   Category Archive: Good Humor
August 31, 2010
From: Threadless NewsletterSubject 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! April 1, 2010
From: Vosges Haut-ChocolatSubject 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. March 17, 2010
From: PumaSubject 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. January 18, 2010
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! January 14, 2010
From: BlueflySubject 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. December 9, 2009
From: MoosejawSubject 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. November 4, 2009
From: fredflare.comSubject 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. November 3, 2009
From: EtsySubject 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. August 5, 2009
From: YelpSubject 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! ;) May 22, 2009
From: Let's Not Motor Day: Friday June 5Subject 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! May 6, 2009
From: Crate and BarrelSubject 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... March 17, 2009
 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 :) January 27, 2009
From: MoosejawSubject 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. December 22, 2008
From: Smith-HarmonSubject 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. December 11, 2008
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. November 21, 2008
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. November 7, 2008
From:CUSPSubject 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! October 7, 2008
From:JetBlueSubject 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! September 29, 2008
From: AnthropologieSubject 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. February 4, 2008
From: Barneys New YorkSubject 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 :). January 10, 2008
From: fredflare.comSubject Line: you have a nose for NEW... Date: Thursday, January 10, 2008 This is rather bizarre! January 8, 2008
From: UrbanOutfitters.comSubject 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. June 3, 2007
From: UrbanOutfitters.comSubject 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! 
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