Building an email list for an eCommerce store is similar to building a following on social media, but much more efficient and important.
With an email list, you can start sending out newsletters which give exposure to your products, helps you maintain contacts with customers, increases sales, streamlines communication, and so much more. From there on out, the process just gets more and more complex and this is why it’s so important to find the perfect digital marketing agency for your business to grow and thrive.
There are different kinds of opt-ins eCommerce stores can utilize to get new subscribers, like an after post-opt-in, floating bar, lightbox, sidebar, or slide-in.
Once the user opts-in, he will receive a welcome email, which is one of the most important steps of your email marketing campaign. These emails confirm to the subscriber that the subscription went through and they set the tone of voice you will use in the future for customer communication.
At the same time, welcome emails generate up to 320% more revenue than other promotional emails, but only if they’re well-structured. That is why we analyzed 21 emails to make a perfect welcome email recipe. As long as you follow this structure, your business will see a significant improvement in open and click-through rates.
Furthermore, welcome emails allow you to send relevant campaigns, give options for segmentation, and most importantly of all, they increase customer loyalty. Therefore, make sure your subscribers get these emails as soon as possible.
TLDR: Welcome email recipe for a healthy food brand
1. Friendly voice in subject line
Your subject line doesn’t have to be something spectacular, but it needs a friendly and conversational voice. Instead of sounding like a company that only cares about selling something, you want to sound like a friend who wants the best for your customers.
2. Personalized subject line
A great way to increase open rates in emails is to incorporate personalization techniques into your subject lines. Personalization doesn’t only mean using the recipient’s name, but also using their language, sending location-specific offers, and interest targeting.
3. Personalized greeting
Keeping up with the theme of personalization, the greeting you send in your email should also be personalized. Just like with the subject line, use all of the recipient’s personal information you have.
4. Clean design that matches your brand
It’s very important to communicate your identity with your welcome email. To do that, you need to have a clean email design and a design pattern that matches your brand image. Whether you’re using Mailchimp or another email marketing tool, you can easily create an HTML email with a design that is easily associated with your brand.
5. Optimal length
When constructing your email, find the optimal length that will get people interested but not bore them with details. Most welcome emails are between 50 and 150 words long, and that is the word count you should stick to.
6. Offers an incentive
It’s not enough just to say thank you, you should also give your subscriber a gift or a reward to show how much you appreciate them. The most common rewards given to subscribers are a coupon or a discount code.
7. Introduces the community
When someone subscribes to your eCommerce newsletter, they have shown an interest in learning more about your company. Introduce your community in your email, describe what your customers can expect from you, and what they will get from reading your newsletter.
8. Includes the logo and highlights the USP (unique selling proposition)
Don’t forget to use your logo to make it clear who you are. Even more importantly, include a USP (unique selling proposition) in the form of a CTA to make it clear what makes your business so different from your competitors.
9. Invites recipients to explore more
Finally, invite the recipient to explore your store, products, on-site stores, and social media. However, don’t overwhelm them with too much information, just intrigue and motivate them to explore more by themselves.
This recipe for a successful welcome email is a result of a thorough analysis of 21 emails sent by healthy food brands. We considered a number of different aspects, selecting the ones that work great as well as those we think could be improved.
Welcome email examples
Now that we’ve explained why welcome emails are so important, let’s take a look at some email examples that will help you find inspiration for your own email.
Misfits Health
Misfits Health starts with a friendly introduction. In just a few short words, they explain what their products are, invite the recipient to explore further, and they finish the email with a strong CTA.
What’s good about this email:
- Very clean design
- Optimal length
- Email includes the store’s logo and USP
- Recipient is encouraged to explore the store
What could be improved:
- Subject line is slightly plain and doesn’t express any brand voice
- No clear personalization
Alpha Foods
This email by Alpha Foods does a great job of welcoming their new subscriber. Their copy is very friendly and they get straight to the point of what their subscriber can expect from their emails.
What’s good about this email:
- Design and brand logo are very vivid
- Email is written in a very friendly voice, appealing to the audience
- There is a reward with a coupon for signing up
- Email invites the recipient to explore and engage in their community
What could be improved:
- No personalization
- They didn’t include a USP
Pulp Pantry
The next of our welcome email examples is from Pulp Pantry, where a lot of things are done right. Starting with a friendly subject line and ending with a coupon, there are some great details in between.
What’s good about this email:
- Subject line has a friendly voice
- Brand logo and design are vivid
- USP is included
- There are two promo codes for signing up, giving extra motivation for the subscriber to buy
- Email invites you to explore the business’ social media pages
- Store location is mentioned
What could be improved:
- No clear personalization
Banza Pasta
This welcome email by Banza Pasta does a great job of introducing their products to the subscribers as well as encouraging them to explore the recipes further. One of the best things about it is the friendly voice used in the copy.
What’s good about this email:
- Logo is included
- Voice is friendly and approachable and playful language is used
- They describe their USP
- There are rewards for signing up with a promo code
- Products are included
- Subscriber is engaged to explore the recipes
What could be improved:
- Email is too long
- No clear personalization
- No clear CTA
Tessemae’s
This colorful email from Tessemae’s is included in our list of welcome email examples because of its simplicity. In just a few words, it welcomes the subscriber and entices them with a discount code.
What’s good about this email:
- Length is optimal
- Picture is very colorful and the brand logo is displayed
- There are rewards for signing up with a promo code
- Email has a clear CTA and engages the subscriber to explore the store
What could be improved:
- There is no USP
- No clear personalization
Magic Spoon
Magic Spoon mixes beautiful images and colors with playful copy to entice the subscriber and get them to keep reading. One of the reasons why Magic Spoon is on this list of welcome email examples is the social proof they include in the copy.
What’s good about this email:
- Subject line has a playful voice
- Brand logo is displayed
- It engages the subscriber to explore a store
- It provides social proof in the form of customer reviews
- Text length is optimal and accompanied by vivid visuals
What could be improved:
- No clear personalization
- USP not described
- No reward for the subscriber or any other form of gratitude
Quest Nutrition
Quest nutrition does a great job of showing the discount, and they do this at the beginning and the end of the email. They also use good copy to introduce the subscriber to the company.
What’s good about this email:
- Length of the email is optimal and the design is very colorful
- There are rewards for signing up with a promo code
- It introduces the subscriber to the community
- It does a good job of introducing the products
- All of the benefits are enlisted
- There is an invitation to explore the company’s blog
What could be improved:
- Subject line is plain
- There is no clear personalization
- Too much information is stuffed into the email
Kind
This welcome email by KIND starts off great with a friendly subject line and does a good job of introducing the brand’s products. The product images paired with product descriptions entice the reader and pique their interest.
What’s good about this email:
- Voice used in the subject line is very friendly
- Brand logo is displayed
- There is a promo code for the next purchase
- Products are introduced
What could be improved:
- Email is too long.
- There is no clear personalization.
- There is no USP
Applegate
This email from Applegate is one of our welcome email examples because it offers almost all important welcome email elements. It does this in a colorful template with just a few sentences that capture the reader’s attention.
What’s good about this email:
- Friendly voice in the subject line
- Length is optimal
- It introduces the subscriber to the community
- Gratitude is shown in the form of a coupon
- They describe a USP
- Reader is invited to explore more
What could be improved:
- No clear personalization
Bob’s Red Mill
This email from Bob’s Red Mill takes us in with a personal and personalized message. It tells the personal story of how the company came to be and welcomes the new subscriber warmly.
What’s good about this email:
- Length of the email is optimal and the brand logo is displayed
- It’s personalized with the recipient’s first name
- There are rewards for signing up with a promo code
- It introduces the company through storytelling
- Competitive benefits such as free shipping are mentioned
- Reader is invited to explore more
What could be improved:
- Subject line is plain
Halo Top
Starting off with great copy in the subject line, Halo Top welcomes the new subscriber with fun copy and appealing images. Their brand logo displays are spectacular as well and they invite the reader to their community with a very friendly tone.
What’s good about this email:
- Subject line has a friendly voice
- Length of the email is optimal and the brand logo is displayed
- Subscriber is thanked for signing up
- Email invites the reader to the community
What could be improved:
- No clear personalization
- They don’t describe their USP
Purely Elizabeth
This is another one of the great welcome email examples that are personalized with a welcome letter. The signature at the bottom is a great touch and the reader is encouraged to explore more.
What’s good about this email:
- Length is optimal and paired with subtle design and brand logo
- Email takes a personal approach with a letter that’s signed at the bottom
- There are rewards for signing up with a promo code
What could be improved:
- Subject line is plain.
- USP is not included
Safe Catch
Safe Catch sets a great example of how to write a welcome email with just a few sentences. The recipient is drawn to the email with a friendly subject line and encouraged to purchase with the promo code.
What’s good about this email:
- Subject line uses a friendly voice
- Length of the email is optimal and it displays the brand logo
- Other products are introduced
- There are rewards for signing up with a promo code
What could be improved:
- There is no clear personalization
- They don’t describe their USP
- Introduction to the community is too short
Caulipower
Caulipower uses a colorful email template to welcome their subscriber and introduce the company. One of the things that stick out in this email is the message from the founder and CEO of the company that tells the personal story of why the business was started.
What’s good about this email:
- Subject line is friendly
- Brand logo is displayed
- There are rewards for signing up with a promo code
- It introduces the reader to the company
- They describe their USP
- It does a great job of promoting their products
- Reader is invited to explore the store and blog
What could be improved:
- There is no clear personalization or exclusiveness
- Form is too long
Ripple Foods
The reason why this is one of the better welcome email examples is the friendly copy it uses to introduce the subscriber to the community. It also does a great job of telling the reader what they can expect from future emails.
What’s good about this email:
- Voice of the subject line is friendly
- Length of the email is optimal and the brand logo is displayed
- There are rewards for signing up with a coupon code
- It invites the reader to the community
- They included the USP
- All benefits are enlisted and the reader is reassured in the product quality
What could be improved:
- No clear personalization or exclusiveness
Love Grown
Love Grown does a good job of putting the logo in a visible place and using a clean design for their email. The coupon code is presented in the form of a CTA, which encourages the subscriber to redeem it right away.
What’s good about this email:
- Design is clean and shows the brand logo
- There are rewards for signing up with a coupon code
- It invites the reader to explore more
What could be improved:
- Subject line is plain
- There is no personalization
- There is no USP
- Recipient is not introduced to the community
Quinn Snacks
Quinn Snacks starts the email by thanking the subscriber for signing up, which is a great touch. One thing that it does better than other welcome email examples on this list is that it provides the subscriber with all of the information they submitted.
What’s good about this email:
- Brand logo is displayed
- Expressed gratitude for signing up
- Submitted information is double-checked
What could be improved:
- Subject line is plain
- No USP included
- No introduction to the community
Skinny Dipped
As soon as the subscriber opens the email, they’re welcomed in with a friendly voice and a coupon code. The image used in the email is very colorful and fun, and in a few words, they describe their product’s benefits and USP.
What’s good about this email:
- Length of the email is optimal
- Friendly voice is used
- Brand logo is displayed
- There are rewards for signing up with a coupon code
- It invites the reader to the community
- They describe their USP
What could be improved:
- Subject line is quite plain
Santa Cruz Organic
One of the great elements of this email is that it personalizes the subject line and the body. The copy which is used in the email is enticing and it introduces other products in a friendly voice.
What’s good about this email:
- Both subject line and body are personalized
- Length of the email is optimal
- It uses a friendly voice
- Brand logo is displayed
- It invites the reader to explore more
- It introduces other products
What could be improved:
- They don’t describe their USP
Sahale Snacks
Once again, personalization is very prominent in this email and the subject line sets a very friendly tone. This tone is used in the rest of the email as well, and the copy and product images work great together.
What’s good about this email:
- Subject line and body are personalized
- Optimal length of the email is optimal
- Friendly voice
- Brand logo is clearly displayed
- It thanks the reader for subscribing
- It invites them to explore more
- It introduces other products
What could be improved:
- There is no USP
Simple Mills
Simple Mills uses a friendly tone and appealing images to draw in their customers. The copy is very good and they even add links to some of their recipes so the subscriber can get inspiration to try out their products.
What’s good about this email:
- Subject line is friendly
- Length of the email is optimal
- Brand logo is prominently displayed
- Voice is friendly
- They suggest trying their recipes and products
What could be improved:
- No gratitude for subscribing
- There is no invitation to the community
- They didn’t include their USP
Final thoughts
A welcome email is essential for every business, and it all starts with a welcome email. Unfortunately, many companies make mistakes when composing these emails, especially while they’re still learning and growing.
When you’re stuck and need inspiration, just take a look at the welcome email examples we provided, try to learn something from them, and go write the perfect email for your company.
In case you need help creating an effective welcome email, consider our marketing services. Schedule a free consultation and talk to our Shortlist team of experts. We will be happy to create welcome emails that are perfect for your company.
