When trying to increase client engagement with emails, you may be at your wits end. This deck provides insights into tips you may begin using immediately to help increase respondents' engagement with your emails. A sample email format and email are shared.

1. ©
2014
Penheel
Marke0ng
Standardized
Emails
Why.
How.
When.
By:
Becky
Livingston
President
&
CEO
Penheel
Marketing

2. ©
2014
Penheel
Marke0ng
Why?
• Increases
produc0vity
• Eradicates
“wall
of
text”
formaDng
• Includes
next
steps
for
clients
to
complete
• Provides
clear
call-­‐to-­‐ac0on
for
clients

3. ©
2014
Penheel
Marke0ng
How?
• Gree$ng.
Make
it
short,
to
the
point,
and
informa0ve.
One
to
two
sentences
is
enough.
• Bullets.
Leverage
a
bullet
list
to
keep
content
short.
Consider
links
to
content
on
our
website
for
more
informa0on.
• Next
Steps.
Also
in
a
bullet
format,
describe
the
ac0ons/next
steps
you
or
the
client
should
take
to
move
forward.
• Call
to
Ac$on.
In
one
or
two
sentences,
describe
to
the
client
what
he/she
needs
to
provide
for
you
to
con0nue
with
next
steps.
• Closing.
Sign
off
with
your
firm’s
tag
line
or
standard
closing
statement.
Be
sure
to
include
any
social
media
links
to
your
firm’s
profiles
or
company
pages.

4. ©
2014
Penheel
Marke0ng
Example
–
5500
Filing
Deadline
Subject:
5500
Filing
Deadline
Looming
-­‐
Your
Ac0on
Needed
Date:
July
1,
XXXX
Dear
[Firstname],
[Gree$ng]We
would
like
to
remind
you
that
the
July
31,
IRS
Form
5500
Annual
Return/Report
of
Employee
Benefit
Plans
is
looming.
Remember
to
file
your
company
forms
on
0me
to
sa0sfy
annual
repor0ng
requirements
under
ERISA
and
the
Internal
Revenue
Code.

5. ©
2014
Penheel
Marke0ng
Example
–
5500
Filing
Deadline,
cont.
[Bullets]
Important
Tips
• Who
should
file?
Pension
and
welfare
benefit
plans
must
to
report
their
financial
condi0on,
investments,
and
opera0ons.
• The
5500
Form
must
be
filed
electronically
through
EFAST2.
• The
5500
Short
Form
is
for
plans
with
fewer
than
100
par0cipants.
• Form
5558
is
for
an
extension
on
Forms
5500,
5500-­‐SF,
5500-­‐EZ,
8955-­‐SSA,
and
5330.

6. ©
2014
Penheel
Marke0ng
Example
–
5500
Filing
Deadline,
cont.
[Next
Steps]
Next
Steps:
We
encourage
you
to
prepare
for
the
repor0ng
sooner
rather
than
later
by:
• Watching
the
Forms
5500,
5500-­‐SF,
and
5558
filing
0ps
video.
• Reading
the
frequently
asked
ques0ons
document
about
the
EFAST2
filing
process.
• Reviewing
the
0ps
for
avoiding
errors
when
reques0ng
an
extension.

7. ©
2014
Penheel
Marke0ng
Example
–
5500
Filing
Deadline,
cont.
[Call
to
Ac$on]
Ac$on
Item
Please
call
us
within
the
next
week
to
schedule
a
convenient
Form
Filing
mee0ng.
Please
share
this
informa0on
with
our
staff
that
may
benefit
from
the
informa0on.
[Closing]
We
look
forward
to
working
with
you
on
this
important
deadline.
Sincerely,
Partners Name!
Partner
Alpha
Beta
Certa
CPAs
Follow
Us!
[insert
social
media
icons/links]

8. ©
2014
Penheel
Marke0ng
Email
Example
Review
In
the
example,
we
are
no0fying
clients
about
a
looming
Employee
Benefit
Plan
Form
5500
filing
deadline.
We
share:
• Why
the
message
is
being
sent;
• Important
0ps
about
the
filing;
• Next
steps,
giving
recipients
easy
access
to
informa0on
they
need;
• A
call
to
ac0on,
so
the
recipient
knows
what
is
expected
of
him/her;
• A
closing
with
our
firm’s
standard
closing
line;
and
• Signature,
with
links
to
social
media
to
help
inform
clients
of
our
online
channels.

9. ©
2014
Penheel
Marke0ng
Additional
Tips
Consider
your
subject
line
-­‐
talk
about
the
candy,
not
the
wrapper.
Example:
“Avoid
Penal0es
With
These
Form
5500
Tips”
and
“5500
Deadlines
Looming
–
Tips
to
Prepare”
Both
subject
lines
will
get
good
open
rates
due
the
“nega0ve”
term
used
in
each.
They
also
use
the
keyword
term
“5500”,
and
give
the
reader
a
sense
of
urgency.

10. ©
2014
Penheel
Marke0ng
Additional
Tips,
cont.
• Personal
Value.
Emphasize
the
personal
value
of
your
content.
Subject
lines
that
make
readers
think,
“This
is
useful.”
“This
is
0mely.”
“This
is
about
me.”
• Subject
Lines.
Keep
subject
lines
short.
Try
to
keep
it
under
75
characters.
• Keywords.
Use
a
keyword
in
the
subject
line
to
help
with
SEO.
Try
to
get
the
keyword
as
close
to
the
first
word
as
possible.

11. ©
2014
Penheel
Marke0ng
When?
Use
the
standardized
email
format
whenever
you
need
clients/
readers
to:
1. Engage
in
an
ac0on.
2. Prepare
or
provide
relevant
informa0on
for
you.
3. Understand
changes
or
updates
in
their
industry
that
could
impact
their
business.
4. Read,
view,
or
watch
content
messaging
that
is
highly
relevant
to
their
business.

12. ©
2014
Penheel
Marke0ng
Summary
• When
it
comes
to
email,
remember
to
think
smarter
not
harder.
• Provide
clients
with
relevant
informa0on.
• Share
links
to
your
website
for
more
informa0on.
• Be
clear
and
concise,
and
add
social
media
connec0on
points
to
help
foster
engagement.

13. ©
2014
Penheel
Marke0ng
Who
is
Penheel
Marketing?
Social
media
and
digital
marke0ng
consul0ng
firm
for
CPA
firms,
small
businesses,
and
non-­‐profits.
Marke$ng
Analy$cs
Website
analy0cs,
online
adver0sing
analy0cs.
See
which
sources
are
genera0ng
the
most
leads.
Email
Send
personalized,
segmented
Emails
based
on
any
informa0on
in
your
contact
database.
Search
Engine
Op$miza$ons
Improve
your
rank
in
search
engines
by
finding
and
tracking
your
most
effec0ve
keywords.
Lead
Management
Track
leads
with
a
complete
0meline-­‐view
of
their
interac0ons
with
your
firm.
Blogging
Create
blog
content
quickly
while
geDng
SEO
0ps
and
best
prac0ces
pointers.
Social
Media
Publish
content
to
your
social
accounts,
then
nurture
leads
based
on
their
social
engagement.
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