In my previous blog post, I broke down an email from Angelino’s Coffee in which Angelino’s asked email subscribers to help develop new flavors.
Angelino’s got a bunch of replies from those customers.
So they sifted through the responses, weighed it against other factors (probably), and settled on a new flavor.
The next step:
Announce the new flavor — and that’s what Angelino’s does in the email I break down below. Read on for lots of email knawledge!
| Table of Contents |
| About Angelino’s Coffee The Email: Involving Your Customers In Product Creation The Subject Line and Send Name The Body Copy Takeaways What to Do Next |
About Angelino’s Coffee
Angelino’s Coffee is a family-owned coffee company offering over 50 flavors to its customers. Per the site, the company has served over 1 million customers since its 2002 founding. It appears to be primarily an online (aka eCommerce) brand.
Angelino’s Coffee was founded by Kirk Bedrossian, whose father had a coffee-processing business.
The two traveled to Costa Rica in 1998. This trip sparked Kirk’s love for coffee…
And was the beginning of a four-year journey across the globe to discover the best coffee beans.
The journey took Kirk to several continents, including Africa, Indonesia, and South America. Along the way, Kirk fell in love with the diverse people and cultures he encountered — and how these factors impacted the coffee.
He found himself back in LA, California, in 2002. That’s when he launched Angelino’s. Per the website, Angelino’s was launched “to share the world with others through a simple yet transformative cup of coffee.”
In a niche like coffee, the story is crucial to standing out. It’s more about creating a “tribe” than selling a cool product. Why buy your coffee over all the other brands? What makes you so special? Why should I care about your brand?
Angelino’s About Page does a good job of addressing these things. Lesson in there.
Moving onto the email…
The Email: A New Product Announcement
Angelino’s is announcing their newest flavor, based on an email they sent a week earlier asking readers what new flavor they wanted to see:
This one is almost entirely text-based. The only visual element is the brand logo at the bottom. And it’s not “busy” by any means.
You’ll also notice the line breaks. Not a single sentence goes beyond one line. Plus, the bulleted list. Easy on the eyes. Nice and skimmable.
But does the copy hold up?
Let’s see…
The Subject Line and Send Name
Our subject line here is a long one, but it works for reasons I’m about to describe:
The “The results are in! The top” is probably all that fits on a phone screen. But that’s enough to get the open. The rest of the subject line only adds to the curiosity if someone’s on a device that can show it all.
Speaking of, that section is needed, anyways. This email arrived one week after the first.
So “The results are in!” would provoke curiosity, but it’s too vague. Angelino’s had to add the second sentence to refresh the reader about the new flavor.
I love how the subject line trails off with an ellipsis, too. It invites you to open and find out the answer.
Like the first email, Angelino’s uses a person’s name as the sender name:
Personalization matters.
But further: It helps when it’s the same person. Especially if the reader gets emails from “other people” at the brand or the brand itself.
The reader mentally ties a particular topic (such as new flavors coming out) to that sender.
Lots of psychological tactics in the subject line and sender name!
The Body Copy
I love how this email opens:
They could’ve skipped this section entirely. The first sentence in the next section works as a starting point.
But instead, they added personality and emotion in the first line. And it’s relevant to the customer since it’s about their morning coffee.
It feels way more natural. And it’s shorter than the first sentence of the next section. You want short email hooks. Too long of an intro sentence makes them go, “This is too much effort,” and close the thing.
So now we’re onto the meat of the email:
Once again, the good stuff is in the details.
“Your responses piqued the interest of our coffee chemists.”
That’s the human element of the brand. There are real people behind the delicious coffee flavors. And they loved the reader’s ideas.
That makes the reader feel smart and like a part of something bigger.
I also love how Angelino’s compliments the reader with the “kudos”.
And, of course, they listed the top three flavors. This shows the reader that Angelino’s isn’t BSing. Some readers might even see their suggestions in that list.
Now for the exciting announcement:
It makes sense to pick Peppermint Bark for the holiday season. That’ll sell even better than other flavors.
Look at that second line. Gets the reader excited because their dream flavor’s about to come to life.
(Side note: I’m thirsty for coffee now.)
Also, “Great minds think alike” is one of my favorite phrases. But beyond that, it’s yet another bit of personality.
All that said…
Angelino’s isn’t selling the Peppermint Bark here. They’re just announcing it. Seeding the idea for when it’s live.
But they don’t miss the chance to use the new flavor announcement as a “bridge” to sell other coffees:
Normally, I’d advise no more than one CTA. But this time is different.
Angelino’s is targeting three customers here with just two CTAs:
- Those who like limited-edition selections
- Those who enjoy novelty and variety
- Those who prefer their tried-and-true flavors
All are valid preferences. And all types of customers have a chance to click and buy.
Love the descriptive language here. And the pun (“errrr, cup of coffee”…)
Finally, the sign-off:
Same signoff as last time. A thanks, the sender’s first name, and their job title with only one simple logo graphic. Plus, a standard link to their site.
If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.
Takeaways
Here are some big takeaways:
1. The Copy Mechanics
This email reads like a personal email to the reader. It doesn’t feel like marketing, even though it clearly is.
The line breaks and list of flavors only add to this effect and make the copy easier to skim.
The coffee chemists line humanizes the brand, too. This isn’t just a faceless coffee retailer. There are real people — professionals who dedicated their lives to this — behind the wonderfully caffeinated beverages customers enjoy.
Note the descriptive language throughout as well.
2. The Email Structure
The structure of this email is as follows:
- Personality-filled greeting
- Subject line payoff
- Top product ideas reveal
- New product announcement
- CTA for target audience 1
- CTA for target audience 2
Notice how the first few sections are quite short. You must hook the reader’s attention, so you can’t dilly-dally at the start.
You get the reader’s attention and pay off the subject line as soon as possible. Then, you have the customer’s attention. The remaining email sections can be longer.
3. The Overall Strategy
The strategy here, obviously, is to announce the new flavor and build hype for when it officially goes live…
But there’s another layer:
The excitement of the new flavor gets the open and the reader’s interest…
This offers Angelino’s an excellent time to sell to multiple types of customers at once.
They can use the announcement to remind customers of limited-edition flavors and get some of their regular fare moving.
What to Do Next
- Get on my email list using the signup form below for more Email Breakdowns and other helpful marketing content.
- Share this with someone who will find it insightful.
- Reach out to me if you want help writing emails like this one.
- Check out Angelino’s Coffee for a delicious array of coffees! They’ve got ground, whole bean, Nespresso, and Keurig cups.