Recently in Dynamic Content Category

From: Overstock.com
Subject Line: Johanna, Make Sure You Get Your Omail
Date: Thursday, October 27, 2011

For the marketer in most of us, planning for the holiday season began many moons ago, but now some of the planning is finally reaching the daily user.

Just yesterday I noticed a holiday preparation campaign come through from Overstock.com. Having had no problems with Overstock's Omail landing in my junk mail to date, I found this email rather intriguing. After thinking 'bout it a bit more and talking to a few amazing coworkers, we realized this email is a piece of Overstock's holiday planning, with the intent of getting inboxes ready for the holiday season!

We saw examples of this email delivered to Gmail, Hotmail and Yahoo! versioned with dynamic imagery to let the user know how to get Omail delivered instead of marked as junk within each respective inbox.

Wow! So, now the question I have to ask is how many subscribers will take the few steps to ensure Overstock.com's Omail gets delivered? And will this campaign help holiday deliverability enough to make other marketers start to follow?

From: Virgin America
Subject Line: Credit File Reminder
Date: Friday, April 8, 2011

This email is a travel MIRACLE. I must have credits with every major US airline, but for what amount, with which airline and where that information is stored is beyond me.

When an airline make credit information less accessible, as customers, many of us feel like that airline is trying to keep our dollars in their pockets. This doesn't inspire us to fly with that airline. For instance, not long ago, an airline I will not name here told me that the only way they could give me a credit is via a postal mail voucher. (Strike one.) I never received it in the mail. (Strike two.) I called their customer service number to explain that it never came, and they said the only way they could help me is if I sent them a description of my problem via postal mail. WHAT!? (Strike 3.) I'm sorry, I didn't realize it was the year 1800. 

On the opposite end of the spectrum, Virgin America sent me this helpful reminder today, listing out my credits with their respective expiration dates. I appreciate not only the credit details, but the many contact information options Virgin provides. When I see the actual phone number listed in the email, I feel like Virgin really wants to help me! 

Next time I book a trip, will this message inspire me to fly Virgin instead of another airline? You bet. 

Now Virgin, just give me a direct flight from Seattle to New York and we're all set!

From: Yelp
Subject Line: 'Hood Spotlight: West Loop

Date: March 23^rd, 2011

As social networking begets different branches and types of engagements, Yelp takes an interesting approach when delivering content to its users. I received this email featuring a "hood spotlight" in Chicago.

 

With dynamic content, Yelp writes a friendly editorial that weaves user reviews of different local spots while focusing on a particular neighborhood. By mentioning the hyperlinked restaurants and bars in the editorial, the user can click and be taken to the establishment's landing page where more information is provided.

 

Since I use Gmail as my personal email client, I noticed that Yelp and Google list the establishments featured in the editorial blurb with neighborhood information, phone number, star ratings and review counts at the bottom of the email, which makes it easy to compare and choose local spots.

 

In an ever-changing world where people look to fellow buyers for reviews about stores or local services, Yelp delivers local and personalized content to the user while providing a nice way to discover new and interesting local hangouts.

From: Ancestry.com Monthly Update
Subject Line: Reconstructed Census Records, New City Directories, and a Free Class for Finding Iris Ancestors
Date: Thursday, Mar 10, 2011

From: Ancestry.com Weekly Discovery
Subject Line: Finding Your Irish Ancestors, plus Newspaper Tips
Date: Sunday, March 13, 2011

From: Ancestry.com
Subject Line: Explore new Irish records & enter to win a trip to Ireland
Date: Monday, March 14, 2011

As part of the subscription to Ancestry.com, one receives several bonus emails including Weekly Discovery and Monthly Update newsletters, which generally include information related to current events - for example these ones below that pertain to Irish ancestry for St. Patrick's Day. They are great examples of  "best practices" in action for HTML and templates - the emails have nice color and are on-brand even with the images disabled. My particular "likes" for the the Weekly Discovery email: the TOC & SWYN functionality. The Monthly Update has a personalized dynamic section letting me know that there are new "hints" for somebody in my tree! I also like the variety of different CTAs that are all very clickable. I get seriously sucked into these emails and can easily follow through on a 1/2 dozen different links or more. Ancestry.com provides a very solid Email Program for their members to enjoy, which ensures their customers continued subscriptions! Sláinte!

Subject Line: Exclusive Discount: Save 10% on your ENTIRE order!

Date: 1.25.2011

What's this...another sale email? Yes, but it's not your average sale email, this one has been created specifically for me! The product shown here is the exact item I had looked at when I was browsing the site a few days earlier...CLEVER! 

Bonus: when I click on the image in the email, it takes me directly to the product's landing page. 

This is similar to a cart abandonment email, except I never actually put the item in my cart. I think this a great approach to remind the customer of items they were interested in, while giving them a little extra incentive to go back and buy it. Genius.

Sender: chasing fireflies
Subject Line: See what's cooking in our Toy Shop!
Date: Thursday, December 02, 2010

With so many people viewing email on mobile devices, the importance of a great preheader has become increasingly more relevant. In this email from chasing fireflies, the clever use of adding my name dynamically to the preheader made it stand out from the pack during my daily rapid scroll through the inbox, plus the copy had a cute and familiar feeling to it - like it could have been from a buddy... to quote Dale Carneghie from How to Win Friends and Influence People: "Remember that a man's name is to him the sweetest and most important sound in the English language".

Unfortunately, the nit-picking email marketer in me can't help but notice that the rest of the email's execution leaves room for improvement. The entire hero/body of the email is one image slice, that when clicked, leads to the toys landing page of their site and features a foosball table, not the incredibly cute kitchen from the email. The poor coordination between the email and landing page create further frustration as the main and secondary products are not labeled in the email, so it is another challenge to try to find them once you are on the site. Additionally, I believe that if one wants to be a player in the Email Marketing world, it's best to leave off the little logo for your email marketing platform (no offense meant to Vertical Response).


It is a seriously cute little kitchen though... Santa might have to be alerted! ;)

From: Amazon.com & Netflix Subject Lines: Various Date: Friday, November 6, 2009 - Friday, March 12, 2010 If you're looking to increase user engagement & loyalty, personalization is sure to help. My advice: 1) Get creative. Think about what your subscriber would like to receive rather than what you want to send them. The more you know about your subscriber and use that information to target relevant messages, the more likely you are to hook that customer for the long haul. 2) Start a dialogue. Surveys are a great and easy way to find out what your subscribers are experiencing. If they report problems, work to correct them. 3) Seize the opportunity to add ratings and reviews to your website. They're sure to drive more traffic to your website. A good way to collect reviews: after a subscriber purchases a product, wait a few weeks (to give them time to test the product) and send them a friendly reminder to rate the product. Many people will be happy to share their good or bad experience. Two companies that I've noticed do an awesome job at personalization are Amazon.com and Netflix. Here are just a few examples of great personalization emails that they send: Amazon.com: Lets you to create a gift list for friends/family and sends you reminders when their birthdays are approaching. Allows you to be notified via email when a movie is available for order or pre-order, by request. Suggests product suggestions based on your browsing and order history. Netflix: Sends emails asking you to rate your movies. By rating your movie, Netflix can recommend other movies you might enjoy, based on what other users enjoyed who also liked that movie. And what's really awesome, is that they allow you to rate the movie with one-click in the email itself, simple & time-saving. Notifies you which movie has shipped and when you can expect it. Asks you when you mailed your movie to determine if they are sending/receiving movies in a timely manner according to their policy.

From: net-a-porter.com
Subject Line: What's new for you on Monday
Date: Monday, March 15, 2010 9:34 AM

In November, I shared my hesitations about NET-A-PORTER's designer preference-driven emails. I had been auto-signed up for Burberry designer updates because I purchased a Burberry ring, and was feeling relatively over-informed about Burberry products. Since then, I invested some serious time in selecting my true and varied preferences in NAP's robust preference center. Now, NET-A-PORTER is sending me some seriously relevant emails, and is making some serious cash off yours truly.

Basically, NAP sends me email messages so spot-on, it's like a personal shopper set up a dressing room just for me, filled with stuff I'm dying to try on. Not only do I open these emails, but I enable images, then wait for them all to download (all 2,660 pixels of them, in this case.)

No email comes too frequently and no email is too long if it's totally relevant to the recipient. In this case, it was the A.P.C. a-line denim skirt that got me.

Sidebar regarding shipping boxes: NET-A-PORTER's are beautiful, but Intermix's seem to be scented. An incredibly pleasant scent emerges when you open the box. Ah, package magic!

From: The Zoe Report
Subject Line: TZR: Best Overall
Date: Thursday, February 25, 2010

Don't tell me that because your technology is limited or your staff is small that you can't achieve relevance. This Zoe Report email is a miracle of relevance, sans stated or inferred preferences.

It's true: the looks of the nineties are coming back. To get myself ready to re-embrace the era, I downloaded Season 1 of the original Beverly Hills, 90210, which I happily watch while I work out on the elliptical each morning. Anyway, this morning, circa 5am, Luke Perry made his first appearance as Dylan McKay, "Mad, Bad and Dangerous to Know," wearing (what!?) OVERALLS. Yes, overalls, with just one strap buckled. I almost fell off the elliptical.

So what appears in my inbox circa 7:47am? Yes, overalls, courtesy of Gaultier via Rachael Zoe. Despite her - er - debated flaws, Zoe knows what her market is obsessing about, and cover(all)s it.

Yes, advanced technologies and robust support teams are important parts of building an exceptional marketing program. But so is simply thinking about your subscribers and creating content that strikes a cord with them. I know that's something all of us can do, with just one strap buckled ;).

From: Mitch Stewart, BarakObama.com
Subject Line: A holiday video for Van
Date: Thursday, December 17, 2009

I have to give it up - Obama's stellar team of campaigners continues to impress. There has been a proliferation of personalized videos in the past few months such as Gap's Cheer Factory to Land's End's Big Boston Warm-up. Last Thursday, Obama sent me a holiday card and I LOVE IT.

These videos take personalization to a new level, placing dynamic content such as a name in different parts of video clips. This effect has such a great impact. I've gotten used to seeing my name in the email salutations, but not in a streaming video. Who doesn't like seeing their name on a card signed by the President?

Great job, Obama team!

From: net-a-porter.com
Subject Line: What's new for you on Wednesday
Date: Wednesday, November 25, 2009

Earlier this month I wrote about a positive experience with an email message from net-a-porter.com. While I maintain that their intention to message on favorite designer new arrivals is a good one, I have some reservations about the execution. I've been receiving emails literally every day highlighting relatively random (not email-worthy) Burberry product such as this mish-mash of sportswear.

It's a tricky balance. Moving toward systematic automation based on either stated or inferred preferences is definitely "the way of the future," but there's something to be said for the value of human input. I'm not sure that the net-a-porter.com merchandising team would have highlighted this particular "Cotton waffle-knit top."

Perhaps it's a simple matter of adding a "hot or not" flag that indicates whether a particular item should or shouldn't hit the inbox.

From: The Zoe Report
Subject Line: TZR: Straight To Jail
Date: Friday, October 9, 2009

From: net-a-porter.com
Subject Line: Lisa, see what's new for you this Monday
Date: Monday, November 2, 2009

Those of you who follow me on twitter know that one of the roughly twelve tweets I've ever actually produced was directed at Rachel Zoe, who "I die" for. If any of you email freaks are looking for a good niche newsletter with a super-distinct brand voice, subscribe to The Zoe Report. It's bananas. In any event, TZR is part of a positive two-piece digital experience chronicled below.

I received "TZR: Straight To Jail" on October 9 and promptly purchased the Burberry "Barbed Wire Ring" - because who doesn't need one of those - from net-a-porter.com. For those who haven't shopped net-a-porter yet, you should, if only because they send your purchases in such beautiful matte black boxes. In any event, today, roughly three weeks later, I received "Lisa, see what's new for you this Monday," which (amazing!) included both my name and the day of the week in the subject line. The content was targeted to me based on brand affinity - Burberry. I live in my trench, but I don't want to be profiled a Burberry-lover - it's more the category (costume jewelry) - than the brand that's my thing. So I like that they offer the option to "EDIT YOUR DESIGNER PREFERENCES" right at the top of the email message. Now I can get emails about Philip Lim and Lavin all day long.

Go, preferences :)!

From: ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY Magazine
Subject Line: AMY, welcome to our EXCLUSIVE subscriber program!!
Date: Monday, October 5, 2009

This email failed on many levels. Overlooking the lack of design, the first thing I noticed was the single graphic: a Rush Hour 3 movie poster. Immediately I was confused why I was being emailed about a movie that was released over two years ago. When I read the copy it went on to mention even more movies that were long passed. The idea was to get me to register for an Advance Screening Program and was using these, out of date movies, as examples of the types of movies I could be seeing with this program.

Relevancy is VERY important in email to pull in subscribers. Would it really take that much time to update one image and one line of copy to make this offer more current? Sadly, this wasn't the end of my disappointment... as a fan of movies, this is an offer I potentially might be interested in, however, they failed to provide any type of link to actually register which was the entire point of the email.

If I had to think of something nice to say about this email, at least they took the time to include my name in the subject line and email. Although their subject line does "welcome" me to the program which sounds more like I'm already enrolled rather than an offer to sign up.

Setting aside the fact that Whole Foods is probably not the most economical place to shop, I still feel somehow healthier when I buy my food there. I just signed up for their emails yesterday, and while the Welcome letter was a little boring, I'm loving their newsletter! Here's what I heart about it:

Preheader: Althought it's a bit wordy, the fact that they have a preheader is a step in the right direction. I do think they could streamline it a bit and still get the messages across.

Relevancy : The Renegade Lunch Lady is a perfect feature story for back to school. Even if the meals she's suggesting are more what Claire would eat vs. Brian (that's a Breakfast Club reference BTW), the idea is timely. Plus they include links that go directly to the recipes, which makes life easy for busy moms.

Dynamic Content : Love the fact that they were able to populate the "What's on sale?" story with the deals for my specific Whole Foods store. Hint: they could do that because they asked me for my zip code when I signed up for their emails.

Recipe Reviews: This is a smart way to bring me into their community and encourage me to try a recipe as well as write a review.

Smart Design: They really broke up the content in any easy to digest way (pun intended) and maximized the right rail.

From: Twitter
Subject Line: wyatt seipp is now following you on Twitter
Date: May 21, 2009

From: Facebook
Subject Line: Kendal Burrell confirmed you as a friend on Facebook
Date: May 10, 2009

Yes, I have a Twitter account and I guess people are following me. What that means I haven't quite figured out yet, and I think it requires that I start doing something. But, I'll get there...at some point. What I really want to talk about is how much I appreciate Twitter adding a little life to their triggered messages. I get that these emails need to be easy-to-read on a mobile, but does that have to mean boring old type without any color? Couldn't Facebook at least add the profile pic of who confirmed my friendship? Thoughts? Anybody? Anybody?

From: Safeway

From: Crate and Barrel
Subject Line: 1,2,3 ways to save on select Wusthof and Shun cutlery
Date: May 1, 2009
 
If you're into knives (or should I say cooking 'cause just being into knives might be a little creepy) then you'll know that Wusthof and Shun are on the cutting edge (pun intended). I love how Crate and Barrel turned a simple knife sale into something fun, interesting, clean and simple. And the texture with the lettuce at the bottom is simply gorgeous. Plus, they always have that dynamic store location in the footer. Guess they are the sharpest knives in the drawer. Okay, enough puns for one day...
 

From: JCrew
Subject Line: Your password has been updated
Date: March 26, 2009
 

They most certainly can. Check out this fun password change request from JCrew that I found in my archives. Talk about jazzing it up with some personality. Bravo.


 

From:Toys "R" Us
Subject Line: Product Recall: Infantino, Lil Chef Set
Date: Monday, March 16, 2009

Since signing up for Toys "R" Us emails a few weeks ago, I've received four different messages like this one, telling me that the store records show I've purchased something that's been recalled. Funny, because I can't remember the last time I purchased something from Toys "R" Us, and certainly none of these products. I don't really know what's going on here. On the one hand, it's great that Toys "R" Us is using email to spread the word about product recalls (and the emails look pretty good!). On the other hand, though, their records are not tidy. If they aren't sure whether or not I've purchased the product mentioned and are just playing it safe, then they should say so. I can imagine a busy parent being unable to remember whether or not they purchased the mentioned product, which could cause unnecessary concern. Getting so many recall notices is not only annoying, but it could harm the subscribers' trust in the store.

From: Sephora
Subject Line: 1 box, 10 gifts.
Date: November 16, 2008

I L-O-V-E Sephora's version of last year's Elf Yourself. Talk about creative. From start to finish, it's a seamless experience that even the most tech-challenged girl can navigate with ease. Here's the skinny: After you've uploaded a pic of yourself, you go through a series of steps where you outline your eyes, mouth and face shape. Sounds complicated, but trust me, they've made it blonde-proof. (It's okay, I can say that because I'm a blonde.) Once you've finished with the outlining, the real magic begins. Within seconds, you have four fun and fabulous looks to choose from: Smokey Sugar Plum, Merry Berry, Santa's Little Temptress and O, Tannen-Babe. It's your face all glammed up in four festive ways, complete with eye shadow, mascara, gloss and more. All that's left is for you to add a personal message and send it on to your fellow glamour gals. You'll get a sweet little email that lets you know your Mistletoe Message has been sent, and best of all, the savvy team at Sephora includes a promotion code in the confirmation email for a free set of lashes or a sample size of Sephora Lip Attitude with any purchase. Simply brilliant.

Want to see my Mistletoe Makeover e-Card?
Check it out here.

From: Crate & Barrel
Subject Line: Hurry...Free Shipping on bedding ends 9/30.
Date: September 25, 2008

From: Pottery Barn Kids
Subject Line: Dress Me Up - Our Exclusive Dolls Are Here!
Date: October 14, 2008

Let's take a minute to talk about store locators. Here's the deal: Email not only drives traffic to your website, it also drives traffic to your stores. In fact, companies with the ability to track their email subscribers' in-store purchases have the numbers to prove it. This is why including store information in your email is a slam dunk. Not only will it help drive sales, it also adds dynamic content, personalizes your message, and reinforces your subscribers' customer service experience.

My favorite execution is by Crate and Barrel. They include a banner at the bottom of each email they send me, with copy that reads: We're in the neighborhood. 155 Stockton Street, San Francisco, California. First, I love the friendly approach. Second, I love the click-through experience even more. When I clicked on the copy, I was taken to their store locator page on their website, complete with a map and a photo of the Union Square store. Nice touch.

Pottery Barn Kids also included a banner in their latest email, but the payoff wasn't quite as streamlined as the Crate and Barrel experience. At first I was impressed because they included a zip code field, which is a cool idea in theory. However, after entering my zip code, I expected to be taken to a page with a listing of all the stores in my 'hood. Not the case. I was taken to their general store locator landing page and asked to input my info again. The idea is there, they just need to work out the details.

If nothing else, adding store location information might be an interesting test to throw out there for the holidays, especially if you have exclusive in-store only merchandise you want to promote. If you know where your subscriber lives, you can recommend a specific store location, a la Crate and Barrel. If you don't, you can use a default message that takes your subscriber to your store locator page.

From: Sephora
Subject Line: Rate. Review. Win!
Date: Thursday, September 11, 2008
See the email >

Some of you might have already seen my EEC blog post about Customer Reviews. I'm psyched to see Sephora doing such a great job kicking off their Customer Review effort.

Deep thoughts:
(1) I love that they've branded Customer Reviews "kiss and tell." This is a cute way to make the feature feel special to Sephora.
(2) I'm laughing that they chose Dior DiorShow Mascara as the featured product, as I've been seeing it promoted everywhere lately and was just thinking this morning, as I applied my Chanel Inimitable Multi-Dimentionnel, that I needed the Dior. I like the Chanel, but for some reason I seem to poke myself in the eye with the wand much more than any other mascara I've had before. Or maybe I'm just not getting enough sleep and my motor skills are suffering because of it.
(3) It's smart that they incentivized review creation with contest entry.
(4) It's even SMARTER that they actually fed a product I recently bought into the mail. Yay for dynamic content! I'm not sure that Gift Certificates merit review, but who really cares? I'm happy enough to see Sephora bringing relevant, personalized elements into their email.
(5) I appreciate that - because the primary message won't drive many dollars - they included two sure-thing secondary messages in this mail: Free Ship and Best Sellers.

OK, last thing: I heard that Sephora employees are only allowed to wear red, black or white on-site, and that if they want to park their cars in the company lot, they must have either a red, black or white car. Is this actually true :)!? Friends at Sephora, I am curious! Do tell!

Happy Weekend!

From: Old Navy
Subject Line: Time to Play Favorites
Date: July 31, 2008

In keeping with the theme of this month's Smith-Harmon Loveletter, I want to take a minute to talk about preference centers.

Personalizing the inbox is no longer as easy as just including a Dear Jane as a greeting to your email or adding a name to your subject line. These days if you really want to deliver personalized messages that stand out in the inbox, you have to find out what your customers want. And you do that by building out your preferences center. Find out what interests your subscribers and you'll be better able to deliver the right messages to the right people.

Piperlime includes a banner that's dedicated entirely to preferences in every email. Pretty cool, right? Only problem is that the landing page felt like they were trying to get me to sign up for more Gap Inc. emails vs. finding out what interests me. I was hoping for questions about my age, shoe size, fave colors, sense of style, etc. etc.

Taking a giant leap, Old Navy actually dedicated an entire email to finding out what interests their subscribers. I was excited! Unfortunately their pref center landing page was as sparse as Piperlime's page. When I clicked-through, it simply asked me if I wanted info on Men's, Women's, Plus-Size, etc. clothing. Nothing else. Oh wait, it also asked if I wanted to sign up for more emails from any other Gap Inc. brands. Wish they'd asked me about my favorite colors or personal denim style. Or maybe at least what age bracket I fall in!

It comes down to this: The more you know about your audience, the more you can personalize the message. Check out Sephora's Beauty Insider profile experience to see a really cool pref center in action.

From: Sephora Beauty Insider
Subject Line: PERK ALERT! Stila's New Palette. Beauty Insiders Only.
Date: Sunday, July 20, 2008
See the email >

Some of you might have already seen my EEC blog post about Sephora. They are doing a fantastic job with their email program, and this particular message highlights three of their key successes:

(1) Exclusivity: The "Beauty Insider" program truly offers members perks and products that don't go out to non-members, like this Stila Eye Shadow palette.
(2) Personalization: They're messaging me on Combo Skin and Brunette-specific products based on choices I made in their profile preferences center. And they're doing it in a way that feels glossy and on-brand, not auto-generated and boiler-plate, which is what a lot of the more upscale brands worry about when we start to talk about dynamic content.
(3) Recognition: Dude, they know that I tired the Lumedia Facial Brightener. OK, maybe it's a little scary, but at least they're acknowledging me and my choices as a consumer...Holy cow, that is a heck of a lot more than most batch-and-blast retailers out there can say.

Happy Weekend!