It’s getting down to the wire for holiday shopping. I’ve been keeping a look out for emails that are done well to help identify online retailers who are doing a great job and those who haven’t. In Vol.1, I gave a lump of coal to an online retailer who made terrible mistakes and then made them again in the next email they sent out again. I guess that proves my point about them not listening.

At any rate, installment 2 brings us a new Naughty and new Nice because I don’t need to rehash what went wrong there in this post.

Naughty

Today, eBags is on my naughty list. I guess no luggage for me for Christmas. On first look, there don’t seem to be any problems, but upon closer inspection, I see lots of missed opportunity. And for me missed opportunity is a marketing crime. I submit into evidence the following:

1. The Subject Line: “Extra Day to Save 30% + Free Shipping – Last Chance!”  The problem here is that the message is muddied – both in the subject line and the email – and the result is that the sense of urgency is just tagged to the end like an afterthought. There’s no point in afterthoughts in email marketing. Everything should be intentional. A better subject line might be something more like “Last Chance! Hurry for an extra 30% + Free Shipping.” See the difference?
2. Not enough gifting: Other than the snowflakes and the notification about on-time delivery, there’s not emphasis on gifts – not even the extra 24 hours of the deal as a gift to the email recipient. The statement that the sale is extended another day is stated at least 3 times on the email body, but it still feels soft and under stated. Think about the added impact of using copy that says, “In the spirit of the season, we’re giving you an extra day to save.” Emphasizing the reason and then the deal actually increases the value of the message.
3. Doesn’t create the crave: “Create the crave” is my slogan for showing the product. Give them something to lust over to give them a more focused target. Specific is powerful, and that could have done a world of wonder for them. Remember when the Infinity car brand launched, and the teaser commercials just showed some outdoor vista? Instead of sleek rooflines, it showed a flock of geese. Backfired. (My attempts to find the video of this has come up empty, so I can’t show you if you weren’t old enough at the time to recall for yourself.)

Nice

The Levi’s email is pretty by the book, really, but it adds enough interesting twists to make me point it out. It takes a chance that pays off.

1. Emphasizing the reason: I know you’re going to say that the intro banner is the same thing other emails have been guilty of, but not true. The subject line in this email is “Your search for the perfect gift ends here – Get 30% off All Gift Ideas,” and the entire email reinforces that message. The recipient gets what they opened it for. It’s clear, direct, concise, and well played.
2. A little twist: You can’t tell in the screenshot here, but the email uses animation to switch out images of the male and female models. It adds motion to the email, a great way to keep the recipient engaged long enough to increase chances of a click-through. This is a risky tactic as most animated gifs (the only kind that will really work in an email) are generally pretty tacky, but this one is well executed. It not only gets a pass, it gets an A.
3. Great supplementary info: It’s as though they took my imaginary email marketing class. Below the main call are some great added incentives to click through. Gift wrapping that’s shown. A link to an online video. People love video, so it’s a great idea to feature a relevant one if you have it. Added bonus is that they link to Facebook, Twitter (of course), and their mobile shopping site. Understanding that a great many of these emails are being opened on a mobile device, it makes sense to make buying right from that device as simple as possible.

So there you are. One email with lost opportunities and another that is textbook great. Enjoy while I’m busy working on volume 3.

Tags: animated, ebags, email marketing, levi, video | Category Marketing, Web & Tech