Season Finale: 4th of July 2008
A look back on seasonal trends, email activity and standout B2C marketing:
Start to finish: The first reference to the 4th of July was on June 3 by Oriental Trading. The final reference was on July 8 by CompUSA.
The distribution curve: The biggest day for 4th of July emails was Thursday, July 3, followed by Friday, July 4. Retailers sent the majority of their 4th of July-themed emails after July 1.
Most interesting email: Considering its strong association with fireworks, the 4th of July is a great occasion to try out some eye-catching animation, as Harry & David did in a June 30 email with the subject line “4th of July Savings on BIG, beautiful Cherries!” Rather than using animation to demonstrate product features or anything deep like that, Harry & David is just trying to add a bit of sparkle and dynamism to their email with a clever cherry bomb pun. For an in-depth look at animation tactics, check out the Animation in Retail Emails Study.
Here’s the animated portion of that email:
Pleasant surprises: It was nice to see that at least a couple of retailers went beyond the fact that people had off from work on July 4 and hooked their emails on the historical reason for the holiday. AbeBooks had it relatively easy, sending a July 3 email with the subject line “America in Flux: Books on the State of the Nation” that highlighted books about American politics and history.
Apparel retailer Ralph Lauren had a slightly more difficult time given their product assortment, but because of some charity efforts they were able to promote a special book about the preservation of the flag that inspired the “The Star Spangled Banner” song. They sent a July 3 email with the subject line “Honor Independence Day With The Star Spangled Banner Book” promoting it.
Multichannel tactics: In a July 3 email, Circuit City lets subscribers know that their stores will be closing at 6pm on July 4, but that their website is standing by to fulfill their orders. We’ll see retailers using this strategy again on Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day and New Year’s Day.
Standout subject lines:
SmartBargains, 7/5 — The Bargains are coming! Monumental sales & an extra 10% off
Ralph Lauren, 7/4 — Honor Independence Day With The Star Spangled Banner Book
AbeBooks, 7/3 — America in Flux: Books on the State of the Nation
Read previous 4th of July Season Finales: 2007
Explore the 4th of July tag.
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SEARCH... By Post Category / By Selling Season / By Retailer / By Topic / Monthly Archive
Start to finish: The first reference to the 4th of July was on June 3 by Oriental Trading. The final reference was on July 8 by CompUSA.
The distribution curve: The biggest day for 4th of July emails was Thursday, July 3, followed by Friday, July 4. Retailers sent the majority of their 4th of July-themed emails after July 1.
Most interesting email: Considering its strong association with fireworks, the 4th of July is a great occasion to try out some eye-catching animation, as Harry & David did in a June 30 email with the subject line “4th of July Savings on BIG, beautiful Cherries!” Rather than using animation to demonstrate product features or anything deep like that, Harry & David is just trying to add a bit of sparkle and dynamism to their email with a clever cherry bomb pun. For an in-depth look at animation tactics, check out the Animation in Retail Emails Study.
Here’s the animated portion of that email:
Pleasant surprises: It was nice to see that at least a couple of retailers went beyond the fact that people had off from work on July 4 and hooked their emails on the historical reason for the holiday. AbeBooks had it relatively easy, sending a July 3 email with the subject line “America in Flux: Books on the State of the Nation” that highlighted books about American politics and history.
Apparel retailer Ralph Lauren had a slightly more difficult time given their product assortment, but because of some charity efforts they were able to promote a special book about the preservation of the flag that inspired the “The Star Spangled Banner” song. They sent a July 3 email with the subject line “Honor Independence Day With The Star Spangled Banner Book” promoting it.
Multichannel tactics: In a July 3 email, Circuit City lets subscribers know that their stores will be closing at 6pm on July 4, but that their website is standing by to fulfill their orders. We’ll see retailers using this strategy again on Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day and New Year’s Day.
Standout subject lines:
SmartBargains, 7/5 — The Bargains are coming! Monumental sales & an extra 10% off
Ralph Lauren, 7/4 — Honor Independence Day With The Star Spangled Banner Book
AbeBooks, 7/3 — America in Flux: Books on the State of the Nation
Read previous 4th of July Season Finales: 2007
Explore the 4th of July tag.
_____________________
SEARCH... By Post Category / By Selling Season / By Retailer / By Topic / Monthly Archive
Labels: 4th of July, Abebooks, Animation, Circuit City, Harry and David, Ralph Lauren, Season Finale
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posted at 3:38 PM by Chad White
I love Smith-Harmon's enthusiasm. It's so great to have a connection with people who really "get" and get excited by email marketing. (Truly, there are not that many of us out there!) I count myself very lucky to have found such accomplished enthusiasts to collaborate with on the REI program. They are helping to bring amazing opportunities to fruition with panache.
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