EMAIL

LOOKBOOK
SPRING/SUMMER 2014
INTRODUCTION
A really good email is often the difference between a click-through
and a direct route into the spam folder. And with new advancements in
email inbox organization, such as Gmail’s new tabs, it is becoming even
more difficult to stay in the coveted inbox. Today’s marketers need a
combination of eye-catching design, clever text, and attention-grabbing
headlines to engage and be top-of-mind for today’s consumers.
That’s why we have compiled a collection of our favorite emails. We are
highlighting emails that are creative, inspiring, and beg to be opened!

In this lookbook we will be examining the following

email elements and types:

• Personalization • Abandoned cart emails

• Timely content • Social media

• Multi-media • Human copy

• Welcome emails • Eye-catching design

• Re-engagement emails

2
PERSONALIZATION
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3
INSTACART
SUBJECT LINE:
Dayna, Need More Asparagus?

This email from Instacart, an online

grocery delivery service, is a
great example of behavior-based
personalization. Instacart speaks
directly to the recipient in the subject
line by stating her name and mentioning
an item that she previously ordered.
Additionally, the body of the email
contains a prompt to re-order some of
her recently purchased items, making
this email extremely relevant and timely.
Finally, the layout is clean (lots of white
space!), making the email easy to
consume (no pun intended).

4
KIEHL’S
SUBJECT LINE:
You’re Invited: Healthy Skin
Essentials Event

This email from Kiehl’s uses location-

based personalization to remain relevant
to the customer, featuring an invite to a
local event. Plus, Kiehl’s offers an extra
incentive—a complimentary 20-minute
facial, with chocolate! I mean, who doesn’t
like chocolate? Also, notice the preheader
(the text above the Kiehl’s logo): They’ve
even personalized/localized the phone
number! By sending your customers offers
in their local area code, you signal your
appreciation, and your awareness of
their location.

5
FITBIT
SUBJECT LINE:
Your 2013 Fitbit Activity

Fitbit is fantastic at sending

personalized emails that speak directly
to their subscribers in a language that
is human. The example email on the
right shows a personal milestone of
the recipient—the number of miles
she traveled in 2013. By helping your
customers keep track of product usage,
you are not only engaging them with
relevant information, but also gently
reminding them to keep using your
product or service. This email is also
very sharable. Notice the Facebook
and Twitter buttons at the bottom
of the message making it easy to tell
your friends about your awesome
Fitbit mileage.

6
TIMELY CONTENT
There is nothing more pertinent than creating content around
current events, news, and holidays. If it is top-of-mind for your
subscribers, than you should leverage that relevancy to create
content that resonates. Maybe it’s a holiday, the Super Bowl, the
beginning of a season, or a recent event. If your customers are
thinking about it, they are more likely to click (and buy!).

7
UNIQUE VINTAGE
SUBJECT LINE:
Prom or Bust!

Knowing that many of their customers

will be thinking about prom in March
(prom season), Unique Vintage has
created a compelling email asking
subscribers to browse their site for
prom styles. They even created a
lookbook (much like this one!) to
showcase key prom styles for 2014. If
you are looking for your prom dress
and love the retro look, you will surely
click through to see what this site has to
offer. This email also offers compelling
design with bright, intriguing imagery.

Bonus: The subject line ties in nicely

with the cardboard sign!

8
BENEFIT COSMETICS
SUBJECT LINE:
Glow for it: Celebrate the Olympics

The Winter Olympics was a hot topic in

2014. Benefit Cosmetics took advantage
of the buzz and sent out an Olympics-
themed email, telling customers to
“Glow for the Gold” and highlighting
some of their most popular brightening
products. The email design is clever, fun,
and definitely plays into the Olympic
spirit. Check out the cosmetics—proudly
donning their medals on the podium!

9
SHARPER IMAGE
SUBJECT LINE:
Holiday Gift Guide

The holidays are always a great time to send

out timely emails. Plus, everyone is looking
for gift guides and tips on what to give
their loved ones. Sharper Image created a
Holiday Gift Guide in their email to help their
customers purchase the perfect gifts. The
email features images of their products and is
intuitively, clearly organized, so it is obvious
where each type of subscriber should click.
Even better, when subscribers click on an
image, they go directly to that category page
for easy purchase. Nothing is more annoying
than clicking on a product and being sent to
the homepage…where you have to search for
the specific item you want to buy.

Bonus: They use Betty White

(and a kitten).

10
MULTI-MEDIA
Email marketing technology has enabled emails to be much
more dynamic and engaging than in years past. Marketers
can now leverage animation, videos, and other media to really
make their content pop. It’s not easy to stand out in today’s
overcrowded inbox. Using multi-media marketing is one
effective way.

11
CAKEBREAD CELLARS
SUBJECT LINE:
(Recipe) Gnocchi with Braised Oxtail

Cakebread Cellars, a winery in Napa, CA

includes video recipes in their emails.
They partner with local chefs to create
recipes that pair nicely with their wines.
But what is better than simply listing
out a recipe in an email? Including
a video of their chef demonstrating
exactly how to make the dish. To be
clear, this email includes a thumbnail
image with a link to the actual video.
Oh, and that subject line? I don’t know
about you, but our mouths water every
time we read (and re-read it).

12
LOWES
SUBJECT LINE:
Enjoy Big Savings This Veterans
Day at Lowes

For Veterans Day, Lowe’s sent out an

animated GIF email enticing customers
to take advantage of discounted popular
items. It’s not easy to show using
screenshots, but the product images are
actually changing (drills/wrenches to
washers/dryers). Using animation creates
a dynamic—relevant—experience for your
readers. Just note, make sure you test your
animated emails on mobile.

The screenshots to the right show the

animated sequence.

13
WELCOME EMAILS
The welcome email is a critical part of any email marketing
strategy. Studies have shown that if you send a series of emails,
the welcome email is one of the most opened. When someone
signs up to receive your content, you want their experience
to be memorable. If it’s unmemorable, you will likely find your
emails being ignored—or worse, marked as spam. Some things
to remember when crafting your welcome email? Make it
conversational, don’t be afraid to use humor, create a compelling
design, and personalize. You can even toss in a discount code
and/or a free download.

14
MUNCHERY
SUBJECT LINE:
Welcome Aboard! Ready to Eat Better?

This welcome email is sent by Munchery,

a local Bay Area food delivery service,
after a customer orders his or her first
meal. It includes a conversational subject
line, compelling imagery, and a list of
what you can expect from your Munchery
subscription. Setting expectations up front
is a great way to prepare your subscribers
for emails they’ll receive in the coming
weeks and months. And notice the strong
call–to–action button—“See What’s
Cookin”—at the bottom of the email. This
is a great way to drive new subscribers
back to your website to begin taking
action (buying more food in this case)
immediately!

15
CHANDON
SUBJECT LINE:
A Special Offer to Welcome You
to Chandon

After a customer first subscribes to receive

communications from Chandon, a popular
Napa winery, they receive a welcome
email that includes a special thanks for
subscribing, and a coupon code for 20%
to show their appreciation. They also
reinforce the expectations around content
(exclusive invitations, special offers, and
food-pairing suggestions). Finally, notice
the casual, conversational tone. Anyone
else ready for a glass of vino?

16
RE-ENGAGEMENT EMAILS
No matter how hard you try, sometimes your subscribers stop
engaging with your emails. We call these folks “emotionally
unsubscribed.” They are on your list, but are not opening, not
clicking, and/or not buying. When this happens, the savvy marketer
sends a re-engagement email, a “nudge” message, with the hope of
putting their brand top-of-mind with their subscribers, and enticing
them to restart engaging with their emails. While not always
necessary, sometimes including a special offer or discount code will
help to further pique their interest. Humor sometimes works too!

17
AIRBNB
SUBJECT LINE:
Try One Night on Us—Details Inside

If you create an account on Airbnb,

but fail to make a reservation/
complete a booking, expect to receive
a re-engagement email. This specific
email includes a special offer for the
subscriber to try a night on them, which
is very compelling. And why not try
Airbnb if they are footing the bill?

Bonus: Great subject line and very

clear call-to-action button.

18
LYFT
SUBJECT LINE:
Here’s One Free Ride!

Lyft sends out a special offer of one free

ride for customers who have not used
their car service in a while. Their copy is
personalized, has a human touch, and
lets you know that they have already
added the free credit to your account—
so you don’t have to do a thing! Again,
the subject line is meant to draw
inactive subscribers in, hoping they’ll
open the email and take action (re-
engage!). Finally, they create a sense of
urgency by including an expiration date
on the free ride. Oh, and how great are
those social sharing options? Share and
get even more ride credits? Yes!

19
MACY’S
SUBJECT LINE:
Last Chance: Say Yes to Macy’s
Emails Now

Macy’s takes more of a straightforward

approach to re-engaging subscribers.
They simply encourage you to hurry
and confirm your email subscription.
They remind you of the value of your
subscription—that if you keep receiving
their emails, you will never miss out on
sales, events, and more. And they make it
easy to keep receiving emails—simply click
on the obvious red button to confirm your
subscription. They also take advantage
of the preheader with the nice “Yes! Keep
sending me emails” messaging.

20
ABANDONED CART EMAILS
As a consumer, how many times have you gone to a website, added
something to your cart, and then left the site without making a
purchase? While there is no one metric, many companies report
this abandoned cart rate well north of 50%. However, as a marketer,
an abandoned cart email is a great way to remind subscribers who
haven’t completed their purchase that they have an item waiting in
their carts. We typically recommend sending the first abandoned
cart email shortly after the cart is abandoned (a few hours), followed
by a reminder 24 hours later. A third—and final—reminder email can
be sent 5–7 days after. The last email can also include some incentive.

21
ASOS
SUBJECT LINE:
You Left Something in Your
Shopping Cart

If a consumer adds something to her

cart and leaves the ASOS site without
purchasing, ASOS sends out a reminder
email that lets the customer know. ASOS
also creates a sense of urgency, asking
her to complete the order before the
item is gone. Lastly, they try to re-spark
interest with an image of the item.

22
AT&T
SUBJECT LINE:
Get FREE Shipping When You
Complete Your Order

AT&T sends an email to customers

who have abandoned their shopping
carts offering free shipping. Their
email reminds subscribers that “the
deal in your cart” won’t last long, and
encourages them to complete the order
now for free shipping and free returns.
The email also includes a clear call-to-
action, so the subscriber knows exactly
where to click.

23
LET’S GET SOCIAL
Another great engagement strategy is to ask your subscribers
to follow you on social channels. Remind them that you are
on Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, or Instagram and let them
know what they can gain by following or liking your pages.

24
SFGATE
SUBJECT LINE:
A Warm Welcome From You to Us

The news site SFGate sends out an

email asking subscribers to follow them
on Pinterest. They include an obvious
call-to-action, and inform readers that
they can find local information about
“good ideas, good food, good times,
and more” on SFGate’s Pinterest page.

25
RENT THE RUNWAY
SUBJECT LINE:
Be Social

Rent the Runway wants you to engage

on all of their social networks. They
include easy-to-follow calls-to-action for
engaging on each social channel, and
they tell you what kind of content you can
expect. Rent the Runway even creates
special deals just for their Facebook fans!
Notice that each social channel offers
something unique. If you are going to
ask your email subscribers to follow you
on one or more of your social channels,
ensure it’s worth their time!

26
HUMAN COPY
In many cases, the key to a click-through is your email copy.
You need to strike a crucial balance between creating content
that is on-brand and gets your message across, but also
seems written by a human—not a robot. If your audience
can relate to you as a business, they are much more likely to
engage with your email marketing.

27
EAT24
SUBJECT LINE:
Your Weekend Coupon

Eat24 is known for their hilarious email

content and unique social voice. Below
is an email sent out from Eat24 for a
weekend coupon. Note their humorous
and distinctive copy. Because their
customers open these emails on the
weekend, it is critical to catch their
initial attention, but also to keep them
reading all of the way through. We like
the unconventional use of a skit, and,
of course, the inclusion of a coupon
code (bigbang24)!

28
MARKETO
SUBJECT LINE:
Owls + Blimps = Marketing Success

No shame in throwing one of our own

in here! For April Fool’s Day, Marketo
created a mock content asset, The
Definitive Guide to Aerial and Sky-
Based Marketing. Because it was a joke,
our email copy was very playful. We also
took an unusual approach to the subject
line, aiming to create something that
would draw attention and entice people
to click.

29
EYE-CATCHING DESIGN
It’s often the design of your email that really catches the
attention of your subscribers. Don’t be afraid to make your
design bold. Pay attention to imagery and font. Make sure that
your emails are streamlined and your calls-to-action are easy
to follow. Also, with Gmail’s recent “grid view” beta program,
visuals may play an even more important role in not just click-
through, but also opens.

30
PIPERLIME
SUBJECT LINE:
Ready, Set, Go: Effortless Travel Style +
25% off Chic Steals

This Piperlime email is clean, modern,

and uses eye-catching visuals to capture
the attention of their audience. This
email is also functional—it offers up a
25% off coupon and it gives tips on how
to wear global prints, the summer style
they are advertising.

31
ANTHROPOLOGIE
SUBJECT LINE:
A Warm Welcome from You to Us

This welcome email from Anthropologie

uses imagery that looks like it came
straight out of a fashion magazine,
which is perfect for their target
audience. They don’t use stock photos
and have taken the time to merchandise
their new arrivals. This email is
dominated by visual imagery, so their
recipients are focusing on what matters
for Anthropologie—the clothing.

32
 INSTACART
This email from Instacart, an online
grocery delivery service, is a
great example of behavior-based
personalization. Instacart speaks
directly to the recipient in the subject
line by stating her name and an
item that she previously ordered.
Additionally, the body of the email
contains a prompt to re-order some of
her recently purchased items, making
this email extremely relevant and timely.
Finally, the layout is clean (lots of white
space!), making the email easy to
consume (no pun intended).

Subject Line: Dayna, Need More

Marketing Software. Easy, Powerful, Complete.
Asparagus?
Marketo (NASDAQ: MKTO) provides the leading marketing software for companies of all sizes to build and sustain engaging
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applications are known for their ease-of-use, and are complemented by the Marketing Nation™, a thriving network of more than
250 third-party solutions through our LaunchPoint™ ecosystem and over 40,000 marketers who share and learn from each
other to grow their collective marketing expertise. The result for modern marketers is unprecedented agility and superior results.
Headquartered in San Mateo, CA with offices in Europe, Australia and a joint-venture in Japan, Marketo serves as a strategic
marketing partner to more than 3,000 large enterprises and fast-growing small companies across a wide variety of industries.

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