Email Creative Playbook Ideas & Examples for your next campaign
Yes Lifecycle Marketing
Yes Confidential | Email Design | February 15, 2017 2
Agenda 1. Creative Playbook:
• Design Ideas
• Coding Ideas
• Content Ideas
1. Trends in email
Yes Confidential | Email Design | February 15, 2017 3
Design ideas
| Email Design | February 15, 2017 Yes Confidential 4
• Impactful format stands out in the inbox
• Good tactic for announcement emails
• Follows best practice… headline & CTA are code-based
Sans header
| Email Design | February 15, 2017 Yes Confidential 5
• Desktop uses arrows to navigate the slides
• When scaled to mobile, the arrows disappear, leaving thumbnail images as navigation
• Viewed in Webmail, the carousel falls back to a rotating animated gif
Responsive carousel
| Email Design | February 15, 2017 Yes Confidential 6
• Unique in the inbox
• Good tactic for lifecycle messaging (birthday, anniversary, etc.)
• Extra points with the tech-savvy audience
• Works on Webkit environments
Parallax scrolling
| Email Design | February 15, 2017 Yes Confidential 7
• Unique in the inbox
• Good tactic for lifecycle messaging (birthday, anniversary, etc.)
Long-Scroll or Side scroll
Yes Confidential | Email Design | February 15, 2017 8
Coding Ideas
| Email Design | February 15, 2017 Yes Confidential 9
• Uses image hotspots that display product detail & Buy button when clicked
• Cool tactic for retailers…just don’t forget to plan for graceful degradation in non-Webkit environments
Product hotspots
| Email Design | February 15, 2017 Yes Confidential 10
• Uses an interactive word puzzle to "unlock" offer
• Unique in the inbox
• Nice tactic for special events or promos
• Works on Webkit environments
Interactive puzzle
| Email Design | February 15, 2017 Yes Confidential 11
• Hover states can be added to buttons or elements
• The same technique can also be used to create rollover images that resize for mobile!
• Good technique for a product education module
• Works in Webkit environments
CSS effects
| Email Design | February 15, 2017 Yes Confidential 12
• Make objects move gracefully
• Drop, slide, spin, etc
More Examples
• BALLOON http://preview.4at5.net/email_domains/vco/0037/archive/3/vco_0037e.html
• MOUSE OVER http://preview.4at5.net/email_domains/vco/0115/vco_0115e.html
• SLIDE DROP http://preview.4at5.net/email_domains/vco/0115/vco_0115c.html
CSS effects
| Email Design | February 15, 2017 Yes Confidential 13
• iOS scratch
• All others click
Scratch-Its
| Email Design | February 15, 2017 Yes Confidential 14
• Great way to connect inbox to calendar
Add to Calendar
| Email Design | February 15, 2017 Yes Confidential 15
• Proven eye-trackers!
Dynamic Maps
| Email Design | February 15, 2017 Yes Confidential 16
• Great way to connect inbox to calendar
Mobile Wallet
| Email Design | February 15, 2017 Yes Confidential 17
• Employs CSS animation to create a 3D card opening triggered by tap or mouse-over
• Works in Webkit environments
Interactive card
Yes Confidential | Email Design | February 15, 2017 18
Content Ideas
Yes Confidential | Email Design | February 15, 2017
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Photo Issue
Yes Confidential | Email Design | February 15, 2017
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Trends
Yes Confidential | Email Design | February 15, 2017
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Staff Picks
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Top Ten Lists
Most Read Articles : Spring 2016
Most Search Destinations
Most Redeemed Destinations
Top Trending Warm Locales
Yes Confidential | Email Design | February 15, 2017
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• Great as reoccurring sticky content
Humor
Humor
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• Request input
• Display results
• Community
• Interactive
Social: Call & Display
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Curated content
| Email Design | February 15, 2017 26
Remember, you’re adding value for the reader.
While it seems counterintuitive to link away from your site, the reader will remember that you pointed them to that great article.
Consistently provide supplemental content & the audience will be looking for your next email… “wonder what’s in this month’s newsletter”.
Curating existing content that syncs well with your marketing message is an efficient way to add sticky.
27,000,000 pieces of content are shared everyday.2
Don’t be afraid to link out
2AOL and Nielsen
Yes Confidential | Email Design | February 15, 2017 27
Cool trends & tactics in email
design
Examples from brands enjoying high email
engagement
Matthew Caldwell, SVP Creative
| Email Design | February 15, 2017 28
Solid contender for best retail email
Sticky elements: editorial profiles, tips, trivia
Even their straight marketing is well crafted & engaging
Case study in training subscribers to open
Bonobos
| Email Design | February 15, 2017 29
Doesn’t get much stickier than this
Includes: expert profiles, tool tips, photo essays, trivia, interactive quizzes, workflow tips…
Monthly newsletter that leaves you counting the days until the next drop
Hightail
| Email Design | February 15, 2017 30
Retail email + perfectly bite-sized content
Sticky elements: tips, galleries, editorial articles, & music
Well-curated, outside content that resonates with the audience
Always links out to blogs, SoundCloud, etc.
FY
| Email Design | February 15, 2017 Yes Confidential 31
• High-end photography
• Contextual targeting
• Daily updates
Aquabumps
| Email Design | February 15, 2017 Yes Confidential 32
• Curated content
• Ultra clean design
• Instagram sign off
Huckberry
| Email Design | February 15, 2017 Yes Confidential 33
| Email Design | February 15, 2017 Yes Confidential 34
• Editorial content
• Minimal design
• Simple animation
Everlane
| Email Design | February 15, 2017 Yes Confidential 35
• Content
• Illustration
• Animation
Tory Burch
| Email Design | February 15, 2017 Yes Confidential 36
• Products based on browsed history
• Solid design
Etsy
| Email Design | February 15, 2017 Yes Confidential 37
• Lifestyle content
• Amazing photos
• Spotify playlists
• Video & animation
Yeti
| Email Design | February 15, 2017 Yes Confidential 38
• Value-added content
• IG sign off module
Backcountry
| Email Design | February 15, 2017 Yes Confidential 39
• No header!
• Sleek layout
• Useful content
• Nice illustrations
Uber
| Email Design | February 15, 2017 Yes Confidential 40
• Mobile 1st design
• Good typography
• Cool animation
• Minimal status bar
Starbucks
| Email Design | February 15, 2017 Yes Confidential 41
• Engaging content
• Striking design
• Strong delineation
InVision
| Email Design | February 15, 2017 42
For best-in-class content, look no further
Sticky: Interviews with design leaders, tips, tutorials, blog articles, weekly list of favorite links, webinar series…
Striking design + engaging content = inbox favorite
InVision
| Email Design | February 15, 2017 Yes Confidential 43
• Curated content
• Good use of video
• Consistent formula
Patagonia
| Email Design | February 15, 2017 44
Good example of a consistent formula
Sticky: photo contests, photo galleries, editorial articles, video biographies of athletes, & customer stories
Each email closes with an engagement piece
Patagonia
| Email Design | February 15, 2017 Yes Confidential 45
• Clean, mobile- first design
• Rich visuals & content
• Highly targeted offers
Dollar Shave Club
| Email Design | February 15, 2017 Yes Confidential 46
• Mobile only design
• Geo-targeted contextual emails
• Great personality & humor in the content
Poncho
| Email Design | February 15, 2017 Yes Confidential 47
• Clean design
• Good content
• Vibrant imagery
Trek
| Email Design | February 15, 2017 Yes Confidential 48
• Free stuff
Shutterfly
| Email Design | February 15, 2017 Yes Confidential 49
• Curated content
• Mouse-over effects
• Humor
ActionRocket
Yes Confidential | Email Design | February 15, 2017 50
What category
of emails is enjoying the
highest consistent open
rates?
Yes Confidential | Email Design | February 15, 2017 51
Newsletters
Highest open rates:
Yes Confidential | Email Design | February 15, 2017 52
Email has become more than just a personal communication hub—when it
comes to newsletters, email has essentially become the new homepage.
- Jordan Teicher, Contently
Yes Confidential | Email Design | February 15, 2017 53
What do these emails have in common?
Clean Design
Good Type
Quality Images + = + + Engagement
Content