I was baptized and chrismated into the Eastern Orthodox Church in May 2024.
Eastern Orthodoxy is NOT big in the US, being one of the most “foreign” versions of Christianity (it comes from Eastern Europe, Russia, and the Middle East instead of Western Europe.)
And so I am ecstatic when I uncover excellent, authentic Orthodox small businesses working hard to supply great products to customers.
For example, I found Lore Coffee Roasters through a YouTube channel with which they partnered to release a special coffee.
I was pleasantly surprised to find that Lore’s emails are good.
Likely has nothing to do with formal copywriting training. They’re simply passionate about good coffee and want to share theirs with their fans!
(Lesson in there.)
I have yet to buy from them, but plan on doing so soon.
In the meantime, I broke down their Black Friday announcement email to bring them some attention…
AND offer you, dear reader, some nuggets of copywriting wisdom.
Let us continue…
| Table of Contents |
| About Lore Coffee Roasters The Email: The Subject Line and Preview: The Body Copy Takeaways What to Do Next |
About Lore Coffee Roasters
Lore Coffee Roasters is a small, North-Idaho-based coffee company focusing on high-quality specialty coffees.
It was founded by Nicholas Carter (current Head Roaster and Director of Coffee) and Graysen Spiller in late 2022/early 2023.
Nicholas lost his job in October 2022, just under a year after moving from Tennessee to Northern Idaho.
He had always wanted to work in the coffee industry and figured this was his shot. He had to make it work — he had a wife and two young kids to feed.
He also knew his geographical area had untapped opportunities for a coffee company.
Fortunately, he met his future business partner, Graysen, at church (they’re Orthodox Christians, like myself).
The funny thing is that Graysen hated coffee at first… or so he thought.
Nicholas’s first few brews blew them away. They were nothing like the mass-produced “caffeinated bean water” on store shelves.
Lore Coffee Roasters was born, and the rest is a rather short history so far (since the company’s just about 2 years old at the time of writing).
Today, Lore sells various blends and single origins.
They’ve collaborated with some Orthodox brands (such as Death to the World) to launch specialty coffees, too.
Lore even opened a brick-and-mortar coffee house in July 2024! They’re going places.
The Email:
Last week was Black Friday, so today, we’re taking a look at Lore’s Black Friday announcement email:
This email’s product block structure makes it quite long, so I split the screenshot and put each half side by side.
First half is the left, second half is the right.
The Subject Line and Preview Text:
The subject line is a fairly standard Black Friday announcement with some nice details:
Notice how Lore included all the details (sale AND giveaway) instead of just saying, “Black Friday is live.”
They’re promising more in the subject line, increasing open rates.
The emoji catches the attention, even with other emojis in the inbox… since, after all, not EVERY brand uses an emoji.
The preview text is neat:
I have no clue how they got the preview text to do that. Maybe a bunch of spaces?
Who knows, but it almost lets you cram in two preview texts.
Either way, Lore uses the space to convey more information… that this is the biggest sale of the year AND that you can enter to win their giveaway here.
Straightforward, but it works well!
The Body Copy
Many of Lore’s emails, including this one, start with an image:
I believe that’s either one of the founders or an employee.
Either way, it adds a sense of authenticity to the email — you get to see someone actually making the product!
Below the image is the “biggest sale of the year” announcement, paying off some of the subject/preview complex.
This leads us to the body copy:
Interesting how Lore leads with the giveaway. This is most likely because it’s the more unique feature of the two (that being giveaway and discount)…
And everyone loves a shot at winning free stuff.
Introducing the discount AFTER makes said discount feel like a bonus.
You can save on your favorite coffee AND enter the giveaway, which incentivizes MORE purchases since Lore hints that purchases earn entries.
Discounted product = more room to buy = more entries = a STRONG urge to stock up.
Yes, I see the typo. If you convey the message well, occasional typos don’t matter much in email copy.
(Some might say the occasional typo reminds the reader a human writes these. That doesn’t mean to create fake authenticity with strategic typos, though — you’re missing the point.)
Now that the reader knows the two offers, it’s time to give the reader the prize details:
The offers themselves are pretty good.
First place gets several pieces of home coffee-making equipment, free coffee, and free shipping. Second place gets less equipment, but still some…
And third place gets only 1 free bag, but the chance is higher since 10 people can win it.
A few things on the copy front:
- Neat list formatting: Lore managed to arrange a lot of information in a readable manner that isn’t harsh on the eyes. Emojis and line spacing play a role here.
- Value estimates: Lore lists the dollar value of each prize for each tier AND sums each tier’s total dollar value regarding prizes. Makes it easy for the reader to see what’s at stake, encouraging more sales.
- Bolding: Key aspects, like the tiers, total dollar values, and free shipping perks, are bolded to get attention.
- Enhancing the 3rd place tier: The 3rd place prize isn’t as exciting as the 1st and 2nd. However, Lore counteracts this by reminding readers that many blends are available. The reader can conclude that this might be a chance to try something new without risking money.
Putting the giveaway prizes before the entry instructions is a classic structural tactic.
You want the reader to know what’s in it for them BEFORE telling them how to get it…
Otherwise they have little reason to enter.
Speaking of, Lore added the entry details after the prizes:
Once again, list format enhances readability, enhancing reader comprehension.
Notice the parenthetical 2nd step under How to Enter.
This does two things:
- Offers a “sigh of relief”: The reader thinks they have to do 2 steps… and then it turns out they already did one. They feel “a step ahead” of non-subs since they’re on the list already. This is the hardest step, too, since the first is merely buying coffee.
- Reinforces exclusivity: People love to be part of “the club.” The reader feels like part of an exclusive group being on the list, improving their experience with the brand and leading to more purchases.
I love how Lore offers bonus entries for social media follows and shares.
This creates a “flywheel” — by magnifying social media presences and posts, they gain tons of awareness and potentially new customers…
All for giving away a few hundred $$$ of prizes to customers.
Finally, Lore reminds the reader of the 20% off yet again to give readers that nudge to buy NOW.
But wait! There’s more (details):
Always good to tell readers HOW they’ll find out about the winner.
Not just because the reader knows if they win…
But it gets them watching their inbox around the giveaway end date (which Lore, of course, provides as well).
Lore ends the body with a last urge to stock up on coffee (good language for a “purchases = entries” promo) and signoff…
Plus a 20% off + code reminder one more time. Gotta hammer that discount.
Now that the body copy is finished, we have several sections to peek at.
First, Lore’s flavor features:
Lore goes beyond a generic recommended product block here.
Each clickable flavor block lists tons of details about the product — tasting notes, process, producers, and so much more.
This…
- Helps readers choose the best coffee for them
- Helps readers feel a connection to the brand
- Demonstrates the brand’s commitment to quality, refinement, and detail (both by displaying all the details AND the effort that goes into the blocks themselves)
After these flavor blocks is another Black Friday reminder:
“Apply discount” is an interesting CTA button choice. But it works. It just “feels” very “click button-y”.
I don’t know how else to explain it.
That said, I like how Lore gives the option to apply automatically OR use the code manually.
It resolves potential worries about discounts not auto-applying and just gives more choice.
Lastly, look at that tiny text reminding them of when the offer ends. One more little urgency nudge.
Onto more coffees. Not any coffees — but their special ones:
I enjoy how Lore separates its “From the Vault” and “Single Origins” from the other coffees.
Gotta highlight the special ones.
The 2nd and 3rd are the same, but I really like that first one.
The unique design and name set it apart.
(“Hierarch” being a reference to hierarchs in the Orthodox Church, of course.)
Finally, our last two blocks:
Never hurts to encourage social media follows. Especially since those can earn customers additional entries!
And then the bottom block is perfect.
Christian-owned. American heritage. Those two alone speak precisely to ME — the ideal customer.
Best sources and freshly roasted are great, but almost the cherry on top instead.
This brand’s customers want to know that they’re supporting fellow Orthodox Christian countryment.
(And hey, non-Orthodox patriotic Americans are probably happy to support, too.)
So this block communicates “Excellent coffee for patriotic American Christians.” Masterful.
Takeaways
Here are some big takeaways:
1. The Copy Mechanics
Copy and email formatting
Lore uses lists and line breaks to break up text and enhance readability.
Plus, it bolds particular phrases and lines to draw attention to important or persuasive details.
Emojis
Lore uses emojis for some non-overbearing visuals. They also help convey information, draw eyes to the right places, and add some personality.
Casting a wide net
Lore words the intro section to appeal to most types of customers, ranging from those who have never bought to those who are loyal.
I’m thinking of this line: “Whether you’re well aquatinted (sic) with specialty coffee or just getting started, this giveaway is for you!”
Promo detail reminders
Lore reiterates the 20% discount several times. This accompanies the “meat” of the email — the giveaway details — perfectly.
Each time the reader learns some key thing, such as the entry details or the popular flavors, Lore hits them with the discount.
A good way to encourage more purchases.
A great example is the line, “Plus, with our exclusive B-Friday 20% off sale, you can grab your favorite coffee AND earn more chances to win!”
Right away, before they even know the details, the reader knows that buying more good coffee = a higher chance to win whatever it is they could win.
2. The Email Structure
This email’s structure is as follows:
- Logo and hero image
- Headline
- Promo giveaway announcement
- Promo discount announcement
- Prize details
- Entry instructions
- Bonus entry instructions
- Additional details
- Signoff
- CTA + discount reminder
- Product block
- CTA
- Exclusive product block
- Social media block
- “Unique Selling Proposition” block
You could remove certain elements and use this same structure depending on the offer.
What matters most is giving the details up front, then clearly providing instructions.
Adding product block sections helps reduce the customer’s thinking, of course.
3. The Overall Strategy
The announcement itself
The strategy here is simple:
Get the reader excited about the offer AND to take advantage of it ASAP.
Announcement emails are the biggest opportunity to do this due to the novelty. So that’s the big push here — eyes on the email, and clicks through to the website.
One small change I’d make to help this perform even better:
Add a “teaser email.”
Something short and sweet, telling readers to keep their eye out for the big announcement.
Heck — they could even add some teaser copy in their Thanksgiving email. Hint at something big coming the next day.
The offer
I like Lore’s offer:
- A tiered giveaway (with one tier being open to multiple winners)
- 20% off ALL coffee
These play off each other well, as I alluded to earlier.
The giveaway gets people to buy and potentially win. The discount only makes those purchases easier.
That’s the ticket to a LOT of sales.
Add to that additional entries for social media follows/reposts and they’ll get plenty of reach…
Putting their brand in front of new potential customers!
That said — and I don’t know their profit margins, so maybe this isn’t necessary — one small change I’d make is to reduce the discount amount.
I’m sure that with the giveaway, they could do a 10% discount (instead of 20%) and keep more of their profit.
Sales may fall somewhat, but if they fall less than profits rise, it doesn’t really matter. And they would then have MORE financial room to give away the prizes.
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 might find it helpful (or entertaining).
- Reach out to me if you want help writing emails like this one.
- Check out Lore Coffee Roasters for some excellent coffee — no need to be Orthodox to support and enjoy!