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Glossary

Email Signature Block

An email signature block (or sig block) is the structured section at the bottom of an email that contains the sender's identification and contact information. It is separated from the email body by a delimiter, typically "-- " (two dashes and a space).

Key Aspects

Structured Layout

Organizes sender details into a clear, scannable format with consistent hierarchy.

Professional Identity

Establishes the sender's role, organization, and authority in professional contexts.

Configurable

Can be customized per user, department, or role within an organization.

Anatomy of a Signature Block

The email signature block is a convention dating back to early internet communication. RFC 3676 recommends separating the signature block from the message body with a delimiter line containing exactly "-- " (two dashes followed by a space). This allows email clients to automatically identify and sometimes hide or style the signature differently from the main content.

A typical signature block contains the sender's name on the first line, followed by their job title, company name, phone number, email, and website. In HTML signatures, this structure is often enhanced with logos, social links, and promotional banners while maintaining the same logical hierarchy.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the standard email signature delimiter?
The standard delimiter is "-- " (two dashes and a space on a line by itself). This convention, defined in RFC 3676, helps email clients separate the signature from the message body.
How is a signature block different from an email footer?
A signature block identifies the sender personally, while an email footer typically contains organizational information like disclaimers, unsubscribe links, or legal notices that apply to all messages.
Should reply emails include the signature block?
Common practice is to include a full signature on the first email in a thread and a shorter version or none on subsequent replies. Some organizations require full signatures on every message.
Can signature blocks be different for internal and external emails?
Yes. Many organizations use a full, branded signature block for external communication and a simpler one for internal emails. Siggly supports rule-based signature assignment for this purpose.

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