Thanksgiving Email: Make Your Clients Feel Appreciated

If you’re like us, you probably started fantasizing about that delicious Thanksgiving spread, as soon as you started working on your holiday email marketing campaigns. Knowing how soon Thanksgiving will be here makes it easy to forget about emailing, when you lose yourself in a daydream about the feast in your future (turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce). But before you get to the food, you need to plan out the perfect Thanksgiving email campaign.

The truth is, your subscribers are likely being bombarded with emails, all telling them to buy what they’re being offered. Instead of only capitalizing on the holiday season to boost your sales, why not use this time of year to show your customers how much you appreciate them? Give our tips a try, and you and your customers will be feeling warm and fuzzy feeling that only a Thanksgiving dinner (and email) can bring.

Keep your Thanksgiving email template simple

Be the calm in your subscriber’s holiday inbox storm. While everyone is promoting Thanksgiving sales, try sending an email just to say “Thank You” and “Happy Thanksgiving,” and hold off on the salesy talk for just a little while. Your friendly Thanksgiving email will remind your customers why they subscribed to you in the first place, and as a result, you may actually influence them to make a purchase further down the road.

Don’t go overboard on the email design, either. Simple emails with a powerful subject line and good personalization can go a long way to make your subscribers feel appreciated. Of course, with the holidays comes the opportunity for fun imagery and GIFs, so we won’t judge if you want to crank up the cheese factor a bit.

 The links in Sakara’s Thanksgiving message makes it easier for your customer to shop without being too pushy, and the copy is sincere and personalized.

Reward your most loyal customers

Where would you be without those wonderful repeat clients? Take the time to create a Thanksgiving email with your best customers in mind. You can throw in an exclusive offer in your email message to show them how special they are to your business, or just a chance to double their rewards on holiday purchases.

Since your customers will probably be more interested in stuffing their tummies full of stuffing on Thanksgiving day and spending time with their family and friends, try to give them a little extra time to redeem the special promotion in your email newsletter. You might even want to give your subscribers early access to your ecommerce’s sale to show them just how thankful you are to them.

Nordstrom’s Thanksgiving holiday campaign is stunning, and lets the customer know about their sale.

Remember to give back

If your brand supports a particular cause, Thanksgiving is the perfect time to show your customers what their purchases or donations have accomplished. Since the holidays often inspire people to give back, telling your customers about your cause can also increase support. Of course, showing that your brand is also making a difference is a great way to inspire loyalty with your consumers.

Thanksgiving is all about giving back, which is what B2B Marketing Exchange showcases in their email.

Send Thanksgiving emails that capitalize on the holiday spirit

Why not use your Thanksgiving email as a chance to send a special welcome to your newest subscribers? Let them know that even though you haven’t known each other for long, you’re happy they’ve decided to join your list. You could send them a personalized message from a leader in your company or just a friendly picture of your team with a nice note. This is a great way to start building your relationship with your new customers and to give them more insight into your brand’s personality.

You can also use the holiday to send a reactivation email to your old contacts that haven’t been active for a while. You can always remind them that despite drifting apart, you’re thankful for them. Since consumers expect to receive more emails around the holidays, you might just reignite that old flame with the ones that got away.

Artifact Uprising reminds their subscribers what the holiday is all about.

Add a Black Friday mention to your Thanksgiving email

Like we said, it’s great to let your customers know you appreciate them without asking them to make a purchase. You may also want to throw in a quick reminder about your Black Friday sale, since your customers will be ready to do some serious shopping after recovering from that food coma.

A little mention of Black Friday or Cyber Monday in your Thanksgiving email, like in Ann Taylor’s, can remind your customers of what’s coming up.

Now it’s your turn: Create the best Thanksgiving email template

And there you have it: the simplest way to let your contacts know you care. Taking time to remind your subscribers that you appreciate them is sure to put a smile on their faces (in between plates, of course). Your customers will feel fuzzy, full and ready to shop ‘til they drop after receiving your Thanksgiving day email.

If you’re starting to plan for the rest of the holiday season, check out our Holiday Email Guide. If you’re wiped out after the hustle and bustle of Thanksgiving, we have some ready-made holiday email templates that you can download and edit right in Passport. It just might be the best gift you receive all year.

Are you sending a special “Thank You” email to your subscribers this holiday? Share your ideas with us on social media!

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This blog post is an updated version of the post “Make Your Customers Feel Appreciated This Thanksgiving“, published on the Mailjet blog on November 18th, 2016 by Patrika Cheston.