4 Tips for Using Generative AI to Write Emails

Writing emails can be a tedious task, especially when you also have to measure their performance metrics and manage overflowing inboxes. Not only is it time-consuming but also requires intense focus, slowing your workflow. 

Enter generative AI — a transformative technology that is revolutionizing the way you can craft messages that resonate deeply with the recipients. It can help you create unique email content and get the most out of your email marketing investment. However, while it can be a helpful tool, unmanaged use can hurt your open and conversion rates.

In this guide, we'll explore how you can use generative artificial intelligence to supercharge your email writing efforts, without sacrificing the personalized, human touch.

What is generative AI? 

Generative AI, or Generative Artificial Intelligence, is a cutting-edge technology in the field of AI that leverages machine learning to create unique content. This AI system is trained on vast datasets to identify patterns. With this knowledge, it combines information from various sources to generate fresh outputs, such as images, audio, videos, and more.

Suppose you need tons of different memes and GIFs to promote a new product launch across Instagram, Twitter, and Reddit. Just give the AI the product details, messaging, references to current meme trends, and guidelines. It will churn out fresh, random, and shareable meme content in no time. 

Some examples of generative AI copilots for business include Open AI’s ChatGPT, Google’s Gemini, Microsoft’s Bing, and more. 

Why should you use generative AI in email writing? 

Picture this: You’re an email marketer, responsible for creating email campaigns month after month to showcase your company's products and services. Each email must hit the right notes, resonating with your audience and encouraging them to take action. However, manually writing all of those emails from scratch can be daunting and time-consuming, leaving you drained of creativity. 

This is where generative AI can be a game-changer for email writing. It's like having a highly skilled copywriter at your fingertips — capable of crafting fresh, engaging email content in seconds.

Suppose you need to create an email series promoting a new line of eco-friendly home goods. Simply feed the generative AI tool, like ChatGPT, with details about the product features, your brand voice, the target customer demographics, and any specific messaging or calls-to-action you want to include. The AI tool would generate multiple variations of email copy seamlessly, making your job a breeze. 

This way, you can free up your time and creative energy to focus on other aspects of your marketing strategy. Plus, say goodbye to writer's block and hello to effective email campaigns that drive results. Not only that, you can ensure consistency in tone, style, and messaging across all your email communications, strengthening your brand identity.

4 tips to use generative AI to write emails 

Let’s discover how you can leverage generative AI to write standout emails that captivate your audience.

Research your prospects 

The more the AI tool understands your prospects' businesses, roles, pain points, and preferences, the more accurate and impactful it can make the email content. 

If you're emailing marketing managers at e-commerce brands, provide the AI with common challenges they face like driving website traffic, increasing conversions, and standing out from competitors. Also, provide a few samples of their marketing lingo, past campaign examples, and preferred content styles. 

Or, for construction company leaders, equip the AI tool with the key ingredients — project management woes, labor shortages, bidding complexities, and the no-nonsense communication style of the construction world.

Feeding AI with generic prompts with no specific context results in outputs that miss the personal touches. But when you take the time to research your prospects’ profiles and personas, you enable AI to create a masterpiece — that truly captures your audiences’ interests.    

Craft detailed prompts

Just like a talented chef can create a perfect dish if given the right ingredients and recipe, generative AI assistants need detailed, thoughtful prompts to produce top-notch email content. It's not enough to offer vague instructions and expect exceptional results. 

For example, a prompt for a sales email might go like this: 

"Write an email highlighting our inventory management software's automation features that minimize human error. Use straightforward language that emphasizes the efficiency and cost-saving benefits. Appeal to operations managers' frustrations with missed shipments and incorrect orders with a sense of understanding but also confidence that our solution can solve their problems quickly. End with a crisp call-to-action to book a demo."

With such a descriptive prompt, AI knows the key value proposition to outline, the audience's pain points to tap into, the ideal voice and vocabulary, and the closing call-to-action. 

And the best part? Crafting such detailed prompts is less time-consuming than writing the entire email from scratch. AI does the heavy lifting based on your prompts. So, not only do you get desired outputs but you also save time and effort in the content creation process. 

Here’s what happened when I asked ChatGPT to create a sales email using the above prompt: 

Edit the output 

Generative AI is powerful at producing initial drafts — it captures all the main elements, structure, and messaging. But, you can’t treat them as final, ready-to-publish pieces as they still lack the human touch required to truly resonate with audiences. 

It's the job of marketers and writers to add that authenticity to emails.

Analyze the AI output through the lens of your brand's unique voice, tone, and communication style. Does the phrasing accurately capture your brand tone? Are there opportunities to inject more personality or on-brand language?

It's also crucial to tweak areas to better align with your prospect's pain points, objections, technical know-how, and industry lingo. Plus, ensure a cohesive, logical flow and narrative throughout. 

On top of that, add supportive details, such as customer examples and research stats to add further credibility. The AI tool alone can't always make those types of insightful additions.

Finally, no piece of marketing content is complete without clear calls to action. While you can prompt the AI to include CTAs, make sure those CTAs are phrased compellingly and dropped in at just the right moments to drive action.

The key is to treat AI-generated drafts as a starting point, not the final destination. You have to put in the work to make sure that content is 100% original, on-brand, and tailored to your specific audience. That means running those AI outputs through plagiarism checks, cross-referencing with your existing content, and making sure every line is fresh and unique.

This way, you can level up the AI outputs and create brand-savvy pieces that click with audiences.

Generate compelling subject lines

Crafting a compelling subject line is like choosing the perfect door for your home — it sets the tone and creates anticipation for what's to come. It either intrigues recipients to open your email or causes them to simply walk on by. 

Having numerous subject line options is crucial as it enables you to see your main message from different creative perspectives. That's where generative AI can be a powerful tool. 

Don't just ask the AI to "generate subject lines." Give it clear guidelines like:

• the topic, 
• value proposition, 
• desired tone (curiosity-inducing, urgency-driven, etc.),
• common marketing pain points (driving traffic, increasing conversions),
• marketing jargon users are familiar with, and
• examples of high-performing emails/subject lines from competitors.

The more context, the more relevant its outputs.

Let's say you're promoting a new video conferencing app targeted at remote workforce managers. You could prompt the AI like:

"Generate 15-20 subject line options for an email promoting our video conferencing app to managers of distributed teams. The subject lines should pique curiosity about the app's screen-sharing, recording, and virtual whiteboarding features for more interactive remote meetings. Use a casual, conversational, and slightly playful tone."

Within seconds, the AI could output various subject line ideas such as:

The AI will generate some subject line ideas you love and some that miss the mark. You can pick the best parts and have the AI combine or rephrase them into new options that resonate with your audience. 

Or provide feedback prompts like "I love the virtual meeting one, give me 10 more suggestions on that concept." The AI will regenerate more options aligned with your feedback.

Once you've narrowed it down to your top subject lines, run A/B tests to see which version performs best at driving opens and engagement for that audience segment. The more specific audience data and human feedback you can provide, the better the AI will become at generating subject lines tailored to drive action. 

Final thoughts 

Generative AI is a game-changer for email marketing. It's like having a personal writing assistant that can pump out killer content within seconds. Just feed your AI a few prompts, and you've got a solid draft ready to go that resonates with their target audience and drives meaningful engagement.

However, using AI for email writing comes with its challenges. 

Sure, it can generate catchy subject lines and on-brand content, but you need that human touch to truly connect with audiences. Additionally, AI may struggle with context and relevancy, particularly in highly specialized or niche industries. 

And, there's always a risk of over-reliance on AI, leading to a lack of creativity and originality in email content. That's a surefire way to turn off your audience and reduce your engagement rates. 

So, don't sleep on the power of generative AI, but also don't forget to keep that human touch strong to deliver impactful email campaigns.

Featured image by Debby Hudson on Unsplash