< January 2007 | March 2007 >

February 28, 2007

The Queen Goes to the Oscars

From: Lipstick Queen
Subject Line: Lipstick Queens at the Oscars
Date: Wednesday, February 28, 2007

I saw Poppy King speak at a NAWBO event in New York a few years back and was absolutely charmed; she was a pleasure. I've been excited to see how well-received Lipstick Queen has been since she launched it last year.

Here, Lipstick Queen does a great job of making their product relevant by linking lipstick shades back to those that appeared on the red carpet three days before.


February 05, 2007

Open Your Heart

From: Harry & David
Subject Line: Send your Love with Cupid's Top Gifts
Date: Thursday, February 1, 2007

First of all, I would like to say that I adore Harry & David. Have you ever been anything less than super-psyched to receive a treat from this company? The pears are to die for. And I really appreciate the brand for being so happy and unpretentious. If you're ever stuck on what to gift, go with Harry & David!

One of the challenges Harry & David's email marketing campaigns come up against - and it's something a lot of us face - is packed, busy imagery. The five images featured in this example have a lot going on. Placed closely together, and compounded with overlaid product names and prices and numbered hearts, viewers experience information overload; It's difficult to focus on on any one thing.

Of course, one of the first things we love to suggest is "use simpler photography!" But when you're picking up catalog photo and don't have the opportunity to shoot specifically for web (much less for email campaigns) you've got to use what you've got. A second recommendation might be to cut down on the products featured, focusing on one or two best-sellers.

But sometimes you've just got to feature five (or more!) favorites. And in these cases, I'd recommend opening things up a bit. Here, the main copy block could become a full-width banner. We could feature six products rather than five for a clean 3x2 grid, bringing symmetry and balance to the creative. We could also try more whitespace between the images to give each shot more breathing room, and move the product names, prices and numbered hearts off and below the images to up clarity and readability. These simple changes would allow us to feature an additional product while making the campaign as a whole easier to digest. (No pun intended!)

Note to Valentine: those Belgian Chocolates look divine!

February 02, 2007

Inside Peek

From: Apple eNews
Subject Line: Our Top Picks for February and The Spring Celebrations Preview
Date: Thursday, February 1, 2007

Today I got an inside look at Apple eNews: their HTML code was delivered directly to my inbox! If any of y'all out there know what causes this error, please post your comments!

Too Strong a CTA?

From: katespade.com
Subject Line: What's The Buzz About...
Date: Thursday, February 1, 2007

I wonder whether "Buy Now" is actually too strong a call-to-action. There's a level of commitment the word "Buy" requires that might not be appropriate until a customer is sitting in front of a fully-detailed product page. I'd recommend "Shop Now" instead, which is very direct and action-oriented, but won't drive away folks who aren't ready to "Buy" quite yet.

"More" is also a safe bet; we always want "more", right?

February 01, 2007

The Double

From: Ann Taylor
Subject Line: Our Top Picks for February and The Spring Celebrations Preview
Date: Wednesday, January 31, 2007

What to do when one message won't drive enough revenue? Build out two! Ann Taylor has been doing this for a while now, and lately I'm noticing a lot of folks following suit. Basically, the MO is this: grow your submessage into a full-size campaign. When you've got two not-too-strong stories - especially when they're no-promo (read: no sale or free ship) - build them out and stack them up as two full-size creatives (they'll have to share the subject line) and hope that combined they drive some decent dollars.

Unrelated but have to say it: Ann Taylor, you just featured that image of the gal in the jacket on Tuesday! Ah, someone did notice after all...