EMAIL MARKETING

No, Thank You

The holidays can be hard. Not just the holidays, but all holidays. 

Marketers are taking note. In the weeks leading up to Mother’s Day, brands including Etsy, beauty brand Three Ships, and even chili sauce maker Fly By Jing have asked their audiences if they want to skip out on Mother’s Day emails.

Etsy sent its first “opt-out” email during the last week of March, a week before the brand’s Mother’s Day campaign began running on April 1. 

Here’s what it said:

• “We understand that Mother's Day can be a difficult time for some. If you'd rather not receive emails from us about Mother's Day this year, let us know by removing yourself below.”

An Etsy spokesperson told Marketing Brew. It was the first time the brand gave people that option, partially inspired by the pandemic.

• “After such a heavy year, the team agreed that this Mother’s Day felt especially emotional. For many, it will likely be filled with joyous family reunions but for others, who are potentially grieving a loved one, struggling with infertility or have strained family relations—it is a difficult day,” the spokesperson told us.
• “For those individuals, seeing constant reminders...can make it even more difficult,” they added.

Etsy declined to say how many subscribers actually opted out of the messaging or how important Mother’s Day sales are to its bottom line. Three Ships told Marketing Brew that “around 280 customers” have opted out of its Mother’s Day emails, or roughly 0.5%.

Needless to say, it’s important: Consumers are expected to spend an average of $220 each on Mother’s Day this year, totaling a whopping $28.1 billion, according to the National Retail Federation.

Keep ’em

Beyond being empathetic to your subscribers, there’s a strategy behind the opt-out.

“The more consent you have and the more of a relationship you can establish, the longer they’ll stay around,” said Josh Pierry, CEO of digital marketing agency Pierry, who explained that the trend has picked up in the last couple of years. “If someone wants to opt out, that’s a data point and something we get to know about a consumer.” 

In practice, a brand could follow up with a Friendsgiving promo the next fall, Pierry noted. 

It’s also a savvy way to keep email subscribers around, said Kate Muhl, a marketing analyst at Gartner. It’s a “retention move,” she explained, adding that brands who use opt-outs for holidays like Mother’s Day are “probably going to stem the tide of people who are frustrated, hurt and triggered by your [emails], and opt out altogether.” 

What’s next? 

So can we skip the deluge of holiday deals later this year? Not yet. “Mother’s Day and Father’s Day aren’t minor holidays, but [they’re] nowhere near the same thing as Christmas,” said Pierry. “The risk on that would be too big.”

Takeaway: Opt-outs are a simple, quick way to create a (somewhat) emotional connection with people without asking for a whole lot—or spending a ton of money. Muhl described them as “small and easy spots to get a win.” — RB

CAMPAIGNS

Supergoop!’s First Brand Campaign Doesn’t Involve Gwyneth

Sunscreen brand Supergoop! was founded 14 years ago, but it’s never had a major brand marketing campaign. Until Monday, that is. 

• The star-studded Good Morning Supergoop! campaign functions as a nostalgic morning TV show, reminding viewers to start the day with SPF. 
• It also spans multiple channels, from its well-worn social media accounts to the company’s first date with connected TV (CTV).

Why it matters: 2021—a year after Covid-19 pandemic locked down would-be beachgoers (and, ostensibly, their yearly sunscreen pit stops)—might not seem like the time to double down on marketing investments. 

But Supergoop! CEO Amanda Baldwin told us that sales took off last year, since more people were spending time outdoors and in their backyards. At the time, the brand adapted its marketing to reflect that.

• Baldwin told Retail Brew that Supergoop!’s DTC business more than doubled from 2019 to 2020. Other sunscreen brands had a similarly positive 2020. 
• Supergoop! CEO Amanda Baldwin confirmed to Marketing Brew that sales were “very much” up over the past year vs. the same time period pre-pandemic. 

Zoom out: If Supergoop!’s added revenue helped fund its biggest marketing campaign yet, will other DTC categories that earned extra pocket change during the pandemic do the same?

Brand and creative strategy consultant Aja Singer told Marketing Brew that this could “definitely” be a trend, but Sharma Brands founder Nik Sharma said some brands might opt to invest that $$ in new product lines instead.

Click here to read more about Supergoop!’s new marketing push—and why other DTC brands might follow suit. — PB

SPONSORED BY ATTEST

These Peeps Turned Mochi Ice Cream Into Much Money

Mochi ice cream brand Little Moons went viral recently, and their sales went up tenfold. The problem? They needed help turning that hype into tangible business outcomes. 

Lucky for them, Attest stepped in. Attest handled consumer profiling for Little Moons, leading the company to the key insight that despite their social media following—which one would presume would be super young—their real consumer base was actually affluent over-30s.

Readers, if you know anything about Attest, then you know how this story ends: Sales, consistent revenue, and long-term financial success.

And readers, that’s even sweeter than ice cream.

Find out more about Attest’s consumer profiling solution here.

INTERNSHIP GUIDE

Tell Me About Your Biggest Weakness

Big news: The third chapter of Marketing Brew’s Guide to Landing a Marketing Internship is…

• One: Here
• Two: About interviewing (and because it’s 2021, we’re talking virtual interviews)
• Three: And just might be (dare we say it?) the best chapter yet

As you probably know, the marketing industry is in the throes of internship application season, as college students log out of Zoom classrooms and look for a (virtual) summer office. To help, we’re rolling out a four-part guide to landing a marketing internship, the first two chapters of which you can read here. 

But anyway, this chapter: Inside you’ll learn virtual interview tips of the trade, what real marketing professionals hiring at companies like Nasdaq and VaynerMedia want to hear prospective interns ask in interviews, and more.

Click here to give it a read. — PB

WHAT ELSE IS BREWING

• Signal ran a campaign on Instagram to show users how much data is collected on the Facebook-owned platform. Facebook said it was all a stunt.
• Twitter bought Scroll, a subscription service that removes ads from news sites. 
• JetBlue has found its new ad agency: Omnicom’s Adam&EveDDB.
• Google signed a multiyear deal to be the presenting sponsor of the WNBA playoffs. 

SPONSORED BY ROKU

Advertisers: read this ad. Share your message with an estimated 148 million people on Roku—America’s #1 TV streaming platform. Nine out of 10 Ad Age 200 brands have chosen Roku to engage with cord cutters because it’s effective—helping your brand drive full funnel and acquisition performance. TV starts here. 

AD FRAUD

Can you tell a real marketing story from a fake one?

1. The Biden Administration is Slowing New York Times Subscription Growth
2. Ryan Reynolds Warns Against Drinking and Sexting in a New Aviation Gin Spot
3. Charmin’s BRB Bot Lets you Pee and Stay on a Zoom call at the Same Time
4. Domino’s Noid Found Religion

Keep scrolling for the answer

FRENCH PRESS

There are a lot of bad marketing tips out there. These aren't those.

Instagram: Instagram Stories captions are coming—here’s how to add them automatically.

Sales: Not every holiday can be Christmas, but here’s how you can increase engagement around the lesser known holidays like Flag Day or National Sandwich Day.

Remote life: We’ll be in the office soon, but in the meantime, here’s how to build a sales rapport online.

Better live: DTC Day Live is a digital-first, virtual conference featuring the best and brightest DTC brands. Topics will include post-pandemic strategy, brand building, and more. Attend and you could even win a Tesla Model 3. Sign up here.*

EVENTS

Pinterest, the sleeping giant of social platforms, can transform your business. Come learn from two lead marketers at Vistaprint, a company that knows marketing. 

On Wednesday, May 19 at 1:00pm ET, Vistaprint Senior Manager of Global Content and Marketing Robin Vancura and Global Social Media Lead Femke Lenstra will join Marketing Brew, giving us a step-by-step guide to creating a great Pinterest marketing strategy. 

Ready to RSVP? We know you are. Click here to register and share your Pinterest questions with Robin and Femke. Can’t wait to see you!

AD FRAUD ANSWER

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ICYMI

Last chance: We reserved complimentary passes to Advertising Week Europe (5/10-13) just for Marketing Brew readers. If you refer three (or more!) marketers to subscribe to Marketing Brew via your personal referral link, you win a ticket. Challenge ends tomorrow!

Catch up on a few Marketing Brew stories you might have missed.

• Why did Domino’s bring back its mascot with a past?
• Twitter expands Spaces to anyone with more than 600 followers.
• NewFronts are this week: Here’s the scoop.