Launching a new product is a really exciting time, but, in many cases, the success or failure of the launch will start and end with your marketing efforts.
In this article, we share seven product launch email examples that drive engagement in 2024.
What is a product launch email?
There’s a clue in the title here—a product launch email is basically a message sent to let people know that something new and exciting is on its way. Ideally, the first product launch email should be sent a few weeks before the launch and then followed up once the product is available to purchase. The objective of the first email is to build up hype and excitement ahead of the sale.
Unlike a regular marketing bulk email campaign, a product launch email needs to convey the message that something brand new and unmissable is about to arrive. Therefore, the language and design need to successfully combine professionalism with a sense of FOMO. This may sound pretty complicated, but don’t worry—it’ll all make sense!
The anatomy of a product launch email
A great product launch email is made up of a number of different sections, and we’re going to explore some of these here:
Subject line
Possibly the single most crucial part of your product launch email is your subject line—and you only get one chance to get it right. With this in mind, your subject line should follow a few Dos and Don’ts as follows:
Do keep it concise
Do make it grabby
Do hint at the content of the email
Don’t use punctuation—particularly exclamation marks
Don’t be vague
Don’t use sensationalism—i.e., “Open this or you’ll regret it.”
The objective of your subject line is to give an idea of what the email is about shortly and concisely—so don’t try to be too clever!
Of course, you can use more tactics in your subject lines. To learn them, check out this article on how to write email subject lines that open your emails.
Introduction
Always start with a short introduction, and the rule here is to personalise, personalise, personalise! It’s hard to over-emphasise the importance of personalisation in 2024 when competition is fiercer than ever before. Getting this right really is half the battle, and with so many free and affordable tools available, there’s really no excuse for scrimping on your email personalisation. Understanding email marketing agency pricing can help you choose the right tools and services to optimise your campaign.
Pain points
Following your introduction, you need to identify your recipient’s pain points and lay them out—the objective being that the reader will go, “Hey, that’s me !” This very much ties in with personalisation, as if the reader doesn’t immediately get a sense that your messaging is ‘speaking’ to them, they will almost certainly lose interest.
Problem solved
Now it’s time to introduce your product—and explain how it will tackle your recipient’s pain points.
This is probably the second most important part of your product launch email as, here, you need to give the reader a reason to carry on reading.
Explain clearly:
- What the product is
- What the product does
- How the product can help solve the recipient’s pain points
- Your unique selling point—i.e., the thing that makes your product different/superior to anybody else’s
While you want to extol the virtues of your product and make it appealing, try to avoid language that is overly ‘salesy’ as this is often a turn-off.
Tell them what to do
Your email should finish with a clear and concise call to action. Whether you want the reader to reply to your email, make a call, or visit your website, this needs to be made crystal clear.
One of the most effective ways to do this is to use a button that will automatically take the reader to your website or landing page. However, some people are wary of clicking on links or buttons in emails for fear of phishing scams. Because of this, you should also provide an alternative way of getting in touch with you—for example, a telephone number or email address.
In the picture
Don’t be afraid of using imagery in your email if it can help to illustrate your messaging. Photographs and even graphics can be really helpful, however, do avoid unnecessary images and emojis.
They say that a picture can paint a thousand words, and that is very much the case in marketing. Include professional shots of your product or, better still, a short video that shows your product in action.
Design
While we’ve covered the do’s and don’ts when it comes to the text in your product launch email, that’s really only half the story. Equally important is the actual design of your email, which includes:
- Colour—When it comes to setting the scene for your product launch email, colour is super important. Colours have associations—e.g., green for reliability and freshness or red for a sense of urgency. It’s vital that you choose the right colour theme for your email to set the tone for your messaging.
- Font—It may sound like stating the bleeding obvious, but you need to choose a font that is easy to read. Most people quickly scan the content of an email on their phones, so fancy cursive fonts are a no-no.
- Layout—This bit is pretty important. Many people make the mistake of trying to cram their entire inventory into one email, resulting in a busy email that is just, quite frankly, a hot mess. When laying out your product launch email, it’s important to get the balance right in terms of text and images. If there is too much information, it will confuse the recipient and, ultimately, put them off.
Exploring email marketing agency pricing can also help you make informed decisions about investing in professional design services to elevate your email campaigns.
7 product launch email examples that drive engagement
Now that we’ve run through the nuts and bolts of putting together a product launch email let’s take a look at three businesses that nailed it:
Grammarly
You will no doubt have heard of Grammarly and, in fact, have probably used it. A leading spelling and grammar platform, Grammarly nailed the product launch email:
Subject line—NEW: Tone detection has arrived! 🤔 🤩 👍
Short and to the point, the subject line tells the recipient exactly what the email is about.
Next, the email addresses the recipient’s pain points and uses graphics to provide a real demonstration of the product.
As you can see, Grammarly’s product launch email example goes straight to the heart of the matter without trying to be too clever or confusing the reader. It also includes a super clear call to action button.
Ugmonk
If you’re a fan of smart desk accessories, you may already be familiar with Ugmonk. The company decided to keep things delightfully simple when launching a new collection, and this was the subject line:
🚀 IT’S LIVE! Meet the New Gather Collection
As you can see, you can tell exactly what the email will be about at a glance.
Ugmonk then goes on to tick more boxes by keeping things clean and clear with personalised content.
Finally, the email finishes with a super strong call to action for a great textbook product launch email.
Meow Meow Tweet
Purveyors of all things vegan, natural, and cruelty-free, Meow Meow Tweet hit a home run when launching its new Aloe Rose Lotion.
The email starts with an intriguing subject line:
When we say “all over”… 😉
We then move on to clear and well thought out content, which draws the eye to the salient points before finishing with a straightforward call to action.
The email also uses clean, appealing imagery to get its message across.
Peloton
The Peloton branding is all about bringing fitness home through intelligent and interactive exercise equipment, and the company knows what it’s doing when it comes to marketing.
As you can see, the product launch email for the new Peloton Tread wastes no time in telling the reader exactly what they can expect from the new product.
The email is also clear and transparent about the price of the Peloton Tread—something which many consumers value.
Finally, the email finishes with a super clear call to action which invites the reader to reserve their Peloton Tread with just a click of a button.
Frank Body
In 2024, loyalty programs are bigger than ever, as everybody loves to get something for nothing, right?
Frank Body’s product launch email does a few things right, including:
- Colour—Rather than a bold, in-your-face tone, this email captures attention through its more subtle and sophisticated shade.
- Imagery—Even without the text, the image used in this email tells a story.
- Excitement—This email does a good job of creating a buzz about its product.
- Value—The email promises undeniable value to the reader.
Alit
These days lots of people are concerned about chemicals in the food that they eat—and the things that they drink. This includes alcoholic drinks like wine and beer which traditionally contain chemicals (and don’t always state ingredients on their labels as other types of product do).
In this product launch email, Alit gets straight to the point with its blunt headline of ‘No Chemicals.’ This is clever because it grabs attention with a complete lack of ambiguity. The email also speaks a little about the company’s ethics, drawing on the reader’s empathy and shared morals.
Next, the email uses colour to match the bottle’s tone to portray the rose wine’s distinctive shade. Lovers of this kind of wine will instantly be attracted to this pretty pink shade and be incited to read on.
Finally, this product launch email inserts a sense of exclusivity with just a hint of FOMO (fear of missing out) before finishing with a strong and decisive call to action.
Soylent
Nutrition brand Soylent is known as a powerhouse for health drinks and powders, which is extremely trendy right now.
It’s clear from this product launch email that Soylent knows its market as it uses a touch of cheeky humor, which many of its readers will relate to. Tone is incredibly important in an email, and while sometimes a more formal approach is best, Soylent clearly knows its customers well enough to understand that they will appreciate this jokey tone.
This email also wins on creating curiosity and excitement—the reader can’t help but wonder about what this news might be.
This buzz and excitement are brought together with a straightforward design that doesn’t detract from the most important part of the messaging—the text. While some may feel that the design is, in fact, too plain, the beauty of this is that the branding is instantly recognisable to Soylent’s customers who don’t need all the bells and whistles to know what the email is about.
Hey, I’m new!
The entire point of a product launch email is to shout, ‘This is new—and you want it’ from the rooftops. As this article has shown, there are a few ways to do this and also a few rules to follow to ensure success.
Always keep the reader front and center when crafting your product launch email. Many marketers make the mistake of trying to be too clever with their messaging, which can often create confusion.
Instead, look at your messaging from the recipient’s perspective —what do they want to see, and what do they want to know? By following this simple rule, you can eliminate any gimmicks and create a dialogue that will actually resonate with your customers.
Finally, never stop testing your emails. Marketing, like people, changes all the time, and you need to keep up if you want to grab your customers by the inbox and avoid your hard work being sent to the trash.
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