Beefree blog

Valentine's Day Emails: Design Tips We LOVE

Beefree team
Beefree team
Jan 21, 2020
Valentine's Day Emails: Design Tips We LOVE
Valentine's Day Emails: Design Tips We LOVE

If you don't have someone to snuggle up next to this Valentine's Day, don't worry: As an email marketer or designer, you know there are lots of brands eager to snuggle up to your email inbox! Valentine's Day is one big shopping event. According to the National Retail Federation, U.S. consumers' expected Valentine's Day spending surpassed $20 billion in 2019 — up by more than $1 billion from the year before. Even if you're not in the business of selling chocolate or roses, celebrating the holiday with a special promotion and email campaign is a wise move. Connecting with readers through a sweet Valentine's Day email can increase conversions and win hearts.

Valentine’s Day email marketing

Holiday marketing is a little different than everyday marketing. Around the holidays, people are more likely to make a purchase — but you also have more competition from other brands. So what are some Valentine’s Day marketing best practices? Discounts and coupon codes are helpful at any time of year, but for this holiday a two-for-one coupon that couples can use is especially fitting. Think about how to incorporate the romance of Valentine’s Day into every aspect of your email, from the subject line to the design and copy. And think a little more broadly about who you can target: many people like to mark the holiday with gifts for teachers, friends, or even pets – not only for significant others. Here are our top tips for successful Valentine’s Day email design:

Start early

If you’re running a special promotion or holiday campaign, let your customers know in plenty of time for them to make a purchase. That’s what Paper Source did here, announcing their Valentine’s Day collection on January 6th. While most people aren’t thinking about Valentine’s Day shopping quite that early, it can be beneficial to send a Valentine’s email a couple of weeks before the holiday — say, around February 1st.

valentine's email marketing

Show your copy some love

Don’t overlook the copy in the body of your email — make it snappy and sweet (and on-brand, of course). Take your cue from Harry’s, which came up with the cutest way to ask customers to redeem their trial:

valentine's email example

Plus, we loved this cute GIF!

elephant gif

Utilize Interactive Content

Interactive content is a huge email trend we’re seeing in 2020, so jump on board early and include a fun quiz, video, or countdown timer in your Valentine’s message. By doing so, you can expect to see more engagement and increased brand loyalty. Teen Vogue offered subscribers a fun piece of interactive content — a quiz that recommended a rom-com for the user to watch.

interactive content in email example

Sweeten up your Valentine's Day subject line

According to Email on Acid, Valentine's Day email volume is second only to the Christmas holiday season. That means it's time to put some extra TLC into a well-crafted subject line. High-performingV-Day subject lines have historically included gift and card ideas,personalized greetings,heart symbols,and the word "sweet." Here are some fun ones fromour inbox:

Top Valentine's Day Email Subject Lines

Don't overdo it

V-day is a holiday wherepeople tend to go to extremes to show their affection. (Does anyone really need a 195-piece box of chocolates?) But when it comes to showing your customers you care, don't go overboard. Keep your Valentineemail designconsistent with your brand identity, like Paper Culture does with their simple background and fonts.

Elegant Valentine's Day Email Design from Paper Culture

Here's what we loveabout this design:

  • The key message is incredibly short and focused, and it follows an inverted pyramid structure, beginning with a big 30% off headline, followed by a free shipping subheader, immediately followed by the CTA. It's clear and concise!
  • The key message claims most of the space in the email; follow-up content is smaller, deemphasized, and doesn't keep you scrolling on and on.
  • The story is super visual with images that are high quality, beautiful, and not over-the-top pink and red.
  • There's no distracting header, and the footer is simple and monochromatic.

However, the email doesn't have a good balance of text and images; it's too image-heavy.Even the small descriptions underneath the photos are images instead of plain text, along with the full-width "50% off stationary" section. It'd be so simple to make these items plain text instead of images. That would decrease the risk of getting caught in a spam filter, reduce message size, and improve the look of the message for recipients with image-viewing turned off.Check out our posts on how to avoid the pitfalls of image-only emails, how to create a responsive photo collage, and how to design bulletproof CTA buttons that convert.

Artfully arrange your message

Chaos isn't attractive. If you want to express your love this Valentine's Day—and you have a lot to say—present your content with care. Always designon a grid (it's easier to make responsive) and establish a consistent format inyour layout. Photojojo does just that. Each section of this sweet Valentine's Day email is organized in the same way: header, two lines of intro text, followed by two images with captions and "Buy now" CTA buttons. The great layout and use of white space makes this email delightfully light and airy, even with a lot of content.

Well-designed Valentine's Day email from Photojojo - nice design on a grid!

We admire this email's:

  • Streamlined, orderly layout that makes scanning easy
  • Playful infusion of pink with the HTML background color, CTA buttons, and section headers
  • Sweetly simple header and footer
  • Beating heart animated GIF! (A simple GIF is less likely to devour readers' mobile data)
Animated Beating Heart GIF

But we'd make a few touch-ups by...

  • Only using the Photojojo brand font in the headers (to decrease the number of images in the message and make it inbox friendly)
  • Swapping out the image CTA buttons for bulletproof ones
  • Optimizing for mobile with a responsive design. This one isn't!

Send in-email sweets

Instead of askingsubscribers to make a purchase, why not turn the tables and give them a gift? Notwith a discount or promotion on your products, but with free, useful, Valentine's Day content. It's the perfect way to show the love and build brand loyalty. Take this email from Oh Joy, the design studio and shop:

Great content in a Valentine's Day email, from Oh Joy

This email design is sweet because:

  • It offers readers interesting, authentic content in email (without asking them to click or buy anything!)
  • High-quality images are broken up by short text blocks
  • The header takes up very little space, so readers get right into the content
  • It's easy to read on mobile! Take a peek:
IMG_3583

Lovingly design a header

So many promotional V-Day emails out there are comprised of a single image. But it's a risky design move. A large image can increase yourspan score and be slow to load, or itmay not appear at all depending on a reader’s email settings. Plus, single-image emails are nearly impossible to make responsive. The solution? Break up images and add text.Capitalize onflat design tactics and bold HTML background colors to create visualinterest. We were inspired byTravel Zoo'sillustrated header—the style is super cute, it's unique, and it doesn't consume the entire email:

Unique Valentine's Day email header

Here's what we heart about this design:

  • Perfect balance of images and email-safe text!
  • The header is beautiful, one-of-a-kind, and garners attention
  • Bulletproof HTML CTA button

Lead with something other than hearts

Chances are, your customers' inboxes are already overflowing with cutesy images, hearts, and x's and o's. Choose a lead image for your email that's different—that says Valentine's Day with its allure and feeling of romance, rather than with cheesy or overplayed symbols. We love how Rancho Bernardo Inn does it here. It seems like the perfect place to spend Valentine's night. Plus, this is a great approach if you're short on time or resources: say Happy Valentine's Day in the text of your email; it doesn't need to be all about pink photography and art.

Alluring and romantic Valentine's Day email, without hearts! From Rancho Bernardo Inn, near San Diego

What's lovable about this design:

  • There's a healthy ratio of images to text
  • Brand colors and fonts are retained, so the email looks distinctly Rancho Bernardo
  • It's easy to design on a limited timeline (use existing brand photos and communicate your V-Day message in text)

But we'd sweeten it up by...

  • Making the CTA buttons bulletproof instead of images
  • Simplifying the header and footer
  • Cutting down on the secondary content text
  • Streamlining the variation in font sizes and styles (bold, italics, all-caps, and varied tracking)

Wrap Up: Top tips (and templates!) for the best Valentine's Day email design

These days, we all celebrate Valentine's Day in some way. Join the celebration and design a Valentine's Day email that's special and sweet!

  • Put some TLC into a creative subject line. Inboxes are getting flooded. Stand out!
  • Be short and sweet. Communicate your key message in a few lines of text. Try the inverted pyramid method.
  • Design on a grid. Build a layout with a repeating pattern to create order with a lot of content and to make scanning easy.
  • Offer added value content. Give a gift instead of asking readers to purchase one.
  • Kick off your email with a V-Day header. Try an illustrated design or an animated GIF, and follow it up with plain text in order to create a good image-to-text ratio.
  • Stay within your visual brand identity. Your email doesn't have to be top-to-bottom pink and red. (Plus, if you're in a time pinch, use existing visual assets and get festive with snappy text content or HTML background colors).

In honor of Valentine’s Day, we’ve put out two new Valentine’s templates designed by Andrea Dall’Ara:

Use this template in Beefree!

Use this template in Beefree!

These templates, Perfumery Valentine and Restaurant Discount, are the perfect way to spread the love and make conversions this February 14th!

Use this template in Beefree!

Use this template in Beefree!

Related posts

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)

Beefree’s First Decade: A Journey of Growth, Innovation, and Collective Success

Massimo Arrigoni
Oct 21, 2024

I can hardly believe it’s been a decade since Beefree’s humble beginnings

The first version of Beefree launched on October 18, 2014. We shared our excitement on Hacker News, and to our complete surprise, 20,000 people visited our minimalist-looking website in the first weekend. I remember thinking, “What??? We’re famous!!” 

A few days later, the hype died down, and we realized that no one had signed up for anything. For some back story, when Beefree first launched, we envisioned it as a growth marketing experiment for MailUp, an Italy-based email marketing platform.

We thought, "We’ll provide marketers with a free email builder and pitch them MailUp after they finish designing their email: many of them will sign up!" Except… nope. While people loved our email builder, they were loyal to the platforms they were using to send their emails. It’s safe to say that the experiment failed. 

But this was the start of bringing something to the market that many were in dire need of. In fact, we got a ton of unexpected feedback. One comment on Hacker News stood out: “Any chance of Beefree being embeddable, either as a service or open source?" 

From that comment came our first sale of “Beefree” for the license of an embeddable version of our email editor. 

10 years later, our content builder, Beefree SDK, is embedded in over 1,000 SaaS applications worldwide, including some of the biggest names in tech. Roughly half a million people per month, across all of those applications, use Beefree to design a massive amount of emails, landing pages, and other digital content. 

While our product has always been key to our growth, we wouldn’t be where we are today without a truly passionate group of people who deeply care about their work. In ten years, the team has grown from 6 to over 100, spanning Europe and the United States. 

So what better way to celebrate this important milestone, than to hear from the very voices of the amazing people that have been sharing in this adventure?

To you who are reading—thank you for being a part of this wonderful evolution. We can’t wait to see what’s next.

Massimo Arrigoni
Beefree Founder & CEO

Reflecting on a decade: 8 employees share about their time at Beefree

#1:  The power of teamwork is priceless 

As we celebrate a decade of innovation and growth, I can’t help but marvel at the journey. When I joined 7 years ago, there were just 9 of us, fueled by passion and vision. Now, we’ve grown into a dynamic team of over 100, each one of us playing a vital role in this success story.

My path to this company was anything but ordinary. After years of freelancing, launching businesses, and even co-founding a startup, I took a leap of faith to join this team—and I haven’t looked back. The greatest reward? Realizing that nothing compares to the thrill of achieving a goal as a team. The collective energy, shared ambition, and that moment of victory together—it's simply unbeatable.

Being part of this journey, with a team that’s constantly evolving, always aiming higher, and embracing every challenge, has been an incredible adventure.

Here’s to the next chapter of us pushing boundaries, breaking new ground, and doing it all together.

“The greatest reward? Realizing that nothing compares to the thrill of achieving a goal as a team.”
- Matteo Santagata, Full Stack Engineer Associate Manager

#2:  Build something that matters

Saying I’ve been working on Beefree SDK for 7 years feels totally normal to me. But every now and then, someone reminds me that it's actually rather extraordinary in the tech world. Some engineers switch roles every couple of years, trying them on like new pairs of shoes. Not too long ago, at a trade show, a young sales engineer looked at me, astonished, and said, “You must really love the work.” I just smiled, took a moment to reflect, and simply nodded, “Yes, yes, I really do.”

It wasn’t exactly a grand revelation, but it gave me pause. We’ve all heard the saying, "If you love what you do, you’ll never work a day in your life." It’s cliché for a reason, but that was the first time it clicked for me: Seven years doesn’t feel like seven years.

It’s hard to point to just one reason why.

It’s a mix of so many things—the culture of trust, the tangible impact of the features we build, like improving accessibility so someone can create content on their own for the first time. It’s all of those experiences combined that make the journey worth it. And honestly, I can easily see myself saying the same thing at our 20-year anniversary, still feeling like it all started yesterday.

“It’s a mix of so many things—the culture of trust, the tangible impact of the features we build, like improving accessibility so someone can create content on their own for the first time.”
- Matt Weber, Senior Software Architect

#3: Building community and growing across borders

I started working at Beefree in 2014, and it has been an incredible journey that I feel grateful to reflect on today. My time here has been filled with learning, growth, and some unexpected turns—most notably my move from Milan to Denmark in 2016. What could have been a challenging transition was made seamless by the company’s support, allowing me to continue working remotely from my new home.

Living in Denmark for the past years has profoundly shaped me. Denmark is a country built on the values of equality, trust, and community—principles that resonate deeply within Danish culture. One fun cultural aspect I encountered is “janteloven”, or “the law of Jante”, a Nordic philosophy that emphasizes humility and equality, discouraging any form of boasting or thinking of oneself as superior. It’s a reflection of how strongly Danes value the collective over the individual.

What I found most surprising was how these learnings from living in Denmark paralleled my experience at Beefree. Just like Denmark’s culture, Beefree emphasizes a sense of community and the importance of trust. This has taught me how critical teamwork is, and how much more enriching it is to celebrate successes as a team rather than just as individuals. There is something truly special about being part of a team where mutual trust and shared values create an environment where everyone can thrive.

Over the past decade, I’ve learned that both in work and in life, the real magic happens when people come together. The experience has taught me that no matter how far we are from each other geographically, a strong sense of community and shared purpose can keep us connected. As I look forward to the future, I am excited to keep building on these values with my colleagues at Beefree, growing together, one step at a time.

“I’ve learned that both in work and in life, the real magic happens when people come together.”
- Cinzia Tavernini, Senior Account Manager

#4:  Embrace change 

The idea of celebrating our tenth anniversary feels almost surreal. Has it really been ten years since we launched beefree.io?

Breaking down this journey into years, months, or days is hard. Looking back, I vividly recall the excitement and nervous energy as we launched the beta version, reaching out to connect with people around the globe. We called out, “We’re here to help you and learn with you,” hoping to serve others. Trying to visualize everything that’s happened since then feels like watching a fast-forwarded movie, where the number of people and the depth of relationships continually grow.

If there’s one constant since we began, it’s continuous change—fueled by constant learning and guided by the curiosity of explorers embarking on their first journey.

Perhaps that’s why it seems strange that ten years have passed—when you’re immersed in a journey like this, time loses its significance. We’re traveling with no fixed destination; what matters most is the act of traveling together.

This extraordinary journey has only been possible because of the remarkable people who have come together, united by strong principles and a shared purpose. I know this is a privilege, and I’m deeply grateful to everyone who has been part of this.

As we look ahead, I’m excited about the possibilities that await us. Here’s to continuing the journey, embracing the unknown, and discovering new horizons together.

“If there’s one constant since we began, it’s continuous change.”
- Guillermo Padilla, Head of Product

#5: Embrace the complexity of remote 

As I reflect on my journey with Beefree, leading People & Culture at a global company with roots in Italy and a dynamic business in the U.S. has been an adventure shaped by innovation and transformation.

Beefree has been running as a remote-first company for 10 years. At first, I thought leading remotely meant simply managing from a distance—overcoming time zone challenges while balancing flexibility and risk. But I quickly realized it’s far more complex. Remote work isn’t just about geography; it blurs boundaries between ‘nowhere’ and ‘everywhere.’ Without the right mindset and cultural mapping artifacts, it can be isolating and overwhelming. 

We are uncovering new ways of working to transform this challenge into an opportunity, fostering a culture of clear communication, empathy, and self-care. It’s a journey of continuous improvement—one I’m excited to keep learning from every day.

“It’s a journey of continuous improvement—one I’m excited to keep learning from every day.”
- Enrica Lipari, People & Culture Director

#6: 100 employees is complicated – and it is a treasure

Think of hosting a BBQ with 100 people. Or going on vacation with 100 people. Or how about throwing a birthday party for your little one with another 100 little ones? 100-people anything is complicated. How can it not be? I’m complicated. You’re complicated. How about 100 of us???  

Companies are this somewhat random mix of complicated human beings that get together to build things for other complicated humans. How cool is that? And yes, messy too. But as long as there’s a positive, respectful, caring cultural foundation that makes it (mostly) work, relax, take a deep breath, and enjoy daily new discoveries. That’s what building a company is ultimately all about.

“Companies are this somewhat random mix of complicated human beings that get together to build things for other complicated humans. How cool is that?”
- Massimo Arrigoni, CEO

#7:  It’s the People 

With apologies to Mars Blackman and Michael Jordan... it's not the shoes; so it's gotta be the PEOPLE! 

Like any sports organization, a business is made up of individuals working together for a common purpose (you know - a team). I've worked at many different companies over the years, and not a single one has come close to replicating the trust and passion found among my colleagues at Beefree... and I'm extremely grateful to be a part of this 10 year birthday celebration!

“I've worked at many different companies over the years, and not a single one has come close to replicating the trust and passion found among my colleagues at Beefree.”
- Cedric Adams, Business Development Manager

#8:  Growing together on an exciting journey

Being part of this project from day one has been an extraordinary journey, one that has shaped both my career and my perspective on teamwork and innovation. I started as a full-stack developer, diving into the code, shaping the first iterations of what would become a powerful tool for creativity. Today, I have the immense honor of leading a development team that has grown beyond what I could have imagined. Watching this team evolve growing in size, talent, and ambition—has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my career.

What truly stands out is the growth of the people. Over the years, I’ve witnessed colleagues take on new challenges, step into leadership roles, and push the boundaries of what we can achieve together. Every individual contribution has played a vital role in our collective success, and it's been a privilege to be part of such a collaborative and passionate group.

This journey, however, isn’t limited to our team alone. I’ve seen other departments flourish alongside us, each playing a crucial part in driving the project forward. Together, we’ve navigated challenges, celebrated victories, and pushed the envelope of what’s possible in our industry.

It's been an honor to stand on the front lines of this initiative, helping to create a platform that empowers people to express their creativity through successful newsletters.

As we look to the future, I’m filled with excitement for what’s to come. I couldn’t ask for a better team to embark on this journey. I’m excited to see what the future holds and to continue growing alongside the whole team.

“I've worked at many different companies over the years, and not a single one has come close to replicating the trust and passion found among my colleagues at Beefree.”
- Loris Cabrini, Head of Engineering

Happy birthday, Beefree!

While we’ve grown a lot, recently passing $15m in annual recurring revenue, a lot has also stayed the same. 

We’re still anchored in the same values and operating principles that have allowed us to maintain a 97% employee retention rate–really high for the tech industry.

True today as it was on October 18, 2014, our core job-to-be-done is the same: providing users with an accessible design tool that frees them up to do their best work. Anyone can start designing with Beefree: no questions asked, no form to fill out, no email address to submit, nothing. No friction. All sorts of businesses use it to design all kinds of emails and landing pages. 

To them, and to our past, present and future customers, thank you!

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? 

How to Personalize Emails in Mailchimp using Beefree

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

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