Cool Trends & Tactics in Email Design MATTHEW CALDWELL
SVP CREATIVE
“What emails
do you love?”
I asked our clients
and employees.
“What emails do you always open?”
Here’s what they said.
And what makes them
so special.
{ Cool Trends & Tactics : Copy these! }
“What emails
do you love?”
Tory Burch
Mary Grundy Visa
Illustration
Content
Animation
Huckberry
Matt Hickman VP National Accounts
Ultra Clean
Curated
Content
Closing
Photography
Instagram
Aquabumps
Miguel Blanca Lopez eBay Developer
Amazing
photos
Local
conditions
Updated daily
Stylized sender & subject
lines
Just two colons makes it stand
out in the inbox
Yeti
Natalie Punzel Land’s End
Lifestyle
content
Amazing
Photos
Spotify
playlists
Videos &
animation
Choice Hotels
Heidy Gomez Sr. Designer - YES
Clean Header
Responsive
logo & search
Status Bar
Good Type
Mouse-over
button effects
Everlane
Clark Cummings Marriott
Animation
Content
Clean design
Virgin America
Danielle McNamara Sr. Designer - YES
Animation
Clean, simple
design
Virgin knew they’d be sending many of the
same postcard.
They hired an illustrator to animate up to
15 Avatars
Blue Apron
Danielle McNamara Sr. Designer - YES
Good
Typography
Clean, simple
design
Content
Killer photos
Kate Spade
Danielle McNamara Sr. Designer - YES
Clean design
Animation
Uber
Steve Keen Footwear
No Header!
Illustrations
Clean layout
Content
Good type
Tattly
Mike Parapetti Art Director - YES
Clean layout
Great Photos
Illustrations
Animation
Starbucks
Cathy Montgomery Paypal
Great
Typography
Mobile first
design
Clean small
header
Minimal
status bar
Spirit Airlines
Sterling Crain Sr. Designer -- YES
Humor
Animation
MooseJaw
Sterling Sr. Designer -- YES
Humor
Value Added
Content
Animation
TGI Fridays
Alex eBay
Animation
Timely
Content
Humor
Etsy
Jen Tabal Content Director
Products
based on
browsed
history
Backcountry
Afton McCann Art Director
Black & White
Instagram
image
endings
Value added
content
Madewell
Kathy Jankovic Art Director - YES
Clean design
Map in footer
TurboTax
Ryan Smythe Sr. Designer - YES
Status Bar
Clean &
simple
Nothing
Matt Colwell Darden
Nada
:(
Really Matt? No love?
Free People
Laura Smith Sr. Designer - YES
Content
Chubbies
Kyle Hendricks Account Mgr- YES
Humor
Curated
content
Animation
Changing
senderline
Trek
Clean design
Content
Matt Caldwell SVP Creative
Shutterfly
Matt Caldwell SVP Creative
Free Stuff
ActionRocket
Matt Caldwell SVP Creative
Mouse-over
Image Effect
Curated
content
Humor
Goop
Matt Caldwell SVP Creative
Content
Simple &
Clean Layout
Good Type
There was one category of email
they always open.
Newsletters “What emails do you consistently open?”
Newsletters & News Summaries
NY TIMES OPEN RATE:
51-70%
“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
I’m not a news company, so what?
Become one.
Curate & create content.
Move the needle.
Editorial Promotional
What do all these have in common?
Clean
Designs
Good
Typography
Great
Imagery + = + + Value
Added
Content
Email Tactics Steal these ideas
Clean
Simple
Design
Instagram
Photography Ultra-Minimal
Headers
Curated
Content
Responsive
Logos
Status Bar
Modules
Illustration Animation
Humor
Humor
Repeatable
Sticky Content
Free
Stuff
Amazing
Photography
Mobile
First Design
Perfect
Typography
Mouse over
effects
Dynamic Based on Browsed
Black & White
Layouts
Design Content Coding
Responsive
Add to Wallet
coupons
Spotifiy
Playlists Maps
In Footer
Thanks!
…for more inspiration keep an eye out for our latest Lookbook!
Coming
Soon!