The next time you attend a marketing seminar or any event that attracts marketers, pick people at random and ask them a simple question: “If you had to choose only one form of efficient marketing channel for your brand, what would it be?” I bet you, most people would pick email marketing. Well it makes sense, doesn’t it? Email marketing is inexpensive, easy to implement, effective and one can easily integrate it with other marketing channels.
According to the 2016 Email Statistics report by Radicati, email will be used by 3 billion people by 2020! That’s almost half the population of the world! But grabbing their attention through emails can be tough. Even though people prefer business communications through email, they don’t have time to waste reading stuff that is of no use for them. They will just opt out of your email communications if the content is impersonal and irrelevant. If you’re looking for some inspiration for your next email marketing campaign, this article can come in real handy. It lists down 10 examples of effective email marketing. Hope you’ll find them useful:
1. Using engaging visual elements like GIF in emails
Back in 1987 when GIF was invented, not many could have thought that it would go on to become an integral part of our day-to-day digital communication. From expressing simple feelings like happiness to complex emotions like political satire; GIF has come a long way. Its usage has even become like a badge you wear to show off your digital literacy! If you know how to use them, you can instantly connect with your audience-especially the millennials.
Related read: How to engage millennials through email marketing
Popular clothing retailer Boden does it really well in this one:
2. Product Showcase
Product showcase emails need to have a clutter free design. Visual aesthetics play a vital role in deciding their effectiveness. They should not only look good, but also should have CTAs that are strategically placed so that they’re easily spotted even during a swift mobile scroll. Popular shoe brand Converse does it really well in this:
All the 4 major CTAs are clearly visible and the header image conveys what the product is all about—customizable sneakers. So, anyone who opens this email knows what it is about immediately and can take action easily if interested.
3. Funny messaging
Picking a beautiful theme, coming up with a catchy subject line, sending the email at the right time, etc. are all important factors that decide the outcome of an email campaign. However, all of it is in vain if the content isn’t enticing enough. Drafting interesting and captivating content is not everyone’s cup of tea though. However, there are some brands that nail it in all forms of communication. Dollar Shave Club is one such brand.
Like the one shown above, almost all of their communications have an element of humor. Stop wasting time buying razors; their USP is perfectly conveyed here.
4. Informative Newsletters
Customer retention is one of the most important factors that decides the success of a business. While it is important to get new prospects for your business, it is equally important to ensure that there is constant communication with the existing ones. All the lead generation efforts are in vain if the customers forget about your brand after their initial interest. Sending Newsletters is one of the easiest ways to maintain a constant touch point with the prospects/customers.
A well designed newsletter will have a neat design that is easy on the eyes and CTAs that are more than just the generic ‘Read more’. Email marketing testing brand Litmus shows you the way:
You should also read: 5 Email Newsletter Design Strategies You Need To Use
5. Awesome announcements
The primary goal of an announcement email is to convey important news to your audience. The content of such emails should be crisp and clear without unnecessary distractions in the design. Apart from an enticing subject line, it should have a powerful visual element that entices the audience to read more. This email design by InVision is a perfect example.
6. Notification emails
Notification emails are extremely important for all kinds of businesses. From an ecommerce company to a software product, almost all the brands need it to ensure that customers are engaged and informed about their products and services. That’s why, visual aesthetic takes a backseat here to functionality. Well designed notification emails are nice of course, but how they help customers is a lot more important. Linkedin keeps it simple and effective.
The email not only notifies you of a new connection, it also tells you what the person is up to on the platform. Wrapping it up nicely is the block that has suggestions for new connections.
7. Survey emails
Any brand that wants to constantly improve its offerings has to take customer feedback seriously. While collecting suggestions manually is a good start, running email campaigns is a far more effective and scalable model. A well crafted feedback email campaign will:
- have a catchy subject line
- be crisp and to the point
- have a clearly defined incentive for the customers
Popular fashion design house Kate Spade does it well here:
8. Promotional emails
Promotional email marketing is arguably the most effective marketing strategy that brands can use to increase their bottom line. Who doesn’t like a good deal right? But these days, people get a lot of promotional emails from all kinds of brands everyday. To cut through this noise and make the email recipient take action is easier said than done.
An effective promotional email should:
- Have strong CTAs (Calls to Action)
- Should be timely
- Have exciting but genuine visuals that showcase the product/service
Ikea does it really well here:
The different sections of the email are clearly segregated, CTAs are eye-catchy and it has clear images of the products that stand out.
9. Transactional Emails
In today’s crowded market place, marketing activities that enhance customer engagement can help a brand stand out from the rest. It can turn a one time customer into a loyal brand advocate! For the uninitiated, transactional emails are personalized, system triggered emails that are sent to customers based on their interaction with a brand. The interaction can be a product purchase, a feature usage, a service request etc.
A well crafted transactional email will:
- Acknowledge the customer action that triggered the email
- Have a subject line that gives an outline of the purpose of the email
- Be triggered timely and have CTAs that serve a specific purpose for the customer
Fitbit does it really nice in this email that is sent to customers who order Fitbit Surge :
10. Event invite emails
It takes careful planning and systematic execution to hold an event that can be called a success. Businesses of all kind need it to advertise their offerings and to create a strong brand recall among their prospective customers. A good event invite consists of:
- Prominently displayed logo of the business/brand to give credibility to the event
- Clearly defined value proposition
- Enticing visuals that can excite the recipient to RSVP
- Easily visible CTA
Buzzfeed Australia does a really good job in this invite:
Final Words
Hope the examples that we listed here give you inspiration for your next awesome email marketing campaign. Have you received an email that excited you recently? Do you have any tips on designs that have worked for you? Do share them with us in the comments below.
