There are tons of posts dedicated to next-gen techniques, hottest trends and best practices in email marketing. But marketers skills need studies not only in theory but also in practice. Libraries of ready-to-use templates are a must-have for modern email editors, for example, Stripo offers over 300 predesigned templates… Still, a template is just a “raw stuff” to fill with custom content.
So let’s pay attention to some examples of how various brands succeeded to customize email templates — and crafted attractive, unusual campaigns that were not lost in subscribers inboxes. I hope, you’ll find some inspiration and new ideas in these twelve samples.
Well, let’s go!
1. Spotted on Stars wearing MV diamonds (by Monica Vinader)
Email campaign crafted by Monica Vinader jewelry brand opens our compilation. The subject line is the very first element we see in inboxes (and decide whether to open an email or not), “How style icons wear diamonds” — right, Monica Vinader makes play with the sense of vanity that is so performing in a world of fashion and jewelry.
When users, especially ladies, see that celebrities wear clothes, shoes, jewelry of their favorite brand — it motivates them to buy the same accessories “to look like stars”. MV marketers don’t hesitate to boast that Betty Gabriel wears their earrings…
…as well as Laura Whitmore…
…and Lottie Moss.
It feels so pleasant to become a bit closer to the stars, right?
Another thing to note here is moderate yet luxurious design. Everything is stylish and gallant. No vulgarity, only the true glamour.
2. 25% OFF dresses and more ENDS TONIGHT (by Boden)
The next email fulfills its mission perfectly, it creates a sense of urgency just as newsletters of this type must. Sale ends, so hurry!
But… I would call this one “cuteness overload”. Look at these cute photos of young moms and their precious daughters! In this simple way, they show that their assortment is meant for various ages.
Excellent.
Arranged as GIFs they save the space in email — and show how to wear items!
3. New Arrivals | The Fashionista Collection (by Brighton)
I rated their structure and design as perfect — everything is on its place, with logo, menu, banner GIF-animation, images, and copy… Brighton knows how to represent their new products.
But what I liked the most is a link to a video where the designer tells and shows how did he craft the new models. Just watch it for a warm cozy feeling that you “participated” in this creation process.
The performance of this email campaign showed that the experiment was successful — it encouraged people to make a purchase.
4. Did you forget something? (by M&M’S)
Must confess, I enjoy their newsletters too much… Every message I receive from this brand is so full of joy and promo of choco.
I want to talk about this abandoned cart email. A perfect example of how to stick to brand book across all campaigns.
The image of Red M, warm and kind design, the manner they talk… all the details are included, no matter if is it a promo or a triggered email.
5. Early bird tickets go on sale in 3… 2… 1 (by Litmus)
It may seem not so special, doesn’t? Just a sale of tickets for Litmus Live 2019. But! We all heard about Google AMP released this March. This technology means the new eCommerce era. Email is not just a message anymore but a lite version of the website where users can make actions without being sent or directed somewhere else… Buying tickets, for example.
Users could choose the right quantity of emails to different events. And then in the cart, they would see the total sum.
But in fact, AMP implementation is still being processed now. So, this email feature is that Litmus crafted an interactive option to order tickets by using the regular interactivity, not AMP. And… it looks great anyway. And works as well.
6. Email on Acid has your back (by Email on Acid)
This is when email subject is as good as an email copy. Email on Acid has your back — sounds nice. Just a regular triggered reactivation email… but again, the style is flawless. They offer an extended set of options instead of the standard “yes” and “no”.
Pay attention to the CSS animation they used for these three buttons.
CSS is one of the 2019 hot trends, so it adds you more points!
7. Official Couch Uniform (by Chubbies)
Eh… What? Official? Uniform? Official COUCH uniform? On this pic?
LOL!
Really, they made me laugh so hard with their newsletter. And this promo of summer outfits is not an exception. Always fun and humoristic is all we have to know about Chubbies. And… I simply adore them!
8. Your Weekly Writing Stats + Get 40% Off Premium (by Grammarly)
How does it work? Grammarly collects and processes clients activity. At the end of each and every week, they send personal reports with all the results and details to users. Brilliant. And people understand how all the data was collected, so they won’t feel like “OMG, Big Brother is watching me!!!”
9. Goodbye Student Loans, Porsche Shifts Gear, Huawei’s Android Lockout (by Forbes)
A daily newsletter digest by Forbes, a famous magazine that has become a symbol of wealth and richness. Forbes shows a solid approach to everything they do.
That’s why I just want to show how they craft their digests.
A compilation of top news for a day, with no touch of the author’s subjective opinion — just a pure statement of facts, the convenient and simple structure of content…
And excellent design that perfectly fits the Forbes style.
10. Guess where we’re going (by Tom Raffield)
With the help of image rollover effect, they puzzle subscribers with the “Guess where we’re going” question and hide the answer keys behind the images.
Only in the following message, they revealed the secret… A perfect way to intrigue clients and make them anticipate our next emails.
11. We are bringing our vision to the road: Mission E becomes Taycan (by Porsche)
We all are curious about something upcoming, especially when it’s hidden behind the veil of mystery. This time, the veil is literal. Porsche knows how to arrange a really mysterious campaign.
When reading this message, subscriber feels curious and anxious about what Taycan looks like. And rushes to watch the video, of course. But even in the video, the car is hidden behind some veil too.
It makes recipients anticipate every new email and open it the moment it hits their inboxes.
A perfect example of a teaser campaign.
12. AMP Carousel (by Stripo)
Last but not least: this is not an email from some brand, just a training template that was built with the Stripo editor because Google AMP technology has been just released, so it’s not an easy task to find real sample. So, we crafted this to show how it works. With this image carousel, you may showcase all your rich assortment.
AMP emails enable our users to proceed to carts and to arrange appointments right in emails.
Convenient, isn’t?
By the way, in the Stripo collection, there are some AMP-powered templates. Feel free to use them.
Summing up
So, it was our compilation of the most original, creative and outstanding newsletters that impressed us this year. I hope they’ll be useful for you too.
Once again, some points to remember:
write intriguing subject lines;
email design really matters. So make it suit your brand book style – and the mood of an entire campaign;
engage people with interactive emails. And check the news about AMP implementation;
take care of all subscribers — make your emails accessible. One of the reasons why users may listen to your emails with a screen reader is that they may be too busy to read emails. The other one — visual impairments;
surprise recipients, build teaser campaigns and puzzles to make your emails desired and awaited.
And be creative, of course. This is the keystone of success.
I sincerely wish you the best of luck!
