Professional Email Signature: Examples and Design Tips

First impressions in business often happen long before a handshake or video call.

Your email can reach decision-makers across time zones before you ever have the opportunity to meet face-to-face. A thoughtfully designed email signature subtly conveys your identity — including your job title, brand affiliation, and even demeanor — making an impact from the start. Get it right, and you reinforce your message with tangible credibility. Get it wrong, and you risk a missed opportunity to stand out.

Email signatures serve as critical touchpoints in professional communication, often determining whether or how quickly your message is read. By weaving strategic design with concise information, these elements create a lingering first impression and subtly guide recipients’ next steps.

A professional email signature provides your contact information and reflects your personal and professional brand. Effective email signature design requires strategic consideration of multiple variables, including typography, color palette, layout, and more, to ensure both functionality and brand consistency. A data-driven approach helps refine these elements, ensuring that each signature fosters trust, engagement, and professional credibility.

How to create an email signature: a step-by-step guide

A professional email can be any email you write for internal or external purposes as a company representative, including a thank-you email, a cover letter with a resume, or discussing company ventures with the relevant partners.

Here are five crucial steps to ensure your professional and business email signatures make the right impression. 

An email signature is a standardized footer that appears at the end of every professional message. It typically contains your name, job title, and essential contact details, serving as both identification and a subtle branding tool.

Here are five crucial steps to ensure your professional and business email signatures make the right impression.

Step 1: Include the crucial information in your signature

Consider what elements you want to include in your signature besides your name and title. To do this, consider the purpose of your email, the recipient, and your company's overall marketing strategy.

When it comes to professional writing, everything matters. For example, giving several ways to contact you is essential, but do not overload the signature with unnecessary details.

Step 2. Design your email signature to represent your brand in the best way

Arrange all elements so that it is structured and easy to read. First, include your name and job title, followed by your contacts and any relevant links.

The design of the signature should be in harmony with other elements of the business email and be simple but attractive. Try using pre-made templates in custom signature generators to make the design process easier.

Step 3. Avoid common mistakes that prevent you from emphasizing important things

Make sure you don't include anything extra in your email signature, for example:

Too many links overload the signature with information and look unprofessional and more like spam than part of a business email.

A quote that does not convey an important message or does not relate to your company at all, since the purpose of your signature is not to push the reader to think, but to lead to the necessary action.

An inappropriate photograph or one that is too abstract to be helpful.

Step 4. Create an HTML email signature for email clients

If you send your emails using one of the popular email clients (Gmail, Microsoft Outlook, or Yahoo), create a signature there. This way, your signature will appear on every email you send.

Regarding bulk marketing emails, such as cold outreach emails, use the signature creation capabilities of the email service provider (ESP) or email marketing automation platform.

Step 5. Try an email signature generator

A good option to ensure your signature will be displayed correctly in all your recipients' email clients and mobile versions, and at the same time make it attractive, is not to create a signature design in HTML from scratch but to use one of the signature generators with ready-made signature templates.

The following signature implementations demonstrate how strategic design principles translate into effective professional communication tools.

Consider what elements you want to include in your signature besides your name and title. To do this, consider the purpose of your email, the recipient, and your company's overall marketing strategy.

Arrange all elements so that it is structured and easy to read. First, place your name and job title, then contacts and any important links.

Now with these tips in mind, let’s look at some examples of professional email signatures.

10 professional email signature examples

These implementations illustrate how specific design decisions impact professional communication outcomes, driving measurable gains in user engagement and brand perception.

Schedule link and brand tagline 

In this example, the signature incorporates a concise brand tagline and a direct scheduling link, providing recipients with an immediate call-to-action without feeling intrusive. The design pairs a subtle color scheme with the company’s logo to reinforce brand identity. For scheduling, a link to an online calendar platform can be added to streamline meeting coordination, thereby reducing the need for back-and-forth emails. By presenting your tagline alongside actionable links, you encourage engagement and differentiate your outreach in a crowded inbox.

When implementing a scheduling link, ensure it’s easily visible — preferably directly beneath your name and title — to catch the reader’s eye before they navigate away. A well-chosen tagline can effectively highlight a core brand promise or value proposition, aligning with your overall messaging strategy. Ultimately, you want to balance promotional content with a clean, business-like appearance, so your recipients remain focused on the value you provide. This approach keeps your email signature both functional and brand-affirming, raising the odds of securing meaningful follow-ups.

In this example, the signature begins with a call to action (CTA) that contains a proposal to schedule the call and a bright block with the name and slogan of the brand.

Light design and clear structure

These types of emails have a signature format that stays minimalist yet ensures all vital data is properly displayed. The goal is to keep the recipient’s focus on your primary information — name, position, and key links — without overwhelming them. For instance, a simple layout using two complementary colors can be visually appealing while remaining easy to read on both desktop and mobile devices. Additionally, a logical hierarchy (e.g., name in bold, title below in normal weight, and icons or links lined up neatly) helps drive readability and brand consistency.

Avoid cluttering the design with too many visual elements, extra text, or large images. Instead, think of it as an elevator pitch: short, purposeful, and on-brand. This approach reflects well on your professionalism and signals that your messages are worth opening. Whether potential leads or internal collaborators see your signature, they’ll recognize a cohesive image of you and your company, which contributes to trust and authority over time.

These types of emails have a thoughtful yet discreet design. All essential elements are highlighted in color, and lines set the structure. You use one additional color in tune with your brand.

Headshot and social media icons

In this example, there are three key elements to highlight:

• A headshot
• Noticeable professional social media icons
• The use of contrasting backgrounds separates the basic details and headshot in the signature and the footer containing the social media icons and other company information.

Feedback prompt and CTA

Here, the email signature begins with a request to share feedback on the usefulness of the email.

Another key element is a personal photo and an original description of the activity instead of the dry official status that says "email marketer." Also, a button with a CTA is used instead of contact phones and emails.

Basic contact details

This is a simple email signature containing the most critical information - name, job title, email, website, and direct phone number. This makes it easier for the recipient to respond or, for example, copy your data.

Consistent brand style

In this example, the crucial elements of the signature are well chosen, and the email design is also worked out in detail. The icons will be in the brand color as well as the logo will be added to emphasize the brand. 

Achievements and awards

This type of email signature contains important information to draw attention to and images with awards in prestigious ratings.

Core brand offer

In this example, the name and contact details are supplemented with the brand logo and what it offers to drive attention to the service and motivate recipients to open the website.

Basic contacts and headshot

In this signature template, the important elements are the gradient for the background, how reader-friendly the contact details are placed, and the unusual photo format.

Original design

In this email signature template, the combination of all elements is thought out in the design. The contact information is highlighted in a font of a different color, and the color of the design and the photo are combined.

Elements of a professional email signature

Using essential email signature elements helps grab the recipient's attention, personalize emails, stay on brand, and grow your social presence.

Name and job title

Your full name is the main element to begin your signature with, so that recipients immediately get to know you. Add your job title so the recipient is clear on your profile about what problems you can help them solve. In addition, you can specify your pronouns.

You can place the name and job title in the top two lines of the signature.

Company name and logo

If you have already listed your company name next to your job title, you can still include it again, along with your logo, to emphasize your brand. As a rule, this part of the email signature is in the same style for all company representatives and is developed centrally as an element of the brand. This is only a great solution if you need to emphasize belonging to a large, famous brand.

Personal headshot

A professional portrait is not always required, but we recommend using it to capture readers' attention and make the correspondence more personalized. Adding a personal photo makes your recipient feel they are communicating with a person, not a faceless company. Use your high-quality professional portrait for this element.

Images and visual elements add to the appeal of email signatures. Don't include photos of landscapes, family members, or anything else except your headshot.

Contact information (phone, email, address)

Oddly enough, sometimes people skip core contact details, assuming recipients will simply hit ‘Reply.’ In professional exchanges – especially cold outreach – convenience wins. Add a direct phone number, a reply-friendly email, and a clickable website URL so readers can jump straight to your company site without copy-pasting.

Links to professional social media

Business decision-makers often conduct thorough due diligence through professional networks and peer reviews before they respond. Including discreet but well-placed social media icons in your signature can bolster credibility by showcasing consistent branding across platforms.

However, keep it concise: link only to channels that reinforce your authority and relevance. Overloading an email signature with every social profile available can dilute your brand’s message, so pick the platforms where your presence is most meaningful.

Keep your email signature manageable: add only three to five social media icons that most reflect your professional activities.

CTA button

One of the most effective elements in an email signature is the CTA button. The CTA must match the caption's overall style and conversion goals. It can look like a call-to-action link, a button, a banner, a sale or gift icon, or even an eye-catching postscript. Ideally, it is complemented by a link to go to the company's landing page.

By including a call-to-action (CTA) in your email signature, you actively guide recipients toward desired actions that benefit both your brand and your business objectives. For example, a strategically placed CTA can prompt your contacts to schedule a meeting, explore a new service, or download a relevant resource. This not only drives attention to your latest promotions but also helps generate more leads from routine communications.

Furthermore, if you collaborate with partners, your signature's CTA can be leveraged to promote their offers, expanding your reach and value proposition. Ultimately, a thoughtfully crafted CTA transforms your signature from a static information block into a dynamic tool that supports conversion goals, enhances engagement, and reinforces your professional intent with every email you send.

• Lead your contacts to the desired action
• Drive attention to a promo or a new service
• Generate more leads from daily communications
• Get the chance to promote the offers of your partners

Best practices for creating an email signature

In addition to the simple list of essential elements of an email signature, there are also certain best practices to follow while crafting professional email signatures. 

Keep the design professional and simple

Keep your email signature simple and professional. This helps your email recipients take your content seriously and encourages engagement. Avoid trying to be overly creative in your design to maintain clarity and professionalism.

Don't aim to be the most original in your niche or include as much information as possible. Including more than just the most relevant elements might overwhelm your recipients.

Maintain brand consistency

It's vital to match signature color combinations with your brand's overall style and include your logo. You can develop an email signature template for all company employees in which they can edit their personal information.

This will help partners who receive emails from company representatives from different departments recognize your company, providing you with brand awareness.

Structure the text for easy scanning

Divide the elements of your signature into sections to make it easy to read. Create an order for the information using separators. For example, you can place basic contact information at the top right side and separate social media icons or additional information at the bottom with a line.

Vertical bars separate the information visually. This saves space, helps avoid awkward line lengths, and improves the email signature design.

Use brand-aligned, limited color schemes

While you don’t need to cram multiple hues into a single email signature, a thoughtful approach to color goes a long way in staying on-brand. Limit your palette to one or two complementary shades that reflect your logo or corporate identity. That way, your signature looks professional and visually cohesive, reinforcing brand recall without overwhelming recipients.

While you don't need to stick to a black-and-white version of the signature, you can try a professional approach to color selection. Stay within the use of two colors and ensure they complement each other.

If you don't have a brand style or logo, choose a color from the site's primary color scheme, business cards, or other personal branding elements. Ideally, the primary font color is black or dark gray, and the other color is from your company logo.

Colors should emphasize the text of the email signature and not suppress it, so there should be a few of them.

Also, to choose a color scheme, you can hire a designer or use online color palette generators to select the perfect combination.

Use legible fonts and appropriate sizes

The best practice for professional email signatures is to use legible and web-safe fonts. The best font choices are Tahoma, Georgia, or Arial to make the signature more readable and noticeable. Fonts such as Garamond, Georgia, Calisto MT, and Lucida Bright may also be suitable. They are readable and display correctly on any device or email client.

Your email signature should have a standard font. Otherwise, it may look messy. However, you can select different font sizes, ideally between 12 to 16 pixels. Also, do not use bold, which will make the signature longer.

Watch email signature block size

Always check the size of your email signature block in pixels and kilobytes.

Here are the recommended maximum dimensions:

• For desktops: 700 pixels (width) x 300 pixels (height)
• For mobile devices: 320 pixels (width) x 600 pixels (height)
• Size: Try not to exceed 50 Kb

Ensure the signature is mobile-friendly

When creating an email signature, remember that more and more people read on mobile devices every day, so it is important that your signature, like the whole email, is adaptive for different mobile devices. It means that font sizes, word wraps, buttons, and links should look attractive and easy to read. To do this, keep the number of objects in your email signature smaller and their size larger.

Do I need a legal disclaimer in my email signature?

A legal disclaimer is required if your industry or company policy mandates it, especially for regulated sectors. Check with your legal team for specific requirements.

You may need to add a disclaimer for certain businesses, such as in the legal sector. This could be a privacy statement, a disclaimer, or a personal opinion.

For example, you can include a quote or an environmental reminder to prevent readers from printing your emails unnecessarily. Just ensure that your signature contains all the information the subscriber will need to stay in touch or take further action.

Promote your content

You can use the bottom of your email signature to promote helpful content and pages with information about you and your company. Potential customers spend most of their buyer journey trying to find information about your brand and product, so why not help them?

You can show a link to a new product launch, press release, feature update, blog, webinar, or ebook.

For example, in a bulk email, you can keep the end of the email as personal as possible without adding any official contacts. At the same time, you can add referral links.

Add customer testimonials and awards

Include verified ratings and awards from trusted peer review platforms to show authentic customer satisfaction. G2 ratings, along with other credible review sources, provide recipients with transparent insights into your company's performance based on real user experiences.

Add a handwritten signature

Use a handwritten signature to add a personal touch to your email.

What should a professional email signature include?

A professional email signature should, at a minimum, feature your full name, position, and company affiliation, alongside up-to-date contact links. Some opt for social media icons, brand taglines, or scheduling links if relevant — just be mindful of clutter.

Focus on clarity, readability, and brand consistency to encourage real engagement instead of distracting recipients. This FAQ offers a quick checklist to ensure your signature hits all the right notes.

Email signatures reflect you and your brand

Even a tiny element of a business email, such as a signature, can be crucial for building further relationships with current or potential clients and business partners.

So take enough care to create a professional email signature that reflects you and your brand using the above examples and best practices.

A well-designed email marketing strategy can improve email list engagement and increase conversions. Learn how. 

This article was originally published in 2023. It has been updated with new information.