An email footer rarely gets the attention it deserves mainly because a lot of time is spent nailing the subject line and the core email copy. And rightly so.
But here’s the deal: you can’t smash it out of the park without an appealing, informative, and legally compliant email footer.
So let’s talk about all things email footer and particularly look at what elements to include to work your email marketing charm. Sooner than you know, your email engagement rate will shoot through the roof.
Email footer: Table of contents
What is an email footer?
Email footer or an email signature as it’s also called sits at the bottom of your email. Some marketers think of it as a brand’s business card, but let’s not restrict the definition or design to just that.
There’s plenty you can add to your email footer to keep the recipients engaged and interested in your brand.
Other important elements of an email are:
Does the email footer even matter?
A good email exudes professionalism and sophistication from head to toe. This basically means that for your email efforts to pay off and make a decent, first impression you must design them with care.
Subscribers notice everything, and even though email footers seem insignificant they do improve the quality of interaction with your brand.
Email design pro tip
Insert trackable links in your email footer to see where exactly people click! Your email marketing software should offer heatmaps with a clear view of your whole email and the links and elements people click.
Legal requirements for email footers
There are two must-haves in any email footer. Missing them can result in big fines and negative email performance.
1. Unsubscribe or manage preferences
To think you can do without it can land you in trouble. In fact, it can cost you up to 20 million or 4% of your annual global turnover, whichever is greater, particularly if you are a brand with subscribers in the EU.
Still thinking it worth the risk? Change tracks, because email recipients enjoy a special power of reporting you spam. It’s also the easiest to stop you from flooding their inboxes. Result? Your email sender reputation will take a big blow.
Obviously you put a lot of effort into building your email list, but let’s admit that subscribers who barely engage with you are of no value. Besides, the sooner you give them the option to exit, the better your email engagement and conversions. So make sure you also scrub your list clean regularly.
Circling back, MeUndies’ email footer is a good example of how minimalism can make the unsubscribe option easy to spot.
But lest you forget, see to it that the following step is straightforward and unsubscribes them. Also for what it’s worth, maybe ask why they’re leaving through a survey similar to one below so that you can fix the leak.
2. Legal information
Including information such as your company’s registered office address, post office box, privacy policy, terms and conditions, and copyright means complying with anti-spam government regulation worldwide.
Plus, when your recipients see those bits of information they trust you more. This Fender’s email signature includes all that makes the email seem authentic.
In case you’re a Brevo customer, you’ll notice that the newsletter templates have space for you to add these important bits of information.
And if you’re still warming up to Brevo, you can test-drive our email editor and templates anytime by signing up to the free plan.
Email footer: 9 things to consider including for max impact
Listed below are some of the things you see quite often and others not so much. We’re sure that by the end of it, you’ll learn how to work them in a combination to make the email footer work for you. So jump in.
1. Social proof
Statista reports that 30% of consumers believe that social proof influences their confidence in purchase decisions. Chances are that you’re already using it in your core email copy. But you could very well use it in the footer.
Here’s an example of Superdry’s slick marketing move. The star rating shown is based on massive 168,255 reviews, which builds their credibility and makes customers’ decision-making process simpler.
Another social proof you can use is certifications like the one used in the GlamCorner email:
Bonus tip: Include social proof in your transactional email footer so that there’s no room for a buyer’s remorse. You know when you experience post-purchase regret and think you might have gotten a better deal somewhere else. Yes, that.
2. A thank you note
While nothing can beat hand-written thank you notes, expressing gratitude to your customers through an email footer can also warm their hearts. It’s what also humanizes your brand. Besides, you know how the thought matters and all that, right?
For inspiration, check out how Huckberry thanks their subscriber and also evoke a sense of community in the same breath.
While the impact might not be immediate, the gesture makes the customer feel valued, which then creates a compounding effect over some time. Think brand loyalty (repeat purchases) and advocacy (word of mouth).
3. Ways to get in touch
Even though your contact information is on your website, mentioning it in your email eases customers, especially given the type of email sent.
To give you some context, transactional emails, especially order confirmation or shipping emails have higher opening rates compared to non-transactional ones. Partly because these emails reassure customers that you’ve received their order or/and that it’s on its way.
Now when you mention in the email footer that you’re available for live chat, it comforts them even more that you’re a click away if they need help. This kind of reassurance then goes a long way in trusting your brand for being accessible and customer-centric.
Sample Pura Vida’s email footer where chat and FAQ are mentioned side-by-side.
4. Social profile links
Seven in 10 Americans use social media. What’s more, Sprout Social research shows 89% of consumers will buy from a brand they follow on social and a whopping 75% will increase their spending with their brand.
Including social links in the email footer is a great way to tell your subscribers about your favorite social hangouts and accessibility. So work to amplify your social media presence.
Design-wise, social icons should be in sync with the rest of the email theme and color. Plus, mention only those where you’re active.
For inspiration, here’s Frank Body’s email signature:
You could also make some challenge announcements to build some enthusiasm among your customers and mention the branded hashtag:
5. Brand mission or values
Constantly exposing and reminding them of what your brand stands for triggers the choice-supportive bias. In simple words, they feel good about their decision to subscribe to your newsletters and also proud of being associated with your brand.
In the email footer by Two-Thirds, the brand’s mission and values primes subscribers that they stand for something good.
6. Request them to whitelist you
Usually, ISPs have strict regulations that protect their clients from receiving spam/unsolicited emails. This means that your email, despite all the hard work you put into creating it, might land up in their spam folder.
In a nutshell, drop a small message in your email footer asking to add you to their address book. It’ll ensure they don’t miss any of your emails + boost email engagement.
As practice, mention it in your welcome email. Even better, in your order confirmation email footer, tell them that adding you to the ‘Safe Senders’ list will ensure they’ll continue receiving their order updates.
7. Website and/or blog
Having subscribed to the Unbounce blog, I was sent a welcome email whose footer had their website and blog link. The links were hard to miss because they stood out against the white background. Plus, their clear intent of keeping me engaged and warming me up to their content was on point as most of it circled back to their blog.
8. Option to download the app
After shopping online, 42% of consumers use a shopping app. Which implies that having the app download link in your transaction emails is a brilliant idea because the chances of your customer interacting with you on app multiplies.
Besides, it’s friction-free as they can jump straight to the store and test-drive your app. To convince them though, like Uniqlo, you could offer an incentive. It’s a great persuasion tactic since there’s nothing to lose really.
9. Refer to a friend
Happy customers, who say they’ll refer you don’t end up doing that. But never mind that.
What’s important is to remember that referrals create a networking effect and result in bigger and better conversions.
The LTV for new referral customers is 16% higher than non-referrals. What does that tell you? That as you acquire more referred customers, you can convert them into brand advocates, and these will loop in new customers, and so forth. Put simply, your brand becomes the talk of the town.
That said, you can’t achieve this without having a solid referral program in place. So get to work and make a worthy mention of it in your email signature as Dropps does:
Pack a punch in your next email footer
Hopefully, you’ll use this guide to come up with impressive email footers while also having fun experimenting.
Now if you will, how about sending your next email campaign using Brevo? As for the email footer, you can customize the default footer and create standout email campaigns.