  April 01, 2008Aw, c'mon Steve!
From: AppleSubject Line: Test-drive MacBook Air at the Apple Retail Store. Date: Tuesday, April 1, 2008 Hey, get your data right, Steve-o! Not only did I already buy one at a retail store, but you emailed me a PDF receipt! (Which was cool, by the way, and so's the laptop.) Still - particularly for a higher pricepoint purchase like this - it makes sense to cobble together a suppression list so us early adapters feel like you still care. February 25, 2008Too close for comfort?
From: J.CrewSubject Line: Engaged? Date: Monday, February 25, 2008 OMG - how did they know :)!?!? Is this just a crazy coincidence, or did theknot.com sell me down the river? This is an interesting experience for me in that I am a believer in relevant messaging, but as, in this case, I was not the direct data source, the effect is unsettling as opposed to engaging. February 06, 2008Go Ask Alex
From: west elmSubject Line: See the chicest new sofa in town Date: Tuesday, February 5, 2008 User-generated content and product reviews are popping up in email more and more, with reports of success, proving that we do want to hear what people like us have to say about the brands and products we shop. But what to do if you're just not there yet technically, and/or you're a more aspirational/less democratic brand? west elm has found good ground by including quotes and images of people like us (only perhaps slightly cooler!?) in their emails and catalogs. Alex brings personality and perspective to this mail, no Web 2.0 required. I actually read her quote, spending perhaps 10 seconds more with this message than I otherwise might have. February 04, 2008Stuffed Donkey
From: Barneys New YorkSubject Line: BABIES win CAUCUSES! Date: Monday, February 4, 2008 I have to admit that I'm burning out a bit on all the caucuses action, but this is quite relevant and ridiculous pre-super-Tuesday :). BABIES win CAUCUSES! LOL :). November 12, 2007Daylight Savings
It's getting darker...earlier... Home furnishings retailers Pottery Barn, CB2 and Room & Board all picked up easy wins in the relevancy race by promoting lighting shortly after daylight savings. I also absolutely adore this easy win: the subject line "Daylight Savings!"
PB and CB2 pick up points for delivering just 2 and 3 days after the clock reset respectively, but Room & Board might have been smarter in taking the time to select a more practical product mix. That chandelier looks crazy! Although perhaps it's curiosity-factor inspired some clickthrough action. 
 From: Pottery Barn Subject Line: Daylight Savings! Save on select lighting + Sale Date: Monday, November 5, 2007 From: CB2 Subject Line: the beauty of daylight savings Date: Tuesday, November 6, 2007 From: Room & Board Subject Line: Lighting: Design that Illuminates Date: Thursday, November 8, 2007 November 09, 2007Don't you know who my father is!?
From: Bergdorf GoodmanSubject Line: Open a BG Credit Card and receive a free BG Gift Card & more Date: Friday, November 9, 2007 I was a bit disappointed to receive this communication from Bergdorf Goodman one week after having already signed up for their InCircle Rewards program and credit card. It didn't stop me from buying the Louboutins, but it did inspire me to at least crinkle my nose on opening. November 08, 2007Talking to Your Audience as They Are
From: J.CrewSubject Line: New sale arrivals... Date: Thursday, November 8, 2007 More than once I've mentioned that J.Crew does a great job writing direct, conversational copy. I guess they'd better, since so many of their emails rely solely on graphical text, like this one. It's your standard sale message, but I like that they say "now's a perfect time to take a five minute break..." They're not saying "shop now for your best selection, quantities are limited", which, after so many years of hearing it, is a phrase I practically find myself repeating in my sleep. Instead, they're directly addressing us as we are: in front of our computers, most likely working, weeding through our email. There's a freshness to thinking about and addressing recipients as they are that I really appreciate. October 31, 2007I am definitely laughing out loud...
From: La Quinta Inns & SuitesSubject Line: Laugh Out Loud with Our New Video Spots Date: Wednesday, October 31, 2007 I'd like to give a shoutout to Meg Reynolds at REI for forwarding along a particularly funny email from La Quinta. Yes, it is what it looks like it is: an ad for an ad. I'm all for "free breakfast, free high speed Internet, comfy beds and many new and newly renovated properties," and I understand that web video is apparently the bee's knees, but an email promoting "new commercials" to help subscribers "wake up on the bright side®" is perhaps a hair ridiculous? Meg put it best: "Why do companies think people want to get an email about their commercials? This is the third email touting commercials I’ve seen in the past couple of weeks. But the first where it’s the subject line. Even if they’re hilarious, I think emailing your commercials is a weird (not to mention indulgent) idea." April 10, 2007Make it Personal
From: fredflare.comSubject 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? March 25, 2007Straight From the Runway
From: SephoraSubject Line: SNEAK PEEK: Fall's Biggest Beauty Trends Date: Sunday, March 25, 2007 Sephora generally does a good job with making their emails timely and relevant. This one is a "TREND REPORT" highlighting looks that appeared on the runways. Red lips, bouncy hair and gunmetal eyes are all well-and-good in and of themselves, but framing them as recent runway trends give them much more relevance and power. What can you do to make your messages more relevant and powerful? BTW, Sephora is also following current best practices: body text, product names and prices are all featured as HTML rather than graphical text. February 28, 2007The Queen Goes to the Oscars
From: Lipstick QueenSubject 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. January 04, 2007Double-Points
From: Crate and BarrelSubject Line: Prime time to use holiday gift cards Date: Thursday, January 4, 2007 Crate and Barrel earns double-points for relevancy here: they're leveraging the reported news that apparently everyone bought a flat screen TV this holiday to drive gift card cash-ins. And to tie it all together with a clever "Prime time" subject line? I'd call that an "advanced move." The design itself leaves a little something to be desired - feels a little junky for CB, no? - but I'm willing to forgive that since this message is actually relevant. High five! January 01, 2007Thank you!
From: Neiman MarcusSubject Line: Fabulous stationery + test your thank-you writing know-how Date: Monday, January 1, 2007 I really like this message from Neiman Marcus. It's timely: we all have thank-you notes to write, don't we? It's engaging: we all want to know the "right" time to send those notes, don't we? It's brief: I think they featured the right amount of content. This isn't a hugely long email newsletter about thank-you note writing that we don't have time to read. It's an easy-to-digest quiz question that clearly prompts us to click through for satisfaction. (I did!) One recommendation for improvement: use a clearer headline. "In a word" is cute, but basically meaningless and easy to gloss over. Instead, feature "How soon should you send a thank-you note?" in the large pink type. I guarantee it will improve click-through. November 07, 2006Vote for Clothes
From: American ApparelSubject Line: American Apparel: Go Vote. Get 15% Off. Date: Tuesday, November 7, 2006 American Apparel knows: kids shop, they don't vote. While I generally frown upon their Korine-ish kiddie porn aesthetic, I applaud American Apparel for leveraging kids' desire for a deal to promote the youth vote. Yay Democrats, by the way ;). October 08, 2006Flight-Friendly Beauty
From: Sephora Beauty EditorsSubject Line: Plane-Friendly Beauty: Bring It On Board Date: Sunday, October 8, 2006 Sephora keeps things relevant by addressing carry-on restriction changes with "Flight-Friendly Beauty." August 10, 2006Who are you? Lindsay? Hilary?
From: UrbanOutfitters.comSubject Line: Who are you? And do you like Free Shipping? Date: Thursday, August 10, 2007 This EDM uses a compelling offer to gather subscriber data. At the same time, it throws production values out the window in favor of humor. UO pokes fun at it's own categorization process, adding "Mama's Boy", "Blog", and of course, "Lindsay" and "Hilary" menu items. |
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