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Sell with Email If your emails aren’t working like they used to, I can help you bring them back to life.

My custom GPTs and courses show you how to rebuild trust with your audience, improve deliverability, and write messages that connect and sell — all in plain English. Sell With Email Academy teaches professional marketers how to crush their sales goals by using email.

You reworded your prospect's email reply to sound expert. They read otherwise.Great! Your prospect (finally) wrote back...
10/15/2026

You reworded your prospect's email reply to sound expert. They read otherwise.

Great! Your prospect (finally) wrote back.

And they told you their problem in their own plain words.

"I'm way behind on my books."

So what do most of us do with that?

We translate it.

"Sounds like you need a bookkeeping cleanup engagement."

It feels more professional, doesn't it?

It isn't. It's a small step away from them.

Think about the last time a plumber looked at your dripping faucet.

You said, "It drips."

They said, "You've got a failing cartridge assembly."

Did you feel understood? Or did you feel a bill coming?
(Me too.)

Here's what's going on.

Their words are how the problem feels to them.

Your words are how the problem looks to you.

When you swap theirs for yours, you tell them something you never meant to say.

"I filed you under a category."

So don't translate. Repeat.

If they said "behind on my books," you say "behind on your books."

If they said "retire on time," you say "retire on time."

Not "retirement readiness."

Like this:
"Being behind on your books happens to a lot of good business owners. How far behind are we talking? A few months, or more like a year?"

Same problem. Their label.

It costs you nothing.

And it tells them the one thing they want to know before they say anything else.

That you listened.

Their words are only one part of a good answer. My new blog article shows you the rest, with examples you can borrow.

Get the link in the first comment below

You skimmed their reply. Your prospect can tell from your next email.A reply lands in your inbox.It's friendly. It's sho...
10/14/2026

You skimmed their reply. Your prospect can tell from your next email.

A reply lands in your inbox.

It's friendly. It's short.

So you skim it, feel good, and jump straight to your own next step when you reply back.

Sound familiar?
I do it too.

Here's the trouble. Your prospect can tell.

Ever told a car salesperson, "We just need something safe for our teenager"?
And they said, "Great! Let me show you the sport package."

You knew right then.

They heard you talking. They didn't hear what you said.

Your answer to a reply works the same way.

Let's say you're a financial planner.
You asked a prospect what worries them most.

They wrote back:
"Mostly whether we've saved enough to retire on time."

Here's the skimmed answer:
"I can help with that! Let's set up a time to review your accounts."

Polite. Professional.

And it could've gone to anybody.

Now here's the answer from someone who read that reply twice:
"That's the one I hear most. And it's a hard one to answer on your own, because the math keeps changing."

No pitch. No link.

Just proof that a real person read their words and understood them.

That's the whole job of your first sentence or two.

Before you ask for anything, answer what they said.

It only takes one extra read.

And it's the difference between a prospect who feels heard and a prospect who feels processed.

What goes after those first two sentences? My new blog article walks you through the rest of the answer.

Get the link in the first comment below

Stop guessing what to email next. Your prospect's last reply already told you.How do you decide what to say in your next...
10/14/2026

Stop guessing what to email next. Your prospect's last reply already told you.

How do you decide what to say in your next email?

If you're like most of us, you guess.

You guess at what they care about.
You guess at what's holding them back.

Then you write to the guess and hope.

I once spent three emails guessing at what a new student needed to hear.

I guessed wrong. All. Three. Times.

Then they replied to one small question I sent them, and I didn't have to guess anymore.

Here's what I mean.

Let's say you're a real estate agent.
You ask a homeowner one easy question:
"Are you thinking about selling this year, or just curious what your home's worth?"

They write back:
"Just curious. We're not sure we could afford to buy again in this market."

Most agents read that and see an opening.
"Let's set up a time for a home valuation!"

But read the reply again.

They didn't ask for a valuation.
They told you what's worrying them.
They're afraid they'll sell and have nowhere to go.

That's your next email. Right there.

Not your listing process. Not your sales record.

Their worry, in their words.

You couldn't have guessed that. You're too close to your own business and sometimes it causes you to miss it.

So stop treating a reply like a signal to sell.

Treat it like a note that says, "Here's what to talk to me about next."

Then talk about that.

How do you answer a worry like that without sounding like a pitch? My new blog article shows you how, with examples you can borrow.

Get the link in the first comment below

They signed up for my course. Then one email reply proved I'd misread them.Someone signed up for one of my online classe...
10/13/2026

They signed up for my course. Then one email reply proved I'd misread them.

Someone signed up for one of my online classes.

It teaches you how to start a side hustle as a part-time email list manager.

They signed up. Then they never started the course.

So I did what I thought made sense.
I sent an email reminding them they'd signed up and to go watch it.

Nothing.

I sent a second one. Then a third.

Same ask every time. Watch the course.

Not. One. Word.

(Yes, it took me three emails to catch on.)

Then I tried something smaller.

I asked one question:
"Are you still wondering if email list management might be a good part-time business for you?"

The reply came back within minutes.

And it surprised me.

They had two worries I never saw coming.

First, they were afraid email list management was too technical for them.
Second, they didn't think they had the time.

Wait. They'd already signed up!

Why sign up for a class you're not sure you can handle?

Because signing up doesn't mean you believe you're ready.

I'd missed that completely.

I've worked in email for more than twenty years. "Too technical" never crossed my mind.

Your prospects are the same.

A signup. A download. A friendly reply.

None of those mean "I'm ready to do business with you."

They only mean "I'm curious."

And you won't know what's standing in the way until you ask a question small enough to answer.

So what do you send back once a prospect tells you their worries? My new blog article shows you how to answer a reply like that one.

Get the link in the first comment below

A calendar link after an email reply teaches your prospect to stop replying.Your prospect took a small, safe step.They a...
10/13/2026

A calendar link after an email reply teaches your prospect to stop replying.

Your prospect took a small, safe step.

They answered one question.
That’s all.

And the very next thing in their inbox?
A request for half an hour on their calendar.

Think about what they just learned about you.

They learned that a reply gets them a pitch.

So what do they do next time?

They stay quiet.

It’s like the friend who only calls when they need help moving.

You pick up once. You carry the couch.

After that, you let it ring.

(We’ve all got that friend. Some of us have been that friend.)

Here’s the real cost.

You don’t just lose the call.
You lose the conversation you worked so hard to start.

And this is the part that stings.
The reply was the hard part. A lot of emails never get one.

You’d already earned it.
Then one eager sentence gave it all back.

So what do you send instead?
Something that makes replying feel safe.

Answer what they told you. One or two sentences, in their own words.
Then ask one small question about it.

Leave the calendar link out for now.

When replying to you costs them nothing, they’ll do it again.

And every reply tells you a little more about what they need.
That’s how a one-line answer turns into a real conversation.

The call can come later.
When it does, it’ll be their idea.

What does that answer look like, word for word? My new blog article has before and after examples you can borrow.

Get the link in the first comment below

You finally got an email reply. Don’t answer it with a calendar link.Days (or weeks) of silence.Then a prospect writes b...
10/12/2026

You finally got an email reply. Don’t answer it with a calendar link.

Days (or weeks) of silence.

Then a prospect writes back one line.

“It’s still on my list. I just haven’t had time to deal with it.”

It feels like a green light, doesn’t it?

Somebody’s interested!

So you do what any busy pro would do.

You send your calendar link.

And then? Nothing.

I’ve sent that link myself. More than once.

Here’s what happened.

They said yes to your question.

That’s all they said yes to. A few words in a reply box.

They didn’t say yes to thirty minutes.
They didn’t say yes to a proposal, or to you.

Not yet.

Think about a neighbor who waves at you from across the street.
You wave back. Maybe you ask how the new puppy’s doing.

You don’t walk over and invite yourself to dinner.
(I hope.)

A reply is a wave.
It means the door is open a crack.

Your reader trusts you a little more than they did yesterday.

A little. Not a lot.

So your next email has to fit that.

Don’t reach for the meeting.

Answer what they told you.

Then ask one more small question about it.

Something like this:
“That makes sense. What keeps pushing it down the list? Is it the time it takes, or not knowing where to start?”

No link. No calendar.

Just one more easy thing to answer.

So when is it fair to ask for the call? My new blog article shows you the three signs to watch for.

Get the link in the first comment below

Your follow-up email takes four steps to fix. Step one is deleting one line.Pull up the last follow-up email you sent.Yo...
10/10/2026

Your follow-up email takes four steps to fix. Step one is deleting one line.

Pull up the last follow-up email you sent.

You can fix it in four steps.

None of them involves a better nudge.

Step one.
Delete the first line.

If it says "checking in," "circling back," "following up," or "bumping," it goes.
Every time.

Step two.
Pick one new opener.

A smaller question.
A useful thing.
Or an easy out.

Pick the one that fits your reader.
Not all three.

Step three.
Shrink the ask.

If your first email asked for a call, ask for a reply.

If it asked for a reply, ask an easier question.

Ask yourself how much trust that first email earned.

Then size the ask to match.

Your reader should be able to answer in a line or two.

Step four.
Do the cover-up test.
Hide your first email.
Read the follow-up by itself.

Does it still make sense?
Does it still give your reader a reason to write back?

If yes, send it.
If no, go back to step two.

That's it.
Four steps.
One email.

And notice what you didn't have to do.

You didn't have to write a better nudge.
You didn't have to sound smarter.

You only had to give your reader something new, and make it easy to answer.

So try it on the last follow-up you sent.

Then use the same four steps on the next one.

This week's article walks through all four steps, with a before and after for each opener.

Get the link in the first comment below.

AI can write a follow-up email in seconds. It still can't pick the right ask.Try this.Ask AI to write a follow-up email ...
10/09/2026

AI can write a follow-up email in seconds. It still can't pick the right ask.

Try this.

Ask AI to write a follow-up email to one you just sent to a prospect.

Read the first line.

A generic prompt tends to hand you something familiar.

"Just checking in."

It's one of the most common follow-up lines out there.

So don't be surprised when it shows up.

Here's the problem.

The email reads fine.
It's polite.
It's clean.

But your reader gets the same three chores as before.

Find the old email.
Read it again.
Write a reply.

AI didn't make a mistake.

It did what you asked.

You asked for a follow-up email.
You never told it what to ask for.

That part is your job.

AI can write fast.
It can't know how much your reader trusts you.
It can't know what they're still wondering.

Only you know that.

So before you open the chat, answer two questions.

What's one small thing this person could answer today?

What would be new to them in this email?

Then tell AI.

The same tool that wrote "just checking in" can write a sharp, short question.

But it needs you to pick the question first.

So try it in this order next time.

Pick the ask.
Then write the prompt.
Then read the first line again.

Speed comes from the tool.
Judgment comes from you.

This week's article shows the follow-up lines worth building a prompt around, with a before and after for each.

Get the link in the first comment below.

Your follow-up email asks for a call. Your relationship hasn't earned one yet.Let's say you're an accountant.You meet a ...
10/09/2026

Your follow-up email asks for a call. Your relationship hasn't earned one yet.

Let's say you're an accountant.

You meet a business owner at a chamber lunch.

The conversation goes well.

The next day, you send a friendly email.

You ask them to book a 30-minute call.

They don't answer.

So what do you do?

Most people send the same ask again.

Different words.
Same 30 minutes.

And the reader stays quiet for the same reason as before.

One lunch didn't earn a 30-minute call.

The ask was bigger than the trust.

Think about what that lunch really was.

A handshake.
A little small talk.
Maybe a business card.

That's a good start.
It's not a reason to block out half an hour.

So here's the fix.

Don't ask for the call.

Ask for a reply.
"Good meeting you Tuesday. You said payroll has been a headache. Is that a once-a-month headache, or an every-week one?"

Read that again.

No link.
No calendar.

Just one question about their own business.

Which is their favorite topic anyway.

If they answer, you've got a conversation.

And the call can come later, when they're ready for it.

Before you send your next follow-up email, ask yourself:

How much trust did that first meeting actually earn?

Then size your ask to match.

This week's article has this example in full, plus three follow-up lines you can borrow for your own business.

Get the link in the first comment below.

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