How to Write Emails That Actually Get Responses

I used to think the problem was other people. They were too busy. Too rude. Too overwhelmed.

Then I looked at my own inbox. 847 unread emails. I was ignoring messages from people I genuinely liked.

The problem wasn't them. It was the emails.

After analyzing over 2,000 of my own emails—tracking which got responses and which disappeared—I discovered patterns that completely changed how I communicate. My response rate went from around 30% to over 80%.

Here's everything I learned.

Why Most Emails Get Ignored

Before we fix the problem, we need to understand it.

When someone opens your email, their brain is running a quick calculation:

• How much effort will this take?
• What do I get out of responding?
• Can I deal with this later?

Most emails fail at least one of these questions. They're too long (high effort), unclear about the benefit (low motivation), or easy to postpone (no urgency).

The emails that get responses pass all three tests. They're easy to answer, valuable to respond to, and feel time-sensitive.

The Subject Line Is Everything

Your email lives or dies in the inbox preview. Most people scan subject lines for 2-3 seconds before deciding: open now, open later, or delete.

Subject lines that get opened:

Specific over vague:

• Bad: "Quick question"
• Good: "Quick question about the Henderson account"

Benefit over task:

• Bad: "Need your input on presentation"
• Good: "Your take on one slide—2 min"

Curiosity over completeness:

• Bad: "Meeting followup and next steps"
• Good: "The thing you mentioned about pricing"

Personal over broadcast:

• Bad: "Monthly update for team"
• Good: "Sarah—thought you'd want to see this"

Time-bound over open-ended:

• Bad: "When you get a chance"
• Good: "Before Thursday's meeting"

The best subject lines make opening feel urgent, easy, and potentially rewarding. The worst ones feel like work.

The First Line Hooks (Or Loses) Them

Email previews show roughly the first 50-90 characters of your message. This is prime real estate.

Most people waste it:

• "Hope you're doing well!"
• "I wanted to reach out to..."
• "Per our conversation..."
• "Just circling back on..."

These tell the reader nothing. They're the email equivalent of throat-clearing.

Better first lines:

For follow-ups: "Here's the proposal we discussed—one decision needed."

For requests: "You're the only person who knows this answer."

For cold emails: "I increased [Company's] revenue 40% with one change."

For updates: "Good news: the client approved everything."

For questions: "If you could only pick one—A or B?"

The first line should make the rest of the email feel necessary to read.

The One-Thing Rule

Every effective email has one clear purpose. Not two. Not three. One.

When you ask for multiple things, people do none of them. The cognitive load of deciding which to address first creates friction. Friction creates delay. Delay creates forgetting.

Before: "Can you review the attached proposal, send me your thoughts on the timeline, and let me know who should be in the kickoff meeting?"

After: "One question: Who should I invite to the kickoff meeting?"

(Send the proposal separately. Ask about timeline after they've responded.)

If you absolutely must include multiple items, number them clearly and ask them to respond in the same format. Make the response as easy as possible.

The Inverted Pyramid Structure

Journalists use this: most important information first, details later.

Most people do the opposite. They build up to their point, burying the key information under paragraphs of context.

Structure that works:

Line 1: What you need and by when Line 2-3: Why it matters Line 4+: Context if needed Last line: Specific next step

Example:

"I need your approval on the attached budget by Thursday to meet the board deadline.

This is the revised version incorporating your feedback on the marketing line items.

If anything looks wrong, let me know—otherwise I'll submit it Thursday at noon."

The busy reader can skim line 1, get the gist, and respond in 10 seconds. The thorough reader can review everything. Both paths lead to a response.

The Magic of Constraints

Open-ended questions kill response rates. They require the recipient to do too much thinking.

Hard to answer: "What do you think about expanding to the European market?"

Easy to answer: "Should we prioritize UK or Germany for European expansion—or is there a third option I'm missing?"

The second question:

• Limits the scope
• Suggests options
• Signals you've already thought about it
• Makes "UK" or "Germany" a complete response

Constraints make responding effortless. Effortless gets responses.

The Response-Friendly Format

How your email looks affects whether people respond.

Walls of text: Overwhelming. Skipped.

Bullet points: Scannable. Actionable.

Short paragraphs: Readable. Digestible.

Bold key points: Easy to locate. Hard to miss.

Format for the scanning reader, not the careful reader. Everyone scans first. If the scan looks manageable, they'll read carefully.

Visual hierarchy that works:

Subject: Decision needed on vendor choice by Friday

Hi Marcus,

Quick decision needed: Which vendor should we go with for the Q2 campaign?

Option A: Vendor X ($15K, proven track record) Option B: Vendor Y ($12K, newer but strong portfolio)

I'm leaning toward Option A based on our past experience, but wanted your input before committing.

If I don't hear back by Friday noon, I'll proceed with Option A.

Thanks, Alex

Every element of this email makes responding easy.

The Follow-Up That Works

Sometimes good emails still don't get responses. People get busy. Things slip.

The follow-up is not the time to get passive-aggressive. "Just bumping this up" or "Circling back again" conveys frustration without adding value.

Better follow-up approach:

1. Add new information: "I realized I didn't mention—we got initial approval from legal, so we're cleared to proceed."

2. Reduce the ask: "I know this is a busy week. Would a simple thumbs up/thumbs down work instead of detailed feedback?"

3. Provide an out: "If this isn't a priority right now, no worries—just let me know and I'll check back next month."

4. Create artificial urgency: "The vendor needs an answer by Friday, so I'll need to make a call either way. Any input before then?"

The goal is making it easier to respond, not making them feel guilty about not responding.

The Cold Email That Gets Warm Responses

Cold emails have dismal response rates—usually 1-5%. But some consistently get 20-30% response rates. The difference is approach.

What most cold emails do wrong:

• Lead with who they are (nobody cares)
• Immediately pitch (feels salesy)
• Make big asks (too much commitment)
• Sound like templates (impersonal)

What works instead:

Line 1: Something specific about them (proves you're not mass-emailing) Line 2: The problem you solve (relevant to them specifically) Line 3: Quick credibility (one proof point) Line 4: Tiny ask (not "schedule a call"—something smaller)

Example:

"I noticed you're hiring three content writers—congrats on the growth.

We help content teams produce 3x the output without adding headcount.

Two of your competitors (happy to share names) are using us to do exactly that.

Worth a 10-minute conversation to see if we could help? If not, no worries—just curious if you're solving this differently."

This works because it's specific, valuable, credible, and low-commitment.

The Internal Email Problem

Emails to colleagues often get the least attention. We assume they'll understand. We're less careful about structure. We over-rely on relationships.

This is backwards. Internal emails need the same clarity—sometimes more.

Common internal email mistakes:

The knowledge dump: Forwarding a thread with "see below" and no context. (What am I looking for? What do you need?)

The vague ask: "Can you help with the Acme project?" (Help how? Do what specifically?)

The FYI flood: "Just keeping you in the loop" on things that don't require action. (Stop. Please.)

Fix: Treat internal emails like external ones. Subject line that explains the need. First line that states the ask. Easy-to-answer structure.

Your colleagues will thank you. Silently. By actually responding.

The Templates That Work

Here are templates I use constantly. Adapt the language to sound like you.

Requesting something from a busy person:

Subject: One favor—2 min of your time

Hi [Name],

Quick favor: [Specific request].

I know you're slammed, so I've made this as easy as possible—[how you've reduced the effort].

If now isn't a good time, happy to check back in [timeframe].

Following up without being annoying:

Subject: Re: [Original subject line]

Hi [Name],

I know things get buried—just floating this back up.

[One-sentence recap of what you need]

If this isn't a priority right now, no worries at all. Just let me know and I'll follow up [when].

Saying no gracefully:

Subject: Re: [Their request]

Hi [Name],

Thanks for thinking of me for this.

Unfortunately, I can't take this on right now—[brief honest reason].

[Optional: Alternative suggestion or who else might help]

Hope you find what you need.

Getting a decision:

Subject: Decision needed: [Topic] by [Date]

Hi [Name],

Need your call on [specific decision].

Option A: [Brief description] Option B: [Brief description]

My recommendation: [Your preference and why, one sentence]

If I don't hear back by [date/time], I'll proceed with [default option].

The Mindset Shift

The biggest change isn't technique. It's perspective.

Stop thinking about what you want to say. Start thinking about what they need to hear.

Every email you send is a request for someone's time and attention. Those are finite resources. Treat them with respect.

Write emails you would want to receive. Short. Clear. Easy to act on.

Do that consistently and you'll stand out from the 100 other messages hitting their inbox today.

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