The next step a business owner should do after any event is sending the attendees a thank you letter. It is a unique chance to build or strengthen the relationship with people who are interested in your business, and an excellent opportunity to mention any upcoming events. So, here are some pieces of advice on how to compose a great email that people would open and read.
Pay Special Attention to the Email Subject Line
While it is brief, the subject line is the most significant part of your email. It is what your people see first, and it helps them decide whether to open it or not. So, the first thing to remember — keep it short. According to the research, emails with subject lines of about 40 characters (6-7 words) and less have the best open rates. As to emojis, they are colorful and help letters stand out, but do not appeal to each demography.
Be Brief but Sweet
Not only the email heading, but your entire email has to be concise — no one wants to spend a long time reading, so just get straight to the point. Keep every sentence short and use line breaks to make the letter easily readable. The same rule applies to other types of writing such as abstracts, descriptions, essays, etc.
Be Friendly but Professional
Being overly friendly in a post-event thank you letter is sometimes considered as disingenuous while being too curt often seems rude. Use a conversational tone of voice to keep the balance. While you are composing the letter, pretend you are talking to a person you have only met once but already like. In such a case, you would not be too over-the-top, but you would sound positive.
Ask for Feedback
It is best to write the email template beforehand so that you have a chance to send it out the day after the event while it is still fresh in your attendees’ minds. Your thank you letter can become a great opportunity to ask your guests for constructive criticism. You can create a quick questionnaire with a specialized tool and attach it to the email. By receiving such feedback, you will get an idea of where you can improve next time.
Remember the General Data Protection Regulation
These regulations mean you have to be very careful about how you email people and store their data. Here are the three most significant things to keep in mind:
- If your guests did not opt-in to receive any communications from you, it means you cannot send them your thank you letter. Even if they gave you their business card, you cannot just start sending them emails. However, you can contact them and ask if they agree to receive emails from you.
- Use BCC (Blind Carbon Copy) instead of CC (carbon copy) emails. By doing so, you will keep every recipient’s email address private.
- If you are going to use data to plan your future email campaigns, you must inform the recipients. Since you are going to monitor their behavior, you have to provide them with an option to unsubscribe from your mailing list.
Represent Your Brand
By sending such a kind of letter, you have a nice opportunity to keep in touch with people who are interested in your business. Composing it should not be stressful — instead, be genuine and positive, and the rest will fall into place.
Post-Event Thank You Email Template
Here is a good template you can use for crafting your own email.
To [Attendee name],
One sentence saying thank you for attending the event (here you have to indicate the event’s name, so the guest remembers).
Two sentences summing up the event’s highlights such as headline acts or keynote speakers.
One sentence mentioning any upcoming events and inviting them to sign up for your newsletter/follow you on social media.
Sign off (depending on your brand personality, you can use the conversational “Hope to see you next time,” or more formal “Best regards”).
[Your name]
