As an agency, we have developed best practices for every aspect of our campaigns, starting with strategy all the way through to reporting. Today, we’re sharing the copywriting best practices we follow for our CPG clients.

Overall Content Guidelines

We cannot overstate the importance of knowing your audience and creating relevant email content. Your email must deliver on the value proposition (e.g., coupons, recipes, tips, and tricks) that turned casual fans into loyal subscribers.

Each brand has a unique tone. Stay true to your tone while keeping language consumer-centric, even when humble bragging about positive initiatives. Focus on benefits to your subscribers instead of features of the product.

Subject Lines & Preheaders

Though they’re some of the shortest bits of copy you’ll write, the subject line and preheader are arguably the most crucial part of a CPG email’s anatomy. Sure, some subscribers will open your email solely based on their love for your brand. But, the vast majority of your audience needs to be convinced opening and reading your email is worth their time.

Your subject line and preheader should pack a punch in 35–50 characters each because email clients will truncate long pairings; you want your audience to be able to read the whole thing at a glance. The two should flow seamlessly together, but your subject line should also be able to stand on its own (some email clients don’t show the preheader).

Tease your email content with just enough information to make the subscriber want to open. In our vast work with CPG clients, we’ve seen an uptick in open rates when we include certain elements in subject lines. All of the following help draw the subscriber’s eye to your email in their crowded inbox:

It’s equally important to know what to leave out of your subject lines and preheaders. All caps are a no-go because they can trigger spam filters; however, most brands can get away with capitalizing one word in subject lines, e.g., NEW. You should also consult The Ultimate List of Email SPAM Trigger Words before finalizing subject lines and preheaders.

Headlines, Body Copy, & CTAs

Realistically, most people aren’t spending their time casually perusing your brand’s email. They want to open an email, find the information promised in the subject line, then continue to your website, make a purchase, print their coupon, etc. Depending on your content, your language can create a sense of urgency and FOMO to move your subscribers to action.

Headlines and body copy should be short and easy to digest. No one benefits when subscribers have to spend 5 minutes reading your email before knowing what you want them to do with the information. Grab your subscribers’ attention with a compelling headline, support the idea with body copy, and finish with a brief and actionable CTA, e.g., Buy Now, Find Near You, Play Video.

Alt Text

Don’t forget about the alt text! Alt text, for the uninitiated, is the text that appears when an image fails to load or when a subscriber is using a screen-reader. It serves a double-function by describing what’s in the image and supporting the other email content to drive conversions.

Like CTAs, keep your alt text short, action-oriented, and descriptive. For example, if a milk brand’s email has an image of a cow, the alt text can invite the reader to “Learn more about the way we treat our cows.” This gives the subscriber a path forward, which ultimately increases brand awareness and purchase behavior.

Putting It All Together

These are merely starting points for crafting the perfect CPG marketing email. Take each element discussed and tailor it to your brand’s identity and audience. If you’re stuck, reach out to us. We’d love to help your brand take its email program to the next level.