The industry’s best event marketers create a 365-day event experience for attendees, who expect personalized communication and on-demand content once an event is over. An easy way to deliver on those expectations is by sending a post-event “thank you for attending” email with helpful, relevant resources straightaway.
But when more than 347 billion emails are sent daily — the average business user sends and receives 161 emails per day — how do you stand out?
Keep reading to learn more about what “thank you” emails and follow-up emails after an event are and why they’re essential, plus see some “thank you for attending” and “conference follow-up email templates to inspire your post-event communications.
What is a post-event “Thank You” email?
As the name suggests, a post-event thank you email is a quick message that expresses gratitude over an individual’s decision to participate in your event. It’s a simple, polite, professional way to ensure attendees feel appreciated and that their contributions are valued.
Although all thank you emails should be customized to the particular event you just hosted, here are some elements that successful emails contain:
- A professional greeting, personalized to each attendee
- A few sentences highlighting some of the best moments of the event and thanking the individual for attending
- A couple of links to on-demand content and resources from the event
- A link to a post-event satisfaction survey
- A note about upcoming events that may be scheduled
- A quick closing statement reiterating your appreciation
- Your name
Why Following Up Post-event Is Vital
A post-event thank you email is more than a formality or checklist item. These simple messages can have a profound impact on the way folks view your organization, the success of future events, and even your bottom line. With that in mind, let’s look at some of the more notable benefits of sending post-event emails.
Engaging Attendees
Just because your event is over doesn’t mean it’s time to end the conversation with attendees; quite the contrary. By sending out post-event “thank you” emails, you can keep attendees engaged and help them reinforce their learnings by repurposing event content and serving it up to them on-demand.
Raising Awareness
Post-event “thank you” emails also keep your event top of mind for attendees, which increases the chances that your next event will be well-attended. By delivering bespoke, personalized experiences to attendees and doing your best to keep them engaged, there’s a higher chance that folks will share their experiences with others in their networks, which could help you draw more attendees next year.
Building Trust with Your Audience
“Thank you” emails enable you to maintain a dialogue with attendees and add value at no charge by sending helpful links to on-demand content and other resources. This allows you to build and nurture a trusting relationship between your audience and your organization. Once that foundation of trust has been established, you can collect survey information with confidence, which you can then use to iterate and ensure your next event is even better.
Increasing Conversion Rates
Post-event “thank you” emails can also help you increase conversion rates by adding calls to action at the bottom of each message. With the right approach, you can get a good chunk of your audience to perform the specific actions you have in mind, such as downloading additional content, scheduling a demo, or registering for your next event.
Best Practices for Writing “Thank You for Attending” Emails
Now that you have a better idea of why post-event “thank you” emails are important, let’s look at some tactics that should help you make the most out of these messages.
Follow Up Within 24 Hours
To keep the event fresh in attendees’ minds and reinforce what they learned, send out post-event “thank you” emails within 24 hours after your event concludes. By doing so, you can also get more reliable insights from post-event surveys.
Express Gratitude
Post-event emails need to express gratitude. Because everyone is exceptionally busy and our world is overflowing with uncertainty, finding time to dedicate to events can be challenging. By recognizing this reality in your post-event emails, you demonstrate empathy and effectively convey your appreciation to your audience.
Reinforce the Content
One of the main reasons people go to events is to learn new things. When you send out timely post-event “thank you” emails that include links to on-demand resources, it becomes much easier for attendees to reinforce their learnings, which makes your event more valuable.
Segment Your Audience
Getting the best results from your post-event email initiatives is only possible when you personalize your outreach. Event marketers must segment audiences by role (e.g., sales, C-suite, and IT) and attendee type (e.g., attendee, vendor, speaker, and sponsor) to ensure a personalized and meaningful experience for every attendee and registrant.
Ask for Feedback
As an event marketer, you aim to ensure each event is more successful than the last. To this end, you must ensure that every post-event email includes surveys that solicit feedback from the event. Using that feedback, you can take a data-driven approach to iterate the next event — whether it’s a hybrid event, a virtual event, or an in-person event.
5 “Thank You for Attending” Email Templates to Attendees
At this point, you understand the elements of successful post-event emails. But what exactly do such messages look like? Use these five email templates for inspiration.
“Thank You for Attending” Email Template for CSMs and AEs
Subject: It was great to see you at [Event Name]!
Hi [First Name],
Thanks so much for attending [Event Name]! What did you think?
I’d love to hear any highlights or questions you walked away with. I also wanted to let you know that you can find post-event content on-demand now.
CTA: Get On-demand Content
Also, if you’re willing, I’d appreciate hearing your thoughts about the event. The survey is super short and will help us deliver the best events possible in the future.
CTA: Take the Survey
Thanks again for attending the event, [First Name].
See you soon!
[CSM/AE’s name]
“Thank You for Attending” Email Template for the C-suite
Fun fact: This template was generated using ChatGPT!
Subject line: Thank you for attending our event
Dear [First Name],
On behalf of the entire [Company] team, I want to extend a warm thank you for attending our [event name] on [date]. We were thrilled to have you join us and we hope that you found the event valuable and informative.
Your presence at our event made it all the more special and we are grateful for your support. We believe that the insights shared and the connections made will greatly benefit our attendees and we are excited to see the positive impact that it will have on our industry.
Once again, thank you for taking the time to attend our event. We truly appreciate your support and we look forward to staying in touch with you.
Please do not hesitate to reach out to us if you have any further questions or feedback about the event.
Warm regards,
[Your Name],
[C-suite executive]
[Company]
“Thank You for Attending” Email Template for a Webinar
Subject line: Thanks for attending our [topic] webinar!
Hi [First Name],
Thank you for attending our webinar, [Webinar Title]. We know you’re incredibly busy, and we’re happy you took the time to join us.
We wanted to let you know our webinar is now available on-demand, and we’ve also added some helpful resources to keep the event going.
CTA: Watch On-demand
It may have only been an hour, but we know that webinars can be powerful experiences and we’d love to hear what you think.
CTA: Take the Survey
See you next time!
Your friends at [Company Name]
“Thank You for Attending” Email Template for an In-person Conference
Subject line: Thanks for attending [Conference Name]!
Hi [First Name],
We’re so glad you attended [Conference Name]! You were part of an experience we’ll be raving and reminiscing about for weeks and months.
We also wanted to let you know that you can find post-event content on-demand now. Recorded sessions, resources, behind-the-scenes interviews, and special content exclusively for attendees are available now.
CTA: Get On-demand Content
We’d also love to hear about your experience — from the check-in process and the venue to our high-tech wearable badges and speakers. Do you have 5 minutes?
CTA: Take the Survey
Your friends at [Company Name]
PS: Check out our upcoming events and save your spot now: https://www.bizzabo.com/blog/thank-you-for-attending-email-templates.
“Thank You for Attending” Email Template for a Sales Kickoff
Subject line: What did you think? Take the SKO survey ✅
Hi [name],
Thanks for attending our 2024 Sales Kickoff! With our powers combined, 2024 will be a fantastic year of growth, excitement, and success.
We know our events are only as successful as our employees (that’s you) think they are. Please take a few minutes to complete this survey to let us know what you thought. There might just be something in it for you too …
CTA: Take the Survey
Thanks,
The Events Team
PS: OK, OK. The cat’s out of the bag: Everyone who fills out the survey gets a $25 gift card to order lunch!
Bonus: 5 Follow-up Thank You Emails for After the Event
There are more people to follow up with after the event, including a “thank you” letter to a speaker, sponsors, host, and your team. If you’re looking for more event follow-up emails, here they are — including an email asking attendees to take the post-event survey.
“Thank You Note to a Guest Speaker”
Dear [Speaker Name],
I hope this email finds you well.
I’m writing to express my sincere gratitude for your participation as a guest speaker at our recent event, [Event Title]. Your presentation was informative, engaging, and thought-provoking. It was clear that you put a lot of thought and preparation into your talk, and it showed.
I received many positive comments from attendees about your presentation. They were particularly impressed with your insights into [topic]. I’m confident that your talk will have a lasting impact on the attendees’ thinking and work.
Thank you again for your willingness to share your expertise with us. We hope to have you back as a speaker in the future.
Sincerely,
[Your Name]
“Thank You for Organizing and Hosting the Event”
Dear [Event Organizer Name],
I hope this email finds you well.
I’m writing to express my sincere gratitude for organizing and hosting our recent event, [Event Title]. The event was a huge success, and it was clear that a lot of hard work and dedication went into planning it.
I was particularly impressed with the [list of things you appreciated about the event]. The event was well-organized, the speakers were engaging, and the food was delicious. I also appreciated the opportunity to network with other professionals in the field.
Thank you again for all your hard work. I’m already looking forward to next year’s event!
Sincerely,
[Your Name]
“Thank You” to the Event Team for a Successful Event
Dear Event Team,
I hope this email finds you well.
I’m writing to express my sincere gratitude for all your hard work in making our recent event, [Event Title], a success. The event was a huge success, and it was clear that a lot of thought and planning went into it.
I was particularly impressed with the [list of things you appreciated about the event]. The event was well-organized, the speakers were engaging, and the food was delicious. I also appreciated the opportunity to network with other professionals in the field.
Thank you again for all your hard work. I’m already looking forward to our next event!
Sincerely,
[Your Name]
“Thank You for Being an Event Sponsor”
Dear [Sponsor Name],
I hope this email finds you well.
I’m writing to express my sincere gratitude for your sponsorship of our recent event, [Event Title]. Your sponsorship was essential to the success of the event, and we are very grateful for your support.
The event was a huge success, and it was clear that a lot of attendees appreciated your sponsorship. We received many positive comments about the [list of things attendees appreciated].
Thank you again for your sponsorship. We are proud to have you as a partner, and we look forward to working with you in the future.
Sincerely,
[Your Name]
Post-event Survey Email Template
Subject: Thank you for attending [event name]!
Hi [attendee name],
I hope you had a great time at [Event Name]! We’re so glad you could join us.
We value your feedback and would love to hear your thoughts on the event. Please take a few minutes to complete our post-event survey. Your feedback will help us improve future events.
CTA: Take the Survey
Thank you for your time!
Sincerely,
[Your name]
Build Better “Thank You” for Attending Emails with Templates
When it boils down to it, “thank you” emails represent the first step in driving the entire post-event experience for attendees. If you’re interested in ensuring the best post-event experiences possible, we have kits flush with email templates to ensure success:
Editor’s note: This article was originally published in January 2023 and has been updated to include even more post-event “thank you” templates.
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