Referencing events in sales emails can be hugely helpful for increasing the number of opens and replies you get, but it has to be done the right way to work. One thing not to do is spam an old email list of contacts collected at an event that happened months ago.

Our latest entry to the SalesFolk Cold Email Hall of Shame did just that, either forgetting or just not caring that Salesforce’s Dreamforce event happened last year, not last week.

In this video, I pick apart the many problems with this email, from its lousy call to action to its excessive jargon and complete lack of benefits. The lesson? A sales email is supposed to convince someone to hit the “reply” button. To that end, make your points in plain English, carry a conversational tone throughout, and don’t waste time talking about an event the rest of us have long forgotten.

Sales emails don’t have to win Pulitzer Prizes, but they definitely shouldn’t make your prospect angry, bored, confused, or displeased they read it.

Do you have any great examples of using events to kick off a conversation over email? If so, I’d love to hear about them in the comments.