Recently in Good Humor Category

From: Moosejaw
Subject Line: Moosejaw Pizza Bribes | There's no better bribe than pizza.
Date: Monday, June 27, 2011

I love a good wacky sale or contest, and I don't think I've seen anyone do wacky as well as Moosejaw.

They consistently put out emails that are creative, hilarious, and just plain fun. Moosejaw actually gets me to do something that I rarely if ever do with other retailers: read fine print. (And it's always worth the read!) I totally appreciate that they occasionally depart from the ordinary to connect with their customers through well-branded promotions that definitely stand out in the inbox. Their hidden contests, hilarious copy, and an awesome loyalty rewards program makes me feel like I'm participating in a game of some sort, and all of this combined with their casual, sarcastic attitude keeps me looking forward to the next email.

Moosejaw's messaging is a great example of how to encourage subscriber engagement and build an army of fans, naturally. I engage with them effortlessly because they offer me fun incentives and humor that doesn't try too hard. After all, mom always said "to make friends, just be yourself." So thanks for being you, Moosejaw.

From: CB2
Subject: farewell to the world's best boss. you always left us wanting more.‏
Date: Thursday, May 19th, 2011

If any of you are missing Michael Scott as much as I am, this email may bring a little bit more joy into your life. CB2 has incorporated clever copy, pop culture relevancy, and their conveniently named "Dwight" family of office furniture to create this piece of creative. What a cute concept and heart-warming message for die-hard fans of "The Office". Thank you CB2 for caring just as much as the rest of us as I do. You made me smile today! And yes...at least we still have Dwight.

From: Piperlime
Subject Line: I dream of sheen. (No, not that Sheen.)
Date: Thursday, May 12, 2011

The subject line from this Piperlime email made me smile, so of course I had to open the email to see what it was all about. I'm a sucker for a good pun, and I love how they took a simple spring fashion trend (metallic sandals) and punched up the copy with a humorous pop culture reference that I can appreciate. Piperlime always does a great job of pairing witty, topical copy with their emails - from wedges featured with the headline "Reinventing the heel," to beachy springtime essentials that beg the question "Long time no sea?" Piperlime is consistently putting out great examples of smart copywriting which, as one of their recent denim emails puts it, is "pure jeanius" to me.

Everyone loves a good bit of punnery, but there comes a point in every writer's life when her attempts to be clever fall to the ground with a wet thud. It takes a little skill to pull a funny idea all the way through your copy and make it work. This copy for Piperlime is a great example. Whoever wrote this email deserves a cookie! This little blurb about shoes is carefully written without being overworked, and totally funny to boot. (Um, no pun intended?)

In the spirit of keeping everyone at the top of their game, here are just a couple of helpful tips next time you're hoping to share your comic genius with the world:

1. Context Is Everything: Are you writing something that's supposed to be light and fun, or do you just feel like being funny? Knowing is half the battle.

2. Test the Waters: Go ahead and lob some one-liners at your officemates. If it gets an instant smirk, you've got a winner. If you have to explain it, it probably won't come across well in an email.

3. Don't Force It: If you suspect your joke might be awkward, then that's exactly what it is. There are plenty of ways to write great, fresh-sounding copy without jokes. Just let it go and do something else until another good one comes along.

Today Gmail unveiled the newest advancement to rock the email world - introducing: Gmail Motion.

The Beta release of Gmail Motion promises to revolutionize the way subscribers interact with email - literally. By utilizing computer web cams, users can now control their inboxes using a series of hand and body signals. Want to archive a message? Just strike a Charilie's Angels pose. Report Spam? ...That's as easy as doing a quick jumping jack. Check out the guide (right) for a complete list of actions as well as common phrases.

It's still unclear at this time how Gmail Motion will affect email marketers, though some suggestions for ways to leverage Gmail Motion include offering special savings that would appear after a subscriber performs the Macarena, or revamping your SWYN links to automatically forward an email to a subscriber's address book upon completion of a somersault.


Learn more about Gmail Motion:



Oh yeah, and of course... April Fool!

From: Threadless Newsletter
Subject Line: A lil somethin (OMG A COUPON!!!) so you can stock up for school!
Date: Monday, August 30, 2010

Threadless always has cute, cheeky copy, but I particularly love this goofy subject line. I appreciate the fact that they made me excited about a coupon, even though I look at dozens of email coupons every single day as part of my job. Way to distinguish yourself, Threadless!

From: Vosges Haut-Chocolat
Subject Line: 76% Eat Ear First
Date: Thursday, April 1, 2010

Check out this adorable email from one of my favorite email programs, Vosges Haut-Chocolat. In addition to featuring a really delicious-looking chocolate bunny, its hero copy manages to charm without being too precious. Bonus points for working the subject line into the conversation! I also love the secondary copy, which is inventive, compelling, and perfectly captures the indulgent nature of their products. I only wish it was a wee bit larger so my old lady eyes could read it better.

From: Puma
Subject Line: 25% Off - Lucky You!
Date: Tuesday, March 2, 2010

Sports-style brand Puma made a bold statement with its recent St. Patty's Day email. Often tame with its holiday creative--this heart-adorned Valentine's Day message comes to mind--Puma opted to forgo the predictable shamrock graphics in favor of something far more striking.

The creative features an image of a dozing leprechaun and his anonymous, stocking-clad guest, sprawled over one another in the remains of the evening's merriment, with the headline "You Don't Have to be Irish to Get Lucky." In the center of all this is a single sneaker, dangling on the woman's foot. I suppose this technically makes it an on-body product shot, and therefore one of the more provocative of its kind in recent memory.

Now, some may argue that this in poor taste (or even just stupid). There's probably a case to be made there. It's got the same kind of tongue-in-cheek, not-so-subversive fratty humor that you see everywhere from faux-thrift store t-shirts to men's body wash ads which, even if you find them funny, can be tiresome in their ubiquity.

Whether the creative appeals to you or not, however, it's undeniable that Puma takes a smart risk by shifting toward this type of edgier messaging. The brand speaks in a more relevant way to a coveted demographic, namely dudes with disposable income in their twenties and early thirties.

Puma has also created content that's interesting enough (or at least startling enough) to be shared and commented on by the same demographic. In our office, it was forwarded around and definitely became the topic of conversation--not because of the discount, but because of the imagery. This kind of conversation can both increase brand awareness and act as a vehicle to spread the sale message.

Additionally, Puma manages to differentiate itself in the inbox from similar brands and similar sale messaging. A significant fact to note is that this message was sent two weeks before St. Patty's Day, when the only evidence of the holiday seemed to be the Guiness display at the grocery store. By sending earlier, Puma got a jump on other retailers competing for attention around a similar type of message.

Ultimately, this type of messaging wont work for all brands and certainly wont resonate with all subscribers. You have to give credit to Puma for recognizing and speaking to a part of its audience, even with the inherent risk involved in moving away from safer options. No matter what your brand, it never hurts to examine new ways to make your messaging stand out and appeal to your followers. Who knows? You might just get lucky in a way you never expected.

In October, I wrote about the genius EEC Marketing Haiku Slam. Since then (at random moments on the elliptical or on an airplane), when inspiration strikes I jot one down. My most recent favorite is below. I'd love to hear yours!

A/B Test
Ideally I'd split
My existence and test B
Against the control

Deep thoughts on a Monday morning... :). Have a great week!

From: Bluefly
Subject Line: Winter Trend Watch + SHOE SALE!
Date: Monday, December 28, 2009

I am usually less than impressed by Bluefly's emails: their recent habit of using "OMG!" as the headline of nearly every email leaves me unenthused. But let's give credit where credit is due: I love the clever copy going on in this email. Specifically, the bit where they call out the subscriber habit of reading fashion emails at work: "Go 'head & press play, the office is a ghost town!" Cheeky! It's my job to read emails, so I don't feel so rebellious for opening this, but I do appreciate a little wink-wink attitude on the part of Bluefly. To me, it shows that they really know their audience and are willing to go the extra mile to connect with their customers.

From: Moosejaw
Subject Line: Moosejaw Rewards Points Monthly Account Summary
Date: Monday, December 12, 2009

When is a rewards account not a rewards account? Answer: When it's a drive to get email address-only users to register for a full customer account. At least this is the approach Moosejaw took with this email. Not only am I a big fan of their brand, I also love their style and tone of voice. It couldn't be more friendly and funny, very much the email I'd like to go down to the pub with (Yes, I'm from the Responsys UK office in London!).

What struck me the most when I got this email was that I didn't know I had an account at Moosejaw! This could be a negative feeling - was the message sent to the wrong person or was it a phishing scam? Curiosity got the better of me - I clicked through and attempted to log in. I was then taken to a "Create a password" page and that's when the penny dropped. I wasn't going crazy. I really didn't have an account, but this email had engaged me enough to click through and half sign up for one. Some may think this is sneaky and the average consumer may not be fooled so easily. I personally love it. Plus, there are reward points waiting for me in my new account driving that ever-important first purchase.

This email doesn't have much of a design, which is a shame. This is true of all their programs and emails I have seen. There is an argument for keeping things simple, but with this email, Moosejaw missed an opportunity to enhance their wickedly humorous copy style with visual flare to attract attention. It is possible that this was a deliberate attempt to draw more attention to the copy - but in a rare twist, where most online retailers NEED a full-time copywriter on their email team, Moosejaw NEEDS a designer.

From: fredflare.com
Subject Line: 30% OFF + a dancing kitten
Date: Wednesday, November 4, 2009

Check out this very cute and savvy Holiday Preview from Fred Flare. Do you want to see that dancing kitten? Yes! A million times yes!

I am always impressed by the way Fred Flare keeps things sweet and positive while maintaining a cheeky irreverence. Their emails are never short on delight, and this one is no exception. Here, they present a funny twist on the "favorite picks" trend with a list of gift suggestions picked out by the adorable Charlie Fuzzy Caterpillar. Click on his picture and you'll be taken to a cute series of photos of Charlie doing a pirouette. I'm hooked already!

Here's the sneaky part: by placing Charlie's photoshoot down the center of the page, the reader is prompted to keep scrolling until-voila!-they've viewed the entire blog post, which is chock-full of links to other parts of the website. Even though you've just viewed a lot of content, it doesn't feel like a trick.

From: Etsy
Subject Line: Etsy Finds: Trick or Treat
Date: Tuesday, November 3, 2009

Etsy.com is a bastion of offbeat, cool-girl style, so it's no wonder they put the "personal picks" trend to such good use. In this email, part of the Etsy Finds series, Christine, an Etsy seller and blogger, handpicks her faves for Halloween.

What makes this email stand out from others like it is the way Christine's personality is emphasized: she's perfectly Etsy-esque, but she's real--she likes pranks, she has a weird mom, and she's discovering new things on Etsy every day, just like the rest of us.

Everyone seems to agree that putting a human face to your brand is a smart idea, and it's one we've written about several times on this blog. Etsy puts a twist on this concept by using the perspective of a seller, rather than a more formal spokesperson, which ultimately synthesizes two lovely trends in one EDM--personal picks and reader reviews. The result is a friendly, intimate conversation with Christine, and it makes me want to find out what other Etsy treasures she might uncover.

My lone complaint about this email is that I received it much too late. I received this Halloween-themed newsletter on Halloween--why would I order any of this stuff now? The sloppy timing of this mars what is otherwise a very charming email.

From: Yelp
Subject Line: Wacarra Y. would like to be your friend on Yelp
Date: Wednesday, August 5, 2009



Until today, I had just my one "friend" on Yelp (I've always been a little slow with the Social Media thing). I joined Yelp in the first place about a year ago based on a request from my hairdresser, who had just switched salons, and was looking to generate a little publicity. Today I got a "friend" request from fellow Smith-Harmon blogger Wacarra (thanks Wacarra!) and while the request email itself was totally boring (zero graphics and kinda blah copy), I got totally sucked into the friends thing once I clicked through to the Yelp site and confirmed Wacarra. I had not been aware that Yelp has the "friend finder" feature that searches your email. What really got me absorbed it was the "compliments" that you can give your friends - they have great humor in the copy (one example: You're Cool - You're so cool polar bears wear sweaters around you.). And woo-hoo! In the time it's taken me to write this blog entry, I now have a total of five friends - I feel so popular!  ;)

From: Let's Not Motor Day: Friday June 5
Subject Line: MINIUSA
Date: Friday, May 22, 2009

Two little surprises in one MINI email:
(1) The preheader link -- "Having trouble viewing this email? Click here to view it in your browser." -- opens the full MINI website with the email itself in a smaller pop-up window. I like this idea. It allows us to both view the email and engage with the entire website, should we choose. I'm surprised I haven't seen this before; it makes so much sense. Thoughts?
(2) MINI has personality, down to the unsubscribe copy: "If these emails are boring you and you don't mind missing out on all the lip-smackin' stuff we'll be sending in the future, simply send a message to unsubscribe@insiders.miniusa.com and include "Unsubscribe" and your favorite fruit in the subject field." Cute, right? I honestly think that the favorite fruit piece might make someone chuckle enough to cause them to consider not unsubscribing!

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: Barneys New York
Subject Line: Good for You!
Date: Friday, March 13, 2009

I recently started a new email account, and this Barneys New York email is my favorite welcome message so far. The copy congratulates me on signing up and thereby joining the "email cognoscenti," the message is branded to set expectations for future Barneys emails, and the messaging is simple, direct and draws me back into shopping. My favorite part is their humorous approach - their fashionable but still roller-wearing model looks both sassy and beautiful. The playful copy beneath the CTA "Leave your rollers in - we don't care!" ties it all together: the funny photo and the benefits of being part of the email program (high-fashion shopping prior to primping :)

From: Moosejaw
Subject Line: Free Chinese Food and We're not Joking
Date: Monday, January 26, 2009

I absolutely love how much fun Moosejaw has with their emails! Their brand has a sense of humor that definitely plays out in their emails. This particular email seems like it might be a huge joke but they really are offering free Chinese food with an online order, just read the fine print. Humorous offers like this might not fit for all retailers out there but I would challenge them to come up with creative offers that are new and exciting to entice their customers to click through.

From: Smith-Harmon
Subject Line: Merry Email Marketing MAD LIBS from Smith-Harmon
Date: December 22, 2008

Remember how much fun MAD LIBS were as a kid? Take a trip down memory lane with Merry Email Marketing MAD LIBS from Smith-Harmon! Chad White, our research whiz, has put together some festive fill-in-the-blank fun with a special email twist. No one's really working this week anyways, right? (Just kidding, Lisa and Aaron.) But seriously, download these merry makers and share them with your coworkers for a laughternoon break. When you’re done, post your stories as a comment to this blog entry for all to see.

Download Merry Email Marketing MAD LIBS >

P.S. Here's mine!

Dear Santa, I’ve been very bossy this year. Using my silly email marketing strategies, I drove ten dollars in sales, which everyone agrees is industry-leading. In fact, during my annual performance review, my boss, who we’ve secretly nicknamed GoGo, said I'm the bestest marketer she has ever met during her five-year career. During the Valentine’s Day season, one loudly crafted email sold out the gold-plated Tickle Me Elmo that we outbid WalMart for. And during the back-to-school season, one of my emails sold a record number of horse-print jeans. Because I’ve been so nice, I hope you’ll grant this gorgeous Christmas wish and destroy Earthlink with a hail of frozen shoes.

From: Urban Outfitters
Subject Line: You lost. Will 15% off make it better?
Date: December 11, 2008

This Urban Outfitters email made me laugh out loud. About a month ago I entered a sweepstakes of theirs, in which they invited subscribers to start a wish list to enter a drawing to win a $1000 Urban Outfitters gift card. I’d forgotten all about it until I got this email today. Bummer, no shopping spree! But the email is great. The irreverent copy works because their brand is so irreverent, and it’s smart that they encourage me to start shopping again by offering a discount as a consolation prize.

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:CUSP
Subject Line: Oops! The site is back up! Enjoy SALE + FREE ONLINE SHIPPING!
Date:Friday, November 7, 2008

I think that is probably one of the best (if not the best) apology Email I can recall seeing. When you know how much production time goes into creating an email, you almost have to wonder if they had this in reserve; like they were waiting for an accident to happen!

From:JetBlue
Subject Line: Low, lower and lowest...Our BIG fall sale is here!
Date: July 28, 2008

Feeling a little low on the creativity scale today, I decided to dig through my email archives to find a gem of inspiration. This JetBlue email is an oldie but goodie. It came out this summer amidst a flurry of emails where everyone was screaming SALE, SALE, SALE! What I love about this email is that they found a clever angle and made the sale messaging interesting. The body copy says: Our CFO is away. It's time for a sale. Book now before he gets back on August 6th! In reality, the CFO probably knew about the sale, but I just loved imagining the CFO coming back from vacation and everyone snickering behind his back because they pulled off the ultimate inside job. Finding unique ways to spin played-out content is a sure-fire strategy for grabbing your subscribers' attention. The only miss for me on this JetBlue email is the subject line. IMHO, the SL is a window into the content of the email. So, if you have a witty email, then use your SL to give subscribers a sneak peek into your creative genius. Not only did the JetBlue SL call this a Fall Sale when it was only July, but it also left out the whole fun-factor story about the CFO being on vacation. My SL suggestion? Our CFO is on vacation – flights starting at $39!

From: Anthropologie
Subject Line: Dust off the dog-ears.
Date: September 29, 2008

With an inbox that boasts 571 unopened emails, I think it's safe to say that I probably subscribe to more emails than the Average Joe or Jane. So when a subject line truly stands out from the hundreds I get each week from retailers, airlines, credit cards, non-profits and others, well, I think that's an accomplishment worth mentioning. Right out of the gate, this week's honors go to Anthropologie for their subtle invitation to revisit their fall catalog. Dust off the dog-ears. is one of the most creative subject lines I've seen in a good month. I loved the SL so much that I was actually a little nervous that maybe the email wouldn't deliver on such cleverness. But it definitely did. It featured torn pages out of the fall catalog with even a dog-ear on one (talk about detailed!) and the copy simply stated: Isn't it time to revisit your favorites?. Yes, Anthropologie. I think it is.

From: Barneys New York
Subject Line: BABIES win CAUCUSES!
Date: Monday, February 4, 2008

I have to admit that I'm burning out a bit on all the caucuses action, but this is quite relevant and ridiculous pre-super-Tuesday :). BABIES win CAUCUSES! LOL :).

From: fredflare.com
Subject Line: you have a nose for NEW...
Date: Thursday, January 10, 2008

This is rather bizarre!

From: UrbanOutfitters.com
Subject Line: Neither Naughty Nor Nice...
Date: Friday, December 14, 2007

From: UrbanOutfitters.com
Subject Line: Slackers: You can STILL get it there on time!
Date: Friday, December 21, 2007

Digging out from under the pile of holiday mails I received last quarter ;)...I like Urban Outfitters' take on the classic "Shop By Category" and "Shipping Deadline Extended" communications. By adding humor (and a talking camel), the messages come across as being more authentic than formulaic.

From: UrbanOutfitters.com
Subject Line: The Sale just went from awesome to awesomer.
Date: Thursday, May 31, 2007

I just adore "awesomer." I would love to hear this was a screenshot of a real corporate email. But even if it's not, it's a happy laugh in an inbox full of snores!