What is an email signature line?

An email signature line is the few lines of information that is automatically added at the end of your outgoing email message. This message tells people who you are, what you do, and how to contact you.

Email signatures, which are also referred to as “sig lines”, are one the most under utilized marketing tool despite their amazingly powerful high return on investment. Email signatures should be thought of it as virtual business cards or online ads. Unfortunately, most people do not use email signature lines and this low cost strategy becomes a missed branding opportunity to drive readers to your website.

Consider this, if you average 5 emails sent per day, that would be a total of 1825 emails personally sent in one year. By not having a email signature line, you miss out on distributing your electronic business card or email ad to these potential buyers of your product or service.

One might argue that the people who they email already know who they are and what they do. This could only be further from the truth. I have been dating a young lady for a few years now and if you were to ask me to explain what she did at work, I would not be able to give you a good solid answer. Oh sure, I have somewhat of an idea, but not so much that I could confidently refer potential business her way.

Most of your friends can not explain well what it is that you do for a living. Your signature line offers them the opportunity to visit your personal branding page where they can read more about who you are and your expertise.

The basic components of a signature line

Before creating your signature line you should know that the general rule of thumb for the appropriate length of a signature line is four to six lines in length. Eight is the maximum that you should ever use.

Your signature line must include:

• Name
• Job Title
• Organization name
• Phone number
• Web address

Optional elements of a signature line can include:

• Tag line – see how to create a catchy tag line.
• Links to other social networks

Remember, your signature line is your opportunity to entice readers to visit your web site and learn more about who you are professionally. It’s also an opportunity to establish yourself as a recognized expert in your field of industry.