Best email styles for SaaS and coaching

Why Your Emails Need More 'Plain Text' (And Less Fancy Design) As a SaaS growth marketer whose business heavily relies on online traffic and email marketing, I’ve tested 10,000+ emails—and the results are surprising. HTML-heavy emails are quietly underperforming where it matters most. Here’s what the data says: 📊 Plain-text emails drive: ✔ 21% higher click-to-open rates (50K email A/B test) ✔ 17% better click-through rates ✔ 23% conversion boost for trial expiration reminders (format change only) ✔ 31% more enterprise meeting bookings in one week (client case study) Why This Works 🚀 Better Deliverability – Plain-text emails bypass spam filters and the Gmail Promotions tab 32% more often. 🤝 Psychological Advantage – They feel like a personal message, not a marketing blast. ⚡ Faster Load Times – No broken images, no rendering delays—just immediate action. When to Use Each Format ✔ HTML Wins For: Newsletters, product launches, brand-heavy campaigns. ✔ Plain-Text Wins For: Prospecting, follow-ups, high-value outreach, retention emails. Your Challenge Test it yourself: 📩 Send 500 plain-text emails vs. 500 HTML emails this week. 📊 Track open rates, replies, and conversions. 📣 Drop your findings in the comments—let’s compare real data. If you're in SaaS, every outreach email can influence revenue. Are you leveraging the right format for the right purpose? #SaaS #EmailMarketing #ConversionOptimization #ABTesting

Improving your B2B SaaS email footprint can drive growth. 5 tactics to consider (some might look like bad ideas): [1] 𝗖𝘂𝘁 𝗱𝗼𝘄𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗲𝗺𝗮𝗶𝗹 𝘃𝗼𝗹𝘂𝗺𝗲 - As new email triggers get added and user bases grow, the volume of emails ejected per day balloons exponentially. With Google's stricter spam policies, this can spell trouble. - I often see PMs build new notifications and keep them on by default. This should be done sparingly. - It's better for users to get fewer, more important emails than be swamped with an email upon every action. [2] 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘀𝘂𝗯𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀 - Here's a mistake I made - I once set the subject line of an automated email as: "[Alert] {First Name}, here are results matching your criteria". - Users were frustrated as they were lost in a sea of emails with the SAME subject line. - Using personalization isn't enough. Think about unique tokens in subject lines, especially for alerts and digests. - Using a solitary emoji for a few (not all) might be worth experimenting with. [3] 𝗘𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘀𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗲𝗺𝗮𝗶𝗹𝘀 𝗮𝘁 𝗼𝗳𝗳-𝗽𝗲𝗮𝗸 𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀 - Emails synced with a cron job (like a digest) are often set at optimal sending times. - The problem: every other platform is sending emails at that time too. - This might be counter-intuitive, but one should experiment with sending emails (with less time sensitivity like a digest) during downtimes. [4] 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗼𝗿𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗶𝗻-𝘁𝗲𝘅𝘁 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗰𝗮𝗻 - I've seen reset password emails with chunky, branded banners and flashy footers. - Adopt plain-text for system emails to avoid consuming real estate unnecessarily. - At max, plug in a logo + a single-line footer with the un-subscription link. - It also helps with avoiding the wrong inbox profile. [5] 𝗣𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘇𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝘆𝗼𝗻𝗱 𝗮 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲 - Most emails are "personalized" by referencing the name or company. - That's not personalization. That's just token insertion. - With LLMs on the rise, the best personalization will be contextualizing the copy based on the persona at hand. Let me explain the last point with an example. Assume the product is a Project Management tool like Asana or Clickup. Say they launch a new analytics dashboard view. A Marketing manager might get: "Our new Analytics Dashboard gives you a bird's-eye view of your marketing campaigns' progress. Track key performance indicators like campaign completion rates and team productivity, helping you optimize resource allocation and hit your marketing goals faster." But for the same feature, a software lead might get: "We've just launched our Analytics Dashboard, allowing you to visualize your development team's velocity and sprint progress. Monitor critical metrics like code commit frequency and bug resolution times to streamline your development cycles and boost overall productivity" -- What are your SaaS email tips?

There are four types of emails your list needs to read. Most coaches only send one: The weekly newsletter. Every week, hoping it eventually converts someone into a paying client. It rarely does on its own because a single email type can't handle four completely different jobs. Your list needs to build trust, deepen belief, trigger decisions, and keep people around long enough to buy. That is four different conversations, and each one requires a different kind of email. Send these 4 different types of email newsletters for the best results: 𝗘𝗺𝗮𝗶𝗹 𝗧𝘆𝗽𝗲 𝟭: 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗧𝗿𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗕𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗲𝗿 This is your regular value email. One idea. One framework. One tactical thing your reader can use this week. No selling or pitching. 𝗘𝗺𝗮𝗶𝗹 𝗧𝘆𝗽𝗲 𝟮: 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗕𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗲𝗳 𝗦𝗵𝗶𝗳𝘁𝗲𝗿 A case study, a story, or a before-and-after from a client. Walk them through the moment someone decided to change something, what they did, and what happened. 𝗘𝗺𝗮𝗶𝗹 𝗝𝗼𝗯 𝟯: 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗗𝗲𝗰𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗠𝗮𝗸𝗲𝗿 This is the direct offer email. Clear and specific with one ask. It tells the reader what is available, who it is for, and what to do next. Most coaches avoid this email because it feels pushy. It only feels pushy when you haven't built enough goodwill with the 2 types of emails above. 𝗘𝗺𝗮𝗶𝗹 𝗝𝗼𝗯 𝟰: 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝗞𝗲𝗲𝗽𝗲𝗿 A short personal email with no agenda. A thought you had this week. A question you want to ask your list. Something that sounds like a real person, not a content calendar. This is the email most coaches forget to send. It is also the one that generates the most replies. Rotate these 4 different types of emails for maximum engagement with your audience. Save this and audit your last 10 emails against this framework. Let me know what you find!

6 months ago, a SaaS company tried to sell me features. But today, they sold me a problem I actually care about. Email 1 said: → Pulse surveys → Real-time sentiment → Easy recognition → All product talk. Nothing about me. So of course, I didn’t buy. I replied with one suggestion: “Make your email about the outcome, not the feature.” And today, I got another email from the same company. Same company. Same product. But a completely different angle: “Teams miss disengagement until it’s too late.” That one line did what the features couldn’t. It made me feel the problem. The shift they made: FROM: “Here’s what we do.” TO: “Here’s what happens if you don’t act.” That’s the real game in outbound. ✅ If you send cold emails, use this framework: 1️⃣ Start with a pain your prospect already feels. 2️⃣ Connect your product to a clear outcome (save, prevent, improve). 3️⃣ Make the prospect the hero—not your software. 4️⃣ End with a small ask, not a big pitch. Before you send, do a quick check: Count the words “we” vs. “you.” If “we” wins, your email loses. Outbound isn’t about explaining your product. It’s about diagnosing their problem. If you get that right, you’ve already won half the game.

I analyzed 100+ SaaS onboarding email sequences. Here's what actually works: 📊 After reviewing over a hundred onboarding email sequences across various B2B SaaS products, clear patterns emerged distinguishing what drives user activation from what gets ignored. ⏱️ Timing is as crucial as content ▪️ First email: Sent within 3 minutes of signup to capitalize on user engagement. ▪️ Key information: Delivered promptly, ideally within the first day, to guide users effectively. ▪️ Follow-up emails: Aligned with typical user behavior patterns, not arbitrary schedules. 🧠 Subject line psychology ▪️ Specific value propositions: Outperform generic welcomes. ▪️ Personalization: Including the user's name or specific goals can increase open rates. ▪️ Concise phrasing: Subject lines under 7 words tend to perform better. 📱 Content structure that converts ▪️ Single, clear CTA: Avoid multiple calls to action to reduce decision fatigue. ▪️ Bulleted action steps: Enhance readability and user engagement. ▪️ Mobile-first design: Essential, as a significant portion of users access emails on mobile devices. ▪️ Strategic placement of social proof: Position testimonials or success stories before key actions to build trust. 🔄 Effective sequence logic ▪️ Optimal sequence: 7–10 emails over 14 days. ▪️ Day 0: Immediate value and quick win. ▪️ Days 1–2: Core feature education. ▪️ Days 3–7: Use cases and success stories. ▪️ Days 8–14: Advanced features and potential upsells. 💡 Key insight: Emails that help users visualize outcomes ("Here's what you'll achieve") tend to drive more engagement than those focusing solely on product features. What strategies have you found effective in your onboarding email sequences?