15 examples of strong email marketing that converts

Other than showing up on your audience’s doorstep, email marketing may be the most direct form of marketing out there. Since you have VIP access to your subscriber’s inbox, your content has a high chance of being seen by them.

According to Hubspot, email generates $38 for every $1 spent, which is an astounding 3,800% ROI, making it one of the most effective options available. With daily email users expected to reach 4.3 billion by 2023, that’s a hefty earning potential.

It’s an honor to be granted access to your audience’s inbox, but how do you make sure your email campaigns motivate them to engage with your business rather than unsubscribe from it?

The answer lies in the quality of your email content. Let’s uncover the basics of email structure, tips for crafting strong email copy that converts, and 15 examples of click-worthy emails.

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Components and structure an email that converts

Before you press ‘send’ on your next email campaign, make sure to understand the components of an email and ensure each is optimized for top performance.

Read on to discover best practices for writing a:

✉️ Subject line
✉️ Preheader
✉️ Body
✉️ Call-to-action

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Craft a catchy subject line

The subject line is the short line of text located next to the sender’s name. Since it’s the first portion of the email your audience will see, your subject line is the most important sentence of the entire email. In fact, 33% of email recipients open emails because of catchy subject lines.

First, write your subject line with length in mind. According to data from Marketo, 41 characters–or 7 words–seems to be a sweet spot for email subject line length, which is about 10 characters less than the average subject line.

Then, make sure your subject line coincides with the content of the email itself. Regardless of how catchy a subject line is, if it’s not related to what the email is actually about, you may run the risk of them unsubscribing.

Here are some tips for top-notch subject lines and boosting open-rates:

😍 Include emojis: Studies have shown that emotional content can increase the effectiveness of open-rates as much as 70%.

🤔 Make it personal: Make your audience feel spoken to by including their birthday, mentioning their interests, or showing related products to ones they’ve purchased.

❗️Create a fear-of-missing-out (FOMO): By establishing a sense of urgency related to a sale ending or a product selling out, your audience will feel more motivated to engage with your content.

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Pique their interest with the preheader

Also known as the preview text, the preheader is the short line of text located next to the subject line. It should give more context to what the subject line is conveying and what the recipient will gain from opening the email.

The preheader can be a bit longer than the subject line — but it’s recommended to stay within the 50-100 character range.

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A perfect body does exist

The body of the email refers to the content within the email itself — what your subscriber sees when they open the email and scroll through it.

The body of your email should start with a greeting and an eye-catching header to grab their attention. Then, you can dive into the bulk of the email content. Are you promoting a sale? Is there a new product launch? Are you encouraging your subscribers to sign up for something? It’s important to provide useful, inspiring, and compelling information regarding whatever you’re about to ask readers to do.

According to Campaign Monitor, the ideal length of an email is between 50 and 125 words. Don’t make it too short and sweet, though! An email with 25 words may perform the same as messages with 500 to 2000 words, averaging a response rate of less than 45%.

If your email includes a list, be sure to use bullet points. This keeps the separate thoughts organized and allows the reader to easily scan the information.

Since every audience is different, it’s often helpful to experiment with different text lengths, subject lines, and designs to see which performs the best — this is known as A/B testing.

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Include a motivational call-to-action

Remember, you’re taking your subscribers on a journey. The culmination of the catchy subject line, the compelling preheater, and the informative email body should all lead to the final stage of the email journey: the call-to-action.

Also known as a ‘CTA’, the call-to-action is usually designed as a hyperlinked-button and asks your subscribers to do something specific. There can be multiple CTAs within an email if you’re promoting a couple of things, but make sure to not include too many — 2-3 should be the max.

CTA’s perform best when they’re somewhere between 2-5 words and include a strong, actionable command within it. Make your CTAs short, snappy, and to-the-point.

Be sure to design your email in a way where the CTA really stands out and is easily noticed within the rest of the content. After all, to make sure your subscribers click the button, the first step is making it easy to find!

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15 examples of strong email marketing

Without further ado, let’s take a look at some of the Aimtal team’s favorite examples of high-quality and compelling email marketing copy.

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1. Casper

With soothing colors and a comforting design, this email from Casper includes a friendly header, a welcoming email body, and a playful CTA. The word “let’s” in the CTA is a great way to make the reader feel subconsciously like part of the brand’s family.

Type of email: Welcome

Tone and style: Comforting, playful, inclusive

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2. Google

Google creates a sense of urgency with this retargeting email, sent to shoppers who have items in their cart that are almost sold out. They keep it short, sweet, and to-the-point.

Type of email: Retargeting — Abandoned cart

Tone and style: FOMO-inducing, casual

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3. The Knot

By using a fun hyphenated header, this email from The Knot asks users to personalize their wedding website which will also read in a hyphenated format (theknot.com/smith-wedding-2020).

Type of email: Feature promotion

Tone and style: Personalized, helpful

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4. Apple Music

In this email from Apple Music, they alert users that their membership is about to expire, and include the expiration date, the cost, along with simple instructions for renewing their membership. The CTA makes it clear to readers what clicking it will do, and it’s easily identifiable.

Type of email: Membership expiration alert

Tone and style: Instructional, transparent, clear

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5. Chipotle Mexican Grill

In this playful email from Chipotle, the company gives thanks to the reader for subscribing to their newsletter and offers an even more personalized email experience in the body and CTA. The header paired with the image is funny and relatable. Pass the guac, please! 🥑

Type of email: Newsletter subscription confirmation

Tone and style: Funny, helpful, personalized

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6. Supergoop

This product email from Supergoop does a great job at promoting their product in a non-pushy way. The header is eye-catching, the body provides the reader with everyday use-case scenarios, and the CTA is short and clear.

Type of email: Product

Tone and style: Relatable, family-oriented, casual

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7. Ritual

This email from Ritual pairs bright and cheery colors with a short and snappy header. Notice how the header is tilted down towards the body and CTA? This naturally leads the reader’s eye to where they want you to click.

If a subscriber was on the fence about ordering a product, this email intends for them to read positive reviews and take the leap on their first purchase.

Type of email: Customer reviews

Tone and style: Young, playful, transparent

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8. Bose

Whoever created this email at Bose definitely deserves a raise. The simple header paired with the festive background is definitely top-notch — but the real kicker is the interactive scratch-off element, enticing readers to interact with the email by unveiling their Black Friday savings.

Type of email: Black Friday sale
Tone and style: Celebratory, interactive

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9. Winc

Winc perfectly blends playful text with a gentle reminder in this abandoned cart retargeting email. The header is approachable and the body includes a discount — encouraging the reader to click the colorful CTA and complete their purchase.

Type of email: Retargeting — Abandoned cart
Tone and style: Friendly, understanding, neutral

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10. PrettyLittleThing

In this boldly designed email by PrettyLittleThing, they entice new subscribers to start their shopping experience by speaking to them as if they’re already good friends.

It’s easy to tell who their target audience is (we’re guessing late teens to mid-20s) by the language and terminology they use in the header and body.

Type of email: Complete first purchase
Tone and style: Trendy, fun, young

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11. Rudy’s

It’s the header that takes home the win in this email by Rudy’s. They connect with their shoppers with a concept that’s familiar to everyone, making their brand more relatable.

Type of email: Retargeting — Abandoned cart
Tone and style: Relatable, clear, instructional

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12. Toms

By clicking the toggle button in this email from Toms, shoppers can experience a glow-in-the-dark product feature right from their email—just in time for Halloween!

Type of email: Product
Tone and style: Interactive, festive, playful

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13. Away

When in doubt, provide your readers with something useful. Away does a great job of this by sending recent customers some valuable advice for using their new suitcase. The CTA offers to teach the readers more via a video demo.

Type of email: Post-purchase
Tone and style: Informative, helpful, casual

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14. Squarespace

Sometimes, a playful email tone is the way to go. Other times, customers need a bit of a push. Squarespace gently calls out their free-trial users in their header and nudges them to sign up for a discounted paid subscription.

Type of email: Free trial expiration
Tone and style: Confrontational, concise

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15. Hulu

What’s better than free stuff? Free stuff on your birthday—otherwise known as presents. In this playful free trial offer email from Hulu, the reader feels celebrated with confetti, a fun GIF, and a personalized birthday message in the email body.

Type of email: Free trial offer
Tone and style: Celebratory, personalized, fun

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Press ‘send’ on emails that convert (and delight)

Companies of all industries can apply these real-life examples to their own email marketing strategies. Whether you’re a SaaS, eCommerce, or other types of business, one thing remains the same–human beings are at the other end of your marketing campaigns, and they prefer your content to be compelling! By putting yourself in your customers’ shoes and captivating your readers with thoughtful and actionable email copy, your campaigns are sure to convert.

With all of this new email marketing knowledge, your readers will have no choice but to click on any subject line and CTA you send their way. Well, maybe not any, but we’re willing to bet your click-through rates will rise and your boss will be impressed.

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