Best Email Closings: How to End Cold Email Like a Pro

Vlad Oleksiienko 21 Mar 2024

When it comes to cold emails, we tend to spend a lot of time working out the best ways to start them off. What subject lines work best? What opening line should I use to hold their attention? People don’t seem to be as concerned with ways to end an email. However, even the strongest subject lines and openers will do you no good if your cold email doesn’t end properly.

By using the following tips and suggestions in your cold emails, you can make sure your emails finish as strongly as they start and get the results you’re looking for.

What is the best closing for an email?

When sending cold emails, sales reps tend to pay attention to a few things:

Subject line as it’s the key element responsible for driving email opens
Personalization to make the email feel warm and appealing
Value proposition to make sure the prospect sees the benefits of what you’re offering

When it comes to the sign-off, most will go with the “all the best” email closing or use other formal email phrases without giving a second thought about it.

While there are many sign-off lines for email, simply closing an email with “best” might ruin the whole impression. To make sure every word you use serves the key purpose—engagement—we’ve decided to go through the best email closings for business emails.

This mostly revolves around the CTA and how you can start a conversation with your prospect. So, here are some of the best ways to close out email.

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Always have a CTA

The golden rule of closing your emails is to make sure you have a clear call to action (CTA). Why are you sending a cold email in the first place? What action do you want the recipient to take after reading it? Your CTA is the whole point of your email; every line that comes before it (including that subject line) should drive the reader toward it.

While you might think it’s obvious what you want your email recipient to do, you still have to ask them to do it. Too many cold emails end passively, tailing off without ever saying what should happen next. Sometimes, this is done with good intentions, maybe wanting to avoid being too salesy.

However, leaving out your CTA doesn’t do your recipients any favors. Rather than being a hard sell, letting the reader know what to do next and how to benefit from your email will lead to better outcomes for you and for them. Aim for one CTA per email, and make sure it’s clear and easy to follow.

Avoid an aggressive CTA

While every cold email should have a CTA, that doesn’t mean all CTAs are created equal. Your CTA will depend on the overall objective of your campaign. Some companies use cold email because they’ve read somewhere that they should and that it can get great results for your business. While that’s true, cold email has to be part of a planned strategy, where careful thought is given to how cold email will actually get you those results you’re looking for.

As cold email can be a great way to increase sales, some marketers make the mistake of using every email to sell. They then wonder why, rather than bringing in the money, their emails are ignored or flagged as spam.

While your ultimate objective may be to increase sales, closing every email with a pitch and a link to ‘buy now’ simply isn’t going to work. After all, people very rarely buy from complete strangers. Instead, it’s better to find another short-term objective for your first email. The best ways to sign an email is to try and book a sales demo or call, but this might not be the best way to close an email professionally.

Bear in mind that the average professional receives 120 emails every day but only responds to 25% of them. People’s time is limited, and there are only so many meetings or demos that they can attend. As a result, aiming for a simpler outcome that requires minimal effort from the recipient is far more likely to get a positive response.

Start a conversation

Think of your cold email as the first step in a much longer journey. It is your first contact, your introduction. While people will be more hesitant to buy or even arrange a meeting with someone they’ve never heard from before, a simple response is much less of a demand.

One of the most effective ways of starting a two-way conversation is to ask questions (but not right after salutations). Questions encourage the reader to pause and think, even if it’s just to answer the question in their head. As a bonus, the responses you receive are a fantastic opportunity to learn more about your prospects and information you can use to craft a personalized and relevant follow-up.

The simple fact that they’ve responded—regardless of what the actual response is—tells you that the subject is relevant to them and has some importance. Just bear in mind that there’s a fine balance to be had between asking questions that are open-ended and encourage a thoughtful response, and making the recipient feel like they’re being interrogated.

Don’t be afraid of no

A common sales tactic is to try and get prospects into the habit of saying yes. The thinking goes that the more times they say yes, the more likely they are to say yes to purchasing your product/service. Even if this is the case, though (I’m not entirely convinced), remember that the goal of your first cold email isn’t trying to close the deal. Instead, you should be using your cold emails to qualify your leads and see whether you’re a good fit for each other.

From this point of view, a no is just as valuable as a yes. Every no you hear allows you to focus more resources on more promising leads, rather than putting time and effort into leads that were never likely to pan out.

In fact, getting a no can be even more valuable than a yes, at least according to Chris Voss, author of ‘Never Split the Difference’ (one of our recommended books to help you improve your sales). As Chris explains, if people feel forced into saying yes it can feel uncomfortable and be misleading.

When you ask yes-oriented questions that you already know the answer to, you give people a one-word escape route that’s difficult to pass up. To satisfy you and move on with their lives, all they need to do is tell you what you want to hear—even if they don’t genuinely agree.

Use your email signature effectively

I’m regularly asked if it’s better to open cold emails with an introduction or not. Some feel that it’s only right to introduce yourself the first time you contact a lead, while others feel that you should get straight to the point. But there are no best practices or universal best closing signature for email that works for everybody.

By using an email signature, you can get the best of both worlds, saving that valuable real estate for an attention-grabbing introduction while still letting people know who you are in your signature.

However, there’s no need to leave it there. For example, you could include a link in your email signature to your latest blog post, any free tools your company offers, or your social media profiles. While you should generally stick to one CTA per email, your signature can act as a secondary CTA, inviting people to learn more about your company or download a free guide.

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Examples of all the best email closing I can share

To see what this all looks like in practice, let’s take a look at some examples of the best closings for emails and see how they measure up.

“I’d love to jump on a call to discuss this further. How would next Monday at 11 AM suit you?”

We have a CTA with a clear objective—to get a meeting. Assuming the body of the email has done enough to generate interest in the product/service, this could work. If they’d just asked if the recipient would be agreeable to a call, there are only two potential responses: yes or no.

However, by suggesting a potential time in closing remarks in emails, you encourage the recipient to think in terms of whether the timing is convenient, rather than whether they want to have a meeting in the first place.

“If that sounds interesting to you, I’d be happy to explain more. Feel free to pick any time from my calendar that would suit you for a chat.”

Here we have another closing that’s trying to secure a call. As mentioned, this might be too much of a request for an initial cold email, but this closing does its best to remove as much friction as possible by allowing them to pick a time from a scheduling tool. However, some people will be hesitant to click a link in an email from a stranger. If the email is from a recognized company and/or the reader sees enough potential value in the product, this could work well.

“Do you ever struggle with {a specific problem that your product solves}?”

We’ve already discussed how questions can be the best way to end an email, encouraging your reader to engage more. The key word here is ‘specific.’ If you’ve done your research properly and can refer to a problem that is relevant to the recipient, this should be enough to get their attention. However, this question could easily be viewed as rhetorical, and, while it might still get them to think, it still might not be enough to motivate a response.

“If you don’t mind me asking, how are you currently dealing with {a specific problem that your product solves}?”

Building on the previous example, the subtle change to this ending makes it clear that you’d like to start a conversation, inviting the reader to give their input. Even if it doesn’t always lead to a sale, this type of closing is a great opportunity to learn more about your recipient. However, the likelihood of getting a response depends on the complexity of the problem you’re solving. If they can answer the question in a few words, this will reduce the friction of responding. If it takes too much time or effort, though, or the problem isn’t one they’re interested in, you’re not going to get a response.

“I’ve actually recorded a video showing how {sender company} could help save {recipient company} $486 every week. Would it be okay to send that over?”

This is one of my favorite email closings. As well as following the rules of how to close an email like a pro, this steps it up by offering the reader something that’s personalized to them. Rather than asking for a sale, a meeting, or anything else, this email closing is offering something of value. Coupled with a screenshot of the video, ideally showing the recipient’s company name, this is by far the best way to close a business email that stands a really good chance of getting a response.

Ready for the next step? Let’s take our advice to the next level with best tools available.

How to write better cold emails, according to data

Get data-backed insights on several aspects of effective cold email copy, including length, variables, questions, and non-text elements.

Tools to help you choose the best closing for email

When it comes to crafting the perfect email, every word counts, especially that crucial closing line. Let me share with you my secret weapons that have seriously upped my email game.

Jason AI → boost your email game

If you think about email outreaches that need to hit just the right note, Jason AI is like the conductor of an orchestra. It’s the first B2B Conversational AI that feels like having a secret weapon in your toolbox.

With Jason AI, setting up your email outreach is ridiculously simple and incredibly effective. It helps me define my audience with precision—ensuring that every email reaches someone genuinely interested in what I have to offer.

The magic happens when I set up an outreach sequence. Jason AI isn’t just sending emails; it’s crafting a symphony of touchpoints across emails and social channels tailored specifically to each prospect. It’s like having a personal assistant who knows not only who to contact but how and when (and many different ways to connect with potential clients). Each campaign is personalized, making my messages resonate on a whole new level.

But where Jason truly shines for me is in handling responses. Whether a prospect wants to schedule a meeting, needs more information, or even if they’re not interested right now, Jason AI is on it—responding appropriately, booking meetings directly into my calendar, and even following up with counter-offers. It handles the full spectrum of interactions, allowing me to focus on the meetings themselves rather than the nitty-gritty of scheduling and follow-ups.

Using Jason AI, I feel like I have an entire team behind me, ensuring that my email closings are not just another sign-off but a powerful invitation to connect further. It’s like magic, really—just set it, forget it, and watch your calendar fill up with appointments.

Grammarly → make your emails flawless

Then there’s Grammarly, my go-to for making sure everything is polished to perfection. Grammarly is like that detail-oriented friend who spots every typo and awkward phrase. It’s fantastic to give your professional email that final once-over to ensure everything reads smoothly.

It’s particularly handy for tailoring your ways of closing out an email. Whether it’s ensuring you’ve used the right tone or just double-checking your grammar, Grammarly makes sure you come across as polished and professional.

Hemingway → keep it short and sweet

And lastly, we can’t forget Hemingway. This tool is all about making your writing as clear and direct as possible. It’s perfect for when you want to make sure your emails are concise and to the point—no tiny rambling closing sentence for an email or overly complex language.

When I’m finalizing those closing lines, Hemingway ensures they are crisp and impactful, helping me leave a strong impression without any fluff getting in the way.

Conclusion

While they may not get as much attention as subject lines or openings, your email closings are just as important when it comes to writing an effective cold email. By ensuring that you have a CTA that’s in line with your overall objectives (without being too aggressive) and starting conversations, you can send emails that are more likely to get the response you’re looking for.

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