10 emails your B2B communication cannot do without (with best practices)

Start with a strategy

Email marketing is mainly successful when it is based on a plan. To make sure your recipients open your emails and click your call to action, you need to do the following:

• Define clear aims: what would you like to achieve with this email? What do you want people to do?
• Choose your target group: to whom is your email directed? What is interesting to these people?
• Make a plan: how often will you be communicating? How will you measure the result?

B2B email examples

A list of the most effective types of emails you can use for your business is provided below.

Found something that looks suitable? Then remember following:

• The design
• Content structure
• Message and how you communicate this message
• Is personalisation used? Via tags or in the choice of a target group? What is this target group?
• Does your communication include a clear call to action? Is it clear what the sender expects from the reader?
• What language is used? Is the style informal? Is the contact addressed directly?
• Are features or benefits mentioned?

Smart use of the above elements is often decisive when it comes to what sticks with the target group and what does not. Would the approach in the example work for your target group? If so, write these tips down for later use. Let’s go!

1. The welcome email

Welcome emails are not just effective for B2C use and do not always have to include a discount. You always say ‘welcome’ or ‘good morning’ when a new customer enters your company.

Your welcome mail is the very first time a new subscriber has contact with you. These mails also generate the highest open ratios of all the emails you will send them. So, say ‘hello’ and start with the right expectations right away.

Below is an example of Asana, which introduces its platform to new subscribers.




In online software tools, welcome emails have taken hold. Yet, they appear too little with other B2B companies. If you implement one mail from this list, make it the welcome mail.

An example from the other side of the spectrum is provided below:


This welcome mail has almost no layout, to give you the impression that you have just received an email from a contact. The professionalism and expertise conveyed by an orderly design must therefore be shown in a different way.

2. The update email / newsletter

Unlike a content email with tips (see number 3), an update email is where you discuss what's new or where you provide other information that could be relevant to your reader. Think of options that may disappear for your customer, price adjustments, news about amended legislation, items that are suddenly out of stock, delivery delays, your opening hours, or other important information.

You can use two different approaches:

• 1 update per email
• Combining updates in a newsletter.

The advantage of 1 idea per email is that you can send emails more often, giving your company a better chance of staying at the top of your readers’ mind. On the other hand, it is hit or miss: if your email is irrelevant to your readers, they will ignore it. So, it is important each time that you figure out which target group should receive a particular update. If it is not relevant, don't send it to them.

Look at the Flexmail example below:


We believe that our customers should be informed in a timely manner about any issues or important information about their account. This email was only sent to customers who we knew were dealing with this issue.



In the example below, Unizo clearly opts for grouping multiple pieces of information into a single email:


This has the advantage that your authority is unmistakable and that your readers will probably find what they are looking for.

3. The tips & tricks email

Unlike an update email, with tips & tricks emails, you share content that is specifically focused on providing your readers with tips. These can be directed to the end customer, but they can also be very interesting for training sellers or resellers and for helping you sell your products or services better. For example, they can be used to make contractors sell new paint colours by informing them about seasonal trends.

Here is an example from Whirlpool:




A slightly different variant is shown in this Lumi example:

4. The announcement

Have you launched a new option? Are you offering a limited edition? Can people pre-order? Share it with your target group!

When announcing a new product, service or option, you want to pay some extra attention to it. Always start with the question: why would my reader consider this interesting? The answer reveals more about your approach and the proper target group.

An announcement creates anticipation and craving, and your readers get involved in your company as a result.

Let’s start with this printing shop example:


At Moo, you now have the option of getting visiting cards with rounded corners. Moo uses the inverted pyramid-method: short copy, centred on the page, which should guide the eye to the call to action at the bottom.



Invision launched an entirely new product and used a different approach:

5. The invitation to the event or webinar

Normally, events generate most leads in B2B marketing. If you attend a live event, let your readers know! Webinars are a perfect alternative for sharing interesting insights and tips with your audience.

Email marketing is indispensable for both types and at various moments:

Before

Within a short period of time, the reader receives a lot of information. This can have an overwhelming effect. Focus specifically on the added value, on what exactly is going to happen, who the speakers are, and on other practical details that could be interesting (like the date, for example).

Look at this example by Zoom for their webinar:




When Flexmail prepares a webinar, we use this template:

What communication do you need for your event?

If you opt for a physical event with various speakers, and if you want to sell tickets, it might be a good idea to use reminders in which you can put various speakers in the spotlight. Subject lines like: ‘X reasons why XYZ is an event you cannot afford to miss’ stand out.

Also consider using a reminder for your webinar.

Practical details with parking facilities and reminders to registered participants are also very useful. Your content has added value and a high degree of extra service.

After

After the event too, there are things you need to communicate. Perhaps not everybody was able to participate. It is up to you to be their eyes and ears and summarise interesting information. Here, your position as an expert comes into its own.

Also consider sharing a replay, so that your readers can find the information themselves.

To show you really care about the participants, you can use a survey to ask them about their experience. This will also give you information you need to do things better next time. You can also use positive reactions to promote the next few editions.

6. The survey email

If you want to do well as a company, you must emphasise that your customers’ feedback is important to you. A survey is a good method to do this.

But how do you make sure that people complete the questionnaire? Who enjoys completing questionnaires? Your biggest fans and people with frustrations or concerns. The average customer or reader needs some more persuasion.

Here are some examples in which various tricks are used:




hers shares the survey results with the participants, a nice incentive to get them to complete the questionnaire:




azendoo uses a smart psychological trick:


The Zeigarnik effect is clearly discernible in the example above. People are inclined to finish what they have started.

Here, a minimum effort is requested: what score do you give? After you have clicked, you can present some further questions. The reader has answered the first question, so they will also answer the rest. If they don't, you have still been able to save their answer to the first question.

7. White paper and guide email

White papers are long pieces of content to promote your expertise and insights. They position you as an authority in your sector and as the ideal partner to work with.

So, do you want to share insights on trends in your industry, new legislation, or solutions? Combine them and put them to good use! You can share them with your target group and recycle them later as a lead magnet with your opt-in forms. A great way to get new subscribers!

Like in this Helpscout example:

8. The case email

Are you very proud of a recent cooperation with a customer? In a case, you can write about yourself in a way that is also useful to your reader. You show your expertise and inspire your reader. Besides, you have the benefit of social proof: your satisfied customers will spread the word about their cooperation with you. This is more effective than any promotion you could do yourself.


In this example, Metalab presents a case as part of its newsletter. They can show off with a big name like Headspace, which makes people curious. To a large extent, however, the copy is still about Metalab. Furthermore, the case needs to compete with other articles in the newsletter.



Thumbtack has a clear focus in the following email:

9. Last chance email

‘Last chance’ or ‘FOMO’ emails are an ideal way to repeat an important message in a credible way, and give hesitating contacts the final push to purchase.

These emails come in different variants:

• ‘This deal will expire in three hours.’ The most common and least subtle variant. Your deal is central, and there is the warning that you will definitely miss out on the opportunity if you do not respond now. This approach is very effective for impulse purchases.
• ‘Other customers are interested in XYZ.’ This type of message works in 2 ways. You provide social proof. You also show that products are in great demand and might sell out soon. Websites like booking.com use this type of trick excessively.
• ‘X is temporarily sold out.’ This is a reference to the consequences of not reacting quickly. You will have to be faster next time.

An example of the first variant in practice is shown below:

10. The anniversary email

Perhaps you think a birthday email can only be used in B2C. You may be right: it feels strange or rather obtrusive to ask someone’s date of birth in B2B. Many anniversaries in B2B, however, are a good reason to consider: the commencement date of your customer relationship, for example. Some original applications are provided below.

For charities, you primarily depend on contributors. When you have received donations, you want to involve these people in your project. They want to know if their donation has really gone to the right place. Care Australia does it like this:




Unsplash doesn't work on a specific date but on another personal milestone, the number of views of your images:




Here is another example of printing shop Moo:

Achieve your goals with a personal approach

The next time you find a B2C email in your inbox, don't think you can't learn anything from it. Like every other business, you communicate with people. When you come across a strong email, ask yourself these questions:

• What is the target group here? Why am I receiving this email?
• Is the purpose of this email clear right from the start?
• Do the various elements work toward conversion?
• Is the copy written in the active voice? Is it about features or benefits?

For B2B, too, strong design and convincing text have a major impact on customer loyalty and conversions. So, make sure your emails stick.

Don't forget that something strange happens to most B2B marketeers when they sit down at their desk. They stop functioning like a normal human being and go into business mode. Their business alter ego is rational and business-like. In itself, there's nothing wrong with that.

Most B2B emails fail in an essential respect, though: making their target group enthusiastic about what they have to say. Also focus on the emotional, human aspect of what you want to convey. This is the only way in which you can build a relationship with your target group.