Do you know the percentage of people that are reading your emails? The average open rate among church goers is around twenty six percent. That means three out of four people are not opening your emails. Most people including myself will quickly scan an email to see if it’s worth their time. So how do you write an email to your church so that they will want to read it? Here are some steps to help you write an effective email.
1. Write a Catchy Subject line
The most important section of the email is the subject line. Yes you read that right. Most readers will not read beyond the subject line so you need to get them there. If you write a generic subject line like “Church News” or “Church update” then you’ll lose interest. You want to give them a reason and get them excited to open your email. Some catchy phrases include “3 Reasons You Join Us This Weekend” or “How to Find Your Purpose This Weekend.” These types of subject lines will grab your readers attention. It does take some time and creativity to think of a fresh and different subject line, but it will be well worth it.
2. Inspire in your first lines
After the subject line, the opening few lines in your email are important. Most writers want to jump in with information or details about an event. This can work in some situation. But I highly recommend starting with something inspirational like a story of celebration. You can give a brief recap of what took place last week. Some suggestions may be how many people got saved or who got baptized or how many new members joined the church. These quick stories of celebration remind your reader of the vision and values of the church. It also inspires them to know that the vision is alive. There is life change happening and that’s always exciting.
3. Use pictures wisely
Words are great, but pictures are more powerful. It’s important to use appropriate pictures, graphics or candid photos in your email. It’ll break up the flow of your email and keep you readers more interested. It’s important to use high resolution pictures. I would suggest using no more than three pictures and/or graphics in one email.
4. Make it look clean
The look and feel of the email is important. If you don’t take the extra time to look over the layout and format then that can be a huge distraction to the reader. They will be less engaged and likely to finish your email. There are free program that can help such as Mailchimp. Your readers will appreciate you spending the extra few minutes.
5. Make it as short as possible
This is not your sermon. It is a quick way to engage your church to come for the weekend or to an event. You want your email so that the reader can read it within a minute or two. This means that you’ll probably be able to get two to three paragraphs in the email along with pictures. Every word and sentence becomes important. You’ll want to hit your points quickly but with meaning and heart.
What area can you improve on your next email?
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