emaildesignlookbook

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presenting our 3rd annual email design look book

Each member of the global Responsys team reads a diverse range of marketing emails daily—both as part of our lives as subscribers and as part of our professional commitment to keeping up with the latest and greatest in the email world. We are honored to offer you this selection of our favorite emails from the past 12 months, including standout examples of innovative design, copy and strategy from brands representing everything from consumer products and retail to the travel industry and social networking sites.

In this year’s Look Book, we’ve done our best to offer an especially relevant glimpse at the

cutting edge of email design and cross-channel strategy. While each email stands on its own as a fantastic piece of work, the collection together illuminates the tactics that will continue to make email most effective in the future:

Personalization is vital to connecting with subscribers one-to-one;

Triggered emails are critical in reaching customers when they’re most receptive;

Mobile design is a must as more consumers read email on smartphones; and

Lisa HarmonVice President of Creative ServicesResponsys

Cross-channel integration is now expectedby even unsophisticated shoppers.

We hope you find some inspiration here, as well as affirmation of your own great contributions to the email industry.

Best wishes,

HeathrowLinkedInM∙A∙C CosmeticsBest BuyVolvo UKColumbia SportswearStyle CampaignAppleEtsyIcelandic Tourism BoardCB2 AnthropologieVerizon WirelessNikon UK Burton SnowboardsZapposMinted.comDSWVirgin AtlanticUncommon Goods

To view full emails click on email symbol located on each page

throughout the look book index

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0506

[ email 1 ]

[emails][emails]

[ email 1 ]

[ email 2 ]

[ email 3 ]

Type: Pre-/Post-Trip TriggeredSubject Line: Before you arrive at Heathrow

Heathrow

“Heathrow has really worked out a great way of engaging customers with this awesome email series. Arriving eight days before my flight, the first email covers car park booking, maps, currency deals, terminal, airport and travel info, as well as how and where to shop! Three days before my flight, the second email mentions a great place to eat within the airport, booking ideas for my journey, duty-free shopping and last-minute things a traveler could easily forget. But I was most impressed by the third email, which welcomes me home and starts prompting me toward my next trip in an engaging way. What better time to think about your next holiday?”

Martyn MillerAssociate Creative Director, EMEA

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[ email ]

“After a very sad year of watching friends and colleagues endure layoffs, this email was a welcome surprise. To see 37 of them working again and smiling in their profile pics was a sight for sore eyes. On a technical note, this email takes personalization and dynamic content to new heights. There was also nice attention to detail, with each image’s alt text containing the person’s name.”

Amy StoffelDesigner

LinkedInType: EngagementSubject Line: Amy, 37 of your connections changed jobs in 2010.

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[ animation ]

[ email ]M∙A∙C CosmeticsType: PromotionalSubject Line: Banish any thoughts of being a Plain Jane with M∙A∙C & Wonder Woman!

“I love how M∙A∙C Cosmetics ran with the comic book motif when promoting their Wonder Woman product line. The bold colors, bursting animation and clever copy (‘Glamazons!’) made it feel as though this email was literally exploding out of my inbox. The word bubble call-to-action and ‘POW!’ discount code are great finishing touches.”

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Angela ThurmondAssociate Copywriter

[ email 2 ]

[ email 1 ]

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Type: Post-Purchase TriggeredSubject Line: Thank you from Best Buy

Best Buy

“I love that Best Buy was able to send me two personalized emails based on my in-store purchase by tying my rewards card back to my email address. Sent a week apart, the emails were packed with useful information about the product I bought, including technical expertise, product firmware and relevant corresponding products. This is not your run-of-the-mill ‘Thank you for buying [blank]’ email.”

Amy Hamilton Senior Designer

[ email ]

[ full email ]

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Volvo UKType: NewsletterSubject Line: Volvo - our latest news and eye-catching offers

“At only 360 pixels wide and with lots of screen-sized bites of information, this email is optimized for smartphones but still works on a desktop. It’s a really intriguing design that addresses the crossover for mobile devices.”

Richard GeeDesigner, EMEA

[ email ]

[ full email ]

“I love the approach taken in this email by Columbia Sportswear to introduce their new product Omni-Dry. The subject line alone piqued my interest, as all outdoorsy folk know that Gore-Tex is hard to beat! This soft-sell message places the product module at the very bottom of this long email, but the playful illustrations and LOL-worthy copy had me scrolling all the way through.”

Date: Mar. 3, 2011Type: PromotionalSubject Line: Better Than Gore-Tex®

Columbia Sportswear

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Dana VogtDesigner

[ email ]

[ time-lapsed screenshots ]

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“Using dynamic image technology to update the primary image of their season’s greetings email, digital agency Style Campaign was able to extend the value of this one email over six days. Each morning there was a new mystery shape that was slowly revealed throughout the day, which encouraged subscribers to reopen the email multiple times each day. On average, subscribers opened this very mobile-friendly email more than five times—with more engaged subscribers opening it dozens of times! The emails invited subscribers to tweet their guess, building viral buzz for the brand.”

Chad WhiteResearch Director

Style CampaignDate: Dec. 20, 2010Type: Season’s GreetingsSubject Line: Dynamic images - Xmas

[ email ]

[ email ]

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“Our subscribers communicate via text messages, IMs and 140-character tweets. Apple knows this. You can tell by the way they message their iPad 2. There are no complete sentences here, just three-word maximum data points! It’s pure Ernest Hemingway.”

Lisa HarmonVice President of Creative Services

AppleDate: Mar. 2, 2011Type: PromotionalSubject Line: Introducing iPad 2.

[ full email ]

[ email ]

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“Etsy is a vast and broad wonderland of artisanal goodness—maybe a little too vast and broad. The daily ‘Etsy Finds’ email presents a selection of items tied to a theme divided by personal styles to help hapless shoppers weed their way through the maze of options. The image-heavy emails are like window shopping in your inbox. The hyperlinked ‘Picked by’ credit is a great touch too, letting readers get to know the personalities behind the selections through online profiles. It’s like your own personal Esty shopper.”

Lynn BausAssociate Creative Director

Date: Jan. 27, 2011Type: PromotionalSubject line: Uncovering Treasure

Etsy

[ full email ] Icelandic Tourism BoardType: PromotionalSubject Line: Are you there, Stig? It’s me, Iceland

“Part of the ‘Iceland Wants to Be Your Friend’ campaign, this text-heavyemail lures you in with its casual, quirky, matter-of-fact writing style.With lots of links to pages on Flickr, Tumblr, Facebook, Wikipedia,Twitter and elsewhere, the email doesn’t hesitate to leverage community content on the web, giving it a deep, interactive feel.”

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David McLoughlinDesigner

[ email ] | |

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“I love the fresh, aerial view in this email. It allows subscribers to appreciate some of the products in a new light—particularly the teepee dining table, red club rug and lantern arc floor lamp. This image was repurposed from a catalog cover, which doesn’t always work, but does here.”

Chad WhiteResearch Director

CB2Date: Aug. 17, 2010Type: PromotionalSubject Line: Blueprint for affordable modern. New CB2 fall catalog is here.

[ homescarf video ]

[ email ]

“From the subject line to the hero message to the video, this email had me smiling the entire time. When I clicked on ‘Watch and Learn,’ the video was a really fun and creative stop-motion animation of a scarf and a girl dancing through the woods. The scarf transformed into a belt, headband, shawl and more, showing you all the different ways you can playfully accessorize.”

Date: Jan. 19, 2011Type: PromotionalSubject Line: Scarves at Play

Anthropologie | |

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Kim GallikAssociate Account Manager

[emails]

[ email ]

[ email ]

[ email ]

[ landing page ]

Date: Mar. 2, 2011Type: Welcome SeriesSubject Line: Welcome to Verizon. Meet the Support Team.

Verizon Wireless

“The Verizon Wireless welcome series puts a face back on digital communication. From the first email, customers are introduced to a support team that happily assists them with specialized knowledge ranging from setting up email on a smartphone to paying bills online. Throughout this 90-day series, customers receive informative emails, watch a friendly welcome video, visit a mobilized support website and acquaint themselves and friends with Verizon through custom landing page experiences.”

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Rocky ThomasArt Director

[ email ]

[ full email ]

[ zoomed intro ]

“What makes this newsletter outstanding is the tone of voice. The personalized greeting, Lucy’s signature and request for feedback, the poll about next month’s topic and the personal, interactive feel make me want to voice my opinion and click on those links!”

Date: Jan. 28, 2011Type: NewsletterSubject: Nikon In-Frame: Expert tips on close up shots, plus win a D3100

Nikon UK

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|Richard GeeDesigner, EMEA

[ email ]

[ full email ]

[ zoomed intro ]

“I don’t often read an entire email, but when I skimmed and saw ‘Dear Fatty’ and ‘Choke on the Cookies’ I knew this was going to be an exception. Playing to the post-Christmas ‘I didn’t get what I wanted’ blues, this email takes an irreverent—and totally on-brand—voice and berates Santa. Even if there weren’t great product recommendations in the secondary message, this witty email did its job by engaging me.”

Burton SnowboardsDate: Dec. 29, 2010Type: PromotionalSubject Line: Now Get What you Really Wanted

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|Mary Kathleen SullivanSr. Strategy Consultant

[ email ]

[ email ]

[ full email ]

ZapposType: Opt-In Triggered Back-in-Stock Notification & New Style NotificationSubject Line: Back in stock! Onitsuka Tiger by Asics: Ultimate 81®

“Zappos offers an incredibly rad service that allows users to request a notification when a desired product is back in stock. Users can customize the experience with details such as size and color—all of which are incorporated into the email along with a large product image. This is helpful for jogging a user’s memory and rekindling excitement. The back-in-stock notification service also allows users to sign up to receive a triggered message when new styles of a brand or collection are available. The copy is quirky and lively—very much in line with the Zappos voice.”

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Jim SpenceArt Director

[ email ]

“I love how Minted emails never seem flat; there are always plenty of textures and shading to make everything pop off the page. I forget that I’m looking at a screen and not at a craft table. I also love how this email draws your eye down through the entire body by staggering message blocks left and right and using dashed lines to connect products with their corresponding copy.”

Date: Mar. 2, 2011Type: PromotionalSubject Line: New Birth Announcements with Matching Accessories

Minted.com

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Tanya WilliamsGraphic Designer

[ email ]

[ zoomed intro ]

[ full email ]“DSW takes what could be a simple account update email and makes it a full newsletter that provides interesting content and opportunities to shop from top to bottom. I love the personal note from Rachel, my DSW ‘go-to gal,’ and the zig-zag placement of content encourages me to scroll for more.”

Date: Feb. 19, 2011 Type: Loyalty ProgramSubject Line: Get excited, ladies! Your new My DSW Rewards is here.

DSW | |

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Kathryn AlvaDesigner

[ email ]

[ landing page ]

Virgin AtlanticType: Birthday TriggeredSubject Line: Have a great British birthday!

“This email has no promotional aspect whatsoever. It did, however, make me feel really special, since I have yet to fly Virgin Atlantic (but may give them a shot after this email!). Of course, I wanted to ‘Start the Party’ so I clicked…and to my pleasant surprise, I was sent to a really cool interactive list of things to do on my day! Needless to say, I felt the love.”

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Amy Stoffel Designer

[ full email ]

[ email ]

“While promoting top-rated products is a tried-and-true email tactic, Uncommon Goods recognizes that customers now have lots of venues where they can talk about your products. In this email, the internet retailer highlights their products that are the most liked on Facebook, most talked about on Twitter, most popular on their community site and top-rated on their website.”

Date: Mar. 23, 2011Type: PromotionalSubject Line: Your most-coveted, clicked and commented goods

Uncommon Goods | |

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Chad WhiteResearch Director

about

About ResponsysResponsys is a leading provider of on-demand software that enables companies to engage in relationship marketing across the interactive channels customers are embracing today—email, mobile, social and the web. With Responsys solutions, marketers can create, execute, and automate highly dynamic campaigns and lifecycle marketing programs that are designed to grow revenue, increase marketing efficiency, and strengthen customer loyalty.

We sincerely hope you enjoyed our selection of outstanding emails. For more email design inspiration, please check out:

The 2010 Email Design Look BookThe 2009 Email Design Look Book

Responsys’ New School Marketing vision, flexible on-demand application suite, and customer success-focused services aim to deliver high ROI, increased levels of automation and fast time-to-value. Founded in 1998, Responsys is headquartered in San Bruno, California and has offices throughout the world. Responsys serves world-class brands such as: American Family Mutual Insurance Company, Avis Europe,

Continental Airlines, Deutsche Lufthansa, Dollar Thrifty, Lands’ End, LEGO, Newegg, PayPal, Qantas, and Southwest Airlines. For more information about Responsys, visit responsys.com