Event planning is one of the most stressful jobs that isn’t for the faint of heart. You want people to show up to your event (in person or virtually). And to get those RSVPs rolling in, you need top-notch email campaigns.
Event reminder emails are critical for these intriguing email campaigns to keep your recipients interested.
If you get both right, it’ll be a big sigh of relief for your registrants because no one wants to miss important events.
But what does an event reminder email look like? What are the essential things to keep in mind? How to make it friendly yet professional without being pushy?
All these questions need an answer, and here’s how to go about it. But first, let’s look at what an event reminder email is.
What Is an Event Reminder Email?
An event reminder email is simply a message that reminds your target audience about the upcoming event’s date, time, location, and other important details.
Why Are Event Reminder Emails Important?
It is highly likely that your target audience may either forget about your event or have lost interest with time. But you definitely want your attendees to show up for it. So, how to tackle this problem?
Sending an event reminder email is just the thing you need.
It not only boosts your attendees’ morale but encourages them to attend the event. It’s the perfect way to keep your audience engaged, and create a bit of excitement by telling them about the progress you’ve made so far in terms of event preparations.
Now the question arises how to nudge them with a friendly reminder?
How to Craft a Gentle Event Reminder Email? 10 Actionable Tips
A recent study suggests that the average conversion rate of online events is 55%. That means almost half of the registrants don’t show up for the actual event. So, the success of your event depends upon timely reminders which are further dependent on how well-crafted the content of the message is.
It should be clear, kind, and to the point. Plus, your email should be polite enough to encourage people to take action but not so passive that people ignore your email. Here are 10 core elements to consider for creating effective event reminder emails.
1. Choose a suitable subject line
Good subject lines will get you far when sending out event reminder emails. Once your customers open the email, it tells them what they’re in for. So, make your subject line catchy and attention-grabbing, and try to add a sense of urgency to prompt a response from your recipients.
Moreover, personalize and phrase it in a way to convey your message quickly.
Here are a few examples of subject lines to get you started:
- The clock is TICKING! ⏰ Get ready!
- Are you excited for (Event Name)? 🤩
- We’re hoping to see you at (Event Name)!
- Are you joining us tomorrow at (Event Name)?
- ⌛Last chance to see (Guest) at (Event name)!⌛
Pro tip
Keep your subject lines within 50 characters so that it appears in its entirety on any platform.
2. Greet your subscriber
Greeting your subscriber really sets the tone of your email copy. People’s perceptions of you matter and greetings tell them who you are as a business and what kind of relationship you expect to build.
Since you’re aiming for your email to be friendly, you can use casual greetings like “Hey, John” or “Hi there, Marianne.”
If you want to keep your language formal, you can start with “Hello, Emma” or “Dear, Liam.”
3. Give your recipients the context
Now comes the body of your email. This is where you tell your readers why you’re emailing them. Providing context is the best way to remind them about the important details of the event. Here’s what you can add in this section:
State the time and date
Including the time and date of the event early in the email is very important. Consider putting this information in bold to distinguish it from the rest of your email. This way, your attendees will not forget when the event is taking place.
For an online event, add the time zone so people from around the world can log on at the correct time.
Mention guest speakers
Don’t forget to mention the panelists of your event. This would be a great opportunity to entice your subscribers' interest.
You can state your guest speakers’ names, their achievements, and links to their website for a more detailed description of their projects.
Add agenda
What you can really do here is add a meeting agenda to your event reminder message. The agenda items can include the outline of the topics you want to discuss, goals, the main theme of the discussion, and whatnot.
You can mention the conference’s start and end times as well.
Include the location
State the location of your event near the time and date in your email copy. You can also opt to bold this information to grab your readers’ attention. Make sure to add a map link at the bottom of your email if your event is taking place at an actual location.
4. Get to the point
Once you’ve provided context, it’s time to slide in your reminder/request. Don’t get too wordy here and get to the point. Otherwise, your readers might lose interest, and you don’t want that.
Pro tip
Wrap up your request with a question to nudge people to take action right away.
5. Focus on design
Design is as much important as the email copy. Plain text emails aren’t enough to catch readers’ attention. Therefore, adding visual elements like images, GIFs, photos of guest speakers, videos including highlights of previous events, etc can really bring it home.
Create a countdown timer
Include a countdown timer in your event reminder email templates to inform about the remaining time, as attendees always need to know how soon your event begins. This also creates a sense of urgency prompting them to take action.
6. Highlight the benefits of attending
Highlight the benefits of attending by adding extra event details wherever it makes logical sense.
For example, providing additional information about the venue details, event rules, and whether there will be a lunch break. Will the attendees be provided with food and drinks, or where can they find a cafe nearby?
The main goal here is to get your subscribers excited and to make them remember why they wanted to attend your event in the first place.
7. Suggest preparation instructions
Listing preparation instructions allow people to be ready for the event beforehand. It ensures that they’ve met the requirements that could affect their overall experience.
These instructions may include telling them about the particular software programs they need to download, detailing the event venue parking instructions, and listing any additional costs associated with the event.
8. Provide an FAQ section
If you have an FAQ page for your event, it’s crucial to add that to your event reminder email. Providing an FAQ section helps your prospective attendees answer some of their questions without the need to make a phone call or reply to your email.
9. Add a CTA
Although the primary purpose of your email is to remind people about the upcoming occasion, there’s always room for additional feedback or engagement.
Adding a Call-To-Action (CTA) button within your email right before signing off will prod the reader to take action. “Add To Calendar” is a good example of CTA for an event reminder email.
Create Event Reminder Emails That Convert
10. Wrap it up with a friendly closing
You’ve made your request, so now it’s time to sign off with a friendly closing. Use professional language like “sincerely” or close in a way that’s relevant to your event.
For example, you can write “Can’t wait to see you at the event” as your closing line to nudge people further to record the date of your event on their calendar.
What’s the Ideal Timing for Sending an Event Reminder Email?
The next thing to consider is to schedule the reminder email at the correct time. Sending it too early or too late may not be impactful.
According to email marketing best practices, you should send event reminder emails at least three times.
- One week before the event.
- One day before the event.
- On the day of the event.
3 Event Reminder Email Writing Samples + Design Templates
Content and design go hand in hand to create event reminder emails that get responded to. You can create such emails too within no time.
Feel free to use stunning HTML email templates from Unlayer mentioned below. These email templates are well-designed, mobile responsive, and can easily be modified using the drag and drop editor.
The culinary weekend event reminder email
Content Sample
Dear Angita,
We’d like to remind you that our “Culinary Weekend” will be taking place very soon. Don’t miss all the excitement, including interesting lectures and the tastiest masterclasses from top chefs and those who just love cooking food.
Hope to see you there!
Sincerely,
(Your name).
Design Template
Why choose this template
- Simplistic and responsive design.
- Features countdown timer.
- Gets straight to the business.
The webinar reminder email
Content Sample
If you haven’t booked your spot yet, there’s still time.
To help you as best as possible, we’d like to invite you (again) to the exclusive webinar for (Event Name) on (Date & Time).
What you’ll learn: (Mention learning outcomes of your webinar one by one)
- Functions of communication.
- Steps to establish effective communication.
- Effective communication strategies.
Hope to see you there!
Design Template
Why choose this template
- Minimalistic design.
- Prominent CTA button.
- Highlights the benefits of attending.
The birthday reminder email
Content Sample
Hey Quinton,
This is a friendly reminder of an important date in our team. Our colleague Anastasia is celebrating her birthday today (date).
The birthday party will take place in our meeting room on (date) at (time).
Make sure that she has a special day!
Respectfully,
(HR Officer’s name)
Design Template
Why choose this template
- Appealing interface.
- Easily embeddable images.
- Single-column layout.
Conclusion
Event reminder emails are an absolute necessity these days. With inboxes becoming cluttered, it’s normal for people to miss out on your emails. Sending event reminder emails can help attendees who may have forgotten about your event or never received your initial invitation in the first place.
By following our tips, you’ll be able to craft compelling emails to keep all the event details fresh in your attendees’ minds so they know what day and time to show up at the venue.
