Make Your Emails Feel Like a Canceled Meeting

What makes you excited to get an email?

For most business professionals, the honest answer is probably - nothing. Being excited about an email feels almost foreign.

Wait, I’ve got it. A canceled meeting. Those are always nice. But beyond that, emails often feel like a necessary evil.

For introverts or busy people, email is better than phone calls and surprise meetings. Still, most messages represent one thing - something we need to do. Clearing the inbox becomes a task we would rather avoid. And the moment you finally hit zero, another one slips in.

So how do we make email exciting?
How do we get someone to actually want an email?

As marketers, that’s the assignment. And unfortunately, we don’t get to rely on the shortcut of a canceled meeting.

Why Do We Love a Canceled Meeting?

One thing depresses me each winter. Okay - several things depress me. This whole being cold, dark, and grimy thing is a bummer. But what tends to depress me is that I can no longer feel that joy of school being canceled. Remember as a child, the pure bliss when you found out your scheduled day of school was canceled and you were free to do whatever you wanted to do that day? That just doesn’t happen as an adult.

The closest I’ve found to that bliss as an adult is a canceled meeting. Why do we love that so much? I mean, it’s just getting rescheduled. We still have to do the work to prepare, even if it’s delayed a bit. Yes, I’m sure some meetings are truly canceled, but most are just moved to a different day and time. But man, that feeling is still great.

And it’s probably because you, by chance, just earned some free time. What can you do with this free time? Anything you want! I mean, you were supposed to be in a meeting, so now you have the freedom to spend that time currency however you see fit. Hammer out some work - sure. Go for a walk - why not? Doom scroll - you were probably going to secretly do that during the meeting anyway - but sure.

We love a canceled meeting because it gives us the greatest gift of all - time.

And is there a way you can give the blessing of time by sending an email? Let’s explore.

Giving Time Back

Okay - this is a bit tricky. The sleazy, tone-deaf marketer would say, “Of course you can give someone time back. Once they read your 500-word email, they will be so moved and enlightened that they will 10x their productivity.” God, I hate these guys.

Sure, knowledge will likely save someone time at some point in the future. But we need something more direct and timely. If not, we would just ask everyone to read an encyclopedia. What we really can do is give people the bite-sized chunks of information they want - and make them easy to access.

Some Examples

For example, those who enjoy the news might want a quick email with the top stories of the day. The links are super easy to click. The titles aren’t clickbait and do a good job of describing the overall story. The user doesn’t really have to click but can quickly glance and know what’s happening in the world.

That would save someone time.

How about an email from a retailer with a clear subject line explaining an upcoming sale? The first thing in the email is an image of a product and a clearly labeled button that takes you directly to the sales page. The coupon code is right there and easily entered into the cart.

Now you saved someone time (and maybe money).

Last one. How about an online creator who sent their latest blog to your email? The entire blog is listed, but at the top we have a TLDR. They have an option to “read this email in your browser” and a link to the website (to possibly bookmark for later).

Okay, these might not give us that “canceled meeting” high, but they are actual, tangible ways you are saving people time.

What Do These Emails Have in Common?

These emails do a few things. Number one, they respect the user’s time above their own personal gain.

Clickbait headlines would surely generate more ad revenue for a news site but lose trust.

Spammy subject lines might increase open rates, but you won’t get the click from an angry user.

A TLDR might not get the user to your call to action, but you risk them unsubscribing because they never find value in reading emails that are not valuable to them.

Being selfish and worrying about just your goals instead of your customer’s goal is going to get you in trouble. Was it Warren Buffett who said, “It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it”? In our case, it might take 20 emails to accomplish our goal, but taking hacky shortcuts might have us unsubscribed before we ever get to 20 emails. We need to be patient - while the customer must feel the immediate relief of saving time.

Practical Ways to Send a “Canceled Meeting” Email

Alright. We’ve talked about philosophy. We’ve talked about snow days. We’ve taken a few shots at sleazy marketers.

Now let’s get practical.

If you want your email to feel like a canceled meeting instead of an added obligation, here are some direct applications.

Put the Value at the Top

Most marketing emails warm up like a bad keynote speaker.

“Hey friend… hope you’re doing well… quick story about our team retreat…”

No.

If there’s a sale - show it.
If there’s a tip - give it.
If there’s a resource - link it.

Above the fold.

If someone opens your email and instantly sees what they gain, you’ve saved them time.

That feels good.

Clear Subject Lines Beat Clever Ones

You might get more opens with:

“YOU WON’T BELIEVE THIS…”

But what happens next?

Disappointment.
Delete.
Unsubscribe.

A subject line like:

“20% Off Winter Coats - This Weekend Only”

Respects time.

People don’t have to guess. They don’t have to decode. They don’t have to feel tricked.

Clarity reduces friction. Friction wastes time.

Make It Scannable in 10 Seconds

Marketing emails are skimmed.

So design for it.

• Short headline
• One supporting sentence
• One clear button
• Optional deeper content below

If someone can understand your offer in 10 seconds, you win.

If they have to scroll three times before they understand what’s happening, you’ve scheduled a surprise meeting.

Solve One Problem Instantly

A great marketing email doesn’t say:

“Here’s everything we do.”

It says:

“Here’s one thing that helps you today.”

Examples:

• A 3-step checklist
• A pricing breakdown
• A simple tutorial
• A direct link to what’s on sale

When someone feels smarter or more equipped within seconds, that’s time returned.

Reduce Click Friction

Nothing kills momentum like:

Click here → Land on homepage → Search → Navigate → Maybe find what you meant.

No.

If you mention a product, link to the product.
If you mention a blog, link directly to the blog.
If there’s a coupon, show the code and auto-apply it if possible.

Every extra click is a mini meeting.

Don’t Over-Send

A canceled meeting is special because it’s unexpected.

If you email every day without purpose, nothing feels intentional.

Frequency should follow value.

If you don’t have something helpful, relevant, or timely to say - skip the send.

Respect builds anticipation.

Make the TLDR Obvious

If your marketing email is longer than 300 words, give them a summary.

“Here’s the deal:

• Sale ends Sunday
• Free shipping over $50
• Code: WINTER20

Now they don’t have to hunt.

Hunting wastes time. Clear direction gives it back.

Emails That Make You Feel Good

We might always be chasing the feeling of a canceled school day or a meeting getting canceled. You will never truly get that from a marketing email - but we try. The user will never really understand we are giving them some time back, but I think subconsciously they will recognize it when they see your email against the competition.

Our emails respect the one thing your audience values - time.

We may not be able to give someone a snow day. But if we can save them three minutes and remove a little friction from their day, that’s close.

It might feel more like a 2-hour delay… but hey, we like those too.