You and your team have been hard at work.
After weeks, maybe even months of planning, your new product is ready to get launched into the world.
It’s exciting! We know.
We’ve done it too.
In fact, many brands have used this tactic to build anticipation or hype around their upcoming release so that they can get people to come flocking to their store.
They do so because, time and time again, using email as part of your product launch campaign has proven to be very effective. Chances are that part of your product launch plan is to let your audience know about your upcoming launch via email and to do so in a way that generates revenue.
Today, we wanted to show you six revenue-generating emails that you can use as part of your upcoming product launch campaign.
We know…
No one likes a tease.
But this email is designed to pique curiosity in an audience who trusts you’re going to follow-through.
These emails should give just enough to get curious and wonder just what it is you’re about to release without quite giving away all the good just yet.
This example from Birchbox is a perfect example of a Product Launch Campaign Teaser email.
Here’s a breakdown of how you can use their template for your own email:
- “Stay Tuned (and get excited)”. This headline tells people something new is coming and it’s likely something they’ll really enjoy.
- “We can’t unveil the details just yet (sorry!).” The “stay tuned” and this part is the ‘tease’ aspects of the email. You give just enough to make them aware and excited without giving them a ton of information.
- “Circle the date. Sept 15.” Another important aspect of the teaser email is giving them the day of your launch. That way people know what day they need to be looking forward to.
- “Tune in to Birchbox on Facebook Live.” This gives people direction. On the date above they need to do X for a chance at winning some fun stuff and learning about the launch.
You want to send this email long enough ahead of the launch to get people excited but not too long before it so that it becomes lackluster or that they forget about it.
Generally, sending a teaser email 7-10 days before the launch is good.
If you have an exact date you’re going to launch your product, let people know. You may not do a Facebook Live launch like these guys, but if you need them to do anything as part of your launch, let them know in this email.
After your teaser email, it’s the time to follow up with your Product Intro Email.
Now, this email could be your launch day email or more a preview to your product before it’s actually available to buy. Apple often does that type of preview email before you can officially purchase new products from them.
So what is a product intro email you may ask? It’s exactly what you might think — an email to introduce your new product or feature.
This email from Everlane is a prime example of what a product intro email can contain. For them, this was part of a series of emails designed to create hype around their new eco-friendly outerwear jacket.
Here’s a breakdown of this template:
- “In 2 Days: ReNew”. This is the copy in the subject line. As you can see, this email was simply to show off the product rather than announce that it was launched.
- “Used once. Worn Forever.” Notice that this email is heavy on images with the use of large fonts to capture attention. And the first image offers a lot of context without the need for any extra copy as an explanation.
- Show what the product looks like. Everlane gives you a sneak peek at one of the products they’re releasing as part of a new line of eco-friendly clothing.
- “Preview the Collection”. This CTA is important as it’s intended to build hype. And notice that it’s not asking for a pre-order or anything like that. It’s simply directing them to view more items.
Images are a very important part of eCommerce emails. And while not every email your brand sends out needs to be image-heavy, it’s important that this email visually shows your product since it’s a Product Intro email.
What we love about this email from Everlane is that the images do a lot of the talking and the copy simply drives the point home. It’s both very creative and to the point, while also drumming up desire in the heart of a primes audience.
Honestly, it’s a copywriting dream which is why we really love this example.
But to deepen that desire, you need to add value to your product so that your customers feel good about the thought of their potential purchase.
And you do that by adding value.
Now, the email above did a great job of both showing the product and showing off the value of the product.
While that should be the aim to do both in an email like that, the goal of your third email can be to really tamp down on the value your product will bring to the lives of your audience.
Take this value proposition email from Alit wines. They were releasing a brand new rose for the price of free.
This particular launch was to create hype around a conversation that le
d to building up its brand and releasing other wine products.
Anyone who likes a good rose will easily see the value in something free, but offering free stuff isn’t always an option for every brand and we’re not suggesting that you do that. Instead, look at this as a template for what your value prop email campaign for your product launch can contain.
Let’s break this template down real quick:
- Lead with your strengths. This email has a moving GiF with the first heading saying “Principled Wine.” It’s then followed with these impactful phrases: “No chemicals. No markups. No profit.”
- Show your product. Again, use images and show off your product.
- What’s in it for me? For Alit, the answer is easy in the eyes of the customer. By clicking the link, they get the chance to claim a free bottle of wine. For you, figuring out the value may take a bit of working out, but trust us, the value is there. By asking this question from the viewpoint of your customers, it can be easier to narrow in on what your value prop is.
- Value-driven CTA. The CTA in this email builds on the value (free wine!) already embedded in the theme of email. Think over ways to do something similar with your CTA in this email type.
If you’re having trouble digging into the value prop for the email, ask yourself some of these questions:
How will this product solve a problem in the lives of your customers? Does the product benefit the planet or other people in some way? Is there something unique about how you make it or what it does?
Asking these are important when planning this email and the marketing campaign around your product is a great way to find the value hidden within it.
Your audience sees the value your product will bring to the table, but that’s not always enough to convince them that this something they need in their life.
People like to see what others think about your product. Seeing others talk about, use, and rate your product has a profound impact on the perceived value some customers need to really commit to your new product.
If you had some beta testers of your product and collected their feedback and reviews for your product, then you’ve set yourself up for an impactful social proof email that you can include in your product launch campaign.
This example from Eight Sleep not only shows that much needed social proof,
- Use the Oprah Effect, if you can. What’s that exactly? Well, Oprah built up her own personal brand and authority by interviewing people with more authority in the space than she was known for. She, in effect, piggybacked on other’s success in an ethical way.
You’ll notice that most of these people are professional athletes and one even works for Nike. Using other brand authority and attaching it to your own makes you seem just that much more trustworthy and valuable in the eyes of consumers.
- Images and ratings. Yet again, you’ll see the use of images. But you’ll notice this email also shows the 5-star rating from each person. While they could have just left it out of the email, adding the 5-star rating simply compounds the effect you’re going for — brand trust.
- Big CTA. If you notice a theme of images and CTAs in every email, then you’re rather observant. Don’t skip on giving people direction in this email either.
Finally, it’s launch day! After working hard to build that anticipation, your product is ready for purchase.
Give yourself a good pat on the back.
No really, do it. That’s hard work!
via Team Coco on GIPHY
But work isn’t over yet. Launch day means you need a product launch day email, and one of the most effective ones you could send at this point is a product discount.
A discount for your new product may seem counterproductive, but once you’ve built up the anticipation, established your value, and shown your trustworthiness by letting others speak the accolades of your product, offering a discount does two things:
- It triggers the thought, “Wow, this is a great deal!” After all, they know the value this will bring them so the discount is just an added bonus.
- It removes additional barriers in the buying decisions. We know from numerous studies that coupons and discounts have a bearing on people buying things or not. Offering a discount right out of the gate is a great way to bring in more sales on launch day.
This email does a good job of both showing off the product and letting people know they can get a discount using coupon codes.
Again, with launch day emails, show off your product and give a clear CTA that directs people to your product page.
Last but not least is email number six — your last chance email.
And just like it sounds, this is where you give your email subscribers one final reminder to snag your product at your discounted rate.
Thankfully, this email doesn’t have to be heavily designed like the other might have needed. The last chance email from Good Pair Days is a good example of what I mean here.
- Keep images simple, but use them. You don’t need a bunch of photos, but you should still use one just like they did here.
- Make it clear that this is their last chance. You can simply say “Last Chance!” just like they did or you can get more creative. Just make sure that it’s clear so that it pushes people into action rather than waiting.
- Bold CTA. And — yes, you guessed it — you need a straight-forward CTA that moves the desired action forward.
As an added bonus, once some make a purchase, you can put them into an automated funnel like a welcome series or a confirmation email that generate additional sales.
Some brands like to do a fake-out and say something is really a “last chance” and then decide to extend the sale. We’re not huge fans of that as it can undermine a bit of trust.
Whatever you decide to do, this type of email is a perfect last-ditch effort to convert people who are on the fence and adding it to your product launch campaign can help wrap things up with a bang.
Prepping for a product launch is an exciting time for any eCommerce brand. We hope that these 6 template types give some ideas of what you can include in your upcoming email campaign.
While product launch emails aren’t traditionally automated, they are still a highly effective way to drum up excitement and help move products out the door.
Are you on the hunt for an eCommerce email marketing tool that gives you more of the eCommerce features that help drive your brand forward? Then why not give Sendlane a try? You get full access for 14 days, and our team is just a quick click away.