Email Inspiration: Standout Campaigns from February
- Cara Wilson
- Mar 4
- 7 min read
Updated: Mar 5
This month, I'm spotlighting emails that grabbed my attention straight from the inbox with standout subject lines that also coupled perfectly with the preheader text (the line of copy that appears in your inbox right after the subject line and is a bit of an afterthought for many brands).
Good subject lines rely heavily on knowing your audience and why they love or need your products or services. But beyond the subject line, i.e. what's inside your email, matters just as much as what gets a recipient to open.
So this month's email inspiration features some of my favourite subject lines from February, breaking down what makes them effective. But alongside the praise, I'll also touch on areas where the email execution didn't quite deliver and why you should avoid them within your own campaigns.
Ultra Violette UK
Subject Line
"FACT: You need to wear SPF in aeroplanes"
Preheader
SPF myth busting
First Impressions
I love a fact and as an avid SPF user, this subject really grabbed my attention.
Displays a knowledge of their audience and the industry - there's a lot of misinformation about SPF out there, so this kind of myth-busting approach immediately piques interest.
Mobile friendly: the subject line and preheader copy were fully visible on my mobile without truncating (i.e. it wasn't cut off)! It's a small but important detail that many brands overlook, particularly when you consider how many emails are opened on mobile.
Why it works
As an envelope
Let's start with the inbox experience - what you see before you've even opened the email. For a brand like Ultra Violette, it's highly likely most of their audience is viewing emails on mobile. It's clear that time and thought went into crafting a well-presented subject line and preheader that:
Is fully readable
Gives a clear sense of what the email contains
Teases the content in a way that makes you want to open
It has a bit of a magazine feature vibe - and it works!
Their from name is also clear, so there's no doubt who the email is from. It might sound obvious, but it's a detail that can easily be overlooked. Your from name carries just as much weight as your subject line and preheader when it comes to:
trust and recognition
spam filter risk
open rates
brand consistency
As an email
FAQ content like this is a great strategy for engaging audiences. It positions the brand as an expert while showing they understand their customers' concerns - in this case, whether SPF is really needed on a plane. This kind of content helps people feel seen, which can go a long way in building emotional connection and keeping your brand front of mind.
Visually, the email is striking:
The colour palette is completely on-brand, echoing the look and feel of their website
The cloud background ties in nicely with the aeroplane theme
The layout is clean and not overloaded with content
Where it falls down
Unfortunately, the execution doesn't quite match the promise of the envelope:
The entire email is made up of images with no live text. This not only impacts accessibility (screen readers can't read image-based text) but also means if images are blocked, the recipient sees... nothing.
The CTAs are smaller than the title text and the website navigation bar at the top of the email. There's no clear visual hierarchy, making it harder to know what action the brand wants me to take.
When I opened the email, I expected an upfront explanation about why I need SPF on a plane - after all, that's what made me open it in the first place. But that information is hidden. Instead, I'm immediately directed to shop with no connection back to the myth-busting angle.
The gif is eye-catching but doesn't add much value. It could have been a great opportunity to showcase products that are perfect for in-flight skincare routines - instead, it feels like filler. In fact, it feels like someone hasn't thought about making an asset for email and has just lifted this from their social media uploads.
The real myth-busting content is tucked away at the bottom, but there's no signposting to guide me there. The video isn't what I was expecting either - I thought I'd be clicking through to a deep dive from skincare expert Michelle Wong, but instead it's a TikTok clip with minor details that could probably have been distilled directly within the email.
Email Inspiration Takeaways
There's so much potential in this email - the envelope does exactly what it's supposed to, drawing the reader in with a clever hook. But what happens after the open is just as important. Aligning the email content more closely with the promise of the subject line would have made for a much stronger customer experience.
Brands investing in great email campaigns should be thinking beyond the inbox - making sure that the journey from subject line to content to click feels seamless and valuable at every step. This includes designing for the channel, not simply repurposing assets from other platforms.
Pip & Nut
Subject Line
"'Nooooooooo'"
Preheader Copy
"How to avoid this on Pancake Day"
First Impressions
The subject line grabs attention with emotion and humour - I can hear that tone of voice.
The preheader adds context without giving too much away so it tempts me to open and find out the answer.
It's audience-centric - promising to provide helpful content around a key moment in the foodie calendar.
Why it works
As an envelope
The one-word subject line with extended o's is such a simple but effective way to inject personality and tone into the inbox. You can instantly hear the exasperated voice behind it, which makes it feel playful and human - not always an easy thing to pull off in email.
What really makes this work is the curiosity gap - the subject line hints at the problem, while the preheader promises the solution. That combination makes it hard to resist opening to find out the answer.
Again, we have a clear from name so I instantly recognise who this is from and Pip & Nut have also used BIMI (Brand Indicators for Message Identification), which displays their logo next to the sender name in my Gmail inbox. This visual cue might seem minor, but it's a powerful way to boost trust and brand recognition at a glance - especially in industries like FMCG where phishing scams are common.
Not all email providers support BIMI yet, but when they do, it can give brands an extra edge in the inbox. Crucially, BIMI isn't just a branding exercise - it's tied to email authentication protocols like DMARC, meaning only verified senders can display their logo. It's another example of how small details can add up to a more professional, considered email experience.
As an email
Similar to the Ultra Violette email, Pip & Nut use helpful content as a way of engaging with their audience. Not only does it act as a reminder for the much-loved Pancake Day, but it provides a recipe for pancakes that cleverly incorporates their own products to inspire their recipients. This is complimented with a relevant and engaging gif, showcasing how their product and the recipe work well together.
They've used first name personalisation within email copy that continues the playful and conversational tone and draws the reader in. Signing off with "Toodle-Pip" evokes a sense of British charm while being a endearing play on their brand name.
Where it falls down
Sadly there are a few factors that mean this email doesn't quite live up to the potential set out at the envelope stage:
Overall the email is a bit confused in purpose. Is it to promote a flash sale or show us how to make pancakes with their products? Good email marketing is all about streamlining your message. A flash sale is usually an urgent campaign due to it's short nature so it should have priority over other content - but this needs to be reflected in the subject line and the hero section of the email. Instead it's hidden in the 7th line of the intro.
The placement of the headline is a bit jarring. To improve flow, this copy could have been more woven more naturally into the copy or used as a headline before the greeting.
While the CTAs have some prominence, the colour of button is the same as the recipe box, main font, and (if viewed on desktop) the email wrapper. So it becomes a bit of a brown mess. The placement of the CTAs also detracts from their impact e.g. "more perfect pancakes" is totally lost at the bottom and doesn't actually tell us what to do here.
Email Inspiration Takeaways
Email marketing is a delicate dance of clarity and creativity. When you're crafting a campaign, your message needs to be sharp. The magic happens when you commit to a single, crystal-clear objective. It's not about throwing everything at your audience and hoping something sticks. It's about guiding them precisely where you want them to go, with the kind of laser-focused messaging that cuts through the inbox noise.
Personality is your secret weapon. Those playful touches, from a subject line that makes someone smile to a cheeky sign-off, transform a bland email into something people want to read. It's about creating connection, not just conversion. But it has to be true to your brand tone.
Also, good design doesn't just decorate; it directs, explains, and persuades. Colour, placement, and visual hierarchy are strategic choices, requiring time and a knowledgeable skillset to apply them effectively.
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