Picture this. You sit down to craft the perfect email to send to your existing and prospective clients.
You agonize over the right words, the right order, and the age-old question: to gif or not to gif?
You edit.
You polish.
And then you send it out into the world wide unknown, ready to reap the benefits of the responses that will come pouring into your inbox.
But instead of thousands of warm and receptive replies, you get nothing.
You are not alone.
When it comes to engaging prospects and clients through email, it can feel like you’re working in the dark.
Which is why we’ve built a framework that can help drive responses and engagement.
The HELP Framework
The difference between an okay email campaign and a great one comes down to one major thing: personal connection.
In fact, one of our members at Snappy Kraken had this to say shortly after joining and using one of our emails:
“…one of the recent Weekly Crisis Emails, “Gratitude and Empathy,” that I sent to my current and prospective clients got more response than any other communication I’ve had with my 14 years as an independent financial advisor.” (to see more comments and stories from advisers using Snappy Kraken, click here)
Check out (and use) the framework so you can improve your own email engagement and responses.
The HELP Framework involves 4 simple ingredients:
- Humanize
- Empathize
- Localize
- Positive Vibes
1. Humanize
Dear Sir, I hope this letter finds you in good health, and in a prosperous enough position to put wealth…… zzz….
Ugh! Time to cut out the stuffiness.
Research is increasingly showing us that people don’t respond to stiffness and formality all the time.
In fact, the number one way to connect with another human being is to… humanize yourself.
Data has shown that engagement is driven by a personal connection.
Your language and word choice has to convey warmth and humanity…not cold, analytical detachment.
Personalize your emails so that your clients and prospects can see how working with you won’t just be beneficial, but actually enjoyable.
2. Empathize
Everybody’s struggling, and everybody wants to be understood.
They want to know that what they’re dealing with is not weird or unusual.
They want to know that it’s okay to feel the way they do.
Be empathetic in your marketing messages.
Many people have had to adapt to a lot over the last few months: furloughs, unemployment, working from home, homeschooling kids etc.
One of our timely emails made use of an illustration that brought a little levity to the changes many people are going through:
Find small moments to inject things about yourself into your communications. Shine a light on and call out something everyone is going through.
In another example, one of our Snappy Kraken members sent out an email from our platform. He personalized it and included a still from a film that really captured how people were feeling on their 3rd week of quarantine (that feels like ages ago!).
“But first of all, how are you doing? Are you and your loved ones safe and well? As an update, I took this picture of me this morning to start week 3 of quarantine.
I’m kidding, that is a picture of Matt Damon from the movie “The Martian” where his character is stranded on Mars in isolation for several years. Although, our situations may be starting to feel rather similar…Let me know what you are doing to pass the time!”
Empathy is about acknowledging where someone else currently is and what they’re going through. Oftentimes, it’s about pointing out that we’re all in the same boat.
3. Localize
Taking the time to localize your outreach can dramatically increase open rates, click rates, response rates, and engagement rates.
It says to your reader, “We’re in the same community, we’re in the same mindset.” That goes a long way to making you the number one choice for them.
This doesn’t mean that you and your prospects have to call the same place home!
If you have multiple offices in different cities (or difference states), this step still works for you.
Your location adds another dimension to who you are.
Dean Jackson, marketer and co-host of the I Love Marketing podcast, opens every email with his location (and even the weather).
Your prospect may not be from the same town, but the fact that you’re not just emailing from some abstract black void helps add another personal detail that draws them to you (maybe they lived there before, or know someone from your area).
You would be surprised at how often your location can be a conversation starter. Remember: all of these tips are to help you increase the odds of engagement with your marketing emails.
4. Positive vibes
Perhaps you’ve read that emails which hint at scarcity or fear are better at driving engagement.
Now, it’s fine to incorporate hints of scarcity or uncertainty (within reason).
There’s a lot of uncertainty in our lives right now. And as an adviser, you have a lot to bring to the table to address this.
But don’t rely too heavily on uncertainty and risk all the time.
Keep this in mind…
Humans respond with enthusiasm to positivity and encouragement.
In a world that is particularly dark at the moment, you can choose either to play on those fears, or you can provide a little bit of light in the darkness.
This allows people to connect with you, and your message – and ensures that you’ll be seen as a solution.
Will you HELP your marketing?
Using the HELP framework within your marketing can boost the number of responses and positive engagement you get.
- Humanize
- Empathize
- Localize
- Positive Vibes
Next time you send out an email, keep HELP in mind.
Want to see more insights and trends? We pulled data from the actual performance of 38,607 digital marketing campaigns run by y financial advisers and firms throughout the United States in 2020. Watch the full presentation and download your free copy of the 35-page report here.
Wondering if Snappy Kraken is right for you?
