Email marketing strategies are evolving really fast. If you want to keep up with the times, you need to stick to its rapidly changing trends.
We are going to show you the best email examples provided by cutting-edge companies that are creating email marketing design trends.
You can build your own email template design by using HTML email templates for 2022 and beyond.
The number 1 criterion for the modern email template HTML code and the first thing to start with when starting a new email marketing campaign – make sure to use the templates made with responsive email template design, because more than half of emails are opened on mobile devices.
Being inspired by the following examples and using a proper email builder, you can create HTML email templates that will undoubtedly engage your customers.
1. Applying bold typography
Bold typography in emails is one of the most popular email marketing strategies for 2022 and days to come. Many companies now apply it to emphasize the most important phrases or to draw our attention to their slogan.
What is so great about this email template design by Formula 1: perfect color combination – black background, red logo and white inscription. They go together well, yet they do contrast well, too.
Please, do not write entire texts in bold typography. This will make your HTML email template look messy and un-neat. Besides, long texts are better read when no additional style was applied to them.
2. Highlighting phrases
This is another great way to draw recipients’ attention to our key message. Companies, like Salesforce, use this trick in event invitation or event reminder emails.
What is so great about this email by Hipmunk: the highlight color matches the CTA button color. Once consumers have seen the offer “Flights to Iceland and Europe”, they will not need to search for the button and will not get distracted by other CTA buttons due to matching colors.
By the way, Hipmunk also applied bold typography to the value proposition.
3. Sounding more human in emails
As long as we are talking about email copy now, we decided to show another email template design trend that is connected with copywriting in emails. Yes, while some marketers use large photos, and we will talk about them later, others insert small products’ snippets and add descriptions which feel like written by an actual human.
What is so great about this email by Chubbies: no academic words. When reading this email, I had a feeling I was talking to my old pal. All those “Dems” make me think Chubbies’ jumpsuits are really comfortable.
4. Using infographics in emails
20% people process information best when represented through numbers. Then why would you write long sentences to describe the profit they gained with you and achievements rather than providing short descriptive numbers?
What is so great about this email by Uplers: New Year is the time to reflect on the achievements of the past year. Uplers, in this infographic style email template, expressed gratitude to their customers by showing the growth they achieved while giving credit to their customers. Good idea to promote your own business. Impress with numbers!
5. Adding prominent photos of people using your product
People attract people. Especially those who look happy or peaceful on photos. Show your products worn or carried by cheerful people rather than inserting a wide range of products’ snippets. Emotions catch our eyes, and normally make us want to possess those things.
What is so great about this email by Brighton: A happy lady, wearing sunglasses, a juicy background that reminds us of summer sunshine — all these things make the recipients want to buy from you. Instinctively, people think those sunglasses will make them a bit happier, too.
6. Adding GIFs in emails
Adding individual photographs of two-three top items, that you are about to promote, placed separately would take some extra room as well as take some extra weight and time for downloading images. GIFs are a great way to show a few product items at once.
What is so great about this email by Nike: the email focus is on the shoes. This way Nike managed to promote 5 new pairs of sports sneakers with each product getting equal attention.
GIFs are inserted the way you insert images into your email template HTML code — just by uploading files. The good news is GIFs are considered images by email clients. So you may stop worrying if your clients see them.
Note: Please, do not confuse GIF animations with CSS animation in emails. CSS animations are created by using CSS3 code, and inserted in an appropriate way.
7. Using videos in emails
Images are there to build anticipation of possessing, GIFs are there to promote a bigger number of items and videos in emails serve at least three purposes:
- to congratulate customers on certain holidays like Christmas and Thanksgiving;
- to build a desire to own and consequently buy a particular product;
- to demonstrate how to use a recently purchased product’s items.
What is so great about this email by HelpScout: This company shared a video manual with its users, and also notified how much time it would take to watch an entire video. Ready to spend 4 minutes on watching — then watch it now. Busy — watch it later.
Note: Currently, modern editors offer two ways for sending videos via emails. You may either just insert a particular video link, and some systems will automatically add a preview image, or you may also embed an MP4 video into an email template to enable your readers to watch the video right away without going to any outside services.
Stripo.email editor provides its users with open HTML code to embed interactive elements.
8. Embedding interactive elements
Not easy to implement, but it’s totally worth the efforts. Skyword mentioned that interactive elements in emails increase CTOR by 10%. Isn’t it a good reason to start embedding them now?
We all have heard about image carousels and hamburger menus in emails. You thought that these elements are applicable for promo campaigns only? We have a surprise for you. In July 2018, HubSpot started adding one question quizzes in newsletters.
What is so great about this email by HubSpot: All their quizzes (yes we have already seen a few of them) are connected with the subject line, they go along with the content well. These quizzes are educating, which is great. And certainly, due to interactivity, you can check if your answer is correct right away in the email.
Note: Please, be advised, that only 34% of your recipients will be able to see interactive elements in newsletters. These elements are supported by only Apple Mail, Yahoo, and Outlook and according to Litmus, 34% email users prefer those email servers. Analyze the email clients your subscriber base uses and always provide an appropriate fallback or a ‘View Online’ link where recipients can play the games you offer in emails.
Or you may do it like HubSpot does:
Hubspot gave the correct answer at bottom of the email.
For those who want to know the answer – it is “C”.
Note: Test your mobile-friendly email templates before sending them out if you have embedded some interactive elements into them.
9. Letting your customers share particular elements of emails
“We all can forward our emails and post news on Facebook/Twitter” you may say. And that is true! Yet, sometimes we want our friends to read only some elements of the emails. By sharing entire emails the message can be too long, and our friends may get distracted with lots of info in it.
That is why it would be great if you could add “share on social networks” buttons under important parts of emails.
When promoting a new movie, why not put a “share” button under the trailer?
What is so great about this email by PremierAgent: They explained the reason why they congratulate. And now they suggested that I share this achievement with my clients. Indeed, clients would appreciate it to receive such emails, because they would know for sure that all the feedbacks are real.
10. Personalizing emails
Definitely, this is not a new-wave feature. Yet, many people forget to apply merge tags to create personalized emails.
Yet, statisticians believe that personalization in emails improve CTR by 75%.
What is so great about this email by BookKeeping: Who said that only welcome emails should be personalized? Show your manners – call your clients by name whenever you reach them out but don’t stop at First Name alone. Research into their online behavior or purchase history to further personalize your emails.
11. Signature in emails
All professional email templates are well-structured, and they do perform their main mission – winning new customers.
Signature is not an optional, yet it is an integral and mandatory element of all modern emails. Even if you are sending a plain-text email, it should end with signature.
What is so great about this email by PinPointe: we know the name of the person who sent this email, we can read her position, her private email address to reach out if needed, and, certainly, it is always a pleasure to see the face of the person you are contacting with.
At least, just to stay polite, or to provide your users with the latest actual contact information.
Author bio:
Hanna Kuznietsova, the Chief Content Officer at Stripo.email – a tool that combines drag-and-drop and HTML editors to create fully responsive and interactive emails.
Dealing with emails is one of Hanna’s passion, she loves analyzing them and conducts researches to write about the latest trends in email marketing on Stripo.email blog.