10 Newsletter Examples to Fuel Your Email Marketing

Email newsletters are one of the most effective ways of connecting with your target audience. Newsletters help you build brand loyalty, educate customers, and increase conversions.

But to stand out in already overflowing inboxes, your newsletter needs to be compelling, original, visually pleasing, and insightful.

In this post, we’re sharing our top 10 newsletter examples to inspire your next newsletter campaign.

What makes a great newsletter?

Varied content: Keep your audience engaged with unique, original, and different content types.‍

Consistent brand messaging: From your subject line to your CTAs, make sure your copy sticks to your brand voice.

‍Mobile friendly: Most people look at emails from their smartphones, so make sure your newsletter fits smartphone screen dimensions. For example, subscribers can only see the first 30 characters of your subject line when opening emails on a mobile, so keep in mind space limitations when writing copy.

‍A clear call-to-action (CTA):  Include a strong and relevant call-to-action button in your newsletter. Your CTA should lead to a product landing page, a blog, or any other relevant business page you want to direct readers to.

‍Targeted to a specific audience: Use segmentation to target your newsletter to specific groups. Then, send content that’s relevant to your audience segments.

10 newsletter examples to inspire your next email campaign

Whether it’s for catchy subject lines, stunning visuals, or targeted CTAs, here’s our pick of the 10 best newsletter examples out today.

1. CXL

Subject line: Ice cream doesn’t just compete with ice cream

Sometimes flashy imagery and multiple CTA buttons distract from a campaign’s main message. Take this CXL newsletter example as a model to show how clear and succinct copy can be enough to grab the reader’s attention.

CXL founder, Peep’s text-based newsletter focuses on telling readers short stories to teach marketing lessons, share industry news, and events as well as promote special offers. For example, Peep tells the story of how he began organizing events and workshops back in 2008 and how networking creates contacts that lead to contracts.

Regular CTA’s throughout the newsletter take interested readers to relevant web pages, like a booking page for their next event.

The educational marketing brand uses an intriguing and fun subject line to grab subscribers’ interest too.

Why this newsletter example works:

• Catchy subject line
• Directly addresses the reader
• Easily scannable listicle format

2. GrowthTribe

Subject line: You don’t have anything in common with Jeff Bezos… Yet

Digital skills educational platform The Growth Tribe inspires readers with an ode to Jeff Bezos. The newsletter focuses on teaching readers about implementing rapid experimentation in their own businesses just like brands such as Amazon, Google, and Netflix do.

The brand keeps their newsletter conversational to teach readers about the secrets of the success behind fast-growing companies. For example, they ask readers rhetorical questions about what they’ve got in common with these fast-growing businesses and how they can implement their tactics.

Emojis give the newsletter a pop of color and draw the readers’ eyes into the content. Short lines of text keep the newsletter concise. An actionable video gives viewers 7 tips for getting started with rapid experimentation at the end.‍

Why this newsletter example works:

• Balances being conversational with informative
• Offers helpful tips
• Adds value with an actionable video

3. Ando

Subject line: Banking with a green twist

The bank Ando clearly shares their values and mission with their subscribers. While green is often associated with the color of money it’s also the color of sustainability and the environment. Ando introduces itself as a bank created to have a positive impact on both finances and the future of the planet.

They explain how they actively fund green initiatives like green energy and sustainable transportation.

Since people put a lot of thought into who they bank with and which businesses are environmentally friendly, they include these points in their opening heading, “Building a Better Future with Banking”. This helps build trust with customers and shows the brand’s authentic commitment.‍

Why this newsletter example works:

• Clear CTA buttons asking readers to sign up
• Explains the banking group’s core values
• Easy to understand visuals

4. Bon Appétit

Subject line: Wednesdays are for noodles

Instead of trying to sell something straight away, Bon Appétit leads with free irresistible, mouthwatering recipes.

A foodie magazine, Bon Appetit’s email newsletter is a top example of how to give away valuable content for free. As they showcase their top recipes and foodie tips, they also advertise paid subscriptions to their magazine.

Why this newsletter example works:

• Highly visual imagery entices readers
• Gives away valuable content for free
• Provides clear CTA buttons

5. Peak Freelance

Subject line: my fav freelance/business book

‍Peak Freelance is a freelance community aimed at helping freelancer writers level up their careers. Their newsletter provides helpful advice, tips, resources, and job listings. Knowing their audience of freelance writers, its presentation as a blog post style makes sense.

Numbered lists make it easy for subscribers to scan the content and read the sections most interesting to them.

Its conversational and informal style makes readers feel like they’re having a chat with a friend rather than a company founder. They keep it simple with short lines of text, on-brand graphics, and clear CTAs.‍

Why this newsletter example works:

• Clearly laid out
• Speaks directly to the reader
• Highlights different aspects of freelance business each week

6. The Hustle

Subject line: Reddit’s secret gold mine

‍The Hustle is a daily business and tech newsletter. Although there are loads of business and tech newsletters out there, The Hustle achieves a difficult balance of being funny and informative.

They make it easy for readers to get informed quickly without demanding too much time from them. Its formatting in easily-digestible bullet points and bold headings gives subscribers the news they’re looking for efficiently.

Categorizing topics by The Big Idea, Snippets, and It’s Pie Time, keeps the newsletter organized and helps subscribers know what to expect when they open each edition. A “Meme of the Day” section at the end shows that current affair newsletters don’t need to be 100% serious all of the time.

Why this newsletter example works:

• Easily scannable for time-pressed subscribers
• Frequent CTA buttons to direct interested readers to more content
• Right balance of humor keeps the newsletter fresh and original

7. Prior Travels

Subject line: Retreat and Reset: The best places to travel to right now for sun, sea and…wine

‍Prior Travels balances advertising their products and journeys with educational content designed to inspire readers to take trips with the business. Highly visual, the newsletter uses striking images to pull subscribers in. The magazine-style presentation gives the newsletter a stylish edge.

Catchy headings like “Baja Moment” and “Checking In, Checking Out” give the newsletter a fun, conversational tone of voice. They also encourage readers to participate by sharing their travels on social media with the branded hashtag #forthecurious.‍

Why this newsletter example works:

• Brightly colored visuals catch readers’ eyes.
• A magazine-editorial style makes the newsletter stand out
• Original copy keeps readers engaged

8. UXPin

Subject line: UXPin Basics 6/7: Build user-friendly navigations

‍UXPin shows that your newsletter can be clean, simple, and minimalist and still engage readers. Forget about flashy images, long paragraphs of text, and multiple CTA buttons. Instead, you can pare back your newsletter and get across your most important points.

A short video screenshot shows readers exactly what a clean and minimalist navigation design should look like. A few lines of text explain why effective navigation design is important.‍

Why this newsletter example works:

• A GIF example instantly shows what they’re talking about
• Sometimes simple is best––UXPin clearly expresses their message without distractions
• One CTA button directs readers to Check Out More

9. Barkbox

Subject line: It’s our best BarkBox holiday deal everrrr

Dog treats and toys subscription service Barkbox keeps it fun and simple with its colorful and on-brand BarkPost newsletter. Tapping into their playful branding they use puns and play on words like “Oh my Dog” to engage with their dog-loving audience.

The brand uses their newsletter as an opportunity to promote a membership to the extra toy club. Brightly colored CTA buttons encourage subscribers to get a free extra toy or join the club.

In line with their humor, a dressed-up pug dog shows off its own BarkBox and demonstrates to readers what their subscription will look like.‍

Why this newsletter example works:

• Playful humor makes the newsletter engaging
• Generous promotions encourage readers to click through CTAs
• A focused subject line ensures subscribers know they’re about to see

10. WeTransfer

WeTransfer’s visual photography and illustration-based newsletter, WePresent, doesn’t try to promote their platform too much. Instead, they make a statement by sharing a new image or illustration as a special treat with their audience.

With a user base of photographers, designers, marketers, and other creators, WeTransfer knows their visual audience and gives them inspiring content to help their next creations.

This is a great non-traditional newsletter example that shows you can think out of the box. Sometimes less is more and WeTransfer shows off their brand’s ethos with a paired back visual newsletter.

‍Why this newsletter example works:

• Focuses on creative inspiration instead of selling or promotions
• Eye-catching visuals stand out in otherwise crowded inboxes
• Promotes unique illustrations that subscribers may not otherwise discover

Newsletter examples to help inspire your next campaign

So there you have it, 10 of our favorite newsletter examples to help inspire your next email marketing campaign. Think about what you like from each example and how you could implement these techniques in your own email marketing campaign. Perhaps you want to make your tone more conversational or you’d like to include more CTA buttons. Check out our guide on how to write a newsletter here!

Make sure your business’s unique personality shines through and that your message speaks to your target audience. While you’re planning your next email newsletter, why not have a look at the AppSumo store? We have some of the best software deals available.