From: katespade.com
Subject Line: shop pop & color
Date: Tuesday, November 20 2007
I agree with Shannon Milar, who loves this message for it's "unique vision for holiday." Like kate spade's fall imagery, their holiday photography feels fresh and fun. It's so easy for us to fall into blahliday mode, slavishly aping last year's creative (only redder!), but this campaign illustrates the opportunity to consider how we can mix our unique brand elements with traditional holiday visual cues to bake up something new.
From: Bag Borrow or Steal
Subject Line: Love The Devil Wears Prada? Borrow the Earrings!
Date: Thursday, April 19, 2007
In a woman's world, you are your handbag, and status bags are pricey. Enter Bag Borrow or Steal. It's a brilliant concept: they basically rent you accessories you can't otherwise afford. With gals everywhere laying out weeks of salary for the right hobo, I can see this concept being huge.
I think they generally do a good job with their email creative, but I'd like to point out a few things they could do to optimize their campaigns, from top to bottom:
1) Go a little larger with the logo. Since it's such a delicate script font, it's somewhat tricky to read at this size. Granted my eyes are going from too much screentime, but I do have my glasses on.
2) Try bringing the menu items up into the brown tint bar, on the upper-right. This will help separate them out from the main message, as well as conserve vertical real estate.
3) Render body copy in HTML rather than graphical text so it's legible in email browsers with images disabled by default.
4) Cut linked graphics separately rather than using image maps. Several email browser strip image maps, thereby preventing users from clicking through!
5) Add a little humor. There's definitely a "wink-wink/nudge-nudge" element to accessories rental. "It's our little secret." I say play that up and have some fun with it!
Looking for inspiration? After closely monitoring, observing, applauding and, in some cases, trash-talking the creative efforts of over 100 leading online retailers since 2004, I'd like to take a moment to recognize a handful of shining stars. It's not just about one or two standout emails: this group consistently delivers creative, innovative and memorable campaigns.
From: Apple
Subject Line: Great gift ideas to surprise your valentine.
Date: Friday, January 27, 2006
Apple won our 2006 Q1 EDM vote with their January 27 "Love is in the ear" campaign. And looking back, it's no wonder. The copy, the imagery, the layout, the theme. They all work together in a beautiful harmony. It's clever, elegant and most importantly…effective. There's no arguing that Apple had a stellar 2006. Can't wait to get my iPhone.
From: Crate & Barrel
Subject Line: Greens that Wow
Date: Monday, April 10, 2006
Smart, fresh and simple. Nominated for an award in Q1 and Q2 of 2006, Crate and Barrel consistently delivers aesthetically pleasing creative throughout the winter, spring, summer and fall. Their campaigns are honest and hardworking, with no crazy hooks, no flashing animations and no groundbreaking, medium-altering innovations. In a nutshell, they keep it real. While basic sometimes means boring, in the case of Crate and Barrel it means consistent, on-brand and best-practices worthy. No gimmicks here.
From: UrbanOutfitters.com
Subject Line: Take an Extra 25% off. This time, we mean it.
Date: Thursday, June 22, 2006
It's always good to explore the lighter side of life, and Urban Outfitters has proven that humor always comes out a winner. They win the witty vote, for sure. They throw traditional production values out the window in favor of a few good laughs, and it really works. There is a refreshing, human element to their campaigns. As a matter of fact, it feels like you're funniest BFF wrote the copy and created the layout.
From: Barneys New York
Subject Line: Wedges, Platforms + Boots - Barneys New York
Date: Wednesday, October 18, 2006
The standing ovation goes to Barneys for their generous use of humor. Their silly imagery, casually elegant handwritten font and dashed-off calls-to-action (Shut up and shop!) project a fun, attractive, devil-may-care attitude. Their creative is clean, welcoming and aspirational. It's always good to see the upper-class crowd taking themselves a little less seriously.
From: J.Crew
Subject Line: $4.95 Shipping. Gobble, gobble.
Date: Wednesday, November 22, 2006
J.Crew really found their voice in 2006. Their copy is intelligent, sassy, direct and convincing in a non-intrusive wink-wink, nudge-nudge, buy-now sort of way. And we love it! They rely heavily on copy to float their creative, and float they do. Their messages are always timely to the holidays, the weather and any other national event that they can tie in. Their sale emails are effectively persistent, without being demanding, which conveys a sense of real urgency to shop before your co-worker, friend or neighbor gets that perfect sweater before you do.
From: fredflare.com
Subject Line: BEEP BOOP BEEP at fredflare.com
Date: Tuesday, April 10, 2007
Lately there's been lots of talk about making email more personal. But usually we're referring to dynamically dropping a customer's name into a "Welcome" field. I'd like to stress the importance of making emails more personal meaning human.
In a virtual landscape increasingly dominated by customized avatars and tricked-out social network profiles, it makes more and more sense to make a conscious effort to inject personality and authenticity into our electronic communications. Fredflare.com does it here! Instead of just featuring a half-naked model surrounded by an array of merchandise a la Abercrombie, they congratulate their employee of the month by featuring her in an email and allowing her to showcase her picks. This has so much more meaning for me as a consumer. I actually feel happy for Julie. How often do you feel happy for someone when you open a marketing message? Ain't that nice? What can you do to inject a little happiness into your email campaigns?
From: Apple
Subject Line: Thank you for your interest in iPhone.
Date: Tuesday, April 3, 2007
I signed up to receive iPhone product updates the day the gadget was announced, but only received this Welcome message today. Of course it's beautiful, and almost because of that I have to point out that the bottom legal copy is misaligned in IE7. But who cares about PCs, right?
From: CB2
Subject Line: create a cool gift registry
Date: Monday, April 2, 2007
CB2 does a nice job with their gift registry promotion here, infusing levity and delight into what can be a stressful process during a major shift in people's lives. I've heard one too many stories about engaged couples second-guessing their commitments based on flatware disagreements, so CB2's positioning the idea of "fork and knife" as fun is both refreshing and kind (as well as on-brand.)
From: NORDSTROM.com
Subject Line: New from Brands like Velvet, Wilster & More | FREE SHIPPING with Shoe Purchase (Details Inside)
Date: Wednesday, March 28, 2007
Nordstrom shows their Seattle roots with this gal's hairstyle, eh? I was actually at the Bellevue store this weekend and experienced truly legendary customer service, which I basically used to justify spending way more money than originally planned. See, good customer service really works!
I have seen that more specific Subject Lines often generate a higher CTR, but this seems to be just about the world's longest subject line: New from Brands like Velvet, Wilster & More | FREE SHIPPING with Shoe Purchase (Details Inside).
From: Forth & Towne
Subject Line: Important News about Forth & Towne - Please Read
Date: Monday, March 19, 2007
From: holdeverything
Subject Line: save 20% on your first west elm purchase
Date: Wednesday, July 16, 2006
Some of you may have already heard that Gap Inc. is already shutting down it's fairly-new Forth & Towne brand. Their email notification brings up a good question: how do you handle bad news, like a store (or brand) closing, via email?
First things first: it is important to break the news to customers. You don't want them making pointless trips to your retail locations, only to find them shuttered. But how you break the news is everything. Here, Forth & Towne erred on the side of being a little too, well, sad. This email just feels depressing. It's important, even with negative news, to keep upbeat and highlight a customer's opportunities. For instance, Forth & Towne could have focused more on sale opportunities at local stores, or could have plugged some of their other brands in an attempt to convert shoppers to Banana Republic or Piperlime, like HoldEverything did with west elm in this example from last year. I realize Forth & Towne will probably cover these things over the course of the next couple of months, but at least touching on them in this initial message would have helped soften the blow.
From: Restoration Hardware
Subject Line: Announcing the Launch of BrocadeHome.com
Date: Wednesday, March 14, 2007
If you haven't already, check out Brocade Home. It's like west elm with frills. (Rumor has it that, despite the fact that they're owned by Restoration Hardware and Williams-Sonoma respectively, the concepts actually were originated by the same person.) After so much spareness, I'm kind of fiending for some frou frou.
From: Saks Fifth Avenue
Subject Line: Want It! Our Spring Trend Line-Up + FREE SHIPPING
Date: Tuesday, March 13, 2007
Saks' new "Want it!" campaign tagline is such a shameless rip-off of Barney's " Love it!" campaign from last year. It's just too similar not to blow the whistle on it. I do think they made fun use of the rotating GIF though - click here to see it.
From: shopbop.com
Subject Line: Trend Alert: Wide-Leg Pants, Vintage & Navy for Spring at shopbop.com
Date: Tuesday, March 6, 2007
Those of you who receive email updates from shopbop.com are probably familiar with this face. This redhead has been appearing in shopbop's campaigns consistently for as long as I can remember. I'd thought I was sick of seeing her day-in and day-out (Like, can't shopbop afford a second model?) until, recently, she began appearing less. Opening campaigns to find random brunettes and blondes, I found myself missing the redhead - as though my personal rappaport with the face of shopbop was left dangling. When we were finally reunited with this campaign on March 6, I was embarrased to find myself feeling quite content.
(I'd like to think) I'm not alone in my imagined internal dialogues with said redhead. But even if my particular experience is more ridiculous than most, the big-picture reminder here is that your customers - the most "die hard" in particular - are looking to your brand for a sense of continuity. They want consistent visual and verbal cues. They want a solid relationship. They've bonded to your imagery, your voice and your design - that's one of the reasons they are "buyers." So be careful and gentle when you make changes to your email creative. And have good reasons for changing direction. Don't switch things up just because you as a marketer are personally sick of the proverbial redhead.
From: Coach.com
Subject Line: Introducing the first fragrance from Coach
Date: Monday, March 5, 2007
A lot of us have been feeling like Coach has turned into a big old logo machine as of late, watering down the product in order to appeal to a broader market. I guess that's one way to grow. And so is launching a fragrance! Reed Krakoff puts it nicely: "I wanted to create a fragrance that embodies the many personalities of Coach women." So are we targeting everyone after all, or only schizos? (I think we might want to reword that quote. Is there a copy editor in the house?)
From: gap.com
Subject Line: Up to 70% Off: Last Chance to Shop Clearance
Date: Thursday, January 25, 2007
I hate to kick a brand while they're down, but how can Gap regain their glow when their logo looks like it's covered in mud? I'm not sure I've ever witnessed a company deface their own logo like this. Polish it off, for Pete's sake!
I've appreciated the humor sprinkled throughout Urban Outfitters' email campaigns, but even more I appreciate the LOVE I get each week from fredflare.com. On December 18, they told me "WE LOVE YOU / THX FOR BEING OUR BESTIE:)" which is just about the cutest thing I've ever read in an email. On December 22, they assured me that they're "HERE FOR [ME]!", all smiley with hearts, and on the 29th they thanked me for "an amazing year."
I just think it's so nice and sweet that Fred Flare is mailin' out some love each week. I always open their campaigns - they bring a smile to my face. (I'm sure they must be getting some love back in return from their customers!) This seems like such a nice way to drive sales. Maybe we could all try to inject some love into our campaigns this year. Thanks Fred Flare!
From: fredflare.com
Subject Line: fredflare.com's $9.95 3-DAY ENDS TODAY!!!!!!
Date: Monday, December 18, 2006
From: fredflare.com
Subject Line: fredflare.com is HERE FOR YA!
Date: Friday, December 22, 2006
From: fredflare.com
Subject Line: fredflare.com's FREE SHIPPING ENDS SUN:)
Date: Friday, December 29, 2006
I am all for innovation, but this is ridiculous. To start, Neiman Marcus appears to be exceedingly proud of the "unfolding magic" which is possibly the crappiest video ever made. Come on! What the heck is that!?
And then there's Crate & Barrel. They're so excited about their first TV commercial that they sent an ad about an ad. Wow! A TV ad? Amazing!
Finally, we've got Bergdorf Goodman selling CDs. Maybe I just don't grasp their greater "live-in-our-brand-bubble" vision, but how does a Bergdorf Goodman CD collection make any sense? And who buys CDs anymore anyway?
From: Neiman Marcus
Subject Line: The Christmas Book is here!
Date: Tuesday, October 3, 2006
From: Crate and Barrel
Subject Line: Preview our new TV ad
Date: Thursday, October 5, 2006
From: Bergdorf Goodman
Subject Line: Volume: Preview & own the music of Bergdorf Goodman
Date: Friday, October 27, 2006
For those of you unacquainted with giggle, they're a baby/new parent store, offering a product assortment "pre-sorted to include only the most healthy, stylish and innovative" items. I think they've done a great job distinguishing themselves from both branding and merchandizing perspectives.
As far these EDMs go, I love the design template; the stripes and the dropshadowing around the border make for an unexpected, fun combination. But are we so overloaded with product that we don't know where to look? As a $-friendly designer, I'm all for showing the widest breadth of assortment possible, but how many elements are "too many"? At what point do we overwhelm a user into overload? Do too many click-through opportunities cancel each other out entirely?
From: giggle
Subject Line: Spooktacular Halloween Treats
Date: Wednesday, October 11, 2006
From: giggle
Subject Line: 50 amazing gifts under $25, plus FREE gift wrapping
Date: Wednesday, December 6, 2006
For those of you that haven't heard the news, Gap Inc. has launched a new accessories brand: Piperlime. It is, in essence, a polished Zappo's: an online shoe shop featuring hundreds of brands other than Gap. I was initially surprised that Gap would become a middleman-merchant, but considering the fact that their own brands haven't been performing, while Zappos.com and other high-margin accessories retailers have been raking it in, I guess it makes sense. I wonder whether Piperlime has been in the works for long, or whether it was a quick, reactionary move?
So what about the Piperlime brand? Do fruit juice connections and conversational tones feel cute or stilted? Will the brand perform, or are we all already so jazzed with Zappos.com that we don't need a Zappos with lime? I'm extremely curious to see where things go with Piperlime, and would love to hear your thoughts.
From: BananaRepublic.com
Subject Line: Introducing our newest brand Piperlime and get $15 off.
Date: Thursday, November 9, 2006
From: Piperlime
Subject Line: Welcome to Fresh Juice from Piperlime.
Date: Thursday, November 9, 2006
From: Piperlime
Subject Line: Cute boots for kids and exciting new women's brands.
Date: Thursday, November 16, 2006
Racoon on a leash!? Lions and bunnies!? "Shut up and Shop!"? A colleague recently sent me a screenshot of the last page you see after making a barneys.com purchase. It read as follows: " Thank you for your order. You will receive an email confirmation shortly. Now go back to work!" And check out the Back Cover of their "Saga of Sylvia" catalog.
I applaud Barney's for their generous use of humor. The silly imagery, Hollywood commentary, and "casually elegant" handwritten font, which evokes a clever little dashed-off note, project an alluring "we've got it all/the devil may care!" attitude.
From: Barneys New York
Subject Line: What is a Man? Find out at Barneys.com
Date: Friday, September 22, 2006
From: Barneys New York
Subject Line: Wedges, Platforms + Boots - Barneys New York
Date: Wednesday, October 18, 2006
From: Barneys New York
Subject Line: Let Your Accessories Speak for You - Barneys New York
Date: Thursday, November 9, 2006
From: Hollister
Subject Line: Take a Trip with Hollister - Downtown to Surftown
Date: Thursday, July 20 2006
Regardless of my feelings about Hollister and parent brand Abercrombie & Fitch - namely that they use sex inappropropriately to market to children - I have to applaud their brilliant branding efforts. I do not frequent their website much less their stores, but even through my limited contact with the brand - via email - I have developed a very strong sense of the Hollister "imaginaire." Hollister is not just a clothing retailer. It's a place, a texture, a way of life, a state of mind - an imaginary west coast refuge of laid-back beauty. It's in the words, the font faces, the imagery. It's an incredibly well-constructed illusion that promises teen paradise is as close as slipping on a "Mountain Road Beach Henley".
As the subject line reads: "Take a Trip with Hollister - Downtown to Surftown". Click here to see a technically impressive execution of this seductive imaginary world.
From: Starbucks.com
Subject Line: Coming soon – a must-see movie from Starbucks Entertainment
Date: Wednesday, April 26, 2006
From: Diesel
Subject Line: Calling all unsigned musicians!
Date: Tuesday, May 30, 2006
From: Starbucks.com
Subject Line: Catch the new Dan Zanes CD at Starbucks
Date: Wednesday, May 31, 2006
You can't go a single day without seeing a Wall Street Journal article about new media channels, TV online, and advertainment, etc. Since media is "so hot right now," I guess we shouldn't be surprised to see coffee and clothing retailers expanding their brands into movies and music. I actually saw "Akeelah and the Bee" (I also drink about four cups of coffee a day) - it was cute - but somehow seeing the "Starbucks Entertainment" logo at the film's start just felt wrong. We'll see...
From: Nike Women
Subject Line: Make a Splash with the Nike Swim Collection
Date: Monday, April 10, 2006
Who is this email addressing? It comes from "Nike Women", but the racy Sports Illustrated closeups were clearly photographed for men. And what is this email selling? I don't see any swimwear. I only see Maria Sharapova, who happens to be a tennis player, not a swimmer. The "playful polka dots" and "quick-drying fabric" referred to in the body copy aren't even visible in the blacked-out imagery.
This email is addressing no one about nothing. So much for women's athletics. Thanks Nike!
From: Earl Jean Newsletter
Subject Line: Tax Season Special Promotion from Earl Jean
Date: Thursday, March 30, 2006
Let me be frank, the primary reason I'm posting this message is that the offer is so awesome: get 50% off everything on Earl Jean's website through April 15. That's pretty amazing. (I bought something.)
While I was happy to take advantage of the offer, I do feel that a "Tax Season Special Promotion" is totally off-brand for Earl Jean. It might fit for - say - Quicken Financial Software - but Earl Jean puts out an "I'm too cool to pay taxes" image, a dirty hair and dirty deeds image, so to frame a sale within a "Tax Seaon" context doesn't make any sense. It's just not sexy.
On a technical note, it's really not appropriate to use "Newsletter" in the "From:" field unless you're delivering content (like an article), so in this case, it would make more sense just to use "Earl Jean."
But anyway, what a deal! Buy something!
From: Ann Taylor
Subject Line: The New Collection is Here, with an Exclusive Offer
Date: Tuseday, February 28, 2006
This is a such nice, clean creative execution. It has a light, refined quality that really says "Ann Taylor in the Spring." I think it captures the overall brand cleanup that's been happening recently at Ann Taylor.
On a separate note, since January, Ann Taylor has been doing a notable job executing multiple messages within each campaign. This email manages to address the Spring Collection, a Shoe Sale AND an Online Sale without overwhelming viewers. A rare achievement. Bravo, Ann.
One recommendation for improvement: the New Arrivals main message features the PETITE call-to-action so prominently, we loose sight of the opportunity to click through to the main collection. The two call-outs should really be given equal weight.
From: FreePeople.com
Subject Line: Go with the flow in Free People dresses
Date: Tuesday, February 14, 2006
From: Barneys New York
Subject Line: Fresh Cannabis
Date: Wednesday, February 15, 2006
There's a Pot Party in my inbox! Today Barney's surprised me with a crazy "WE LOVE CANNABIS" message! Seems a little off-brand for Barney's, despite their attempt to cloak the idea in an elegant, minimalist black box. And maybe it's only because I read it in tandem with the Barney's message, but Free People's dress campaign looks more like it's recommending we let body odor and Marijuana smoke "flow around and through" us. But heck, at least it's on-brand. 4:20, dude!
From: Bliss Beaut-e-mail
Subject Line: winning news from bliss
Date: Friday, February 10, 2006
While I love Bliss products, I sometimes don't love their brand tone. "I-can-have-it-all" sassiness can look too much like "I-can-have-it-all" bitchiness, as is the case with this smirky gal "who's been two-timing." To send something like this so close to Valentine's Day comes off as, well, bitchy.
From: Coach.com
Subject Line: Find Charming Holiday Gifts at Coach
Date: Monday, November 28, 2005
These past few years, Coach has done such an amazing job of going from boring to boppy. This campaign is just another example of the bright, happy new presence they've become. The idea of buying charms as holiday gifts NEVER crossed my mind - until I saw this EDM and immediately purchased three.
One suggestion: leverage your brand recognition and newfound popularity by rocking a big old logo! "Coach.com" only appears here as one of several small menu navigation items.
From: holdeverything
Subject Line: Specialty of the house: furniture that works
Date: Wednesday, October 12, 2005
I like this email because it really typefies the holdeverything brand. The product is relevant and the copy is helpful. What you can't see in the screenshot: the couch animates from folded to pulled-out.
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