You’ve emailed Sue Ellen no less than six times about the PowerPoint presentation she was supposed to send out company-wide. Next steps: You could casually stroll over to her desk and remind her in person (ugh, the effort). Or you could switch up your email sign-off, which may be all it takes to get a speedy reply.
Yep, a new survey from Boomerang looked at 350,000 emails to see which signature line had the highest response rate. The winner—by a long shot—may surprise you: “Thanks in advance” got a reply almost 70 percent of the time. (“Thanks” and “Thank you” were both runner-ups.)
As for the worst email sign-offs to use, they tend to be the ones that feel the most formal. For example, “Best” or “Best Regards” were effective only half the time.
The takeaway? Digital gratitude works. Now, back to Sue Ellen and that PowerPoint: Time to resurface that email and kill her with kindness. (A reply is in the bag.)
