Stripo Email Marekting for eCommerce_The Ultimate Guide_Featured Image
19 May 2019

Email Marketing for eCommerce [The Ultimate Guide]

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Table of contents
  1. What makes email marketing for eCommerce that effective?
  2. Types of eCommerce emails that you need for effective email marketing
  3. So, how to build eCommerce emails that are effective?
  4. General tips and recommendations for eCommerce emails
1.
What makes email marketing for eCommerce that effective?

One of the biggest challenges that online stores face is lack of in-person communication with customers. If done properly, you can easily fill it in with eCommerce email marketing.

What makes email marketing for eCommerce that effective?

The other reason to consider email marketing for your online businesses is the high ROI it drives — $40 for each dollar invested.

And the third reason to consider email marketing for eCommerce business is that customers prefer emails over other channels. Why would they? Probably, because they find it less annoying — they choose a convenient time to open the email, it could be even 2 AM; they do not need to answer awkward questions over the phone if you, say, ask for feedback or they feel it’s easier to not accept your offer that way; and recipients can look through your assortment at their own pace, with no hassle.

We’re going to list all the emails every online store should send over to target audience.

Types of eCommerce emails that you need for effective email marketing

  1. Verification emails

  2. Welcome emails

  3. Promo emails

  4. Product launch announcement emails

  5. Teaser emails

  6. Order/booking confirmation emails

  7. Abandoned cart emails

  8. Invitation emails

  9. Reminder emails

  10. Apology emails

  11. Survey/feedback emails

  12. Thank you emails

Wait! Do not freak out. This is not too many and you won’t spend a lifetime on building them.

By using any of our 1450 prepared email templates, you can build email in less than 10 minutes.

Besides, all emails, except for the promo ones, are done for years — so you have to build them just once and use for quite a long time.

So, how to build eCommerce emails that are effective?

eCommerce emails should be consistent across all campaigns — make sure to always stick to the same style.

It goes without saying that you should stick to your brand book requirements: fonts, colors, logo position, etc.

But brand consistency also means sticking to the same style and tone of the conversation — prior to building your first emails or prior to rebranding your existing ones, you need to thoroughly think the email strategy for your eCommerce business through. For instance, you cannot say “Hey, look what we’ve got for ya” in promo emails and then address by first and last name in invitation or order confirmation emails. And in addition, email design must complement the email content and your conversation tone.

1. Verification emails

To be allowed to send eCommerce emails, you need to get subscribers’ consent. For this purpose, double opt-in is critical. Besides, it’s the first cardinal rule of the GDPR rules.

By means of this email, you ask your subscribers to verify/confirm their email address. You make sure that only those readers who are really interested in your emails, will be subscribed.

This way, you also protect yourself from sending promo emails to “broken” and non-existing email addresses.

Some brands send verification emails during the registration process.

Stripo Ecommerce Email Marketing Example of Verification Email

Only those email addresses that got verified should get on your contact list.

What are the mandatory elements for this email:

Pretty much just:

  • logo;

  • brand name to remind newcomers who you are;

  • the very CTA button that says nothing but “Verify your email address”.

Other elements are just optional.

Make a focus on the CTA button. Do not add any extra CTAs to your email verification email.

For your convenience, we’ve prepared a verification email template.

The best time to send this eCommerce email:

Right away! The very moment a person entered his or her email address.

2. Welcome emails

Welcome email is there to introduce your company to newbies. Make it as engaging and informative as possible.

Typically, brands add videos, brand story, manuals on how to use products and some even add a planned frequency of promo emails per week/month.

It wouldn’t hurt to thank new subscribers for joining you.

Stripo Email Marketing for Ecommerce Verification Emails

Remember that welcome emails get the highest open rate — capture this chance to impress newcomers. Try your hardest to build a perfect welcome email.

What are the mandatory elements for this email:

  • logo;

  • brand name;

  • contact information — email address, phone number to reach out to for help;

  • words of gratitude — it’s not actually mandatory, but as we said above, we need to thank our subscribers for joining us, for sharing their contact information with us. If you like, you can even offer a discount to a newcomer to persuade them to buy from you;

  • a CTA button — it can be anything, from “start shopping” to “check out our guide”.

Welcome Ecommerce Emal by Trello

The best time to send this eCommerce email:

Right after the newcomer confirmed his or her email address. The maximum gap should not exceed 15 minutes.

Important to note:

If you have much to say to your recipients, then try a welcome email series — a sequence of emails to better introduce your brand to newcomers.

Normally, with the first email of the sequence, you thank registrants for joining you and mention that more to come. With the second email, you explain what kind of service you provide and what benefits people can get by using it. With the third email, you ask to set preferences and other personal data to provide recipients with personalized value offer and relevant information.

Stripo Email Marketing Ecommerce_Example of Welcome Email Series Email

You can find more information and many more inspirational examples of welcome emails in our dedicated blog post.

And for your convenience, we’ve prepared 10 welcome email templates.

Go to Templates

3. Promo emails

It is promo emails that bring us profit. We promote new product items, new tools, announce new features that we’ve released, etc.

Harvard professors say that 95% of purchases are made subconsciously.

Consequently, we should do our best to impress our target audience with the promo email we send and evoke the desire to possess the things that we offer.

It can be funny, like emails from Chubbies, or it can be serious — it does not matter. The mission of promo emails is clear — evoke the desire to shop with us!

What are the mandatory elements for this email:

  • logo;

  • brand name;

  • the unsubscribe link — in order to abide by the GDPR and CanSPAM rules;

  • the reason why you reached out to your prospects — in order to abide by the GDPR and CanSPAM rules;

  • CTA buttons — it can be anything. Just make sure the copy is clear enough and the button design is noticeable.

Normally, contact information, social media icons, the unsubscribe link and the reason why you reached out to your recipients are located in email footer. While logo, brand name and sometimes navigation menu are located in email header.

To save time on email production, you can save these elements to your personal library of content modules. And just drag them in your eCommerce email template when working on a new campaign.

Additional yet traditional elements to add in your promo emails

Imagery

Promo email can contain sophisticated banner with your value proposition over it, a number of product content modules, aka products’ cards, with products’ snippets, descriptions and buttons.

Email Marketing Ecommerce Example of Product Content Modules by M&M's

Countdown timers

They can also contain countdown timers, which increase conversion by 9% because they build the sense of “missing out”.

Interactive elements

You are welcome to add interactive elements to your emails as the former double conversion.

Interactive emails help you entertain your customers, even play games with them, showcase your products from different angles, and add a shed of mystery to your emails.

Stripo allows building image rollover effect, apply a hover effect to buttons right in the editor. Embed videos or surveys to enable customers to interact with you directly in emails.

You can also build any other element and insert the embed code in your eCommerce email templates with Stripo.

Build interactive elements on your own or use any of our prepared interactive emails.

AMP emails

AMP emails… Lately, everyone’s been talking about AMP. But today, Stripo is the only editor that supports AMP.

Why do you even need AMP?

Because AMP emails enable your recipients to add items to cart, to arrange meetings, to discuss some work processes and even provide with real-time information, like seeing the remnant in stock.

Please, read on our blog how build AMP-powered emails with Stripo.email.

The best time to send this eCommerce email:

This totally depends on your business. If you provide services that people typically need for their work, the chances your emails will get opened on weekend are low.

Know your products, know your audience to figure the best time to send these emails.

Yet, you definitely should test it. Send promo emails on different days and at a different time — and email campaign’s report will show you the best time to send your promo emails.

Important to note:

You can change the days when you send promo emails to find the best time, but you cannot exceed the planned amount of emails a week.

We’ve prepared a number of eCommerce email templates for your promo campaigns. You will only need to customize them down according to your brand book.

4. Product launch announcement emails

Tesla, Apple, Mercedes do their best to buzz for their next product launch. Social media, mass media and email marketing — they use these three channels to build anticipation and to make their new products awaited.

This is a sample of the email by Mercedes that I received in April 2019:

Stripo_Ecommerce Email Marketing_Example of Product Launch Announcement Emails

What are the mandatory elements for this email:

  • logo;

  • brand name;

  • the unsubscribe link — in order to abide by the GDPR and CanSPAM rules;

  • the reason why you reached out to your prospects — in order to abide by the GDPR and CanSPAM rules;

  • The image and description of your new product.

Not ready to share this picture yet? Or the product is on the stage when it’s too early to take any pictures of it? Not a problem. Porsche, for instance, found its way out.

If you know the exact date when you are going to release new products — say that. If you are uncertain about this date, just say “this Fall”. And this will do.

The best time to send this eCommerce email:

It all depends on your strategy and how much time you have left.

Normally, it comes in series — in each email, you shed light on just some brand new features of the product.

With one of the emails, you announce that you start taking pre-orders.

Stripo Ecommerce for Email Marketing Pre-order

Please, find more expiring examples in this blog post.

5. Teaser emails

Teaser emails normally precede product launch announcement emails. This way you add some mystery to your products.

Teaser email is a good psychological trick. We all like to be ahead of others, we all like to know something that others do not. Which is why email that says, “Something new is happening with us. Want to know what it is, stay tuned” evokes our anticipation and curiosity. We will impatiently await the next email from this brand.

Stripo Email Marketing for Ecommerce Teaser Emails

Or… you can also “tease” recipients with the amount of sale. When we receive an email that says “40% OFF”, we can leave it if we are not interested in the products offered. But if we see, “Guess, what your personal amount of discount it”, we are more likely to click it. Once again, we will be driven by our curiosity. But remember, that 95% of purchases are emotional.

What are the mandatory elements for this email:

As long as teaser emails are a type of promo emails, the very same elements are mandatory. The rest is at your discretion. Use your rich imagination to intrigue recipients with the teaser email.

The best time to send this eCommerce email:

Teasers should be sent out at the very same time that you’ve chosen for sending promo emails.

6. Order confirmation emails

You hit the goals with your teaser and promo emails and some prospects made a purchase.

Now you need to inform them that you are aware of this and will process their order.

Email Marketing Ecommerce Example of Order Confirmation Email

By order confirmation email we also mean booking confirmation as booking a room number at your hotel is kind of order, too; we mean registration for any kind of event, as we get tickets and reserve our seats for the event, etc.

You can either send a single order confirmation email or build an entire sequence — it’s up to you.

But the content of your emails and the best sending time will differ a little:

a) single order confirmation email

This works best for online events, for online services — in other services, which do not require physical delivery.

What are the mandatory elements for this email:

  • logo and brand name — it goes without saying;

  • the unsubscribe link — in fact, it’s not mandatory for the confirmation emails, yet the presence of this link in all trigger emails is a condition of many ESPs today in order to avoid customers’ complaints;

  • order number;

  • the price of the ordered products;

  • the quantity of these products;

  • taxes (for the US);

  • the total amount.

The best time to send this eCommerce email:

Right away! The very moment your system noticed that a customer made a purchase/registration. The response time should not exceed 15 minutes. Unless the other is not specified on your website.

b) a sequence of order confirmation emails

Those should be:

Email 1. Order confirmation email

With this email, you confirm that the order was placed with you and that you are going to process it the next business day.

Stripo Ecommerce Email Marketing Sample of Order Confirmation Email Series

What are the mandatory elements for this email:
  • just the number of the order;

  • the exact date when you are going to process the order;

  • header, footer, the unsubscribe link — go without saying.

The best time to send this eCommerce email:

This email needs to be sent right away;

Email 2. Order status update email

Email 2 notifies that the order was processed — with this email you inform customers if all the items are in stock and provide them with the total amount of the purchase

The very moment you received a notification about the purchase.

What are the mandatory elements for this email:
  • just the number of the order;

  • items, their availability, prices, quantity;

  • delivery date and method;

  • taxes (for the US);

  • total amount;

  • delivery address — ask customers to check the relevance of the information they entered;

  • header, footer, the unsubscribe link — go without saying.

The best time to send this eCommerce email:

This email needs to be sent once the order is processed.

Stripo Email Marketing for Ecommerce Sample of Order Confirmation Email

Email 3. Shipment confirmation email

This is a shipment confirmation email. With this email, you inform subscribers that their order has shipped.

Stripo Ecommerce Email Marketing Shipping Confirmation Email

What are the mandatory elements for this email:
  • just the number of the order;

  • delivery method;

  • address to which you are going to deliver this order to;

  • the exact date when the order will be delivered;

  • tracking number;

  • header, footer, the unsubscribe link — go without saying.

Use Pre-designed Templates

The best time to send this eCommerce email:

Once the order has shipped.

Email 4. Delivery reminder email (optional)

This email is to remind customers the order has been delivered and is waiting for them to pick-up (if this is delivered to a post office) or to remind the order will be delivered to the customer’s house today.

What are the mandatory elements for this email:
  • just the order number;

  • header, footer, the unsubscribe link — go without saying.

The best time to send this eCommerce email:

The very day when the order will be delivered or the day before.

Email 5. Proof of delivery email (optional)

Once the order has been delivered, you might need to send customers a written bill of lading signed by a customer. In the proof of delivery email, you show that the order has been delivered to a customer or has been put at his/her doorsteps. 

What are the mandatory elements for this email:
  • bill/receipt with the total amount of the order and the quantity of product items;
  • the photo of the order at the client's doorsteps;
  • delivery time and date.
The best time to send this eCommerce email:

Right after the order has been delivered.

Email 6. Survey invitation email

With this email, you ask users to share their feedback on the goods they received and the quality of the delivery service.

Types of Emails for eCommerce_Survey Invitation Emails

What are the mandatory elements for this email:
  • photo of the products your customers bought from you;
  • the survey invitation or the form embedded in email.
The best time to send this eCommerce email:

A day or two after the order has been delivered to let users unpack their orders.

Important to note:

Embedded forms do collect 5X times more feedback compared to regular external forms.

You can build AMP forms on your own or use Stripo's prebuilt modules.

Use embedded forms in Survey Invitation emails to collect way more feedback from your customers
Join Stripo

7. Abandoned cart emails

Only 33% of customers proceed to checkout, while 67% abandon their carts. They do it for various reasons.

But it’s critical for your business to send eCommerce emails of this kind as 60% of those who received your abandoned cart emails proceed to checkout!

Email Marketing for Ecommerce Example of Adandoned Cart

What are the mandatory elements for this email:

  • header, unsubscribe link;

  • product items that were added to cart;

  • items’ prices, photos;

  • total amount;

  • a clear CTA button as subscribers do not need to go to your website to search for the “save my seat” button.

The best time to send this eCommerce email:

The first abandoned cart email should go in two hours;

The second one — if the first one did not work — within 48-72 hours after the cart was abandoned.

For your convenience, we’ve prepared 10 free abandoned cart email templates.

8. Invitation emails

You could invite your subscribers to be with you on the day when you open a new restaurant, a new offline store, to attend your concert, webinar, etc. But the content of all emails is similar.

Stripo_Ecommerce Email Marketing_Example of Invitation Email

What are the mandatory elements for this email:

The best time to send this eCommerce email:

 

are a kind of promo emails. Please, see the promo emails section.

For your convenience, we've prepared a number of invitation eCommerce email templates. You will only need to customize them down.

9. Reminder emails

Most people tend to sign up for events and then completely forget about them due to being busy. And our duty is to remind about our upcoming event.

Do not worry — no one of those who signed up for your event will find your reminder annoying. Quite the opposite — they will find it useful and will appreciate your care.

Email Marketing for Ecommerce Event Reminder Email

What are the mandatory elements for this email:

  • header, unsubscribe link;

  • details about this event;

  • a link to join the webinar (if this is an online event);

  • a map (if this is an offline event).

The best time to send this eCommerce email:

This all depends on the type of reminder.

Reminder for online events should be sent in the morning of the Day X and then an hour before the event.

Reminder for offline events should be sent a day before the event if this is a local event, and two days before if this is an international event.

Please, find more information on reminder emails in our blog post.

For your convenience, we've prepared a number of reminder email templates.

10. Apology emails

We all make mistakes. But only strong people can admit and apologize for their flaws.

Your site went down, the coupon did not work, you provided users with incorrect information in one of the previous emails — once it happened, hurry up to offer your apologies.

Stripo Ecommerce Email Marketing Apology Email

What are the mandatory elements for this email:

  • header, unsubscribe link;

  • explanation of what happened;

  • your apologies;

  • offer something as a “thank you”.

The best time to send this eCommerce email:

The apology email has to be sent the sooner the better. The very moment you noticed this mistake.

We’ve prepared a dedicated eCommerce email template that you can use for reaching out to your audience in such situations.

11. Survey/feedback emails

Do you want to know what your customers think about your services or products? Then feel free to ask them about it.

Many of them will really like to help you out and provide detailed feedback.

Once a customer made a purchase, stayed at your hotel, used your airlines, used your online service, etc. are the reason to ask for feedback.

Many of the features that the Stripo email template builder has were offered by our users. We held a survey, where asked our users what their favorite features were and what additional features that would love to see in Stripo.

Stripo Email Marketing for Ecommerce Example of Survey Email

Survey invitation email can contain a single-question survey, a multi-question survey with an embedded questionnaire or a link to a long questionnaire on your website.

What are the mandatory elements for this email:

  • header, unsubscribe link;

  • explanation of why you need feedback about a particular service or product;

  • words of gratitude.

The best time to send this eCommerce email:

If you are reaching out regarding online services that a user has just tried out — send a survey invitation email right away.

If you are reaching out regarding purchase — give a customer a day or two to try your products.

If you are reaching out to your users to find out what they think about your services in general — do it in a promo email.

Traditionally, for your convenience, we’ve prepared a few dedicated email templates.

12. Thank you emails

There are tons of reasons to say “Thank you” to our customers. They shared feedback — thank them; they bought from you — thank them; they have just joined you — thank them, of course; they’ve been 3 years with them — you know what to do.

Stripo_Email Marketing for Ecommerce_Example of Thank You Email_Brighton

What are the mandatory elements for this email:

  • header, unsubscribe link;

  • the reason why you feel grateful;

  • the very words of gratitude.

You may also send a special gift, coupon to your customers.

The best time to send this eCommerce email:

In fact, this is a trigger email. And triggers are sent immediately after something has happened.

Got feedback — your appreciation email goes over to customers the same moment.

The design of such emails should complement the email content.

We’ve prepared a few various “thank you” email templates.

General tips and recommendations for eCommerce emails

These are the general tips to stick to when only considering email marketing eCommerce:

  • set goals for each and every single email;

  • segment your contact base for promo emails;

  • personalize emails and subject lines;

  • stay brand consistency across all campaigns;

  • remember to preview and test your email prior to sending out to your audience to avoid rendering issues.

We hope you’ll find this ultimate guide for eCommerce email marketing useful.

I sincerely wish you best of luck in your future campaigns — may they get more and more effective.

Build your eCommerce emails with Stripo to save up to 60% of time on email production.

Do better, do faster.

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