Simple email signature templates

A simple signature is for people who want to stop thinking about signatures. Two lines: who you are and the one way people should contact you. It works for personal email, side projects, volunteer roles and anyone whose job title would only add noise. Because there's so little in it, every character has to be right, so pick the one contact detail you'd most like people to use.

Template;sig-simple

Full name Phone

Then type ;sig-simple in any app.

Variations

The same message for a different channel or tone. Copy the one that fits.

When the recipient may not know why you're writing.

With what you do

Full name What you do Website

For people you already know, or a thread you've been in for days.

First name only

– First name

When to use it

Personal email where a job title would feel stiff.
Volunteer, club or community roles where people just need your number.
You've tried a fancy signature and want something that never breaks.

What to avoid

Don't use the name-only version on a first email to someone new. They need a way to place you.
Avoid a nickname here if you also use this signature for anything official.
Don't drop the contact line just to look minimal. A signature with no way to reach you isn't doing its job.

The fields in this template

Retext fills these in when the snippet expands. In plain text they become [brackets] to replace by hand.

Full name{fill:Full name}: Your name as you'd introduce yourself.
Phone{fill:Phone}: The number you're happy for anyone on the thread to call or text.
What you do{fill:What you do}: A short phrase, e.g. "Photographer, Austin" or "Treasurer, Elm Street Allotments".
Website{fill:Website}: Your site, portfolio or one profile link.
First name{fill:First name}: What friends and colleagues call you.

More about dynamic fields

Tips

•Pick the contact detail you respond to fastest. If you never answer the phone, use a website or booking link instead.
•An en dash before your first name (– Sam) reads as a sign-off rather than a stray character.
•Install it as ;sig-simple and use it in Messages, WhatsApp Web or forms where a full signature would look odd.

Works in Mail, Gmail, Messages and every other app

Retext types the snippet wherever your cursor is. To use a different version in one app, give it the same trigger and limit it to that app with per-app snippets. They go by app, not website, so every tab in your browser counts as one app.

Use it with your team

Even simple signatures drift. Share this template with the team as the agreed format, and have each person type their own name and number in once, so internal mail looks the same from everyone.

See Retext for Teams

Questions

What's the simplest email signature that still looks professional?

Your full name on one line and a phone number or website on the next. It's short enough to fit anywhere and still gives the reader a way to reach you.

Is it OK to have no email signature?

For quick replies to people you know, yes. For first contact, a name and one contact detail saves the reader from hunting through the thread.

Can I keep a simple signature and a full one?

Yes. Save this as ;sig-simple and a fuller one as ;sig-work, and type whichever fits. Retext keeps both one trigger away.