How Email Marketing Should Be Done: Guardian Weekly
I recently got an email from the Guardian Weekly (I know, he’s going on about that paper again…), and I decided I’d share it with you, because it’s a really good example of direct marketing through email. They get everything right here, and the landing page is great too. Have a look at the email and landing page:
The only problem I’ve found with this email is the use of ‘free’ in the subject line (”Explore world news with four free issues”), which might explain why it was sent to my Junk Email folder.
But apart from that it’s an excellent email. The headline font stays true to the Guardian’s ‘brand’ font, the headline is clear and obvious, and the images of the four free issues tangibilise what you’ll be getting.
The use of the ‘Click for your free trial offer’ button, both to the right of the images and at the bottom of the page, are very effective calls to action.
The copy (”The world isn’t simple…”) draws you in and is fairly straight to the point. The email gets across the selling point of the Guardian Weekly - because it’s a weekly paper, they have the perspective on the world news that dailies lack.
If you click on any of the calls to action, you’re brought to a landing page. The landing page is another classic example of direct response. The headline (”Explore the world”) restates the 4-week free trial, and the use of sub-headings (”Gain a global perspective”, etc.) really gets across the benefits the Weekly has to offer.
The landing page is peppered with testimonials, outlined in different shades to grab the eye. And the killer punch: 5 reasons to subscribe, at the bottom and in a different colour to the rest of the page. The 5 reasons uses many vintage direct marketing tactics - “no obligation”, “save money”, “money-back guarantee”, “free trial”.
The first start of the ordering process asks you what country you are in. You are then taken onto a quite long subscription process, which really could have been condensed a bit. But no matter. The email and landing page will already have done its job with a lot of people. This is how email marketing should be done.
