At first glance, your cold email signature may seem like an afterthought. But if you do it right, it helps you drive prospects’ engagement and get replies.
By strategically placing information such as your name, job title, and contact information in every email, you establish trust and credibility - and prospects can familiarize you. This is key to making more sales.
So, how do you write email signatures that represent you and push the prospect down the sales funnel?
We analyzed the data of millions of cold email campaigns to find the answers.
Here are the 5 tips you need for a successful cold email signature - based on real data. ⬇️
Here’s everything you need to know about writing a cold email signature that catches attention.
Based on an analysis of millions of lemlist cold email campaigns, the most successful cold email signatures are short and sweet: between 4-6 words.
Writing a concise email signature helps you:
-> get the most important information across
-> not distract from your pitch and CTA
-> stay on top of your prospects’ minds
For a personal touch, you can choose to include a professional photo of yourself in your cold email signature.
Including a headshot or a professional photo in your email signature helps you:
-> establish a human connection that fosters trust and relatability
-> create a more memorable and personable experience
-> add authenticity and establish a relationship with your leads
Note: Too many images in a cold email can lead to formatting and deliverability issues. Also, many email providers already allow you to add a profile picture to your contact information - so this step may not be appropriate for everyone.
Want to build credibility and build followers for yourself or your brand? Add links for prospects to follow.
By adding links to relevant articles, eBooks, or other valuable resources to your email signature, you can:
-> enrich prospects’ understanding and decision-making process
-> position yourself as a thought leader
-> guide your prospects toward deeper engagement
In fact, in our data analysis of millions of cold email signatures, we found that adding links increases the success rates (replies and clicks) of your cold outreach:
If you’ve been recognized as a top company or earned prestigious badges from reputable sites like G2, include them in your cold email signature.
Showing off relevant awards helps you:
-> boost confidence in your prospects
-> demonstrate you’ve been acknowledged and endorsed by industry experts
-> establish your position as a trusted and reliable partner
Note: avoid adding too many images or symbols in your signature, as this can lead to formatting issues.
If you want prospects to follow up with you, give them a clear indication of how to do it.
Include a link to a virtual calendar where prospects can easily schedule a call or a demo to:
-> move the conversation forward and streamline the sales process
-> eliminate unnecessary back-and-forth
-> demonstrate your commitment to meeting the needs of your prospects
For some extra inspiration, here are the four sales email signatures that had the highest click-through rates of all the cold email campaigns in our study.
These are real signatures that lemlist users have sent to get more replies and conversions.
For privacy, we have anonymized their names and contact information.
Notice that each signature:
-> is concise
-> includes links
-> provides contact information to follow up on
-> avoids complicated formatting or too many images
You can easily select and personalize signature elements and make your emails stand out thanks to HubSpot’s suite of tools.
Here’s how:
Step 1: Use a tool like HubSpot’s free email signature generator. This resource allows you to add your name, title, department, contact information and more in just minutes.
Step 2: Leverage additional custom materials with tools like the free logo maker to uplevel your signature even more and make it more custom.
Step 3: Download the file and upload it to your email provider of choice, whether it’s Gmail or Outlook.
Step 4: Start sending out your emails with your newly enhanced signature!
Following these five best email signature practices can help you:
-> catch your prospects’ attention
-> establish credibility and trust
-> get more replies and book more meetings
Consider it a concise yet comprehensive snapshot of your brand that helps you stand out in prospects’ inboxes, book meetings, and grow your business!
And if you’d like to try a cold outreach tool that will allow you to:
-> A/B test your signatures to pinpoint the best results
-> save your best signature as a reusable {{signature}} variable to save time
-> personalize at scale to drive more conversions
Then sign up for a free lemlist account. (Don’t worry - no surprise bills or card info required!)
G2 Rating | Price | Best for | Standout feature | Con | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
4.9 star star star star star | $30/mo $75/mo $2,999/mo | Large, distributed sales teams | AI evaluation precision, gamified KPIs | Lack of tracking system | |
4.6 star star star star star-half | Not publicly available | Sales operations and finance teams | Powerful configurability | Limited training resources and complex to navigate | |
4.4 star star star star star-half | Not publicly available | Mid-market and enterprise businesses | Comprehensive incentive management | Potentially high cost and steep learning curve | |
4.7 star star star star star-half | $15/user/mo $40/user/mo Enterprise: custom price | Complex sales structures and businesses of all sizes | Complex sales structures and businesses of all sizes | Steep learning curve | |
4.6 star star star star star-half | Not publicly available | Collaborative teams | Connected planning | Complexity and steep learning curve | |
4.6 star star star star star-half | Not publicly available | Companies with complex sales structures | Complex incentive compensation management (ICM) with high efficiency and accuracy | Complexity for smaller teams and potentially high costs | |
4.7 star star star star star-half | Not publicly available | Companies who want to automate commission calculations and payouts | Simplicity and ease of use | Lack of features like redirection | |
4.7 star star star star star-half | $30/user/mo $35/user/mo Custom: upon request | Businesses that need a comprehensive and user-friendly sales compensation management software | Ease of use and adoption | Lack of ability to configure the product based on user needs | |
4.8 star star star star star-half | Not publicly available | Companies with modern sales culture and businesses who want real-time insights | A built-in dispute management and real-time visibility | Users say it works slowly, customer support is slow | |
4.9 star star star star star | $30/user/mo $50/user/mo | Smaller sales teams | Powerful automation | Lesser user base and average user interface | |
4.7 star star star star star-half | Not publicly available | Companies with scalable needs | Automated Commission Calculations | Lack of filtering by date, no mobile app |
PRM Tool | Rating | Feature | Pro | Con | Mobile App | Integrations | Free Plan | Pricing |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
4.65 star star star star star-half | Org-wide alignment | User-friendly layout and database | Suboptimal as a personal CRM | square-check | Lack of tracking system | square-check | Team: $20/month Business: $45/month | |
4.7 star star star star star-half | Social Media Integration | Easy contact data collection | No marketing/sales features | square-check | Lack of tracking system | square-xmark 7-day trial | $12/month | |
4.75 star star star star star-half | Block Functions | High customization capability | Not a dedicated CRM | square-check | Limited | square-check | Plus: €7.50/month Business: €14/month | |
N/A | Open-source | Open-source flexibility | Requires extensive manual input | square-xmark | Limited | square-check Self-hosted | $9/month or $90/year | |
3.1 star star star | Simple iOS app | Ideal for non-tech-savvy users | iPhone only | square-check iOS only | Limited | square-xmark 1-month trial | $1.49/month or $14.99/month | |
3.6 star star star star-half | Smart Contact Management | Feature-rich and flexible | Reported bugs | square-check | Rich | square-xmark 7-day trial | Premium: $13.99/month Teams: $17.99/month | |
4.4 star star star star star-half | Customizable Interface | Customizable for teamwork | Pricey for personal use | square-check | Rich | square-xmark | Standard: $24/member Premium: $39/member | |
4.7 star star star star star-half | Integrated Calling | Integrated Calling | Too sales-oriented & pricey | square-check | Rich | square-xmark 14-day trial | Startup: $59/user/month Professional: $329/user/month | |
4.8 star star star star star | Business Card Scanning | Business Card Scanning | Mobile only | square-check | Limited | square-check | $9.99/month | |
4.45 star star star star star-half | 160+ app integrations | Comprehensive integrations | No free app version | square-check | Rich | square-xmark 14-day trial | $29.90/month or $24.90/month (billed annually) |
Capterra Rating | Free Trial | Free Plan | Starting Price (excluding the free plan) | Maximum Price (for the most expensive plan) | Best for | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
4.5 star star star star star-half | square-check 14-day | square-check | €15/month/seat billed annually | €792/month/3 seats billed annually + €45/month for each extra seat | Versatility and free plan | |
4.2 star star star star | square-check 30-day | square-xmark But it offers reduced price to authorised nonprofit organisations | €25/user/month | €500/user/month billed annually (includes Einstein AI) | Best overall operational CRM | |
4.3 star star star star star-half | square-xmark | square-check Limited to 3 users | Comprehensive incentive management | €52/user/month billed annually | Small-medium businesses and automation | |
4.5 star star star star star-half | square-check 14-day | square-xmark | €14/seat/month billed annually | €99/seat/month billed annually | Sales teams and ease of use | |
4.1 star star star star | square-xmark | square-check Limited 10 users | $9.99/user/month billed annually | $64.99/user/month billed annually | Free plan for very small teams up to 10 |
CRM goal | Increase the sales conversion rate for qualified leads from marketing automation campaigns by 10% in the next 6 months. | ||||
SMART Breakdown | 1. Specific: It targets a specific area (conversion rate) for a defined segment (qualified leads from marketing automation). | 2. Measurable: The desired increase (10%) is a clear metric, and the timeframe (6 months) allows for progress tracking. | 3. Achievable: A 10% increase is possible based on historical data and potential improvements. | 4. Relevant: Boosting sales from marketing efforts aligns with overall business objectives. | 5. Time-bound: The 6-month timeframe creates urgency and a clear target date. |
Actions | Step 1: Refine lead qualification criteria to ensure high-quality leads are nurtured through marketing automation. | Step 2: Personalize marketing automation campaigns based on lead demographics, interests, and behavior. | Step 3: Develop targeted landing pages with clear calls to action for qualified leads. | Step 4: Implement lead scoring to prioritize high-potential leads for sales follow-up. | Step 5: Track and analyze campaign performance to identify areas for optimization. |
Outcomes | Increased sales and revenue | Improved marketing automation ROI | Marketing and sales alignment | Data-driven marketing optimization |