How To Write Discount Emails Like A Boss [+Templates, Examples]

Discounting strategies that work well strengthen consumer loyalty, draw in new clients, and boost revenue.

Every company, whether in the B2C or B2B market, occasionally offers discounts on their goods or services.

Companies majorly give discounts because they can use them to increase sales of their off-season inventory, profitability, and client happiness all at once.

E-commerce email marketing through discount emails can drive significant sales growth and assist you in hitting your monthly goals when used properly.

Writing a discount offer email may seem easy, but there are occasions when it might be challenging.

In this ultimate guide, I share some cool discount email examples, templates, and tips to inspire you for your next email blast.

 

Quick Tips for Effective Writing in Discount Emails

To get your discount email copy right, you must keep a few key things in mind. Let’s go through them quickly.

Make sure the tone is right

Make careful to use the same tone across all of your emails.

Your customers may be astonished when they unexpectedly get a sales email with a more casual tone if all of your prior communication has a formal tone.

Keep it crisp

Your customer’s time is valuable, and they have short attention spans, so keep your transaction email crisp!

An effective email copy should be simple to skim through and find the important information.

Anchor the value first

Keep the value you are offering to the user, i.e., the discount information, at the center of your email.

Here’s an example of an email coupon for President’s Day Sale.

👉 Like this email template? You can use this and many other easy-to-customize discount email templates for free at EngageBay! 

Utilize urgency

Specify the expiration date for your coupon codes. This will create a sense of urgency and nudge your customers to take quick action.

The 101: What You Should Know About Discount Campaigns

Running discount offers is great, and you can send out a cool email with digital coupons to attract more sales, but it’s not without problems.

Let’s look at what you should keep in mind before you begin that discount email marketing campaign.

Assess your profit margins

While giving certain things a 50% discount may appear alluring, you must always have a viable margin; otherwise, your discount offer approach may result in losses.

Before launching any kind of discount campaign, do the math to figure out what you can reasonably offer your clients and yet turn a profit overall.

Client vs Customer: What’s the Difference in Business Writing?

Strategize on how to target your audience

Consider whether your discounts will draw the kind of customers you really desire before launching any sales campaigns in an effort to acquire new customers.

It is very likely that some customers are just one-time consumers looking for temporary or cheap fixes. Regularly update your email list to make sure your emails reach your target audience. 

Focus on targeting a specific group

Giving everyone discounts carries a significant risk for your overall profit margin. Instead, update your email list to provide exclusive offers to certain customer groups (like students, healthcare workers, military, etc.).

By using discounts in this way, you can increase your potential customer base while maintaining or even improving your profit margins.

Read also: Learn Email Acquisition From These 6 Strategies And 5 Examples

Exemplify your product value after the discount ends

Discounts frequently undercut the value of your goods despite the fact that your marketing efforts aim to persuade customers and prospects that your product is useful and will enhance their lives.

Because of this, you should consider how you will show your product’s true worth and keep customers after the deal expires.

Anticipate higher customer acquisition costs

Special discounts can be a tried-and-true strategy for luring in new customers, but they can also have an impact on your normal customer acquisition expenditures.

Make sure to nurture your relationship with new subscribers so that you can turn them into loyal consumers who might buy more and higher quality products or services from your business in the coming years.

By doing this, their lifetime value will rise, making the increased customer acquisition cost justifiable.

B2B Email Marketing Examples From Billion Dollar Companies

5 Great Discount Email Templates That Can Instantly Boost Sales

In the marketing industry, B2C and B2B companies use discount emails as a core tactic to engage with customers and win over new clientele. 

Discount offer emails do more than convey new offers and exciting discounts. They are a medium to connect and network with existing and potential clients to stay fresh on top of their minds. 

Promotional emails offer customers insight into what special deal you have to offer and how it benefits them more than your competitors. This can create an instant high traffic volume, ultimately driving revenue by boosting sales. 

Take a look at these discount email template examples to get an idea of how to create a well-executed discount email to achieve your sales goals.

1. Formalities first: writing a formal discount offer email

 A formal discount email can be used when you are contacting executives if B2B or new customers if B2C.

A good email subject line template would look like the following:

• Special offer: X% off on ABC product
• X% off: Find your special discount code inside

Here is an outline of an email coupon to give you an idea:

Subject: Welcome and Enjoy Your Special Discount!

Now, that’s how you write a formal discount email like the boss of the boss!

2. Keeping it casual: writing a casual discount offer email

Sometimes, a casual, friendly promotional email can be more effective than a formal one.

A friendly reminder of a promotion or offer oftentimes helps build customer loyalty.

Take a look at this casual yet effective email template example:

Subject: Exclusive Offer Just for You!

The friendly, casual tone helps establish the first contact with a potential client in a positive way.

Read also: Practical Onboarding Email Templates for New Clients, Employees, and Affiliates

3. Time’s up! Limited-time offer template

An email urging the user of a limited-time offer is often found to be the most effective in selling a product. 

The sense of urgency is a driving force that pushes the user to make the purchase.

Here is how a convincing email subject line can do the deed:

• Limited-time exclusive offer — get instant x% off!
• X% off, today only!

Below is an example of how a sense of urgency is emphasized through this limited-time discount offer email template from EngageBay:

Here’s an text-based email template for a limited-time offer:

Subject: Pssst.. Exclusive Limited-Time Offer for You!

Using a sense of urgency is not only a smart way to get a message across, but it might also be that the message is passed on at the right time to the right customer, thus boosting sales.

👉Laughter is the best medicine. Enjoy a dose of fun with these 11 email memes for marketers! 

4. Industry-specific email: eCommerce discount email example

An email targeted to a specific audience of a certain sector helps funnel traffic and drive sales to this particular group.

For instance, if you are targeting online shoppers in the eCommerce industry, it might be ideal to approach them with a discount email tailored to attract their attention.

A lucrative email subject line could be:

• Steal the deal — X% off on all our items!
• Deal of the day: X% off on your favorite products!
• Exclusive deal! X% off only for today!

Here is how to write a promotional email:

Subject: Shopping Season is Here!

Implementing email automation and targeting a definitive audience helps drive sales significantly as the right product is delivered exactly at the right place. Plus, make sure the receivers are actually interested in your offers to ensure customer engagement and good email deliverability. 

Read also: Password Reset Email Templates Examples to Inspire Your Own

5. Building on customer loyalty: email examples for after signup

Customer loyalty is a significant indicator of how well a company does in terms of customer experience.

One way to encourage customer loyalty is by offering an incentive for every new customer who signs up or subscribes to a service.

An email disguised as a gift card is an excellent way to win the customer’s heart (and loyalty!), like in the example below:

Here are some subject lines to use when adding a discount code as a bonus:

• Thank you for signing up! Here is your discount code:
• Signup bonus + New exciting offers
• A newsletter and a special offer await you…

Here is the best way to capitalize on a new signup and glide in your discount offer:

Subject: Welcome Aboard! Here’s a Special Offer for You!

Rewarding customer loyalty with a lucrative incentive encourages more signups and creates positive brand awareness in the minds of the customer.

7 Real-Life Examples of Good Discount Emails

This blog will be incomplete without a few real-life examples of good emails carrying discount offers from some of the best brands out there. Let’s dive in, shall we?

The simple email

Nothing could be easier. Just a short email copy and a list of products with discounts. No HTML, vivid colors, or flashing GIFs.

Here’s a sample template:

Subject: Special Offer Because We Are Glad to Have You!

Hi [Customer Name],

We are overjoyed to have you onboard!

The FOMO email

A psychology survey had a selection of advertisements with FOMO-provoking content shown to one set of participants, while the same advertisements were shown to the other group without the FOMO-provoking features.

You won’t be shocked to hear that the presence of the FOMO content improved memory in general as well as recall and recognition for the commercials.

Here’s a good example of an email copy making the most of our modern age’s commonplace fear of missing out:

The curveball discount

From a business standpoint, we have predetermined margins to deal with; if we discount too much, we’ll break even. Additionally, from a psychological standpoint, giving too much of a discount runs the danger of depreciating your brand and product.

You also want your deal to have a big impact. It’s unlikely to have a significant impact if it merely saves consumers a couple of dollars.

What is the sweet spot, then? That obviously depends on your brand, audience, and product.

A one-time 10% discount may have a significant influence on sales if you never run promotions; however, if you do, the same offer may have little to no effect.

Why You Should Try Email Threads (+ Best Practices)

The gamified email

In a study, researchers at four Chinese colleges gathered information from 322 online shoppers who played a flash game to gauge their propensity to make a purchase after engaging in gaming.

They discovered that the three gamification components of reward, absorption, and autonomy significantly increase consumers’ sense of enjoyment, which in turn influences their intention to make an online purchase.

Example: The CTA button will need to be clicked by the recipients in order to reveal their “mystery discount.”

This deal is complemented by a countdown timer that introduces some FOMO into the mix in order to create an additional layer of impact.

Another point worth noticing is that this is a successful multichannel marketing campaign because the inclusion of a barcode allows this discount to be used at a physical store as well.

A personal touch: personalized discount email example

Personalized emails can work wonders!

Imagine your favorite brand sends a personalized email offer exclusively for you on your most favorite product!

Who wouldn’t like that?

Also, personal recommendations based on user buying history are a significant driving force of sales in the eCommerce industry.

According to a study by Statista, 67% of consumers have made a purchase based on personal recommendations, and 42 % of consumers have stated that personalization is fairly important.

To make the most of personalization, including personalization in discount and promotional emails is important. 

Here is an example by Alaska Airlines that shows how personalization strikes the right chord with the consumer. 

 

Take this example by Brooklinen, where a personalized message is curated based on the customer’s viewing history.

This will prompt the user to make the purchase of the items they already wish to purchase.

 

Telling your customer that ‘we hear you and that we are here for you’ reaps many more positive outcomes than just plain automated mails targeted randomly. 

Happy birthday to everyone! Birthday discount email example

Birthday emails are an example of how a simple message can help create an everlasting bond with the customer.

A creative and personal birthday message along with a small gift offer will immediately draw a positive light on the brand and help in creating a unique brand image.

A study suggests that birthday emails exclusively have 179% higher click-through rates than normal promotional emails!

That is a party to celebrate!

Here is a cute, simple example by Loomi, which delivers the message exactly while aptly promoting an offer:

A greeting card? No, surprise gift! Here is how Chipotle creatively delivered a birthday message along with a gift.

Birthday emails are an assured way to make your customer feel special and exclusive to your brand. With the right intention, a birthday email can help your brand be memorable in the customer’s mind.

Welcome, Welcome! Welcome emails and their effectiveness

A welcome email is like a warm hug when someone enters your community or group.

These types of promo emails are a great way of welcoming new customers onboard while also promoting a product or a discount code. 

The welcome email sets the tone for the customer-company relationship; hence, it is important to communicate the message correctly.

Good welcome email subject lines:

• Welcome on board! Here’s a special discount
• Welcome email + special coupon code
• Welcome to our community, here’s a bonus

Now, writing a welcome email has to be precise and to the point while keeping the tone warm.

Here’s how to do it:

Subject: Enjoy Your Special Gift

An example of a well-designed welcome poster for a signup is given below:

A welcome email is the first handshake and the first impression of your brand. To establish solid ground for a long-lasting relationship with the customer, a well-designed and thought-out message is necessary. Take some time and tailor a warm, genuine, and concrete welcome email.

Loyalty wins! Loyalty-based discount emails

Rewarding customers for their loyalty through email coupons is a customer-retention tactic used by well-renowned brands worldwide.

Let’s take Ralph Lauren as an example:

Creating a sense of exclusivity and a subtly worded message, along with an unmissable offer, makes the poster appealing to the audience. 

This sense of exclusivity is an important part of the customer-brand relationship as the customer feeds on the feeling that they are special to the brand while availing of exclusive offers, information, etc. 

Another way customer loyalty is rewarded is through points that can be redeemed for an offer or a gift.

Here is an example from Chipotle of how this message is conveyed to the loyal consumer.

A brand that treats its most loyal customers with the best customer experience they deserve always stays winning!

Remember: A loyal customer expects royal treatment!

Final Thoughts

There are numerous ways to organize and carry out a sale, ranging from straightforward sitewide promotions to limited spend-X-to-save-Y discounts.

And there are just as many methods to advertise a sale as these discount email examples show.

But there is one thing these email coupons all have in common: simple messaging.

Make sure that your discount emails do all the talking really well. In clear and crisp copies, you can find many takers 🙂

For an all-in-one email marketing automation tool that’s incredibly affordable and respectably awarded, check out EngageBay.

→ Content revisions by Haripriya and Swastik Sahu