The Power of the Nine-Word Email: A Simple Marketing Tactic

Hey guys, welcome to the new podcast, Marketing Tactics in Under 9 Minutes. In this podcast, I want to share some of the marketing tips and lessons I’ve learned from working at Virtual Innovation, where we build and design websites. But in this podcast, it’s not all going to be about websites. It’s going to be about different tactics I’ve learned over the years that help to generate more business for companies across New Zealand and the world. So let’s get into this first episode on the nine-word email.

This tactic I’m going to talk about today is one I heard from a guy called Dean over in the States. Really awesome guy. It was in my early years, like eight, nine, ten years ago that I learned this tactic. It’s called the nine-word email. If you haven’t heard of it, it’s a fantastic method that any company can use to reactivate old leads in their database.

Most people think of email newsletters as big, colourful, bright things with heaps of text and images. And if you’re like me, you probably delete them because we’re so overrun by emails. When it comes to newsletters, I always keep mine short and sharp. If you look at this podcast, you’ll see I just use two blocks of text and one image. That’s it. The nine-word email takes it even a step further. It’s about how you can say the simplest thing or ask the exact question you want, but send it to lots of people.

Imagine you’re trying to follow up on a deal that you haven’t heard back from a client. Picture this: you’re a lawyer or a builder with a big quote or proposal out. You might send a very short email like, “Hi James, just following up on that proposal I sent you. Did you have any questions or would you like to move forward?” It’s simple, sharp, and looks like a personal email.

Now, the nine-word email follows the same framework. Imagine you had 200 people in your database who requested a quote but didn’t move forward. Whether you’re a property manager or in any other industry, you can use this tactic. For instance, “Hey James, were you still looking to find a new property manager for your rental property?” It’s simple and personal but can be sent to 200 people with a marketing tool.

This email doesn’t look like a fancy newsletter. It looks like a personal email. And because of its simplicity, a large number of people will reply. This tactic helps reactivate your database or re-engage what you think is lost. In marketing, only a small percentage of people are ready to buy at any one time. By following up with this nine-word email every six months, you might catch people who are now ready to take action.

Imagine sending that email and getting five leads out of your database, and two or three of them convert to a sale. What would that mean for you? It’s a simple tactic that you can apply to get the most out of your efforts.

That’s all I’m sharing today. Remember, these tactics are under nine minutes. I’ll write more on our blog at virtualinnovation.co.nz. Try it out. Maybe send it to five people using BCC who you haven’t talked to for a while and see what happens. Have an epic rest of your day, and I’ll be back in a couple of weeks.