with the coupon code:2
TELEPORTER
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1.   To create a story around your product or service, compare how it works to a relevant experience that's familiar to many people. In this example, a diffuser doesn't just make a room smell good, it takes you to faraway places with memorable scents.

2.   Offer a time sensitive coupon to nudge your customers to take action. Otherwise, even if your email piqued their interest, they may put off buying and eventually forget about it.

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Share your honest feelings about something that happened in the world

Back when covid started getting serious in the United States, Scott Sternberg, owner of clothing brand Entireworld, shared his honest feelings about it and at the end, he mentioned a sale of one of their products that was fitting for the times.

Before this email, Entireworld sold on average 46 sweatsuits a day and on the day of the email, they sold 1000.

SOS: Sweatsuits on Sale 😳➡️😌 Sunday, Monday, Tuesday
Kyle from GrowthBadger's link building emailScott  <[email protected]>
to email subscribers

Wow.

I mean, WTF. Within the last couple of days, the situation in the world has become at best utterly confusing and at worst kinda terrifying.

Am I sick already? Can I leave my house? What do I tell my employees? Will my mom be okay on her flight home today? Can Zod get Coronavirus? Did I buy enough TP? How long will this last? Who's in charge? What's next?

There's the awkward and seemingly trivial question of what a brand does during a time like this - business as usual with product release emails and sunny IG posts? I can't tell you how many people have suggested we start making masks. None of that feels right, but…

There's also the question of what a small business does in a time like this. Entireworld is just that - there's under 10 of us here making this all happen day to day, without big fancy financial backers supporting us. Our day to day sales are what supports our business and allows us to keep going.

So, as we're working from home and thinking about what we can do to keep ourselves and our business safe, we're also thinking about all of you at home, feeling the same crazy stuff. And we thought that maybe a cozy Sweatsuit could, if nothing else, provide a little comfort and warmth as we all collectively contemplate the future of the world, and the Entireworld.

For the next 3 days, buy a full Sweatsuit (sweatshirt + sweatpants) and receive 25% OFF at checkout. Just enter the promo code SWEATSUITWORLD.

Grab some cozy socks, tees, and sweaters while you're at it.

Be safe,
Scott and your friends at Entireworld

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