Email Marketing

30 Best Email Marketing Examples In eCommerce (2025)

November 18, 2024
written by humans
30 Best Email Marketing Examples In eCommerce (2025)

You already know what email marketing is – but what kind of emails should you be sending from your eCommerce store?

Well, go no further. We’ve surveyed over 500+ eCommerce brands and compiled this list of 30 email marketing examples to take inspiration from.

Let’s go!

30 Best Email Marketing Examples from eCommerce Brands

> Must-have Emails / Transactional Emails

1. Account Confirmation Emails

Brand: Alo Yoga

Subject Line: Alo Customer Account Invitation

Best account confirmation email from Alo Yoga

👉 Key takeaway: Use account confirmation emails to get subscribers towards their first (or second) purchase – here's how you do it:

  • Tease elements like an unlockable discount 
  • Follow up with how close they are to unlocking the discount (in case of inactivity)
  • Show user activity from your socials (as Alo Yoga does)
  • Reaffirm and explain brand benefits like quick shipping, BNPL options, etc. 

FURTHER READING: Turn boring transactional emails into cash cows: 10 proven ideas

2. Welcome Emails

Brand: Pretty Little Thing

best welcome email from Pretty Little Thing

👉 Key takeaway: Use welcome emails to educate shoppers while helping you map out their interests – make sure you:

  • Start with the benefits teased in your account confirmation email (like welcome discounts, BNPL payment, etc.)
  • Offer ways to collect subscriber information like birthdays, anniversary dates, etc. 
  • Showcase the latest drops/collections based on sizes, gender, etc. (so that you can track which links get clicked and collect user preferences)
  • Introduce trust-building elements like trust badges, logos of press mentions, etc.

FURTHER READING: 15 Incredible Examples of Welcome Emails (eCommerce)

3. Activation Emails

Brand: Patrick Ta

Subject Line: Hey Friend, Complimentary Lip Gloss Inside

Preview Text: Exclusive first-time gift + 15% off your order ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ 

best activation email from Patrick Ta

👉 Key takeaway: Segment your activation emails by tracking engagement from your welcome flow – here are some ideas:

  • Opened the welcome email and browsed: Recommend products based on browsing history with a reminder of the discount
  • Opened the welcome email but didn’t browse: Remind about the welcome discount in ‘$’ value and offer free shipping/samples (like the example does)
  • Didn’t open the welcome email: Send them to your re-engagement flow

FURTHER READING: 18 Welcome Email Best Practices To Drive More Sales

4. Policy Update Emails

Brand: Satomi Kawakita

Subject Line: An Important Reminder: Price Increase Effective May 1st

best policy update email from Satomi Kawakita

👉 Key takeaway: Policy updates don't exactly fall under marketing emails – but you can use them to announce:

  • Changes to your product manufacturing processes
  • Modifications to your ongoing programs like loyalty programs
  • Updates on brand milestones like the number of returns handled, impact on recycling etc.

FURTHER READING: 25 Tips to Increase Sales Through Email Marketing (+ Amazing Examples)

> Abandonment Emails

5. Browse Abandonment Emails

Brand: Dooney & Bourke

Subject Line: The Gretta Brenna is Calling Your Name!

Preview Text: Take another look at this iconic style with 10% off.

best browse abandonment email from Dooney & Bourke

👉 Key takeaway: Consider changing the incentives for existing shoppers in your browse abandonment emails – and, experiment with the following: 

  • Recommending products based on their purchase as well as browsing history 
  • Reminding about indirect incentives like redeemable loyalty points
  • Offering direct incentives like discounts on their next order

FURTHER READING: How To (Actually) Drive Sales Through Browse Abandonment Emails

6. Cart Abandonment Emails

Brand: Session

Subject Line: 2 hours left.

Preview Text: Your 10% off code will expire soon 

best cart abandonment email from Session

👉 Key takeaway: Create a flow for your cart abandonment emails to build urgency – here's a cart abandonment flow you can try:

  • Start with a simple reminder like “We’ve saved your cart
  • Follow up with “Your cart will be expiring soon”
  • Offer a flash discount to non-engagers with a countdown timer
  • Offer limited-time free shipping / extra warranty for engagers who haven't made a purchase yet
  • Do a final follow-up (example above)
  • End the flow 

P.S. Consider changing the incentives in your cart abandonment emails – experiment with free gifting options, and other brand benefits that shoppers may be interested in.

FURTHER READING: 40 Abandoned Cart Email Examples That Actually Win Back Lost Customers

7. 1:1 Emails

Brand: The Inside

Subject Line: 20% off expires tonight! ⏰

best 1:1 email from The Inside

👉 Key takeaway: Plain text emails feel immensely personal – consider using them for:

  • Cart abandonment flows
  • Announcing VIP sales
  • Taking feedback from shoppers returning items / leaving negative feedback
  • Re-engaging subscribers 

P.S. Overusing plain text emails will lead them to lose value. 

FURTHER READING: eCommerce Email Copywriting: 20 Game-Changing Tips

Also check out: Top eCommerce Email Marketing Trends For 2025

> Sales Emails

8. Early-Access Emails

Brand: Nike

Subject Line: Classic first move, — 👌

Preview Text: Now check out the Nike App and see what else is waiting for you.

best early-access email from Nike

👉 Key takeaway: Use your early access emails to offer exclusive access and other loyalty program benefits. Periodically track engagement, and send these emails to:

  • Subscribers who open more than 50% of all emails sent
  • Recent purchasers who match (or are close to) your store’s AOV
  • Subscribers who’ve completed a micro-conversion (like signing up)

FURTHER READING: 15 amazing drip email campaigns that actually drive sales

9. Pre-Order Emails

Brand: Kendra Scott

Subject Line: Your First Look at Disney | Kendra Scott

Preview Text: The countdown is on! So, let’s plan your buy.

best pre-order email from Kendra Scott

👉 Key takeaway: Other than offering early access, consider building your pre-order email flow with:

  • A sneak peek of your upcoming collection/product with an explainer
  • An exclusive flash sale to active email subscribers 72 hours, prior to the launch
  • A countdown email to the launch event

FURTHER READING: The Right Way to Calculate Email Marketing ROI in eCommerce

10. Live-Stream Announcement Emails

Brand: Ann Marie

Subject Line: Watch the Replay: Live Makeup Suggestions from Annmarie Skin Care!

Preview Text: Makeup Suggestions from Annmarie Skin Care ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ 

best live-stream announcement email from Ann Marie

👉 Key takeaway: You can use your live-stream emails to build up solid hype – here’s one example live stream email flow:

  • 1st email: Announce the details of the live stream – like topic, dates, platform, etc.
  • 2nd email: Follow up with an expanded detail of why the live stream is being held – feature some social proof regarding guests/hosts
  • 3rd email: Post-live summary, showing takeaways and suggestions (like the example above)

P.S. You can level up the exclusivity, by announcing that exclusive discounts will be given – and only live-stream attendees will have access to the post-live recording and discount.

FURTHER READING: 25 Ways to Grow Your Email Click Through Rate Quickly (eCommerce)

11. Mystery Emails

Brand: Nine West

Subject Line: 🎉 Congrats, You've Unlocked a Secret Offer

Preview Text:  Click to reveal

best mystery email from Nine West

👉 Key takeaway: Delivering personalization as well as gamification, drives intrigue PLUS sales – here are some ideas you can implement:

  • Use the subject line and preview text to pique the sense of intrigue and exclusivity (note how this example does this)
  • Offer a tiered discount that shows the discount the user has unlocked and the ones they can unlock if they cross a $X threshold (adjust X to your AOV)
  • Or gray out the offer and ask subscribers to click – which will lead them to a custom landing page
  • You can also consider using a dynamic counter in the email to update how many subscribers have gotten a discount 

P.S. You can use this type of email to collect user data – check how Nine West can easily map shoe sizes to a shopper’s profile – all they have to do is track which sizes get clicked on. 😉

FURTHER READING: eCommerce Email Mobile Optimization: 35 Guidelines For Store Owners

12. Product Launch Emails

Brand: Color Standard

best product launch email from Color Standard

👉 Key takeaway: Space your product launch emails to create a lasting impact – here are some ideas:

  • For the 1st email: Show the product from different angles to bring out the key benefits paired with USPs like “a short you can wear all day, minus the odor
  • For the 2nd email: Follow up with more social proof (like creators wearing your product) and reaffirm the product’s USP with different copy
  • For the last product launch email: Try segmenting by engagement – for engaging subscribers, send browse abandonment emails offering an incentive to try the product out – and, for the rest, re-introduce the product, once more 

P.S. Feature the newly launched product periodically in your monthly newsletters (Color Standard does the same).

FURTHER READING: 10 product launch email examples that drove massive sales (+ templates)

13. Holiday / Seasonal Emails

Brand: Crocs

Subject Line: Father’s Day Gifting Made Easy

Preview Text: Show Dad he’s #1 with all-day comfort and Dad-approved styles. Free shipping on qualified orders.

best holiday / seasonal email from Crocs

👉 Key takeaway: Seasonal emails are perfect for showcasing your humor – but you should use them for curating products – because shoppers are looking for inspiration – here are some ideas you can try:

  • Start early and remind subscribers to buy at a discounted price (early shoppers are always down for discounts)
  • Introduce collections or product ranges in line with the seasonality (like red white and blue napkins for the 4th of July)
  • Close to the end of the sale, offer shoppers express delivery options like next-day delivery or pick-up in-store 
  • End your seasonal flow with a newsletter email, thanking shoppers for shopping

FURTHER READING: Best-Performing Holiday Email Templates for eCommerce (+ Brand Examples)

14. Upsell / Cross-sell Emails

Brand: Vaporfi

Subject Line: Price Drops ↘️ Kits Starting at $7.99

Preview Text: Quality Kits at Rock Bottom Prices

best upsell / cross-sell email from Vaporfi

👉 Key takeaway: Combine upsells with cross-sells by categorizing intelligently (Vaporfi does this by sorting products by price). Other than that, you can also try these ideas for upselling/cross-selling:

  • Show a product comparison chart in your emails out of your recommendations
  • Offer pre-created bundles (or create their own bundle) out of your product recommendations 
  • Use the decoy effect – which means you should change some attributes of a listing to make it more attractive
  • Showcase seasonality in your upsells/cross-sells

P.S. Avoid recommending more than 3 products in a row – this will help you avoid creating choice paralysis for shoppers.

FURTHER READING: eCommerce Upsell Emails: High-converting Examples (+ Templates)

15. Discount / Promotional Emails

Brand: Origins

best discount/promotional email from Origins

👉 Key takeaway: Try framing your discounts in such a way that shoppers can’t afford to miss them – note how Origins makes customers feel they will lose out on a ‘just for them’ offer:

  • The email copy feels extremely personalized (note the “our bestsellers just for you”)
  • Shows animated images in the hero section to show different combinations of bundles
  • Changes the value of the offer in each email to maximize the value proposition (note how the second email shows “$186 value” instead of “$99 value”)

P.S. You can use this exact method to clear out your slow-moving inventory (all while increasing your AOV).

FURTHER READING: 40 Discount Email Templates (& Examples) for eCommerce Stores

16. Newsletter Emails

Brand: Stumptown Coffee Roasters

best newsletter emails from Stumptown Coffee Roasters

­

👉 Key takeaway: Use your newsletters as a way to connect with your customers – and, celebrate them – here are some ideas to include in your newsletters:

  • Monthly roundups of brand updates, bestselling products, newly launched collections
  • Factoids on products, showing research, and testimonials
  • Community roundups, showcasing user-generated content, or sowing ideas for a cause
  • Celebrating seasonal events like New Years, Back to School, etc
  • Post-purchase education, showing customers how to take care of their purchases

FURTHER READING: eCommerce Newsletter: 20 Ways To Stand Out And Actually Drive Sales

> Post Purchase Emails

17. Thank You / Order Confirmation Emails

Brand: MeUndies

Subject Line: Order Received (Thanks!)

best thank you/order confirmation email from MeUndies

👉 Key takeaway: Order confirmation emails can be fun and light-hearted, but must be deeply functional. Remember to:

  • Follow up with an account confirmation email, to help convert shoppers who’ve made their first purchase using guest checkout.
  • Include a section showing how to use the product a customer has purchased
  • Provide a breakdown of your order with clear delivery instructions and date 

P.S. Consider modifying this template for sending at the end of giveaway campaigns – try showcasing social proof with photos and videos of giveaway winners with the products. If you’re running a giveaway for a cause, show your impact on the cause (like no. of donations raised, amount raised, etc.). 

FURTHER READING: Top 20 eCommerce Thank You Email Examples That Convert

18. Shipping Emails

Brand: Vuori

Subject Line: Your Order Is Making Moves

best shipping email from Vuori

👉 Key takeaway: Always offer content to handle post-purchase regret – along with options to:

  • Track rewards and increase user retention 
  • Option to download invoices
  • Check policies regarding warranty, shipping 
  • Option to find service points

FURTHER READING: 29 easy-to-copy confirmation email templates (eCommerce)

19. Review Emails

Brand: Chewy

Subject Line: Tell us what you think

best review email from Chewy

👉 Key takeaway: Apart from dynamically loading products from past purchases and asking shoppers to review those, try following up in this manner:

  • For negative reviews, follow up with a separate survey and winback flow (offer benefits like flat $X off or flat X% off)
  • For positive reviews, show them that you’ve featured their review on your website
  • For non-engagers, ask what went wrong – and, offer incentives to review (like a referral bonus)

P.S. Make sure you aren’t triggering review emails, way too quickly – for example, products with a longer shelf life should be ideally followed up within 20 to 30 days of usage (like cellphones, earphones, etc).

FURTHER READING: 17 Unconventional Post-Purchase Emails (+ How to copy them)

Also check out: 10 Questions to Ask When Hiring An eCommerce Email Marketing Agency

20. Survey Emails

Brand: Ocean Saver

Subject Line: Your chance to spill the tea ☕

Preview Text: Your feedback will help us create the future

best survey email from Ocean Saver

👉 Key takeaway: Not all survey emails have to tease a reward – a common call can also help deliver the impact. If you’re wondering who you should send these survey emails to, try people who:

  • Had a chat with your chatbot/live chat agent
  • Made a return/complaint
  • Left positive feedback
  • Left negative feedback
  • To non-engaging subscribers

FURTHER READING: Reduce eCommerce Returns with Intelligent UX (+ Smart Handling ideas)

> Loyalty Emails

21. Giveaway Emails

Brand: Act + Acre

Subject Line: Enter To Win Your Dream Hair

Preview Text: Win your custom summer hair routine valued at $200 ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ 

best giveaway email from Act + Acre

👉 Key takeaway: Start with the impact first – use the $ value to reel in subscribers. 

  • Showcase the value and the goal in the subject and preview text 
  • Show the product(s) in use along with some proof 
  • Follow up with your brand benefits (check the iconography above the footer)

FURTHER READING: 12 eCommerce Brands Acing Cause Marketing in 2025

22. Anniversary Emails

Brand: The Baby Cubby

Subject Line: It's Your (First Purchase) Anniversary!

Preview Text: Enjoy a special gift inside! ­ ­ ­

best anniversary email from The Baby Cubby

👉 Key takeaway: Other than celebrating the birthdays of customers, also celebrate customer and brand milestones like:

  • Purchase anniversaries
  • Engagement/wedding anniversaries (especially relevant for jewelry brands
  • First school day
  • First social media post about the brand 
  • First review/impact made through reviews 

FURTHER READING: 26 Brilliant Ways To Boost eCommerce Repeat Sales

23. Rewards Emails

Brand: Hallmark

Subject Line: You just earned points from Crown Rewards!

Preview Text: Thanks for your purchase.

best rewards email from Hallmark

👉 Key takeaway: make it work as an activation email for new customers 

  • Show suggestions based on customer history 
  • Ask to create an account 
  • Showcase rewards earned with a progress bar showing the top reward that can be earned
  • Offer limited-time exclusive email discounts­ ­for email subscribers

Do check out: 15 Top Examples of eCommerce Teaser Emails (+ Templates)

24. Replenishment Emails

Brand: Office Depot

Subject Line: {name}, It's time for a refill.

Preview Text: Office Depot® Check your ink. Make sure you have a good supply.

best replenishment email from Office Depot

👉 Key takeaway: Persistent personalization is key to driving return sales – however, make sure you:

  • Avoid cross-selling on every replenishment email – just offer deals on quantities here (or on shipping)
  • Allow users to customize their subscription preferences within the email like frequency of deliveries, adjust product quantities, or even swap out items based on their current needs

FURTHER READING: Writing Replenishment Emails That Convert

25. Referral Emails

Brand: Away

Subject Line: Give $20, get $20

best referral email from Away

👉 Key takeaways: 

  • Creates an added incentive for shoppers by keeping referrals as a part of your activation as well as post-purchase flow
  • You can also use referrals for days like “National Friends Day” or “Random Acts of Kindness Day” – check this awesome referral email from Kailo:
Awesome seaonal referral email from Kailo

FURTHER READING:  eCommerce Referral Email: 10 Examples That Really Work

> Triggered Emails

26. Quiz Emails

Brand: Estee Lauder

Subject Line: A Flawless Quiz ✨ Find Your Foundation Match

Preview Text: Meet your perfect shade and finish.

best quiz email from Estee Lauder

👉 Key takeaway: This particular email in essence is a browse abandonment email, but in reality quiz emails can be used to:

  • Show influencer-backed recommendations
  • Create and upsell routines with products 
  • Help deliver brand services like finding sizes or saving personalization like vehicle model year and type

FURTHER READING: 17 Proven Ideas to Improve Email Marketing Conversion Rate (+ Examples)

27. Out-of-Stock Emails

Brand: MVMT

Subject Line: We're Retiring These!

Preview Text: Once they're gone, they're gone for good

best out-of-stock email from MVMT

👉 Key takeaway: Turn your out-of-stock emails into FOMO drivers like MVMT does. Just because out-of-stock emails are transactional, doesn’t mean they can’t have a humorous edge. 

For example, you could notify users who’ve got products with low stocks added to a wishlist.

FURTHER READING: 13 Triggered Email Examples That Actually Drive Conversions

28. Back-in-Stock Emails

Brand: Chubbies

Subject Line: IT'S A LIMITED EDITION RESTOCK PARTY

Preview Text: And George Kittle is coming! ­ 

best back-in-stock email from Chubbies

👉 Key takeaway: Not all back-in-stock emails have to be an announcement, you can take them a step further and make them limited editions, as Chubbies does. 

FURTHER READING: 24 Best Back-In-Stock Email Examples (+Templates)

29. Re-engagement Emails

Brand: Peak Chocolate (AU)

Subject Line: Is everything ok?

best re-engagement email from Peak Chocolate (AU)

👉 Key takeaway: Try being genuine in your re-engagement emails. Why: new subscribers signing up and dropping off is never a good sign (and ultimately leads your emails to be marked as graymail). 

Need more ideas for your re-engagement emails?

FURTHER READING: Re-engagement Email Examples That (Actually) Win Back Subscribers

30. Winback Emails

Brand: Carparts.com

Subject Line: It's been a while!

Preview Text: Stock up on parts online.

best winback email from Carparts.com

👉 Key takeaway: Winback emails are for existing shoppers who have dropped off from your emails. 

Thus, they require something way more direct – like an incentive along with discounts on products they may need (like car accessories or parts tailored to the subscriber's vehicle model).

FURTHER READING: 11 High-Converting Win Back Email Examples (+ Templates)

RECOMMENDED READING

Fashion Email Marketing: 32 Workflow Ideas (With Real Examples)

Jewelry Email Marketing: 40 Amazing Examples For Online Stores

Brilliant eCommerce Retargeting (and Remarketing) Examples

Ready to put these best email marketing examples to action?

Remember: most eCommerce store owners don’t see email as a serious revenue stream.

Ask them about the importance of email marketing, and you'll hear: “we don’t really have a major strategy,” “we mostly use generic templates,” or “we just send emails to people on our list.

BUT AT THE SAME TIME:

There are stores out there that drive 30%+ of their revenue from email marketing. 

Engage can help you do the same – Book a free demo.

We’ll show you:

  • workflows we can create for your store,
  • proven ways to drive 30% or more $$ from email alone, and
  • successful templates and strategies from your industry (and others).
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