1. Hawthorne’s Humorous Tone
Subject Line: But, like, WHY should you wash your face?
The personal care products brand Hawthorne uses humor and helpful content together to keep its leads engaged. Both email copy and subject line reflect the funny tone.
If you are unsure about the humorous tone you should use, remember to speak in your target audience’s language. It’s best to write an email copy that appeals to your audience.
In Hawthorne’s example, the brand makes the email funny by asking why people do a thing they have always been doing; washing our faces. In fact, it’s not a random question.
They sell facial care products, and it’s a perfect way to promote them by reminding people why washing faces is essential.
In the following part of the email, Hawthorne gives 3 reasons why we wash our faces and finally presents a CTA button to users. The CTA prompts customers to take a quiz to find which face wash is the best for them.
2. Really Good Emails’ Funny Apology
Subject Line: Work that template
Really Good Emails is known for its funny brand voice, and its apology email is no different. It has a good copy and humorous CTA, which is “It’s a Bird. It’s an Email.” However, after the brand sent out the email, they realized the CTA had the wrong link.
Then, RGE sent a follow-up apology email with self-deprecating humor, and it’s an excellent example of effective funny emails.
SL: Oops! Speaking of Templates…
If you take a look at the bottom section of the second email, you’ll notice how they also changed their standard tagline (“Design Better. Spam Never.”) into “Design Better. Spam Never. Check Links Always.”
3. The Farmer’s Dog’s Email Joke
Subject Line: Caution: This email is full of junk.
Another funny email example is by a pet food company, The Farmer’s Dog. They make a witty correlation between pet food and email by saying Kibble (a type of pet food) would be junk if it were an email.
In the following part of the email, the brand continues with a humorous copy. The “junk” in their pet food and email junk is an excellent way to introduce Kibble. They explain the pun in the bottom section of this funny promotion email.
Notice how the pet food in question is, in fact, made of “junk,” and they present it under the title “Fresh Fact.” Finally, they know how to aim for their target audience and convert them into social leads with a line saying, “Like Puppies?”
Here’s all the data you’ll need to compare your conversion rates to industry averages: What is a Good Website Conversion Rate? Industry Averages
4. Shinesty’s Intern Joke
Subject Line: The interns won’t be fed ‘til you buy a pair
When it comes to hilarious business interactions with customers, there’s one thing that never gets old; intern jokes.
Shinesty turns their promotional email into a hilarious one by cracking an intern joke. The subject line hints at what the recipient will see in the copy.
The email copy says, “Our interns were bored and asked for a project, so we had them tie dye our newest Ball Hammocks and cheekies. It was not a small task. Each pair is made from ridiculously comfy MicroModal, so their now-blue-hands feel softer than chinchilla butts.”
The good thing about intern jokes is that they suit almost all brands when you catch the right tone.
5. Blush’s Childish Humor
Subject Line: Beep Beep!
Even though this example by an illustration collection platform called Blush is not hilarious to make people laugh, it conveys a message with a fun, childish tone that puts a smile on the recipient’s face.
The email successfully promotes vehicle illustrations with a line that goes, “Beep Beep, let’s go!” They use subtle humor by referring to their vehicle illustrations as “a traffic jam that won’t give you a headache.” It’s relatable, simple, and effective.
6. Ulta Beauty’s Cart Abandonment Humor
Subject Line: We have to admit…you’ve got really great taste 😏
We have come across a bunch of brands using the same amusing line “we noticed you noticing us” and one of them is Ulta Beauty.
It’s an effective way to reach out to prospects who left your website without completing a purchase or to recover abandoned carts. In fact, statistics show that e-commerce stores lose $18 billion in sales revenue due to cart abandonment.
That’s why engaging and winning back those prospects with a comical tone can warm things back up and help you convert them.
7. Quizlet’s Witty Email
Subject Line: When the problem set is the problem 😣
When the problem set becomes the problem, it’s a problem—at least that’s what Quizlet says and students agree.
It’s a smart tactic to address your audience’s pain points to make your promotional emails more relatable and efficient. Quizlet’s email copy highlights studying smarter “not sneakier, not shortcuts” and shows that they understand what students think.
The vital message to take out from this example is to:
- Know your audience well
- Understand your prospects’ pain points
- Address to those pain points
- Explain how your product or service can solve their problems
When doing all the things above, you can also spice up your marketing emails with a touch of humor and create better customer relationships.
8. Who Gives A Crap’s Subtle Humor
Subject Line: Our copywriter had a baby
If your brand voice is already laughable and comical, it’s even easier to craft funny emails. The toilet paper brand is famous for its witty language, as is also understood from the name “Who Gives A Crap,” the toilet paper brand is famous for its witty language.
One great example is when this company sent out an apology email for not writing an email that was supposed to be sent. The hilarious part is their excuse: “Our copywriter had a baby.”
Personalized little details about the company’s team give the email a human touch instead of a cold, distant corporate tone.
9. Judy’s Adorable Email Copy
Subject Line: Orange, you glad? 😜🧡
All jokes put aside, making your email leads base smile with an adorable email copy like Judy’s is an option, too. Judy is a company that sells emergency kits, and even they can make their content fun. How?
As you can see from the example above, the company’s goal with this email is to drive more social engagement and followers. There’s a picture of a dog with cucumber slices on its eyes, signifying relaxation.
It’s actually an image they shared on their Instagram account and the CTA button encourages recipients to follow the company on social media.
As we mentioned earlier, it’s important to give a reason or two why the recipients should take the desired action you offer with a CTA. Judy explains it with a simple, energetic sentence and a fun image of a lovely dog in a Judy emergency bag.
10. Blue Apron’s Win-Back Joke
Subject Line: Forget the candy, this deal is the sweetest one yet!
The meal delivery service Blue Apron uses humor to win back to customers who haven’t engaged in a certain amount of time. If you don’t take action for customers who went inactive for some time, you may lose them for good.
Blue Apron offers a $40-off incentive to win back inactive customers, which is a common method. When we take a look at the email copy, they use seasonal humor about Halloween, saying, “the regret of not taking the offer will haunt the recipient.”
What we liked best about this email is its seasonal design with perfectly selected colors and contrast.
The only season you can use in your emails is not Halloween: take a look at these amazing summer subject lines for emails.
Types of Funny Emails and When to Use Them
Funny Cold Emails
There must be a few companies out there that would benefit your service or product. Sending cold outreach emails to them is a common method to gain high-quality leads, but you know… Every company is doing the same.
However, if you want to practice cold emailing and think it is effective for your business, you can send out funny cold emails. This way, it would be much easier for your email to stand out.
Side note: We reviewed 32 best lead generation tools for you (both free and paid.👀)
Humorous Onboarding Email
Another way to send funny emails to recipients is when a user just starts to use your service. It is a perfect opportunity to make an excellent first impression and to increase the open rates of your future emails.
Here’s a smart example by Hinge:
Newsletters with a Funny Tone
Let us break it to you—newsletters aren’t doomed to be boring. Even though the content you’re trying to promote is something deemed boring, you can still sell it with humorous language.
Here’s a funny newsletter email by the Hustle :
Funny Cart Abandonment Emails
Don’t leave out the money on the table by letting your cart abandoners go without a fight. Take advantage of humor to craft funny emails to convert most or even some of your cart abandoners.
Promotional Funny Emails
Companies always have something to promote, but what matters is the way you do it. Promote your content, products, or service with a funny email and CTA to drive those clicks with a smile.
Amusing Emails to Bring Back Inactive Users
Some customers will probably just ghost you. Give it a shot to make them engaged back again with an amusing email that addresses them directly. Humor might be the antidote they need to become active.
Before You Go About Making Jokes...
It’s a clever tactic to shift from a boring corporate communication style into an out-of-the-box fun language for some companies. However, there are some considerations you should be aware of before sending out your funny emails on a large scale.
- Some companies might have customers who don’t like seeing a sense of humor in business. Therefore, before you try sending funny emails on a large scale, try to experiment with those emails on a smaller scale to assess the audience reaction.
- Avoid political jokes at all costs. Of course, context is everything.
- Cute animals are a risk-free way to use in your emails.
- If you are making a joke, make sure that your audience will understand the reference.
Now you are all set to put a smile or burst a laughter in your customers like a pro. Here’s your first clap from me! 👏👏
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