Beefree blog

5 Pro Tips for Black Friday Cyber Monday Email Design

Beefree team
Beefree team
Nov 20, 2018
5 Pro Tips for Black Friday Cyber Monday Email Design
5 Pro Tips for Black Friday Cyber Monday Email Design

Each year the holiday shopping frenzy seems to start earlier that ever before. It's "Christmas creep," but it doesn't have to be a bad thing. The exaggerated timeline gives companies an opportunity to invent their own approach to holiday email marketing, getting creative with how and when they offer promotions. From Black Friday in July to Cyber Week to extended Cyber Week, we feel like we've seen it all. And with Thanksgiving just a few days away, it's time to check out how companies are approaching 2018's Black Friday and Cyber Monday email design. How are you going to grab readers' attention? Let's take a tour of this year's trends to get inspired:

#1. Give shoppers a heads-up

Whether you're starting your sale earlier or sticking to a more traditional timeline, you can give readers a heads-up about what's coming. It's a way to drum up excitement and maybe get a better turnout for your promotion. We spotted a few brands doing just that.

Frank & Oak

Subject: Mark your calendar for Black Friday ????

Black Friday Cyber Monday Email Design

Frank and Oak actually gives readers the option toschedule their savings with calendar shortcuts. It's an unusual idea, and a clever one. Plus, this email is beautifully designed with well-formatted text (super legible, large, left-adjusted, with great contrast!) and a stunningly simpleblack-and-white design. And check out the animation, too—

Black Friday Cyber Monday Email Design

Sonos

Subject: Get ready for Black Friday.

Black Friday Cyber Monday Email Design

Like Frank and Oak, Sonos is letting readers know that deals are coming. Instead of an add-to-calendar CTA, Sonos asks readers to make a list and explore its gift guide. A tap on the CTA button takes readers to a gift guide landing page where they can check out items and possibly buy early.

#2. Count it down

All these holiday events are a great opportunity to add a countdown timer to your email design. It only takes a few steps, we promise! Here's what we do:

  1. Open the BEE editor to build and design our email message.
  2. Add a countdown timer via a generator! A number of online platforms (listed below) also offer easy-to-use countdown timers to add to any email campaign:
  3. Sendtric
  4. Nifty Images
  5. FreshRevelance
  6. PowerInbox
  7. MotionMail

And speaking of Nifty Images, they used their own timer 2x in this countdown email—

Nifty Images

Subject: Black Friday is almost here, are you ready?

Black Friday Cyber Monday Email Design

Here are the GIFs in motion. Black Friday:

Black Friday Cyber Monday Email Design

And Cyber Monday:

Black Friday Cyber Monday Email Design

Staples

Subject: FIRST LOOK: Check out your Black Friday sneak peek!

Black Friday Cyber Monday Email Design

It's not the most beautifully designed email, but Staples makes good use of its own timer-in-action in this Black Friday sneak peek email:

Black Friday Cyber Monday Email Design

Timers add a sense of urgency, and we're always in favor of a little in-email motion to show the value you place on good design—and in delighting your readers!

#3. Start early

We know you've seen them: pre-Thanksgiving, early Black Friday, early-early Cyber Monday promotion emails. The sales before the sales are rolling in by the dozens! Some extend through the holidays, while others are their own singular, pre-holiday events. Let's see how brands are getting the party started early.

Food52

Subject: Sneak peek! Get 60% off this Staub cocotte—you've got 24 hours.

Black Friday Cyber Monday Email Design

And here's the hero GIF:

Pretty, right? In this Black Friday "preview," Food52 chooses a single product to feature and discounts it steeply for 24 hours. It will be interesting to see how this sale performs vs. ones later in the week. Design-wise, this email does a great job of using motion to snag readers' attention, and it breaks into a two-column layout to display a numbered list of benefits (sort of like a photo collage with text). We love it!

Article

Subject: Article’s Black Friday Sale has begun ????.

Black Friday Cyber Monday Email Design

Four days before Black Friday and furniture company Article is announcing the sale starts now. And what a beautiful way to do it. This animated email is simple, sleek, and stylish, just like the brand's furniture. Of course, if we were designing the email in BEE, we'd suggest positioning live text and a bulletproof CTA button on top of the image instead of baking them all into one.

Huckberry

Subject: We're stuffffffed

Black Friday Cyber Monday Email Design

This email from Huckberry was so chock full of deals, we had to trim it. You get the idea from the first few modules. What follows is a continuation of the z-pattern single column modular design that you can see here—a good option for long, product feature emails. We like the hero image here and the color scheme. It stands out from other Huckberry emails and therefore seems special—exactly what you want to communicate if you're a brand vying for attention this holiday season. The black copy is live text, too (but show us some bulletproof buttons, Huckberry!) All in all, this "early access" email does the trick.

#4. Opt out?

For the past few years, REI has closed on Black Friday. While many brands are able to resist the pressure to open on Thanksgiving, REI seems to be one of the only ones to remain closed on Friday as well. And evidently, the move has been good for the brand.We're including REI's #OptOutside campaign in our roundup for inspiration on breaking the mold. And we found another email that takes a different approach to Black Friday, too. Check 'em out...

REI

Subject: This Black Friday: Rethink Your Routine #OptOutside

Black Friday Cyber Monday Email Design

We love this combo of a beautiful, illustrative hero image with photography to follow. The opener really grabs your attention, while the single column modular design makes the rest of the content easy to browse.

Pact

Subject: 10 Tips for a Green Black Friday

Black Friday Cyber Monday Email Design

While this is a promotional email from Pact, it certainly has a different vibe from most of the others we've spotted. And chances are, its readers—who are likely environmentally-conscious folks—appreciate that. Both REI and Pact provide great examples of the importance of knowing your audience, then tailoring the content and design to resonate with them.

#5. Extend throughout the week

Cyber Week is a thing now. And it starts on November 26th. That means if you want to cash in on consumers' shopping behavior beyond the weekend, you've got to be ready with a great campaign. One message isn't enough! For inspiration on how to extend your own cyber week emails, check out these handy guides:

Feeling inspired to get those opens and clicks? Check out afree trial of BEE Proto design stunning emails in our easy to use drag-and-drop editor. Create the perfect CTA buttons, arrange live text over images, build custom photo collages, and much more. Happy Turkey Day, and happy designing!

Related posts

Excelling in Email Design With The Beefree Academy

Over the past decade, Beefree has been dedicated to empowering users with intuitive tools that speed up email design. Now, with the launch of our Academy and certification program, we’re taking our mission one step further.
Beefree team
Nov 12, 2024

As we continue to celebrate Beefree’s 10-year journey of innovation and creativity, we’re thrilled to mark this milestone with the launch of The Beefree Academy.

Beefree Academy
Visit the Academy

Over the past decade, Beefree has been dedicated to empowering users with intuitive tools that make email design faster, smarter, and more impactful. Now, with the launch of our Academy and certification program, we’re taking our mission one step further by helping users build their expertise in email design and creation.

The inspiration behind the Beefree Academy 

When we envisioned Beefree Academy, we knew it had to be more than a series of product tutorials; it needed to be a resource that you could benefit from at every stage of your journey. 

The Beefree Academy is designed to inspire confidence, foster success, and provide ongoing support as you grow, enabling you and your team to get the most out of our platform – here’s how: 

Smooth and speedy onboarding:

Starting with a new platform can often be overwhelming and the time spent during onboarding is valuable. The Academy fast-tracks the learning process, offering structured, bite-sized lessons suitable for people of varying skill sets, from beginners to seasoned designers. Each lesson is designed to help you get comfortable with Beefree’s tools, so you can dive into projects quickly and with ease.

Explore new possibilities: 

Many users only scratch the surface of Beefree’s capabilities—we aim to change that. The Beefree Academy allows you to familiarize yourself with advanced features you might have been wary of before.

As you and your team grow from casual users to power users, you can gain more control over your email design, find new ways to optimize your workflows, and strengthen the impact of your campaigns. 

Troubleshoot like a pro:

Technical support is most effective when you have tried-and-true resources to solve challenges independently and on your own schedule. With Beefree Academy, you and your team can confidently troubleshoot independently by accessing targeted, step-by-step solutions whenever you need them. 

Advance your email marketing expertise: 

Beyond learning the platform, the Beefree Academy provides a comprehensive learning experience with valuable tips and best practices for email design and marketing. Soon, our lessons will extend far beyond the basics, guiding you through the process of creating visually compelling, high-converting email layouts while ensuring your designs follow proven best practices. 

You and your team will gain insights into crafting effective email marketing strategies that resonate with your audience, along with the skills to harness the power of AI in your campaigns. Additionally, we’ll explore the latest trends shaping the future of email design, empowering you to stay ahead of the curve and continually enhance your campaigns

What’s inside The Beefree Academy: 

Beefree Academy is thoughtfully designed to cater to users at all levels—from beginners just starting their email design journey to experienced designers looking to formalize their expertise in email design.

Courses:

The courses in Beefree Academy help users deepen their knowledge and understanding of the key tools and features within Beefree. As you complete courses, you’ll have the chance to demonstrate your skills through assessments and earn certifications that showcase your proficiency within the platform. To kick things off we have launched two courses: 

1. Beefree 101: If you’re new to Beefree this course is the ideal starting point. We’ll walk you through the basic functions and features through step-by-step guides. Certified team members can then train colleagues, creating a ripple effect of improved productivity and design standards throughout the organization.

Beefree 101 academy course and certification
Take the course

2. HubSpot x Beefree: This course is perfect for HubSpot users looking to supercharge and streamline their email marketing with Beefree. Through this course and certification, you and your team can learn how to design personalized, mobile-optimized, and engaging campaigns in Beefree for HubSpot. 

For organizations, having team members become Beefree certified can standardize email design processes across the company ensuring that all campaigns are consistent in quality and adherence to email design best practices. 

HubSpot and Beefree academy course and certification
Take the course

Tutorials and walkthroughs: 

Our comprehensive tutorials and walkthroughs are designed to help zero in on a particular aspect of Beefree and email design. These step-by-step guides are perfect for users who prefer a hands-on approach to learning. 

By providing these instructional resources, we aim to eliminate confusion or uncertainty, allowing you and your team to realize value from the start and adopt Beefree with confidence.

Beefree academy tutorials
View all tutorials

Enroll now – it’s free! 

The Beefree Academy certification is designed to fit seamlessly into the busy lives of busy professionals, allowing you to learn at your own pace and enhance your skills on a schedule that works for you. Whether you’re aiming to elevate your current expertise or start a new journey in email design, Beefree Academy offers flexible, high-value learning that you can access anytime, anywhere – completely free.

Ready to take your email design skills to the next level? Enroll in the Beefree Academy today and start building the expertise that will set you apart! 

The reality of Gen AI

From streamlining workflows to enhancing creativity, AI offers intriguing opportunities for businesses and individuals alike. Learn how Beefree's Senior Content Marketing Specialist is navigating the world of GenAI and making it their superpower for all things content creation.
Emily Santos
Nov 7, 2024

Through my years in the tech industry, there have been few innovations that have generated as much excitement – and anxiety – as generative AI (GenAI). While AI has changed how I work and create for the better, I will admit that it also came with a period of fear and pushback. I have seen the way new technologies come and go and are quickly forgotten. And, the headlines painting GenAI as a “job-stealing superpower poised to replace us all” did not make me feel any better. 

The turning point for me came on a random weekday when I turned to my now good pal, ChatGPT, to help me write a brief for a blog. It took some back-and-forth, but the final result turned out to be something I was really proud of. Since then, the integration of GenAI into my workflows has been slow, but intentional. 

While I do still believe there are legitimate concerns to have about AI, and not all anxiety is unfounded, some of it is based on fear-mongering. I don’t necessarily believe that we should lean into the dystopian “AI takeover” tropes. While captivating, these arguments often overlook the ways that GenAI can help us to be more imaginative, free us up to do more, and spark creative problem-solving. 

I don’t plan to convince you to use AI (not today at least), but I do hope that you leave today with some insight on the possibilities of AI.

Addressing your concerns: When is fear warranted?

I haven’t been beating around the bush yet and I won’t start now. There’s no denying that GenAI has the potential to reshape certain jobs and industries. The World Economic Forum (WEF) in their “The Future of Jobs Report 2020,” identifies administrative, clerical, and even content-related roles at higher risk due to their structured and repetitive nature. 

AI excels in pattern recognition, data processing, and performing repetitive tasks, which means that roles where predictability is high, creative input is low, and that have clear instructions can be programmed into an AI system and automated. 

While there’s a plethora of other resources on the “negative” impact of AI on the workforce – I want to challenge us to look a bit beyond. What happens when aspects of our jobs are automated or AI-supported? What does that allow us to do more of? What are the limits of AI?  

The reality: AI has nothing on you

Luckily for us, AI struggles to have an intuitive understanding of nuance. The magic of AI lies in what we do with the information it provides us and AI can’t replicate that.  Our superpower lies in our ability to be creative, our ability to feel, and our very unique human experience.

For example, the brief for this article you are reading was written with help from ChatGPT, and the research to put this together was gathered from Perplexity (verified by me afterward, of course). While these tools were quick to pull facts and suggest ideas, they lack the human experience and emotional intelligence to tell a story about why AI may be scary for folks like you and me—regardless of how much prompting.  

As a content creator, I refuse to see GenAI as a replacement for what I do. Rather, I know that my human experience, when paired with AI’s limitless knowledge, can propel my skills to new heights. 

How folks are using GenAI in their everyday 

The reality (I guess, really, in my opinion) is that GenAI works best when used to complement our expertise. Yeah, it can crunch numbers and even make solid recommendations, but it can’t adapt, empathize, or make strategic decisions when the stakes are high like we can. In these roles, AI may help carry the load, but it’s not steering the ship. 

Here’s how the Beefree team is using AI: 

Marketing Program Manager 

"Sometimes I default to being too straight and to the point when giving feedback on a project, or similar things, so I ask AI for help revising my feedback to be more clear and less “blunt.”

Afterwards, I ask it to explain the types of changes it has made so I can learn and internalize the lessons moving forward to improve on delivering feedback.

AI helps me to be more intentional and empathetic in my communication. I don’t just use it to revise, but also to help teach and aid me in growing as a professional."

- Samantha Hoffmann, Marketing Program Manager

CEO 

"What I use the most these days is AI-assisted search. I very rarely use Google search anymore. My go-to is Perplexity Pro, which I use as an assistant when I need to research topics, figure out best practices to follow in certain situations, and overall try to become better at my job."

- Masssimo Arrigoni, CEO

Corporate Communication Specialist 

"I frequently use AI to check my English. For example, I write copy and ask it to verify the accuracy. It often suggests changes, and after some back-and-forth, I work toward creating a polished and more captivating version."

- Elisa Battigelli, Corporate Communication Specialist

Head of Product 

"One way I use AI is for brainstorming. I provide as much context as possible—notes, references, and ideas—to help build a detailed outline for a topic. From there, I request multiple iterations, sometimes adding additional context, asking the AI to be wild and creative with it, or challenging the initial output.

This approach doesn’t give me a finished text I can use directly, but it generates a rich set of ideas and points that I can further research."

- Guille Padilla, Head of Product 

Backend Engineering Associate Manager

"I use AI for my searches and questions on almost every topic, including the more technical around software development."

- Roberto Pomoni, Backend Engineering Associate Manager

Senior Full Stack Developer 

"Aside from brainstorming and summarizing long reads, I use AI on a more technical side to write boilerplate/repetitive code (that always needs to be checked) and manage the time allotment for my working tasks through MotionAi."

- Lica Filice, Senior Full Stack Developer 

Head of People & Culture

"I use AI to help me transform my messy notes more comprehensively to make them easy to share. It also helps me summarize long readings, optimize written communication, get drafts for policy/docs, and get benchmarks and comparisons." 

- Enrica Lipari, Head of People & Culture

What now? Staying relevant and evolving with GenAI

As I said earlier, I’m not here to convince you that AI is right for you, but I will say AI isn’t going anywhere. Instead, it will continue to expand into more areas of work and industries, and its capabilities will only become stronger with time. 

My plan is to lean into this. Dedicate myself to learning and evolving with it. And double down on my expertise. AI makes my job much easier by doing things like helping me write briefs and retrieve data. By letting AI take on my repetitive taks, I gain something even more valuable: time. 

For myself and so many others, this extra time allows us to step away from mundane everyday tasks and spend more time thinking strategically and creatively about the impactful decisions that make a real difference in our work. 

Leaning into AI wasn’t a decision made to stay “relevant” or “head of the curve.” It was about amplifying what makes me and my contributions invaluable. So I ask you: What do you want to do more of? What can you let go of to do this? 

How to Personalize Emails in Mailchimp using Beefree

Step-by-step guide on how to personalize your Mailchimp emails using Beefree.
Zair Ortiz
Oct 30, 2024

In the world of email marketing, personalization is no longer optional—it’s a necessity. According to a study by Campaign Monitor, emails with personalized subject lines are 26% more likely to be opened, while segmented email campaigns can generate up to a 760% increase in revenue. Considering these resounding analytics, it’s clear that sending the right message to the right audience at the right time is critical to your email marketing success.

But how do you go beyond just inserting someone’s first name into an email? 

The answer lies in leveraging tools like conditional merge tags, which are available in sending platforms like Mailchimp, and combining them with tools that can handle sophisticated email logic, like Beefree

These tools allow marketers to create hyper-targeted email experiences that speak directly to each recipient’s needs, preferences, and behaviors. 

Let’s walk through how you can design beautiful, personalized emails for Mailchimp using Beefree.

Understanding Mailchimp’s capabilities and limitations 

With over 11 million users, Mailchimp has established itself as a leading marketing platform that empowers marketers to deliver targeted and timely campaigns effectively. Among its robust features, its automation and segmentation capabilities stand out.

Mailchimp’s advanced segmentation tools allow you to target users based on behaviors, tags, or custom data, ensuring your messages reach the right audience. Meanwhile, its automation features make it easy to set up workflows, enabling you to deliver the right message at the perfect moment.

However, Mailchimp does have some limitations. Many users encounter a steep learning curve, and the platform's higher price point can be a concern. More importantly, users often find its design capabilities somewhat lacking, which can hinder their ability to create visually compelling and truly personalized campaigns.

This is why many choose to use Beefree in conjunction with Mailchimp. This easy integration allows marketers to leverage Mailchimp’s powerful segmentation tools to categorize subscribers based on various criteria such as demographics, purchase history, or engagement levels. They then use Beefree to design personalized emails that align with each group's preferences and behaviors.

Thanks to Beefree’s seamless integration with Mailchimp, users can easily export their emails and utilize Mailchimp’s automation features to trigger these personalized messages. This synergy between Beefree's design capabilities and Mailchimp's automation and segmentation features maximizes engagement and conversion rates while enhancing the overall customer experience.

How to personalize mailchimp emails in Beefree

The foundation of a successful personalized email campaign is a well-designed email that adapts to different audience segments. Beefree makes this process simple with its drag-and-drop editor.

Step #1: Start from a template 

If you’re not sure where to start in creating a personalized campaign, Beefree offers an extensive library of Mailchimp-compatible templates.  

Mailchimp email templates
https://beefree.io/templates/mailchimp

Begin by selecting a template that aligns with your campaign's objective, whether it’s a promotional email, newsletter, or seasonal message. You can then leverage Beefree’s modular editor to infuse your brand into the emails and add content blocks and interactive elements that are specific to different audience segments. 

Within the editor, tailor your email to offer unique experiences for mobile viewing using Mobile Design Mode.

Step #2: Add merge tags 

Merge tags are placeholder text that gets replaced by subscriber-specific data when the email is sent. Here’s how to use them in Beefree:

  1. Choose the section of content where you want to insert a personalized element. For example, you can add a placeholder for the recipient’s first name.

  2. Insert the Merge Tag – In Beefree, select an existing MailChimp merge tag or create a new one. You can select or add the |FNAME| tag for the recipient’s first name. This turns a generic greeting into something more personal. “Hi |FNAME|” becomes “Hi Jane” when Jane receives the email.

You can refer to Mailchimp’s Merge Tag Cheat Sheet to find additional merge tags you can easily copy and paste into Beefree to customize your email.

Step #3: Apply display conditions for personalized rows

You can set up rows of content that display only to certain segments of your audience using Mailchimp’s conditional merge tags.

These tags are snippets of code that control whether a section of content should appear based on specific data, such as whether someone is a VIP or a new subscriber.

Here is an example scenario: You want to show a special offer to VIP customers and a different one to new subscribers. To achieve this, you’ll use the following before and after logic in Beefree for the row containing the content for VIP customers:

*|IF:VIP="yes"|*
Hey *|FNAME|*, as a VIP, you get 20% off!
*|END:IF|*

For new subscribers, you’ll use the following before and after logic in Beefree for the row containing the content for new subscribers:

*|IF:VIP="no"|*
Welcome, *|FNAME|*! Get 10% off your first purchase.
*|END:IF|*

This logic ensures that only VIP customers see the first row, while new subscribers see the second one.

Implementing Display Conditions in Beefree

Display Conditions in Beefree apply to entire rows, allowing you to show different rows to different groups of recipients. This feature is incredibly useful for dynamically personalizing content at scale.

Here’s how to apply this logic in Beefree:

  1. Select the row that contains the personalized content.
  2. Set the Display Conditions – In the settings for that row, click “Display Conditions.” Copy and paste your Mailchimp logic (as shown above) into the condition box to control who will see the content.
  3. Repeat for other rows – If you have multiple rows with different offers or content for different segments, repeat the process, applying the appropriate logic for each row.

Optional: Multilingual designs 

Beefree’s Multilingual Designs enable users to design emails in multiple languages effortlessly. This is particularly beneficial for brands targeting international markets or diverse communities. 

Designing for multiple languages in Beefree:

  1. In the editor, click on the globe icon on the top bar
  2. Select a primary language from the drop-down menu
  3. Select the number of additional language (this varies by plan)

Once you add your Primary and Additional languages to your Multilingual Settings, you can add your translated content to each language design. The fastest way to translate your emails is by using Beefree’s AI Assistant. 

Step #4: Exporting your design to Mailchimp

Now that your email is designed with dynamic and personalized content, it's time to export it to Mailchimp, where you’ll handle audience segmentation and send the email.

  1. In Beefree, click “Export” and choose Mailchimp as the destination.
  2. Link your Mailchimp account – If it’s your first time, you’ll need to link your Mailchimp account to Beefree.
  3. Review in Mailchimp – Once the design is exported, log in to Mailchimp and check the email. Use Mailchimp’s preview tools to ensure your Merge Tags and Display Conditions are functioning correctly.

Ready to create more personalized emails?

Beefree and Mailchimp provide marketers with the perfect blend of design flexibility and powerful automation, enabling them to craft visually stunning emails that resonate with your audience. 

Start harnessing the full potential of your email campaigns today with Beefree

(source)

Excelling in Email Design With The Beefree Academy

Over the past decade, Beefree has been dedicated to empowering users with intuitive tools that speed up email design. Now, with the launch of our Academy and certification program, we’re taking our mission one step further.
Beefree team
Beefree team
12 Nov
2024

As we continue to celebrate Beefree’s 10-year journey of innovation and creativity, we’re thrilled to mark this milestone with the launch of The Beefree Academy.

Beefree Academy
Visit the Academy

Over the past decade, Beefree has been dedicated to empowering users with intuitive tools that make email design faster, smarter, and more impactful. Now, with the launch of our Academy and certification program, we’re taking our mission one step further by helping users build their expertise in email design and creation.

The inspiration behind the Beefree Academy 

When we envisioned Beefree Academy, we knew it had to be more than a series of product tutorials; it needed to be a resource that you could benefit from at every stage of your journey. 

The Beefree Academy is designed to inspire confidence, foster success, and provide ongoing support as you grow, enabling you and your team to get the most out of our platform – here’s how: 

Smooth and speedy onboarding:

Starting with a new platform can often be overwhelming and the time spent during onboarding is valuable. The Academy fast-tracks the learning process, offering structured, bite-sized lessons suitable for people of varying skill sets, from beginners to seasoned designers. Each lesson is designed to help you get comfortable with Beefree’s tools, so you can dive into projects quickly and with ease.

Explore new possibilities: 

Many users only scratch the surface of Beefree’s capabilities—we aim to change that. The Beefree Academy allows you to familiarize yourself with advanced features you might have been wary of before.

As you and your team grow from casual users to power users, you can gain more control over your email design, find new ways to optimize your workflows, and strengthen the impact of your campaigns. 

Troubleshoot like a pro:

Technical support is most effective when you have tried-and-true resources to solve challenges independently and on your own schedule. With Beefree Academy, you and your team can confidently troubleshoot independently by accessing targeted, step-by-step solutions whenever you need them. 

Advance your email marketing expertise: 

Beyond learning the platform, the Beefree Academy provides a comprehensive learning experience with valuable tips and best practices for email design and marketing. Soon, our lessons will extend far beyond the basics, guiding you through the process of creating visually compelling, high-converting email layouts while ensuring your designs follow proven best practices. 

You and your team will gain insights into crafting effective email marketing strategies that resonate with your audience, along with the skills to harness the power of AI in your campaigns. Additionally, we’ll explore the latest trends shaping the future of email design, empowering you to stay ahead of the curve and continually enhance your campaigns

What’s inside The Beefree Academy: 

Beefree Academy is thoughtfully designed to cater to users at all levels—from beginners just starting their email design journey to experienced designers looking to formalize their expertise in email design.

Courses:

The courses in Beefree Academy help users deepen their knowledge and understanding of the key tools and features within Beefree. As you complete courses, you’ll have the chance to demonstrate your skills through assessments and earn certifications that showcase your proficiency within the platform. To kick things off we have launched two courses: 

1. Beefree 101: If you’re new to Beefree this course is the ideal starting point. We’ll walk you through the basic functions and features through step-by-step guides. Certified team members can then train colleagues, creating a ripple effect of improved productivity and design standards throughout the organization.

Beefree 101 academy course and certification
Take the course

2. HubSpot x Beefree: This course is perfect for HubSpot users looking to supercharge and streamline their email marketing with Beefree. Through this course and certification, you and your team can learn how to design personalized, mobile-optimized, and engaging campaigns in Beefree for HubSpot. 

For organizations, having team members become Beefree certified can standardize email design processes across the company ensuring that all campaigns are consistent in quality and adherence to email design best practices. 

HubSpot and Beefree academy course and certification
Take the course

Tutorials and walkthroughs: 

Our comprehensive tutorials and walkthroughs are designed to help zero in on a particular aspect of Beefree and email design. These step-by-step guides are perfect for users who prefer a hands-on approach to learning. 

By providing these instructional resources, we aim to eliminate confusion or uncertainty, allowing you and your team to realize value from the start and adopt Beefree with confidence.

Beefree academy tutorials
View all tutorials

Enroll now – it’s free! 

The Beefree Academy certification is designed to fit seamlessly into the busy lives of busy professionals, allowing you to learn at your own pace and enhance your skills on a schedule that works for you. Whether you’re aiming to elevate your current expertise or start a new journey in email design, Beefree Academy offers flexible, high-value learning that you can access anytime, anywhere – completely free.

Ready to take your email design skills to the next level? Enroll in the Beefree Academy today and start building the expertise that will set you apart! 

The reality of Gen AI

From streamlining workflows to enhancing creativity, AI offers intriguing opportunities for businesses and individuals alike. Learn how Beefree's Senior Content Marketing Specialist is navigating the world of GenAI and making it their superpower for all things content creation.
Emily Santos
Emily Santos
7 Nov
2024

Through my years in the tech industry, there have been few innovations that have generated as much excitement – and anxiety – as generative AI (GenAI). While AI has changed how I work and create for the better, I will admit that it also came with a period of fear and pushback. I have seen the way new technologies come and go and are quickly forgotten. And, the headlines painting GenAI as a “job-stealing superpower poised to replace us all” did not make me feel any better. 

The turning point for me came on a random weekday when I turned to my now good pal, ChatGPT, to help me write a brief for a blog. It took some back-and-forth, but the final result turned out to be something I was really proud of. Since then, the integration of GenAI into my workflows has been slow, but intentional. 

While I do still believe there are legitimate concerns to have about AI, and not all anxiety is unfounded, some of it is based on fear-mongering. I don’t necessarily believe that we should lean into the dystopian “AI takeover” tropes. While captivating, these arguments often overlook the ways that GenAI can help us to be more imaginative, free us up to do more, and spark creative problem-solving. 

I don’t plan to convince you to use AI (not today at least), but I do hope that you leave today with some insight on the possibilities of AI.

Addressing your concerns: When is fear warranted?

I haven’t been beating around the bush yet and I won’t start now. There’s no denying that GenAI has the potential to reshape certain jobs and industries. The World Economic Forum (WEF) in their “The Future of Jobs Report 2020,” identifies administrative, clerical, and even content-related roles at higher risk due to their structured and repetitive nature. 

AI excels in pattern recognition, data processing, and performing repetitive tasks, which means that roles where predictability is high, creative input is low, and that have clear instructions can be programmed into an AI system and automated. 

While there’s a plethora of other resources on the “negative” impact of AI on the workforce – I want to challenge us to look a bit beyond. What happens when aspects of our jobs are automated or AI-supported? What does that allow us to do more of? What are the limits of AI?  

The reality: AI has nothing on you

Luckily for us, AI struggles to have an intuitive understanding of nuance. The magic of AI lies in what we do with the information it provides us and AI can’t replicate that.  Our superpower lies in our ability to be creative, our ability to feel, and our very unique human experience.

For example, the brief for this article you are reading was written with help from ChatGPT, and the research to put this together was gathered from Perplexity (verified by me afterward, of course). While these tools were quick to pull facts and suggest ideas, they lack the human experience and emotional intelligence to tell a story about why AI may be scary for folks like you and me—regardless of how much prompting.  

As a content creator, I refuse to see GenAI as a replacement for what I do. Rather, I know that my human experience, when paired with AI’s limitless knowledge, can propel my skills to new heights. 

How folks are using GenAI in their everyday 

The reality (I guess, really, in my opinion) is that GenAI works best when used to complement our expertise. Yeah, it can crunch numbers and even make solid recommendations, but it can’t adapt, empathize, or make strategic decisions when the stakes are high like we can. In these roles, AI may help carry the load, but it’s not steering the ship. 

Here’s how the Beefree team is using AI: 

Marketing Program Manager 

"Sometimes I default to being too straight and to the point when giving feedback on a project, or similar things, so I ask AI for help revising my feedback to be more clear and less “blunt.”

Afterwards, I ask it to explain the types of changes it has made so I can learn and internalize the lessons moving forward to improve on delivering feedback.

AI helps me to be more intentional and empathetic in my communication. I don’t just use it to revise, but also to help teach and aid me in growing as a professional."

- Samantha Hoffmann, Marketing Program Manager

CEO 

"What I use the most these days is AI-assisted search. I very rarely use Google search anymore. My go-to is Perplexity Pro, which I use as an assistant when I need to research topics, figure out best practices to follow in certain situations, and overall try to become better at my job."

- Masssimo Arrigoni, CEO

Corporate Communication Specialist 

"I frequently use AI to check my English. For example, I write copy and ask it to verify the accuracy. It often suggests changes, and after some back-and-forth, I work toward creating a polished and more captivating version."

- Elisa Battigelli, Corporate Communication Specialist

Head of Product 

"One way I use AI is for brainstorming. I provide as much context as possible—notes, references, and ideas—to help build a detailed outline for a topic. From there, I request multiple iterations, sometimes adding additional context, asking the AI to be wild and creative with it, or challenging the initial output.

This approach doesn’t give me a finished text I can use directly, but it generates a rich set of ideas and points that I can further research."

- Guille Padilla, Head of Product 

Backend Engineering Associate Manager

"I use AI for my searches and questions on almost every topic, including the more technical around software development."

- Roberto Pomoni, Backend Engineering Associate Manager

Senior Full Stack Developer 

"Aside from brainstorming and summarizing long reads, I use AI on a more technical side to write boilerplate/repetitive code (that always needs to be checked) and manage the time allotment for my working tasks through MotionAi."

- Lica Filice, Senior Full Stack Developer 

Head of People & Culture

"I use AI to help me transform my messy notes more comprehensively to make them easy to share. It also helps me summarize long readings, optimize written communication, get drafts for policy/docs, and get benchmarks and comparisons." 

- Enrica Lipari, Head of People & Culture

What now? Staying relevant and evolving with GenAI

As I said earlier, I’m not here to convince you that AI is right for you, but I will say AI isn’t going anywhere. Instead, it will continue to expand into more areas of work and industries, and its capabilities will only become stronger with time. 

My plan is to lean into this. Dedicate myself to learning and evolving with it. And double down on my expertise. AI makes my job much easier by doing things like helping me write briefs and retrieve data. By letting AI take on my repetitive taks, I gain something even more valuable: time. 

For myself and so many others, this extra time allows us to step away from mundane everyday tasks and spend more time thinking strategically and creatively about the impactful decisions that make a real difference in our work. 

Leaning into AI wasn’t a decision made to stay “relevant” or “head of the curve.” It was about amplifying what makes me and my contributions invaluable. So I ask you: What do you want to do more of? What can you let go of to do this? 

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