156: Dean Jackson’s 9-word email: dos, don’ts and why it still works in 2025 {Summer Remix}
Welcome to episode 156 and the most powerful email you could send to your prospects
This summer, I’m bringing back some of my most-loved podcast episodes, and today’s is a gem.
You’ve likely heard of the 9-word email, a magical little formula created by marketing legend Dean Jackson.
It’s short, punchy, and incredibly effective for re-engaging leads and booking new clients in 2025.
But here’s the problem. Most people are using it wrong.
A recent newsletter from a well-known marketing expert reminded me how often the most important parts of this strategy get left out. So I’m diving back into this episode to give you the full picture. What to do, what to avoid, and how I’ve personally used this email to book $10K in client work.
Find out how to use the 9-word email:
👉 What the 9-word email actually is (and why it works)
👉 The right time and audience to send it to
👉 Mistakes that make you look out of touch (and how to avoid them)
👉 Real-life examples you can swipe and test today
What is the 9-word email?
The 9-word email was originally created by legendary marketer Dean Jackson. It’s a short message designed to re-engage leads who have already expressed interest in your offer, but haven’t taken action.
It’s typically structured like this:
Subject Line: First name or “Question”
Body:
Hi Name,
Are you still looking for [the thing you offer]?
Your name
That’s it. No fancy formatting. No links. No sales pitch.
It’s meant to feel like a casual check-in from a real human—not a broadcast message.
Why it works?
This short email creates what marketers call a pattern interrupt. It breaks through the inbox clutter because it looks personal and unexpected.
It also sparks curiosity. The recipient may think, “Hmm, actually yes… I was thinking about that,” and hit reply.
When you get responses like that, you have a natural opening to start a conversation, qualify the lead, and guide them toward the next step.
Common mistakes to avoid with the 9-word email
Here’s where things can go sideways. If you send this email without the right strategy, it can come across as lazy, confusing, or even a little spammy.
Mistake #1: Sending it to your whole list.
This is not a broadcast email. Only send it to people who have shown interest—maybe they joined a webinar, filled out a contact form, or booked a discovery call but didn’t move forward. Definitely do not send this to current clients (trust me, that gets awkward fast).
Mistake #2: Using it with no context.
The power of the 9-word email comes from the relationship behind it. If someone doesn’t recognize your name or hasn’t engaged in a while, they might be confused or ignore it altogether.
Mistake #3: Following up with a sales pitch.
When someone replies “yes,” don’t immediately drop a link to your sales page. Keep it conversational. Ask if they want a resource, or invite them to a quick call.
Smart ways to customize the 9-word email
Want to soften it a bit? You can slightly tweak the formula to better match your brand voice:
“Are you still planning to launch your podcast?”
“Are you still looking for a VA to support your next launch?”
“Are you still interested in learning how to write better sales emails?”
Still short. Still simple. Just a bit more natural.
You can also use it to test new ideas or tease offers. For example:
“Hey, I’m thinking about hosting a live copy review session next week. Want the details?”
That’s exactly how I once booked three new clients from a single email.
Get help crafting a perfect 9-word email for your business
Want help crafting a perfect 9-word email for your business?
The 9-word email can be a powerful tool in your sales strategy—but only when used with care.
If you’d like help crafting the perfect one for your business (plus planning what to do after they reply), I’d love to support you.
👉 Book a 90-minute sales strategy session where we can work on that and any other messaging and sales strategies you need for your business.
Additional Resources Mentioned:
Find out more about Dean and subscribe to his newsletter: moredean.com
-
[00:00:00] Hey there, lovely listener. Welcome to this week's episode of the Ill Communication Podcast. Now this summer, I'm rebroadcasting some of my most popular and most helpful podcast episodes. I'm handpicking episodes that will help you refresh your marketing and sales foundations or that are timely for what's going on in the world.
[00:00:22] Right now, or maybe they're just great episodes you need to hear today. And I was inspired to replay today's podcast episode in particular because earlier this month, I received an email from Marketing and business guru Alex Hormoze. In the email, Alex shared the nine word cash email in his Mozzie Minute newsletter.
[00:00:46] He shared the basic template for using the nine word email. He shared a couple real examples. He talked about why it works, but what he failed to mention was some of the variations of using it and some of the very big risks you take if you use it the wrong way. It's like he shared three quarters of the information, but left out a critical piece of information about how you might actually turn people.
[00:01:09] Off or misuse the tactic. So I wanted to pull this episode out of the archives and dust it off for you because the thing is the nine word email and the variations on how to use it can be incredibly effective at generating engagement and leads in your email list. Every time I send this email on behalf of my clients, write it into one of their sequences or use it in my own email list.
[00:01:37] The engagement. Through the roof, but you have to be very careful about how you use it. So I want you to have the full picture of what to do and what not to do when you use this super powerful copywriting formula now. I'm gonna replay the episode for you, but after you listen to it, if you want help crafting the perfect nine [00:02:00] word email for your business, please reach out to me.
[00:02:02] We can look at booking a 90 minute sales strategy session where I can help you work on that, and any other messaging and sales strategies you need for your business. Reach out to inquire or check the link in the show notes. So let's dive back into episode 18 to find out how to use the nine word email to get more clients.
[00:02:24] Welcome to Ill Communication, copywriting Tips and Sales Strategies for Small Business. I'm your host, Kim Keel. I'm a copy coach, sales strategist, and direct response copywriter. It's my mission to help women leaders and change makers amplify their voices. Through copy. It's why I am dishing out all the juicy tips, writing prompts, and sales formulas to help you generate more leads, book more calls, and get more high value clients on repeat.
[00:02:58] Sounds pretty good. It's time to ditch the overwhelm you might be feeling and find confidence in your copywriting so you can get your message out there and attract more soulmate clients. Let's get started.
[00:03:16] In today's episode, you are going to get a very powerful sales email formula. It's probably also the shortest and most effective email you could write this year. I promise. If you use this magical formula in the right way, you'll revive some of the prospects who've been languishing on your sales pipeline for a while.
[00:03:37] So stay tuned because today's episode could bring in a couple of new clients before the end of the year. Hey there, and welcome to the 18th episode of Ill Communication. Today we're talking about a very famous email formula called the nine Word email. The nine word email was created by Dean Jackson, a famous and very well-respected [00:04:00] marketer many, many years ago.
[00:04:01] He started out in the real estate sector and used the nine word email to help his clients find real estate investors. Now, I can't remember where I first learned about Dean Jackson's nine word email, but I've been using it for at least four years with my clients and in my own business. I've seen firsthand how powerful it is when you use it properly.
[00:04:22] So make sure you listen to the end to hear all of the do's and don'ts. So the nine word email is. Hi, first name. Are you still looking for blank from your name? And in the blank you put the thing you offer or the thing someone inquired with you about. So for example, hi Mary. Are you still looking for a copywriter?
[00:04:46] Are you still looking for a bookkeeper? Do you still need help launching your podcast? Uh, hi Mary. Are you still planning that trip to Disneyland? You get the idea. It's intentionally very, very simple. You have to actually resist the urge to use more than nine to 15 words or get into explaining too much.
[00:05:05] You really wanna keep it simple to invite the reader to reach out to you for more information. You see the nine word email deliberately leaves out information to begin a natural two-way human conversation. As Dean Jackson explains it, you want it to feel like you're meeting someone in the lineup of the grocery store and you're starting a casual conversation.
[00:05:29] The nine word email is the opposite of a broadcast salesy email. It encourages a reply, which could be yes or it could be no, and it allows you to take the next step and qualify who might be ready to work with you. Now, your reader will be curious and reach out for more details. Now, here's why the nine word email works so well.
[00:05:51] It's simple and inoffensive. Nobody's gonna be too cranky. You emailed them out of the blue. The short form content [00:06:00] is also a pattern interrupt. You'll get their attention, and if people reply yes, then you can follow up with the next step. If they reply, nope, you can just add a tag or even scrub them from your list.
[00:06:13] Now, there are a few cautions and tips for using the nine word email properly. The first tip is to always segment your list rather than sending to all. You do not send this email to everyone on your list. You only send it to prospects or leads who've engaged with you, but haven't really bought anything.
[00:06:37] These are people who've attended your live webinars or workshops but didn't buy. It's for people who you had a sales call with but they didn't sign, and they've probably been hanging around for quite a few months before You label them as dead and remove them from your prospect pipeline. You can send this nine word email.
[00:06:55] But here's an example of why you don't send this email to your whole list. I once received this email from a coach. I had literally just invested with the email read, are you still struggling to close sales? It was so confusing because of course I was struggling. That's why I joined the program Now, because I'm a copywriter, I knew the tactic as soon as I saw it, but still.
[00:07:21] It just felt so disingenuous and it was actually offputting. Instead, she should have excluded current clients, or she could have sent existing clients a different message like. Hey, I'm developing a new private training for my clients. You interested? Another important tip is to remove the headers and footers from your email template.
[00:07:43] You want the nine word email to look and feel like a private personal message. So ditch the fancy image header that screams, this is a mass email newsletter. You also don't even have to use your email service provider. I routinely send the nine word [00:08:00] email from my personal business email account to the odd person I had a sales call with in the past and even to my past clients.
[00:08:07] The third tip for the nine word email is to keep your subject line very simple. Just use their first name or simply the word question. Then you have the body of the email or you looking for blank, and then simply sign it with just your first name. No links, no titles, no nothing. So for example, subject line, Mary Body.
[00:08:31] Hi Mary. Are you still looking for someone to write your sales emails from Kim? Now, the final tip to make sure this works for you is actually how you respond when someone replies to you. When someone replies, yes, your instinct might be to reply with a heavy sales message and a link to your sales page.
[00:08:51] Don't do it. Instead, reply to your prospect with one small next step, such as, great Mary. I'm hosting a new private training on how to close more sales. Can I send you that eats or, great. Did you wanna hop on a call so you can catch me up on what you think you need now? Can you see how this feels like a more natural, genuine conversation?
[00:09:14] It really warms your prospect up and moves them closer to the sale without being salesy, and you can even use the nine word email to test the interest in a new offer. For example, earlier this year, I sent an email to my subscribers that said this, Hey Mary, I'm thinking of hosting a free office hours coaching session next week where you could bring your email or sales copy and have it reviewed and edited live.
[00:09:39] Would you be interested from Kim? There were no links to a signup. No more information, and the results were amazing. I had dozens and dozens of people reply, yes, they were interested. I followed up with the gist, the date, and the link, and I invited them to join the open office hours. [00:10:00] About 20 people showed up live, and as a result, I booked three new clients with a value of almost $10,000 from one simple email.
[00:10:11] So my friend, that's the beauty of the nine word email, Dean Jackson's magic email for reviving dead leads. Give the nine word email a try this week to rewarm some of the colder prospects or tease a new offer. You'll probably close a few more sales before the end of the year if you try it. Let me know how it goes.
[00:10:32] Hey, my sweet friend. I wanna thank you for joining me today. I just love creating and sharing content to make your business and especially writing for your business a little bit easier. So I'd love to know what your biggest copywriting or marketing questions are. What have you been struggling with? Or do you wanna pick my brain about a copywriting strategy or a tactic?
[00:11:07] I'm starting a new, ask me anything segment here on the pod. If you have a burning question about business copywriting or marketing, or if you want to make an episode suggestion, I'm all ears. You can participate in two ways. Number one, visit speakpipe.com/kim keel. There you'll be able to record a voice note with your question or suggestion.
[00:11:33] Make sure you include your name and your email and maybe a little background info or contact. Number two, you can send me a text in the show notes of this episode. You'll see a link to text me a question or comment. When you click that link, it'll open up your text messenger where you can text me your question directly.
[00:11:54] Make sure you leave all the weird numbers that pop up, and please add your name and email address or [00:12:00] mobile number so I can keep in touch. I can't wait to create these, ask me anything or pick my brain episode. So please play along. I can't wait to help you solve whatever's blocking you from getting your message out
Additional Resources
Follow & Review
Enjoy these tiny habits and quick-hit episodes? Follow or subscribe to the podcast and please leave a 5-star review!
You can do that on Apple Podcasts or Spotify! I read each of them, and they help me make sure I am providing the content you love to hear!
Plus, you get to pay it forward because it will allow other listeners like you to find the podcast!