Welcome Email Series: Strategy, Timing and Subject Lines

You’ve heard the saying “work smarter, not harder,” which seems to be the philosophy for the AI frontier. 

Today, digital marketers in countless industries are exploring how AI can make their work more efficient and effective, especially when it comes to email creation.  

How to use AI in emails

AI email assistant can help you help you create emails and optimize their performance. We know that sounds broad, and it is because AI email assistants come in many forms, each serving you in different ways.

Some AI email assistants, for example, are built for email copy while others focus more on managing your email inbox and replies. So, how do you know which AI email assistants are best for you? There are a few things to look for and consider:

• What features does the tool have, and how well does this align with the areas in which you need the most support?  
• Is this tool suitable for your industry and business size?
• What’s the cost?
• What’s the learning curve, and how quickly can you efficiently use the tool? 
• How easily can you add this to your existing processes?
• How does this AI tool protect your business and customer’s privacy?

That might sound like a lot to consider but don’t worry, we’ve done some of the legwork for you. 

These are some of the top AI email assistants and a breakdown of what you need to know to determine if they’re a fit for your business.

What are the best AI email assistants?

Superhuman

Superhuman is an email management app designed for businesses to help their teams manage their inboxes more efficiently. 

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How it works: Superhuman AI helps you navigate and organize your inbox and generate AI-powered email replies. This tool has a simple interface, so there is no real learning curve. 

When you’re replying to an email, you can highlight the text, click the AI button, and select what you want it to do with the text, like rewrite it in your voice, shorten it, lengthen it, and so on.

Notable features:

• Conversational inbox navigation: You can ask questions like, “Did Jennifer approve my draft yet?” or “When is the AI conference I’m going to?” and it will find the information in your inbox to give you the answer.
• Auto-reply to emails: Superhuman AI write responses to emails and saves them as drafts for you to approve and send.

Limitations: You can only choose from Superhuman’s predefined prompts, so you can’t write out custom commands.

Cost: Plans start at $25 per month per user.

Who it’s for: Individuals who need to enhance their productivity and spend less time drafting repetitive emails.  

Semrush AI writing assistant

You might already be familiar with Semrush, a popular digital marketing platform that helps with search engine optimization, advertising, market research, and other marketing functions. Well, now, they also have an AI writing assistant.

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How it works: Semrush’s AI writing assistant is an app that allows you to create marketing content from ads to social posts to blogs and more. Their AI is powered by OpenAI (you know the one). 

Notable features:

• Supports 28 languages, making it great for marketers who need to target across geographical locations. 
• Offer 75 different AI-driven content tools 

Limitations: The tool isn’t specialized for a specific type of content, so for email-specific content it may require some training and experiments with different prompts. Additionally, we wish the tool was integrated with the Semrush platform to ensure that the writing is SEO optimized. 

Cost: Free 7-day free trial of the app, then $25 per month. This is in addition to your Semrush plan, which start at $139 per month. You do not need a Semrush plan to use its writing assistant. 

Who it’s for: Semrush AI Writing Assistant is positioned for marketers who want to build out a large quantity of content quickly. It’s multifunctional so you can use it for nearly any type of mark 

Jasper.ai

Jasper.ai is a fully AI-powered content generator. From integrated marketing campaigns to blog, SEO, and social media marketing Jasper.ai can help do it all.

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How it works: You can use Jasper.ai either as a web-based tool or as an extension on your web browser. The extension is available for either Chrome or Edge which lets you use it within Google Docs, your email platform, or other platforms

Notable features:

• Brand voice to ensure that output sounds like you
• 30+ languages 
• Built-in collaboration tools on their highest tier

Limitations: Due to how advanced the tool is, to get the most out of it, there is a steeper learning curve than other tools on this list. 

Cost: Plans start at $39 per month per user.

Who it’s for: Jasper.ai is a great tool for larger companies and enterprises who need to manage assets all in one place and have fully embraced the realm of AI content creation.

HubSpot’s AI Campaign Assistant

HubSpot needs no introduction. They are a robust CRM and have been added to the long list of tools that have launched an AI email assistant. 

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How it works: Within the Hubspot platform, you can use their AI Campaign Assistant to generate content from a predefined prompt. This includes content for landing pages, emails, and ads. Once you select your content type, HubSpot then prompts you with a list of questions to generate the copy.

Notable features:

• Pre-defined brief makes it easy to prompt HubSpot’s AI to do exactly what you want it to do. 
• Easy to use the same prompt for multiple channels
• HubSpot auto-generated a design based on the copy given. 

Limitations: Once you export the copy into a design, you can’t make edits to the copy using the AI assistant. 

Cost: HubSpot AI assistants are available for use in their Starter Customer Platform plan (15/month) and up. 

Who it’s for: HubSpot is a great tool for digital marketers who need to have Sales, Support, and Marketing all in one place. Due to the limitations on the free and lower-tier plans, we would say this is better suited for mid-market businesses. 

Beefree

We might be biased, but we believe our AI Writing Assistant to be the easiest way to start using AI for emails. If you’re new here – Beefree is a user-friendly email and landing page builder that helps you create beautiful, responsive, and high-converting campaigns with ease. 

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How it works: Our AI Writing Assistant is embedded into our builder making it easy to ask questions to optimize your content headers, text, and CTAs. 

Notable features: 

• Multilingual designs: Create emails in one primary language and use AI to translate to up to three additional languages directly within the builder. 
• AI alt image generator: Use AI to add alternative text to all images within your email to ensure accessibility. 
• Ability to optimize specific sections of your email with AI rather than the entire email. 

Limitations: Beefree’s AI Assistant only works with Beefree. 

Cost: You can use Beefree’s AI Writing Assistant for as little as $0 with no limitations on the free plan. 

Who it’s for: Anyone designing and creating emails inside of Beefree – this means it’s suitable for anyone from Freelancers to large enterprise organizations. 

Harnessing AI email assistants

Although we pitch these as the “best AI email assistant” the best one for you should be one that makes your life easier. With dozens of new AI solutions launching every day, we encourage you to experiment, play, and try new tools to find the right fit. Finding a tool that will solve every problem will be difficult, so jot down your most prevalent needs as a starting point. 

And if you’re not sure how you can use GenAI for your email copy, yet– join us October 23rd with Kath Pay as we dive into “How to create emails that influence and convert with GenAI.”

RSVP here. 

As the leaves turn gold and the festive season approaches, marketers worldwide brace themselves for the biggest shopping event of the year: Black Friday and Cyber Monday (BFCM). Imagine inboxes filled to the brim, customer expectations through the roof, and every brand vying for attention. It’s an exciting yet challenging time for marketers who need to balance creativity, strategy, and technology in their BFCM campaigns.

But how to really cut through the noise, without squandering hours upon hours of work and creating the same dark-looking emails that everybody else sends? In an exclusive live event, we rallied up an expert panel of email & marketing leaders who shared their decades of expertise with the audience:

• Mike Nelson, Co-founder of Really Good Emails and Head of Growth at Beefree
• Val Geisler, VP of Customer & Lifecycle Marketing at Digioh and ex-Klaviyo
• Gregg Blanchard, Co-founder at SendView

Want to watch the whole live event? Catch it here. 

The BFCM rush: Understanding timing and preparation

Launching a successful Black Friday email campaign isn't just about offering jaw-dropping discounts. Timing is pivotal. As Mike Nelson pointed out, early mentions of BFCM deals might start appearing after Halloween, but the real consumer engagement typically picks up in early November. 

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"Marketers are mentioning the event, but it's not until November 1st that deals start," shared Gregg Blanchard. This data-driven insight allows marketers to mold their promotional calendar without overwhelming their audience prematurely.

Preparation is key for any campaign, particularly for BFCM. Teams must be cohesive and proactive, ensuring messages are aligned and inventory is ready. When discussing preparation, Nelson emphasized, "Plan accordingly. If you're going to be doing something really big, you're going to have to plan even more, probably get those approvals, make sure the stuff's in the warehouse."

Segmenting for success

Segmentation is no longer just an option—it’s essential. As Gregg advised, understanding your customer demographics, purchase history, and engagement levels ensures you speak directly to their individual needs. This can range from differentiating loyal buyers from first-timers to adjusting strategies based on geographic locations.

Val Geisler echoed the importance of segmentation, emphasizing the use of both zero-party and first-party data. "Being able to personalize well beyond email first name is important," she noted. Using data such as customer preferences, browsing behavior, and purchase history can significantly enhance the personalization and relevance of your emails. This tailored approach ensures your messages resonate, resulting in higher open and conversion rates.

Providing value beyond discounts

Are discounts the only way to secure sales during BFCM? Not necessarily. Val Geisler offered alternatives, suggesting brands explore options like bonus loyalty points, exclusive content, or the novel approach of offering an opt-out for BFCM emails. She stated, "Offer an opt-out of BFCM only. It's an incredible LTV (lifetime value) play because you get to keep your customers longer."

The focus should be on delivering value to your customers, ensuring they view your brand as more than just quick savings. This approach not only preserves your brand's integrity but helps in nurturing a long-lasting relationship with your audience.

Designing for impact

In the clutter of the BFCM inbox, creating emails that capture attention is crucial. Nelson shared effective design techniques, such as utilizing an inverted pyramid structure that naturally guides the reader’s eye to the call-to-action (CTA). Additionally, integrating countdown timers can enhance urgency and anticipation among shoppers, reinforcing the limited-time nature of your offers.

"The focus should be on delivering value to your customers," Nelson advised, emphasizing that impactful design doesn’t just involve visuals but clarity and purpose as well. Simplified, yet eye-catching designs, with a strong focus on benefits and engaging copy, ensure that your emails resonate with subscribers and aren't merely glossed over.

Lessons from the trenches

From managing internal expectations, like avoiding the dreaded "email blast" directive from superiors, to intelligently leveraging customer data, there are invaluable lessons to be learned in navigating the BFCM landscape. This multifaceted strategy involves more than just increasing email frequency; it’s about smarter, targeted messaging that aligns with user behaviors and preferences.

As Val put it, marketers should focus on, "offering value beyond the discount." This sentiment is echoed through her recommendations of incorporating non-discount elements such as loyalty points or product bundles, effectively enhancing the value offering during BFCM without necessarily reducing prices.

The road ahead: Crafting a seamless Black Friday & Cyber Monday email strategy

For marketers new to the scene, starting early with list-building strategies and honing in on audience demographics lays a solid foundation. It’s crucial to recognize the intrinsic value of engaging your audience with meaningful content, staying in their minds while remaining relevant as the holiday peak approaches.

The conversation forward anticipates how brands can make each interaction count, and how to foster deeper connections beyond transactional exchanges. As Mike Nelson aptly summarized, “It's not just about being heard above the noise—it's about resonating despite it.”

In conclusion

Navigating the BFCM season successfully combines the art of creativity with the science of data-driven decision-making. Time your messages wisely, segment judiciously, and aim to deliver value that's truly meaningful. Remember, while the noise of BFCM can be deafening, thoughtful strategies and personalized engagements ensure your brand’s voice is not just heard, but remembered.

Whether you're a small business carving your niche or a global titan amplifying your reach, BFCM is your platform to shine brightly. Use the insights shared to refine your strategies and approach this holiday season with confidence and clarity. Because in the realm of marketing, creating impact is as much about innovating as it is about sharing a story that echoes well beyond.

If you are looking for inspiration for your next BFCM email campaigns, make sure to check out the comprehensive Black Friday email collection on Really Good Emails, or start designing your own with a ready-to-use template from Beefree!

Unlike social media or other channels, emails allow you to craft personalized messages that connect with various unique audiences. When rebranding, this direct method of communication allows you to be transparent about your story and share how the changes will impact them, strengthening your connection with your audience during this transition.

The role of email in rebranding

When it comes to rebranding, communication is key. A successful rebranding is not simply changing the logo design or tweaking the brand’s tagline. It is about changing consumers' perceptions of the brand. You do this by sharing the reasons for the rebranding,the changes that will accompany it, and the benefits it brings to your audience. 

Email is especially effective for sharing your story because it allows you to segment and tailor your message to different groups. Whether you are addressing loyal customers, new subscribers, or dormant users, email allows you to send highly targeted messages that resonate with each segment. This ensures that your rebranding message is communicated effectively across your entire customer base.

Emails can also be configured to deliver consistent updates, thus reinforcing the new brand identity over a period of time while building trust and transparency. Because the nature of email is measurable, you can assess the interaction levels and fine-tune your approach to ensure that your rebrand communication is always relevant and impactful.

After you share your story, your audience should appreciate the rationale behind the decision to rebrand and understand how it will impact them.

Best practices for successfully rebranding your emails

To execute a successful email rebrand campaign, you need to thoroughly plan and execute it carefully. Here are the three essential aspects to help your email campaign fit in with your new brand image.

#1. Craft a compelling company rebrand storyline

It is essential to create a compelling story of rebranding that will help your audience understand and resonate with your new brand identity. You should explain why the rebranding was necessary, show the steps the company has taken in terms of development, and define what the rebrand means for the company and its customers. 

Besides informing your audience, a well-told story will make each of them feel they have contributed to your brand evolution. When crafting a compelling story, consider the following: 

• Describe clearly in your emails why you are rebranding - whether in response to market changes or growth of your company or for a change in values.
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• Use graphics to illustrate timeframes in which significant events led to rebranding and how these milestones influenced the new brand.
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• Create an account that unifies the past, present, and future of your company such that rebranding becomes a natural evolution.
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• Include gamification and interactive components, such as questionnaires or quizzes, in your emails to further engage your audience in the rebrand and get immediate feedback. 

Throughout your story, there should be no confusion or feeling of being ‘out of the loop.’  The most important thing here is a smooth transition that will keep your subscribers informed and encourage them to accept and embrace these changes.

#2. Write using your new voice 

Your email content should reflect your new brand's tone, voice, and messaging. This means the language and style of your email copy should evolve as your brand voice does. You can use this as an opportunity to introduce any new value propositions or communicate any changes to your audience. 

Here are a few best practices to keep in mind when writing emails:

• Rewrite your email content to match the tone and style of your new brand. Ensure that this content is clear and concise.
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• Focus on making your email messages easy to understand. From subject lines to body content, your messaging must reflect your new brand identity via engaging language.
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• Convey the changes and developments using simple language. Avoid jargon or overly complex explanations.
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• Tailor your messages using personalization to address different audience segments. 

#3. Revamp your email design

Email design is the first thing subscribers notice, so it should immediately reflect your rebrand. You should update all visual elements, such as brand logos, color schemes, fonts, and more, to match your new branding guidelines. 

Here are some best practices when revamping your email design:

• Replace old logos, color themes, fonts, and images with new ones.
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• Redesign your email structure with modern layouts. Ensure that these new layouts are clean, user-friendly, and responsive.
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• Conduct A/B testing on these design elements to identify which design best resonates with your audience. 

Launching your rebrand email campaign

Building and implementing a rebranding campaign successfully involves several key steps to ensure that your new brand identity is communicated effectively to your audience. Here is a short guide you can follow.

Audit your existing email program

It is important to audit your existing email program thoroughly. This includes evaluating your existing email templates, content, and subscriber lists to identify what needs updating. 

For example, just as you would regularly review your checking account to ensure everything is in order, it's essential to audit your email program to ensure it aligns with your new branding strategy.

If your business name has changed, ensure that your new business email address is on brand. Using business email makes your company look professional and strengthens your already strong bond with your customers.

Small edits may go unnoticed during a rebrand. Make sure to schedule time to review each touchpoint, from the footer to the links.

Explore multiple channels

The next step is to create a comprehensive rebrand campaign. The main goal of the campaign is to introduce your new brand identity to your audience. You may do this by launching a teaser video on social media with a landing page that leads your audience to subscribe and learn more about the rebrand via email. You can follow up with detailed announcements and updates in future phases.

Leverage email automation

Email automation plays a significant role in managing your rebrand communication efficiently. When rebranding, it is important to keep your audience engaged and informed throughout the entire process. By setting up automated workflows, you can consistently send out your rebrand messages to your subscribers at optimal times. This helps you keep your audience in the loop at every stage of the transition.

For example, you can configure your email platform to send out a series of emails that gradually introduce your new brand identity, starting with short teasers and then the official announcement. This will build anticipation and ensure that your messages reaches your subscribers at the right moment.

Further, automation helps you deliver personalized content based on subscriber behavior and interactions, ensuring better engagement and successful email campaigns. 

Incorporating tools like geofencing into your email automation strategy can further enhance personalization by delivering location-specific offers or messages when subscribers enter certain geographic areas, making your rebranding efforts even more targeted and effective. 

Moreover, contact data tools like ZoomInfo can help you enrich your subscribers’ profiles and provide additional data for personalization. No wonder automated emails have reportedly generated 320% more revenue than non-automated emails.

Monitor email performance

Throughout your rebrand, it is important to monitor the performance of your email campaigns to evaluate their effectiveness. Some key metrics to track include open rates, click-through rates, and engagement levels. This will provide you valuable insights into how well your audience is responding to the rebrand. 

Analyzing this data allows you to make informed adjustments to your email strategy, ensuring that your rebrand continues to resonate with your subscribers and achieve its intended impact.

Wrapping up

Email is an excellent medium for communicating a rebrand while offering direct and personalized ways to connect with your audience. Its ability to build trust, address concerns, and maintain engagement makes it an ideal channel for guiding your customers through the transition to your new brand identity.

The first step to leveraging email for rebranding is by investing in the best email design. A well-crafted email design not only reflects your new brand identity but also enhances the overall user experience, making your communications more impactful and memorable. Good design ensures consistency across all your emails, reinforces brand recognition, and keeps your audience engaged. 

To achieve this, you need a reliable tool that offers flexibility and ease of use—like Beefree. With Beefree, you can create stunning, responsive email designs that perfectly align with your rebrand, ensuring that every email you send out leaves a lasting impression on your audience.

Sign up for a free Beefree account to create attractive email designs in no time.