The evolution of smartphones, and technology in general, mean that we’re as connected as ever through online communication channels, including email. The Radicati Group estimate that over 205 billion emails are sent every day. With so many companies trying to grab a consumer’s attention at once, it can be hard to get through. So, what makes a good marketing email?

Steam is an online retailer for computer games, and has become increasingly popular with PC gamers. As an avid gamer myself, I have a Steam account, which is connected to my email address, allowing Steam to send me permission-based emails, which can be customised via account settings. When there is a game that I am interested in but don’t want to buy at that second, I can add it to my ‘wishlist’, so that I can purchase it at a later date, or wait for another Steam user to buy it for me and gift it to me (thanks, Josh).

When a game on my wishlist goes on sale, like quirky Goat Simulator, I receive a targeted event-triggered email to let me know, enticing me to buy it at a lower price, which encourages an increase in sales. You can see it with numbers for reference points below.

1. Title
Including concise and relevant subject titles dramatically increases the likelihood of opening- if I saw an email from Steam saying “Call of Duty on sale on Steam: down from £19.99 to £5.00- that’s an amazing 75% off! Check out other items included in Steam’s Autumn sale!“, it would most likely go straight in the recycling bin, as not only am I not a big FPS gamer, meaning the content is irrelevant to me, but also the subject line is way too long, and people aren’t very likely to read all of it.
Rather interestingly, Steam have approached wishlist emails with a vague subject title- every targeted wishlist email that I receive from them has the same title: ‘An item on your Steam wishlist is on sale!‏’. By including the word ‘Steam’, users know it is from them (if they hadn’t already seen that the sender is ‘Steam Store’), but by not revealing which product is on sale, it encourages me to open the email and find out.

2. Sender ID
By including a friendly ID, consumers can easily identify businesses, increasing their chances of noticing and opening a message from them.

3. Compatibility
In 2014, mobile devices became the most commonly used device for accessing the internet. By including a link to a web version of their email, businesses ensured that customers would be able to read their message, even if there were restrictions in place on their mailing application (e.g. some links may be disabled as they could be marked as spam).

4. Layout
Overall, the layout of the email template is very efficient- it’s easily customisable, the dark colour scheme is on-brand and matches the app, and the efficient use of images and text keep the message concise and on-point.

5. Personalisation
Personalisation of email messages helps build a positive customer rapport, and in this case ameliorates my perception of Steam, because they A) have used a customised username input as a greeting, and B) have included content relevant to me.
Although addressing customers by their first name may seem more personal, recent increased fears in online privacy invasions and hacking mean it may be more appropriate to address consumers by their usernames, especially for Steam, where users are primarily identified by their usernames anyway.

6. Images
Images can be included in marketing emails to capture and sustain the recipient’s attention, which is exactly what the bold and colourful Goat Simulator image does, drawing the reader to the centre of the message.

7. Act Quick!
By including a temporal reference to the call of action, Steam have let the customer know that there is a finite amount of time that they will be able to get the deal, encouraging them to act now to avoid disappointment.

8. Percentage saving
Including the percentage saving emphasises what a great deal it is- a £4.62 saving doesn’t sound as impressive as it’s a small amount of money, but a 66% saving? That’s two thirds off! If this were a conventional marketing email, this is most likely where the call to action would be- as this email is for a computer App, the email is incapable of linking the two.

9. Why and how
This section, which is typically found at the bottom of marketing emails, says why the consumer is receiving the message (because it’s on my wishlist), and how to stop receiving them (edit my account settings- for the majority of emails, account settings aren’t applicable, and an unsubscribe button is normally there instead).

10. Legal Stuff
By law, companies have to give you their details so you can contact them, and put their copyright and T&Cs on.

 

The success of Goat Simulator has enabled the creators, Coffee Stain Studios, to release a new project, I am Bread. Combining the two legendary games has lead to Goatbread. Enjoy.