7 best practices for your Memorial Day email campaign

By Kaleigh Moore May 4, 2023

Memorial Day is a federal holiday in the United States that occurs on the same day each year—the last Monday in May. It’s also one of the most popular in the United States, along with Thanksgiving and Veterans Day: According to Statista, Memorial Day has a popularity rating of 80%.

But the question is: why is Memorial Day so important for marketers? 

Well, here is the thing: Memorial Day is also considered an unofficial starting point for summer, and with time, it became known for some of the biggest sales of the year. Moreover, consumers tend to shop more during holidays, especially online. 

If you’re looking for ways to enhance your Memorial Day email marketing campaigns, this post is for you. We’re sharing best practices, ideas, and examples from top companies you can use as a blueprint to nail your next Memorial Day email campaign. 

7 Best Practices for Memorial Day Email

After you master the basics of writing irresistible sales emails to boost your bottom line, it’s time to go through the best practices that will help you create a well-performing Memorial Day email campaign and maximize results. Let’s get to it. 

1 – Use storytelling to add some context

Creating a story around your Memorial Day campaign gives customers context. Painting a picture that allows customers to understand how your product is connected to the campaign theme makes it easy for them to relate to the whole story. The end result: More clicks.

For example, lifestyle brand Huckberry used a Memorial Day email campaign to promote its summertime gear (since this holiday is the forerunner of the summer season.) With a summery visual and a clear call to action, Huckberry told a story that made clicking to find out more irresistible.  

2 – Test subject lines

The subject line is the first thing customers see when they receive your email, so it’s no surprise it’s one of the key pillars of a successful email campaign. Playing around with different versions, A/B testing, and optimizing are wise. 

Why? The fact that 47% of email recipients admit they are opening emails based on the subject line alone makes investing time to understand the basic subject line best practices worthwhile. 

One of the leading furniture brands, Ethan Allen, sends multiple emails during its Memorial Day campaign, and each time it uses a different subject line. All of them are short, attention-grabbing, and to the point.  

3 – Create a sense of urgency

Letting customers know that your campaign lasts only for a limited time urges them to act faster before time runs out. Brands such as MeUndies even use countdown timers and copy that creates a sense of urgency. 

Creating a limited-time campaign gives customers the final nudge they need to make the decision and click the call-to-action button.  

4 – Focus on the main call to action

Adding many different messages and calls-to-action (CTA) might confuse your customers. Your goal should be clear and straightforward—to get customers to click a CTA button. The Canadian DTC furniture brand Article created a simple visual for one of its Memorial Day email campaigns. Using a short copy, the brand encourages customers to make a purchase with a clear, simple CTA. 

5 – Create a dedicated discount code

If one of your strategies for the Memorial Day sale is offering a discount, make sure to create a dedicated code customers can use. Besides the fact it connects the sale to the holiday, it also helps you track the results and see how many customers have used the code. Based on that information, you can optimize your Memorial Day email campaigns in the future. 

The women’s clothing brand Easy Standard used a simple Memorial Day email design with a clear call-to-action, giving customers a 10% discount if they use the dedicated code. Simple, straightforward, and easy to track.  

6 – Engage customers with quiz 

Giving customers sitewide discounts for the Memorial Day sale can lead to choice paralysis. Having too many choices can quickly become overwhelming and have a negative effect on your campaign results. To avoid this from happening, you should always look for ways to help customers navigate your website and ease their decision-making process. 

One of the companies that managed to do that during its Memorial Day campaign is the boutique leather goods brand Latico Leathers. Aside from offering sitewide discounts, the brand added a quiz to its Memorial Day email to engage customers and help them find the perfect bag. Once customers get a personalized recommendation, they are one step closer to clicking the “add to cart” button.

7 – Send a few reminders

Memorial Day sale is not a one-and-done campaign. Brands start their email campaigns as early as mid-May. Having a two-week window gives you a chance to play around with different Memorial Day subject lines, email templates, designs, and even email signatures. You can always test, optimize, and see what works best for your email marketing base. 

The DTC furniture brand Burrow uses different subject lines, highlighting various products from its portfolio to make the most out of the Memorial Day email campaigns. 

Source: Milled

Get your Memorial Day emails ready today

There you have it—seven Memorial Day email best practices and examples to spark your creativity for the next campaign. When in doubt, always opt for clear copy, striking visuals, attention-grabbing GIFs, and a single call-to-action. 

Ready to make the most out of your Memorial Day email campaign? Get started with AWeber today for free