Inbox Magic is a short newsletter I publish multiple times per week that gives quick tips for email marketing success.

In this first issue, I’d love to take a moment to talk about Tim Denning. In case you haven’t heard of him, he’s an entrepreneur who became a millionaire freelance writer. He has a no-nonsense style that I love, and he really knows how to market himself and his business.

Now that we have that out of the way, let’s break down his email.

1. You have, have, have to have a great headline. I can NOT overstate this. There is so much crap in people’s inboxes these days that you have to find a way to grab people’s attention. In this particular email, Denning hits us with some good, old-fashioned FOMO to talk about why businesses should have a newsletter.
2. Denning opens up with quick case study. So-and-so is doing something, but (according to this email), there’s “a massive flaw” in her strategy.
3. So-and-so is everyman. (Or woman.) Then he connects the case study with his readership. This works well because it makes the reader feel super seen if he can connect his struggles to somebody else’s.
4. Highlight the TYPE of lesson readers need to learn to get past their struggles. We’re not outright stating the lesson just yet, but what TYPE of lesson is it?
5. Now, you can hit them with the lesson. Dennis then tells the reader what they came to see.
6. Hit them where it hurts: their finances. What’s the worst-case scenario if a reader doesn’t learn this lesson. Give it to them straight, even if it hurts.
7. Return to the case study. Now, Denning explores what benefits so-and-so COULD enjoy if she had just learned this lesson.
8. Then you’re going to tell them one way to achieve these benefits. What’s one thing your reader will be able to do to put this lesson in action?
9. Now, here’s the call to action (CTA). What do you want them to do now? Buy something. Sign up for something? Tell them. And make them do it NOW.

The coolest thing about this email? It was plain text. And I knew I didn’t need to read the entire email to sign up for whatever he was offering.

Plain Text Email Template

Headline: Grab their attention by addressing who they are or what they need and tease them with how they can get it.

P1: Tell a story about someone you talked to recently that was struggling with something your reader is likely to struggle with.

P2: Make a list of things this person said. You can mix in some positive with the negative.

P3: Show how this person is like your reader.

P4: Talk about what type of lesson this person needs to learn. (But not the actual lesson yet.)

P4.5: Tell them the lesson.

P5: Give your readers the worst-case scenario if they don’t learn this lesson.

P6: Return to the case study and list a few benefits your person could enjoy if they learned this very important lesson.

P7: Tell your readers one way that would solve their problem. (Hint: this way is related to what your CTA is.)

P8: Hit them with your CTA.

P9: Make it limited somehow. Limited number of seats? Limited time to sign up? Etc.

Now, this is an oversimplified template that doesn’t account for your writing voice or style. So, have some common sense and throw a bit of your personality (or brand identity) in there.