How to Check That Your Email Has One Clear Ask (Count Questions, Requests and Links)

To check that your email has one clear ask, list every question, request and link that asks the reader to do something, then count them. The email ask counter lists them by type. The total shows whether the email asks for one thing or several. The tool counts; you judge.

The by-hand way

1. Read the email and highlight every sentence that wants an answer or an action.
2. Highlight every link.
3. Count the highlights. If you get four, the reader has four decisions to make.

An email that asks for a reply, a call, a click and a referral gives the reader four decisions, and one of them is easier to put off than answer.

Step 1: paste the email with its links

Paste the email text, links included.

Step 2: read the list of asks

Type	What counts
Link	Any web address; calendar links such as Calendly or Cal.com are shown as booking links
Question	A sentence that ends in a question mark
Request	A sentence with a phrase such as reply, let me know, tell me, send me, book, schedule, grab a time, click, visit, download, sign up, call me, hop on, open to, worth a or are you open

A sentence is counted once, and a link wins over a question, which wins over a request. So Would you book a time at this link? is one link ask.

Step 3: strike out the false ones

Phrase lists cannot tell a rhetorical question or a noun from a real ask. Book as a noun counts as a request. Strike out the lines that do not ask, then count what is left.

Step 4: cut to one and paste again

If more than one remains, cut or merge until the email asks for one thing. Many senders keep a first cold email to one link or none; no filter publishes a link limit. To see every link in an HTML email, with shorteners and mismatched text flagged, use the email link checker. If you want an easy way to reply without a second ask, see the email P.S. line builder. For the whole email, use the cold email copy checker. See also cold email templates.

What this check cannot do

• Phrase lists cannot tell a rhetorical question or a noun from a real ask.
• The request phrases are English only.
• It counts sentences. A long sentence with two asks counts once.
• It does not judge whether the ask is a good one.

Before you send, verify the list

Before you send, verify the list at the verify page: the first 100 email checks are free with a Google sign-in, no card. Each address comes back valid, risky or invalid with a reason, and nothing is sent to anyone on the list. A well-edited email still bounces if the address is dead. For larger or recurring lists, see bulk email verification, list cleaning and pricing.

Check your email now

Paste it into the email ask counter.