There are two problems with reminders.
First, it is a guilt trip – no matter how much you sugarcoated it with niceties, you are pointing out that your recipient didn’t do what he/she was supposed to do. So the first thing they feel after opening your email is a strong negative emotion. And as good doctors say: “neurons the fire together, wire together…”, meaning that now you, your product, and your company are in the same mental emotional box with stubbed toes, missed doctor appointments and milk gone sour. You don’t want to be in that box.
Secondly, in a sales and marketing environment, usually you are asking for attention, time, a response, information, etc. from people who don’t owe you anything. Usually, they are more senior than you, busier, and better paid. You haven’t provided value that your recipient consumed and therefore feel indebted to you yet. You have no leverage. And that compounds the first problem to n’th degree.
So in the words of @mjhoffman: “don’t make references to previous failed attempts” because they don’t bring anything of value to the table and therefore don’t increase your chances of getting a response.
That’s a long rant on why not to do reminders the way 99% of people do them. Now a short rant on how to do them right:
Hi John,
We are sponsoring ABC forum in New York on 9/15. It’s sold out but I have two complementary tickets for you and someone on your team. Looking forward to seeing you there.
Best,
-Misha
P.S.: Hey, any news on the proposal your team was preparing for us?
-OR-
Hi Mary,
I noticed you have a number of open positions in your SDR team. That’s awesome news that your company is sustaining high growth, congrats! Btw, I have two former colleagues who may be a good fit, let me know if you’d be interested in getting in touch with them.
Speaking of SDRs, you probably want to make sure the CRM you just purchased from us is up and running by the time they join. Do you think you can get the signed contract back to us by Friday?
Best,
-Misha