[FAQ]

G’day,

I’m a content marketer for a non-profit in Melbourne, and I’m trying to improve the design of our weekly newsletters to get more clicks on our donation links.

Our current emails are a bit text-heavy, and I feel like we lose people before they get to the main call to action. I came across an article that mentioned using the “inverted pyramid” model to structure emails, but I’m not totally sure what that means in practice.

Could someone explain what this design principle is and how it works to guide the reader’s eye towards the main button?

Any help would be great. Cheers.

[Jeff Bullas]

A great question. This is a classic design principle that dramatically improves an email’s effectiveness.

Short Answer: The inverted pyramid is an email design model that uses a wide headline and image at the top, narrowing body text in the middle, and a single focused call-to-action button at the bottom to visually funnel the reader’s attention directly to the desired action.

It is a powerful layout because it works with how people naturally scan content, creating a clear and direct path to the click.

The model consists of three parts that create the pyramid shape. First is the wide top, which is your main headline and a compelling, full-width image. This serves as the hook to grab the reader’s attention. The second part is the body of the email. Here, the text copy is formatted to be narrower than the elements above it, which forms the sloping sides of the pyramid. This text provides the essential information and convinces the reader why they should take action.

The final and most important part is the single point at the bottom of the pyramid. This is your call-to-action button. It should be centered and have a high-contrast colour. The entire structure of the headline, image, and narrowing text is strategically designed to lead the reader’s eye directly to this one specific action. This method creates focus, eliminates distraction, and makes it incredibly clear to the user what you want them to do next.

Cheers,
Jeff

[Author]

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