#“two days from now i will share the best marketing you've ever seen except it's also a spoiler.”

[loppiopio]

in water, fleas will drown.

[starsncyanide]

Yoooooo heard requests are opeeeen~ :') Will you please do a prompto/reader where the reader finds out he's an MT and it looks like she's mad but she's just upset he didn't tell her because she'd be 100% supportive of him no matter what. I'm sorry if this is-- weird idunno!! >_> sorry if you've done this before too

Hey there! It’s totally not weird I have seen people ask for similar things before but I’ve never written it so I would be happy to do so for you! :) 

This turned out way longer than I meant it to?? I hope this is something like what you were thinking of. It was a little hard for me to figure out how exactly to write this.

————

It had been about six months since you had started officially dating Prompto Argentum. Even though it had been much longer than six months that you have had a massive crush on him. It was pretty much impossible for you to talk to him or get near him though so you always kept your distance just admiring him from afar. By some random stroke of luck though you had run into him (literally) in Lestalum. You were never the most graceful person and you were late for work and had ran right into him. It was pretty embarrassing but of course he thought it was cute and the two of you started dating almost immediately. 

You had taken up a permanent residence here in the city now and anytime Prompto passed through with his group he made sure to make time to see you. Having a long distance type of relationship was difficult but when you did get to see him it made the time the two of you spent together much more special. He had messaged you to tell you that they would be in town for a few days and you were excited to see him again. 

You made your way down to the center market area where you had arranged to meet up with them. Seeing them all walking toward you a large smile came across your face. Of course you were always happy to see the other guys but it was your boyfriend you were really excited for. As soon as they got a little bit closer you skipped over to Prompto and gave him a hug. 

“Hey Y/N.” He said as he hugged you back but it wasn’t in his usual bubbly tone. You pulled back from the hug and looked at him confused.

“What’s wrong?” You asked automatically knowing something was up. 

“Ah…What? Nothing. What would be wrong?” He said hugging you again in an attempt to change the topic. “Can we go eat, I’m starving.” You nodded and Prompto put his arm over your shoulder walking with you. The two of you followed the others toward one of the restaurants near by staying toward the back of the group. You snuck a glance at him as you walked just knowing something wasn’t right. 

The group and you all sat at a table sharing stories of what you had been up to since you had last seen each other. It was nice to catch up but you couldn’t shake the feeling something was wrong. You were a self conscious individual and you were pretty sure the feeling you were having was that Prompto was planning to leave you. That was the only explanation your mind could come up with for why he was acting so strange.  You had spaced out of the conversation a few minutes ago thinking of all the terrible situations that could happen until Prompto got up saying he would be right back. You watched him walk away feeling confused and a little hurt. You put your elbow on the table resting your chin on your knuckles watching him walk away with a sigh. 

“Y/N, I can’t help but notice you’ve been much more quiet than usual, Is everything alright?” Ignis asked you being the observant individual that he was.

“I don’t know, You tell me.” You snapped and then realized you had given him a bit of an attitude. “Sorry Ignis,” You apologized. “I just…Don’t know why he’s acting so weird.” 

“He’s uh…Just got a lot on his mind.” Noctis said trying to ease the tension. You looked down at your lap trying not to let your eyes fill up with tears.

“He’s going to break up with me, isn’t he?” You said shakily. 

“What? No, That’s not it at all really, I promise.” Noctis said but you were pretty sure he would lie for his best friend. You looked up at them all with a very forlorn face. 

“We should tell her.” Gladio said sternly putting his arms across his chest.

“No Gladio, That’s not our place.” Ignis scolded.

“Well, Prompto’s sure not going to do it, Kids got no balls.” 

“Shut up.” Noctis kicked him from under the table. 

You watched them all arguing and felt your face getting hot. 

“Tell me what?” You demanded. It wasn’t like you to be so stern but you didn’t like secrets. 

They all looked at each other knowing what consequences they might face from tell you what had been bothering Prompto. He had already said he wasn’t planning on telling you but at this point there was really nothing they could do to get out of this. You weren’t going to let them without telling you. 

“It seems Prompto recently found out the origins of where he was actually born.” Ignis proceeded to say trying to politely say these words without coming out right about anything. You looked at him confused. Prompto had never mentioned to you before that he wasn’t born in Lucis even though you had divulged some big secrets to him. 

“And? That’s it?” It wasn’t that big of a secret. Certainty no reason to be acting so out of character for him. 

Noctis sighed looking at Gladio. “This is your fault you know. If he asks I’m totally blaming you.” Gladio shrugged not really caring. He cared about Prompto’s well being and didn’t think he should be hiding things from his girlfriend. 

“He was born in Niflheim.” Noctis said leaning back on his chair. 

“Except he wasn’t actually born…more created.” You looked very confused at him. 

“I…I don’t get it. What exactly are you saying.” You wished they would just hurry up and get to the point.

“He’s a clone, he was created to become a Magitek.” Gladio finally came out and said it. You looked at them all for a moment with your hands shaking. You heart was racing and you felt like running away. 

“And…he wasn’t going to tell me?” You asked them and were met with all of them shaking their heads. Prompto had just returned to the table and everyone except you looked at him. He went to sit back down next to you but you stood up. 

“What’s wrong Y/N?” You looked up at him and for the first time he saw what it looked like to see you actually angry; Furious even. 

“Prom…” Noctis started but Gladio interrupted him. 

“We told her. Since you weren’t going to.” 

Prompto looked back at you, his face much paler and sad then you had ever seen but you couldn’t feel bad you were still too angry. Without another word you started walking away. It didn’t take long for Prompto to find you since he knew your favorite spots in the city, right near the water. 

“I get it…If you don’t wanna keep dating but I couldn’t let you just walk away knowing I might not ever be able to talk to you again.” He said as he approached you sitting beside you on the bench you were on, your knees huddled up to your chest.

“What are you talking about?” You asked him feeling shocked that he even thought you were considering leaving him. 

“That’s why you left isn’t it? You probably can’t even stand the thought of dating some who…someone…like me.” He said, his bottom lip quivering slightly.

“You dummy.” You said in between breaths trying to choke back tears. “I would never leave you because of that.”

“You…You wouldn’t?” He said shocked.

“No of course not! I will always support you no matter what. You should know that by now.” 

“Well then why did you run off?” He questioned.

“I was upset that you weren’t going to tell me.” Tears were flowing freely from your eyes now since you had been holding them back for awhile. 

“Oh…I…” Prompto looked down. “I’m sorry, Y/N. I was scared if you found out that you would never want to see me again. Keeping it a secret seemed like a better idea.” 

“Prompto.” You wiped your eyes looking at him and he looked up to meet your gaze. “I love you.” This was the first time you had said these words to him. You always thought he would be the first one to say them but you needed to let him know now. “No matter what or who you are. Or where you come from. I don’t care. I love you.”

His lips finally curled into a smile. The first genuine smile you had seen him give since he got here. There was the Prompto you knew and the one you fell in love with. He grabbed you quickly pulling you into a tight hug. 

“I love you too.” He said and you smiled into his shoulder. He backed away from your hug to give you a very long, very passionate kiss. No more words needed to be said for the time being as you snuggled up against him on the bench gazing out at the water. You knew this was where you were meant to be.

[benfchristie2]

15 of the Best Email Marketing Campaign Examples You've Ever Seen

On any given day, most of our email inboxes are flooded with a barrage of automated email newsletters that do little else besides giving us another task to do on our commutes to work -- namely, marking them all as unread without reading, or unsubscribing altogether.

But every now and then, we get a newsletter that's so good, not only do we read it, but we click it, share it, and recommend it to our friends.

Exceptional email marketing campaigns need to be cleverly written to attract attention in busy inboxes. Marketing emails also need to be personalized, filled with interesting graphics, and designed for desktop and mobile devices. And above all, emails must contain a meaningful call-to-action. After all, if brands are taking up subscribers' time -- and inbox space -- with another email, every message must have a point to it.

Schedule time with a specialist to learn how to drive high-value leads through email.

You probably receive enough emails as it is, and it's tough to know which newsletters are worth subscribing to, so we've curated a list of some of our favorite examples. Read on to discover some great email campaign examples and what makes them great -- or just skip ahead to the brands you already know and love.

1) charity: water

2) BuzzFeed

3) Uber

4) TheSkimm

5) Mom and Dad Money

6) Poncho

7) Birchbox

8) Postmates

9) Dropbox

10) InVision App

11) Warby Parker

12) Cook Smarts

13) HireVue

14) Paperless Post

15) Stitcher

15 Examples of Effective Email Marketing

1) charity: water

When people talk about email marketing, lots of them forget to mention transactional emails.These are the automated emails you get in your inbox after taking a certain action on a website. This could be anything from filling out a form, to purchasing a product, to updating you on the progress of your order. Often, these are plain text emails that marketers set and forget.

Well, charity: water took an alternate route. Once someone donates to a charity: water project, her money takes a long journey. Most charities don't tell you about that journey at all -- charity: water uses automated emails to show donors how their money is making an impact over time. With the project timeline and accompanying table, you don't even really need to read the email -- you know immediately where you are in the whole process so you can move onto other things in your inbox.

2) BuzzFeed

I already have a soft spot for BuzzFeed content ("21 Puppies so Cute You Will Literally Gasp and Then Probably Cry," anyone?), but that isn't the only reason I fell in love with its emails.

First of all, BuzzFeed has awesome subject lines and preview text. They are always short and punchy -- which fits in perfectly with the rest of BuzzFeed's content. I especially love how the preview text will accompany the subject line. For example, if the subject line is a question, the preview text is the answer. Or if the subject line is a command (like the one below), the preview text seems like the next logical thought right after it:

Once you open up an email from BuzzFeed, the copy is equally awesome. Just take a look at that glorious alt text action happening where the images should be. The email still conveys what it is supposed to convey -- and looks great -- whether you use an image or not. That's definitely something to admire.

Without images:

With images:

3) Uber

The beauty of Uber's emails is in their simplicity. Email subscribers are alerted to deals and promotions with emails like the one you see below. We love how brief the initial description is, paired with a very clear call-to-action -- which is perfect for subscribers who are quickly skimming the email. For the people who want to learn more, these are followed by a more detailed (but still pleasingly simple), step-by-step explanation of how the deal works.

We also love how consistent the design of Uber's emails is with its brand. Like its app, website, social media photos, and other parts of the visual branding, the emails are represented by bright colors and geometric patterns. All of its communications and marketing assets tell the brand's story -- and brand consistency is one tactic Uber's nailed in order to gain brand loyalty.

Check out the clever copywriting and email design at work in this example:

4) TheSkimm

We love TheSkimm's daily newsletter-- especially its clean design and its short, punchy paragraphs. But newsletters aren't TheSkimm's only strength when it comes to email. Check out its subscriber engagement email below, which rewarded fellow marketerGinny Mineo for being subscribed for two years.

Emails triggered by milestones, like anniversaries and birthdays, are fun to get -- who doesn't like to celebrate a special occasion? The beauty of anniversary emails, in particular, is that they don't require subscribers to input any extra data, and they can work for a variety of senders. Plus, the timeframe can be modified based on the business model.

Here, the folks at TheSkimm took it a step further by asking Mineo if she'd like to earn the title of brand ambassador as a loyal subscriber -- which would require her to share the link with ten friends, of course.

5) Mom and Dad Money

Think you know all about the people who are reading your marketing emails? How much of what you "know" about them is based on assumptions? The strongest buyer personas are based on insights you gather from your actual readership, through surveys, interviews, and so on, in addition to the market research. That's exactly what Matt Becker of Mom and Dad Money does -- and he does it very, very well.

Here's an example of an email I once received from this brand. Design-wise, it's nothing special -- but that's the point. It reads just like an email from a friend or colleague asking for a quick favor.

Not only was this initial email great, but his response to my answers was even better: Within a few days of responding to the questionnaire, I received a long and detailed personal email from Matt thanking me for filling out the questionnaire and offering a ton of helpful advice and links to resources specifically catered to my answers. I was very impressed by his businessacumen, communication skills, and obvious dedication to his readers.

6) Poncho

Some of the best emails out there pair super simple design with brief, clever copy. When it comes down to it, my daily emails from Poncho--which sends me customizable weather forecasts each morning -- takes the cake. They're colorful, use delightful images and GIFs, and are very easy to scan. The copy is brief but clever with some great puns, and it aligns perfectly with the brand. Check out the copy near the bottom asking to "hang out outside of email." Hats off to Poncho for using design to better communicate its message.

7) Birchbox

The subject line of this email from beauty product subscription service Birchbox got my colleague Pam Vaughan clicking. It read: "We Forgot Something in Your February Box!" Of course, if you read the email copy below, Birchbox didn't actually forget to put that discount code in her box -- but it was certainly a clever way to get her attention.

As it turned out, the discount code was actually a bonus promo for Rent the Runway, a dress rental company that likely fits the interest profile of most Birchbox customers -- which certainly didn't disappoint. That's a great co-marketing partnership right there.

8) Postmates

I've gotta say, I'm a sucker for GIFs. They're easy to consume, they catch your eye, and they have an emotional impact -- like the fun GIF in one of Postmates' emails that's not only delightful to watch, but also makes you crave some delicious Chipotle.

You too can use animated GIFs in your marketing to show a fun header, to draw people's eyes to a certain part of the email, or to display your products and services in action.

9) Dropbox

You might think it'd be hard to love an email from a company whose product you haven't been using. But Dropbox found a way to make its "come back to us!" email cute and funny, thanks to a pair of whimsical cartoons and an emoticon.

Plus, the email was kept short and sweet, to emphasize the message that Dropox didn't want to intrude -- it just wants to remind the recipient that the brand exists, and why it could be helpful. When sending these types of email, you might include an incentive for recipients to come back to using your service, like a limited-time coupon.

10) InVision App

Every week, the folks at InVision send a roundup of their best blog content, their favorite design links from the week, and a new opportunity to win a free t-shirt. (Seriously. They give away a new design every week.) They also sometimes have fun survey questions where they crowdsource for their blog. This week's, for example, asked subscribers what they would do if the internet didn't exist.

Not only is InVision's newsletter a great mix of content, but I also love the nice balance between images and text, making it really easy to read and mobile-friendly -- which is especially important, because its newsletters are so long. (Below is just an excerpt, but you can read through the full email here.) We like the clever copy on the call-to-action buttons, too.

11) Warby Parker

What goes better with a new prescription than a new pair of glasses? The folks at Warby Parker made that connection very clear in their email to a friend of mine back in 2014. It's an older email, but it's such a good example of personalized email marketing that I had to include it in here.

The subject line was: "Uh-oh, your prescription is expiring." What a clever email trigger. And you've gotta love the reminder that your prescription needs updating.

Speaking of which, check out the clever co-marketing at the bottom of the email: If you don't know where to go to renew your subscription, the information for an optometrist is right in the email. Now there's no excuse not to shop for new glasses!

12) Cook Smarts

I've been a huge fan of Cook Smarts' "Weekly Eats" newsletter for a while. The company sends yummy recipes in the form of a meal plan to my inbox every week. But I didn't just include it because of its delicious recipes -- I'm truly a fan of its emails. I especially love the layout: Each email features three distinct sections (one for the menu, one for kitchen how-to's, and one for the tips). That means you don't have to go hunting to find the most interesting part of its blog posts -- you know exactly where to look after an email or two.

I also love Cook Smarts' "Forward to a Friend" call-to-action in the top-right of the email. Emails are super shareable over -- you guessed it -- email, so you should also think about reminding your subscribers to forward your emails to friends, family, or coworkers.

13) HireVue

"Saying goodbye is never easy to do So, we thought we'd give you a chance to rethink things". That was the subject of this automated unsubscribe email from HireVue. We love the simple, guilt-free messaging here, from the funny header images to the great call-to-action button copy.

Not only are the design and copy here top-notch, but we applaud the folks at HireVue for sending automated unsubscribe emails in the first place. It's smart to purge your subscriber lists of folks who aren't opening your email lists, because low open rates can seriously hurt email deliverability.

14) Paperless Post

When you think of "holiday email marketing," your mind might jump straight to Christmas, but there are other holidays sprinkled throughout the rest of the year that you can create campaigns around. (Download these email marketing planning templates to keep yourself organized throughout the year.)

Take the email below from Paperless Post, for example. I love the header of this email: It provides a clear call-to-action that includes a sense of urgency. Then, the subheader asks a question that forces recipients to think to themselves, "Wait, when is Mother's Day again? Did I buy Mom a card?" Below this copy, the simple grid design is both easy to scan and quite visually appealing. Each card picture is a CTA in and of itself -- click on any one of them, and you'll be taken to a purchase page.

15) Stitcher

As humans, we tend to crave personalized experiences. So when emails appear to be created especially for you, you feel special -- you're not just getting what everyone else is getting. You might even feel like the company sending you the email knows you in some way, and that it cares about your preferences and making you happy.

That's why I love on-demand podcast/radio show app Stitcher's "Recommended For You" emails. I tend to listen to episodes from the same podcast instead of branching out to new ones. But Stitcher wants me to discover (and subscribe to) all the other awesome content it has -- and I probably wouldn't without this encouragement.

I think this email also makes quite a brilliant use of responsive design. The colors are bright, and it's not too hard to scroll and click -- notice the CTAs are large enough for me to hit with my thumbs. Also, the mobile email actually has features that make sense for recipients who are on their mobile device. Check out the CTA at the bottom of the email, for example: The "Open Stitcher Radio" button prompts the app to open on your phone.

These are just some of our favorite emails. Don't just follow best practice when it comes to your marketing emails. Every email you send from your work email address also can be optimized to convert. Try out our free email signature generator now, andcheck out some more of our favorite HubSpot marketing email examples.

Editor's note: This post was originally published in October 2013 and has since been updated for accuracy and comprehensiveness.

[jasonmkemp4]

15 of the Best Email Marketing Campaign Examples You've Ever Seen

On any given day, most of our email inboxes are flooded with a barrage of automated email newsletters that do little else besides giving us another task to do on our commutes to work -- namely, marking them all as unread without reading, or unsubscribing altogether.

But every now and then, we get a newsletter that's so good, not only do we read it, but we click it, share it, and recommend it to our friends.

Exceptional email marketing campaigns need to be cleverly written to attract attention in busy inboxes. Marketing emails also need to be personalized, filled with interesting graphics, and designed for desktop and mobile devices. And above all, emails must contain a meaningful call-to-action. After all, if brands are taking up subscribers' time -- and inbox space -- with another email, every message must have a point to it.

Schedule time with a specialist to learn how to drive high-value leads through email.

You probably receive enough emails as it is, and it's tough to know which newsletters are worth subscribing to, so we've curated a list of some of our favorite examples. Read on to discover some great email campaign examples and what makes them great -- or just skip ahead to the brands you already know and love.

1) charity: water

2) BuzzFeed

3) Uber

4) TheSkimm

5) Mom and Dad Money

6) Poncho

7) Birchbox

8) Postmates

9) Dropbox

10) InVision App

11) Warby Parker

12) Cook Smarts

13) HireVue

14) Paperless Post

15) Stitcher

15 Examples of Effective Email Marketing

1) charity: water

When people talk about email marketing, lots of them forget to mention transactional emails.These are the automated emails you get in your inbox after taking a certain action on a website. This could be anything from filling out a form, to purchasing a product, to updating you on the progress of your order. Often, these are plain text emails that marketers set and forget.

Well, charity: water took an alternate route. Once someone donates to a charity: water project, her money takes a long journey. Most charities don't tell you about that journey at all -- charity: water uses automated emails to show donors how their money is making an impact over time. With the project timeline and accompanying table, you don't even really need to read the email -- you know immediately where you are in the whole process so you can move onto other things in your inbox.

2) BuzzFeed

I already have a soft spot for BuzzFeed content ("21 Puppies so Cute You Will Literally Gasp and Then Probably Cry," anyone?), but that isn't the only reason I fell in love with its emails.

First of all, BuzzFeed has awesome subject lines and preview text. They are always short and punchy -- which fits in perfectly with the rest of BuzzFeed's content. I especially love how the preview text will accompany the subject line. For example, if the subject line is a question, the preview text is the answer. Or if the subject line is a command (like the one below), the preview text seems like the next logical thought right after it:

Once you open up an email from BuzzFeed, the copy is equally awesome. Just take a look at that glorious alt text action happening where the images should be. The email still conveys what it is supposed to convey -- and looks great -- whether you use an image or not. That's definitely something to admire.

Without images:

With images:

3) Uber

The beauty of Uber's emails is in their simplicity. Email subscribers are alerted to deals and promotions with emails like the one you see below. We love how brief the initial description is, paired with a very clear call-to-action -- which is perfect for subscribers who are quickly skimming the email. For the people who want to learn more, these are followed by a more detailed (but still pleasingly simple), step-by-step explanation of how the deal works.

We also love how consistent the design of Uber's emails is with its brand. Like its app, website, social media photos, and other parts of the visual branding, the emails are represented by bright colors and geometric patterns. All of its communications and marketing assets tell the brand's story -- and brand consistency is one tactic Uber's nailed in order to gain brand loyalty.

Check out the clever copywriting and email design at work in this example:

4) TheSkimm

We love TheSkimm's daily newsletter-- especially its clean design and its short, punchy paragraphs. But newsletters aren't TheSkimm's only strength when it comes to email. Check out its subscriber engagement email below, which rewarded fellow marketerGinny Mineo for being subscribed for two years.

Emails triggered by milestones, like anniversaries and birthdays, are fun to get -- who doesn't like to celebrate a special occasion? The beauty of anniversary emails, in particular, is that they don't require subscribers to input any extra data, and they can work for a variety of senders. Plus, the timeframe can be modified based on the business model.

Here, the folks at TheSkimm took it a step further by asking Mineo if she'd like to earn the title of brand ambassador as a loyal subscriber -- which would require her to share the link with ten friends, of course.

5) Mom and Dad Money

Think you know all about the people who are reading your marketing emails? How much of what you "know" about them is based on assumptions? The strongest buyer personas are based on insights you gather from your actual readership, through surveys, interviews, and so on, in addition to the market research. That's exactly what Matt Becker of Mom and Dad Money does -- and he does it very, very well.

Here's an example of an email I once received from this brand. Design-wise, it's nothing special -- but that's the point. It reads just like an email from a friend or colleague asking for a quick favor.

Not only was this initial email great, but his response to my answers was even better: Within a few days of responding to the questionnaire, I received a long and detailed personal email from Matt thanking me for filling out the questionnaire and offering a ton of helpful advice and links to resources specifically catered to my answers. I was very impressed by his businessacumen, communication skills, and obvious dedication to his readers.

6) Poncho

Some of the best emails out there pair super simple design with brief, clever copy. When it comes down to it, my daily emails from Poncho--which sends me customizable weather forecasts each morning -- takes the cake. They're colorful, use delightful images and GIFs, and are very easy to scan. The copy is brief but clever with some great puns, and it aligns perfectly with the brand. Check out the copy near the bottom asking to "hang out outside of email." Hats off to Poncho for using design to better communicate its message.

7) Birchbox

The subject line of this email from beauty product subscription service Birchbox got my colleague Pam Vaughan clicking. It read: "We Forgot Something in Your February Box!" Of course, if you read the email copy below, Birchbox didn't actually forget to put that discount code in her box -- but it was certainly a clever way to get her attention.

As it turned out, the discount code was actually a bonus promo for Rent the Runway, a dress rental company that likely fits the interest profile of most Birchbox customers -- which certainly didn't disappoint. That's a great co-marketing partnership right there.

8) Postmates

I've gotta say, I'm a sucker for GIFs. They're easy to consume, they catch your eye, and they have an emotional impact -- like the fun GIF in one of Postmates' emails that's not only delightful to watch, but also makes you crave some delicious Chipotle.

You too can use animated GIFs in your marketing to show a fun header, to draw people's eyes to a certain part of the email, or to display your products and services in action.

9) Dropbox

You might think it'd be hard to love an email from a company whose product you haven't been using. But Dropbox found a way to make its "come back to us!" email cute and funny, thanks to a pair of whimsical cartoons and an emoticon.

Plus, the email was kept short and sweet, to emphasize the message that Dropox didn't want to intrude -- it just wants to remind the recipient that the brand exists, and why it could be helpful. When sending these types of email, you might include an incentive for recipients to come back to using your service, like a limited-time coupon.

10) InVision App

Every week, the folks at InVision send a roundup of their best blog content, their favorite design links from the week, and a new opportunity to win a free t-shirt. (Seriously. They give away a new design every week.) They also sometimes have fun survey questions where they crowdsource for their blog. This week's, for example, asked subscribers what they would do if the internet didn't exist.

Not only is InVision's newsletter a great mix of content, but I also love the nice balance between images and text, making it really easy to read and mobile-friendly -- which is especially important, because its newsletters are so long. (Below is just an excerpt, but you can read through the full email here.) We like the clever copy on the call-to-action buttons, too.

11) Warby Parker

What goes better with a new prescription than a new pair of glasses? The folks at Warby Parker made that connection very clear in their email to a friend of mine back in 2014. It's an older email, but it's such a good example of personalized email marketing that I had to include it in here.

The subject line was: "Uh-oh, your prescription is expiring." What a clever email trigger. And you've gotta love the reminder that your prescription needs updating.

Speaking of which, check out the clever co-marketing at the bottom of the email: If you don't know where to go to renew your subscription, the information for an optometrist is right in the email. Now there's no excuse not to shop for new glasses!

12) Cook Smarts

I've been a huge fan of Cook Smarts' "Weekly Eats" newsletter for a while. The company sends yummy recipes in the form of a meal plan to my inbox every week. But I didn't just include it because of its delicious recipes -- I'm truly a fan of its emails. I especially love the layout: Each email features three distinct sections (one for the menu, one for kitchen how-to's, and one for the tips). That means you don't have to go hunting to find the most interesting part of its blog posts -- you know exactly where to look after an email or two.

I also love Cook Smarts' "Forward to a Friend" call-to-action in the top-right of the email. Emails are super shareable over -- you guessed it -- email, so you should also think about reminding your subscribers to forward your emails to friends, family, or coworkers.

13) HireVue

"Saying goodbye is never easy to do So, we thought we'd give you a chance to rethink things". That was the subject of this automated unsubscribe email from HireVue. We love the simple, guilt-free messaging here, from the funny header images to the great call-to-action button copy.

Not only are the design and copy here top-notch, but we applaud the folks at HireVue for sending automated unsubscribe emails in the first place. It's smart to purge your subscriber lists of folks who aren't opening your email lists, because low open rates can seriously hurt email deliverability.

14) Paperless Post

When you think of "holiday email marketing," your mind might jump straight to Christmas, but there are other holidays sprinkled throughout the rest of the year that you can create campaigns around. (Download these email marketing planning templates to keep yourself organized throughout the year.)

Take the email below from Paperless Post, for example. I love the header of this email: It provides a clear call-to-action that includes a sense of urgency. Then, the subheader asks a question that forces recipients to think to themselves, "Wait, when is Mother's Day again? Did I buy Mom a card?" Below this copy, the simple grid design is both easy to scan and quite visually appealing. Each card picture is a CTA in and of itself -- click on any one of them, and you'll be taken to a purchase page.

15) Stitcher

As humans, we tend to crave personalized experiences. So when emails appear to be created especially for you, you feel special -- you're not just getting what everyone else is getting. You might even feel like the company sending you the email knows you in some way, and that it cares about your preferences and making you happy.

That's why I love on-demand podcast/radio show app Stitcher's "Recommended For You" emails. I tend to listen to episodes from the same podcast instead of branching out to new ones. But Stitcher wants me to discover (and subscribe to) all the other awesome content it has -- and I probably wouldn't without this encouragement.

I think this email also makes quite a brilliant use of responsive design. The colors are bright, and it's not too hard to scroll and click -- notice the CTAs are large enough for me to hit with my thumbs. Also, the mobile email actually has features that make sense for recipients who are on their mobile device. Check out the CTA at the bottom of the email, for example: The "Open Stitcher Radio" button prompts the app to open on your phone.

These are just some of our favorite emails. Don't just follow best practice when it comes to your marketing emails. Every email you send from your work email address also can be optimized to convert. Try out our free email signature generator now, andcheck out some more of our favorite HubSpot marketing email examples.

Editor's note: This post was originally published in October 2013 and has since been updated for accuracy and comprehensiveness.