👋 Hello newsletter enthusiasts,
The footer area of your email, that bottom-ish section, is an often under explored realm.
Yet it's a vital part of your email template that contains not just valuable and obligatory information like an unsubscribe link, but also provides a creative canvas for enhancing reader engagement.
Emails are typically consumed top to bottom, but some readers might scroll straight to the bottom in search of their favorite sections, specific CTAs or even the unsubscribe link.
This means the bottom of the email can be as important as the top for grabbing reader attention and driving engagement.
Let’s dive in.
🐾 As always, thank you for reading. Stay pawsome.
This area of your email, when strategically designed and implemented, can become a potent tool in the newsletter creator's kit, driving engagement, loyalty and potentially revenue.
According to a case study by Goethe University and Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, referred customers often “generate higher profit margins, are more loyal and show a higher customer lifetime value (CLV),”
For those interested in delving deeper into referral programs, we encourage you to check out our previously published article on the subject. In it, we discuss how you don't necessarily need a robust, swag-filled referral program to start receiving its benefits. Sometimes, all it takes is a simple request, asking subscribers to share your newsletter with someone who might appreciate it, much like how The Bear Cave and Fortune does it.
So, if you haven't yet, it might be time to consider adding a prompt like this to your email template. It's a small addition that can make a big difference.
This makes sense when you consider the behavior of your readers. If they've reached the end of your email, they're likely fairly engaged with your content (or, indeed, they may be looking for that unsubscribe link).
Either way, their journey brought them here, which presents an opportunity for further engagement.
They might be interested in connecting on other platforms. If you haven't already incorporated social media links into your footer, it's worth considering.
Take a look at how we do it at The Newsletter Newsletter. We not only provide social media links at the bottom, but we also prompt our readers to interact with us with a friendly, "Say hi!" Have you taken a moment to say hi yet?
Incorporating social media links in your email footer is a small step that can potentially extend the conversation beyond the inbox, fostering a more vibrant community around your content.
It can also be an opportunity to inject personality and fun into your newsletter, or perhaps even ask something of your readers.
For instance, consider deliverability. Marketing Examples uses an intriguing method:
There’s an ask, and if you do it and reply, they’ll send you something.
This not only boosts interaction with readers, but helps with deliverability.
It’s something you often see in a Welcome email or during sign up, but it doesn’t hurt to incorporate this type of interaction at the bottom part of your email. Or even add a static line to add “SENDER EMAIL” to your address book.
As we delve deeper into the topic of reader interaction and engagement, it's worth noting the prevalence of app download CTAs in this section of the email.
They can be displayed with applicable App Store icons:
Or even in a text-only format:
As the reader has made it this far, this section is also a great place to include interactive elements such as polls.
Increasingly popular in newsletters, a poll at the end of your email allows readers to provide immediate feedback, after, hopefully, consuming all the content.
This provides some engagement via Clicks, but also valuable feedback from readers.
If you included trivia earlier in the email, the answer might be found at the bottom. This entices the readers to scroll through all of the content to get there.
Axios Sports, for instance, ends their newsletter with a sign-off from the writer(s) and the answers to the trivia question.
Some newsletters, like 1440 and The Messenger, close with a quotation — the latter playfully dubbing this section "End Quote”.
Some newsletters want the entire experience for the reader to be in the inbox and not to leave the email.
However, this area of the email has become a crucial space to encourage readers to become paying subscribers.
Take the example of Just Go Grind:
Just Go Grind teases full content within the newsletter but prompts readers to "become a paying subscriber to get access to this post and other subscriber-only content". This strategy, aimed at converting readers into paying subscribers, is delivered via beehiiv.
Similarly, Lenny’s Newsletter employs the same approach:
Sent through Substack, Lenny’s Newsletter also uses the footer area to prompt readers towards subscription.
Both these instances illustrate how the bottom area of an email isn't an afterthought. Rather, it's a strategic space for pushing important calls-to-action, like becoming a paying subscriber, capitalizing on the readers who've stayed engaged till the end of the email.
The Daily Upside, for example, concludes their newsletter with a "Just For Fun" section.
It seems like email footers have transformed into something akin to navigation bars, acting as secondary hubs of information.
Consider this example from Front Office Sports:
The footer isn't just a sign-off — it's a compact, user-friendly resource. It can host links to FAQs, sponsorship or advertisement inquiries, and more.
Interestingly, we've noticed that disclaimers, which often need to be included, are being tucked into this area.
This area of an email can also be leveraged to create a visual impact and encourage action. A stark change in color, as seen in Inside Tech, can draw the reader's attention to this important part of the email.
Jay Clouse, author of Creator Science, uses a picture of himself and several prompts and calls-to-action to engage his readers in the email's closing section.
Moreover, footers can also serve as sign-offs and remind readers why they support a certain business and how they can be more involved.
Take this example from The Conversation: “Donate now to support research-based journalism,”
Meanwhile, Kevon Cheung from Public Lab thanks his readers and lists various resources, along with a prompt to book a 1:1 call or advertise in his newsletter.
These examples reinforce that email footers can be far more than an area for obligatory text or a polite sign-off. They can be a platform to express gratitude, a hub for resources and an opportunity for further engagement — all contributing towards a rewarding reader experience.
It's a valuable, versatile space that can enhance user experience and, potentially, engagement.
In the quest to grab our reader's attention at the onset of our emails, we often underestimate the power of the bottom of the email.
As we've explored, this humble area at the bottom of our newsletters is brimming with potential. It serves as a strategic spot to engage our audience, strengthen our brand and promote our services.
From incorporating referral programs and interactive elements to introducing exclusive prompts, the possibilities are endless. And the beauty is, there's no one-size-fits-all approach. Each newsletter can uniquely use this space to mirror its tone and content, all the while providing value to its readers.
Whether it's using the footer as a secondary hub of information and links, placing a call-to-action to pay for your subscription, or simply making it a place to share fun and personal sign-offs, every element counts towards enhancing your reader's experience.
Think of this bottom part of your email like “the finishing touch.”
A thoughtful and interactive email footer can add that final polish that your newsletter needs to stand out in the crowded inbox. So go ahead, give your email footer the creative attention it deserves.
Until next week, happy emailing!
💌 Thanks for joining the pack of newsletter enthusiasts! Keep on reading, writing and sharing your newsletters with the world.
Also want to shoutout folks that have been sharing their feedback with us. Thank you!
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