At one point or the other, almost every business reaches a point where they have to address the customers, send emails, or release a statement during a pandemic such as the COVID-19 crisis. Drafting these emails can be quite challenging. More than ever, making your customers your priority and putting yourself in their shoes is very crucial now.
Here are some tips that will help you draft sensible emails during a crisis:
5 Tips on Sending Emails During a Crisis
Be sensitive: What is the tone you want to follow? Do you want your emails to sound friendly? Do you want to be the subject-matter expert during a crisis? Or, do you want to focus on charity? Choose the tone before you send your first email.
Send only necessary emails: Before sending an email to your customers, ask yourself if it is absolutely necessary. Your customers will appreciate your concern for their privacy and find you sensible if you send them the outright important emails only. If you own a local store that sells essentials, you can send an email to your customers regarding the store timings, steps you have taken to maintain social distancing, and a list of available products.
Avoid unnecessary Call-to-Action: This is not the time to send strategically planned emails which will increase your website traffic or give you a lead. Avoid unnecessary CTAs in your email as it diminishes the genuineness of your message.
Add links to additional resources: Instead of multiple CTAS, you can add links to additional resources to educate your customers about the current scenario. This will not only make your emails look visually pleasing but educational too. For example, you can add links to the symptoms of Coronavirus and how to stay safe.
Opt-out policy: Allow your customers to opt-out if they feel overwhelmed, While you may feel that you would lose your customer base, this will help you earn your customers trust in the long run. Mention how they can opt-out in the email. You can also allow them to reply to your email. Consider deactivating the “No Reply” option and allow your customers to respond to you easily.
While communicating with your customers may be tricky during a crisis, a well thought, sensitive email can make a huge difference and increase your trustworthiness. We hope these tips help you send better emails. Stay safe. Stay at home.
