Happy Monday! We’re back. 👋 — and we've got an exciting teardown for you today, plus some valuable tips to level up your email marketing game!

First up: we're breaking down Goldbelly’s Valentine’s Day email to see what made it a hit, what could use a little tweaking, and how you can apply these lessons to your next campaign. From eye-catching visuals to fun copy, we’re diving into the details.

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🔎 Monday Breakdown: Goldbelly’s Valentine’s Day Email

Goldbelly’s Valentine’s Day email is as sweet as the treats they’re selling. With bold visuals, fun wordplay, and a nostalgic music theme, it makes holiday shopping feel like a love song.

But does it actually hit the right notes and drive conversions? Let’s break it down.

Header Block

What We Love

✔ Super on-brand and festive. The bold typography and bright, pink colors immediately set the mood. It looks like Goldbelly, feels like Valentine’s Day, and grabs attention fast.

✔ Taps into nostalgia. The “Greatest Hits” theme plays on classic love songs, which makes the email more fun and memorable. It turns shopping for food into an experience, not just a transaction.

✔ Mouth-watering product photo. The red velvet cake looks delicious, with great lighting and close-up detail. Good food photography is key for an email like this – it makes people crave what they see.

✔ Clear, direct CTA. “Shop Valentine’s Day” tells you exactly what to do next. No fluff, no confusion, just an easy step toward checking out.

What We’d Do Differently

❌ Make the product stand out more. The text describing the cake is tiny and easy to miss, which takes focus away from the product. Bigger text and less clutter would help the cake shine.

❌ Move the CTA higher. The main “Shop Valentine’s Day” button is too low on the screen. If people have to scroll to see it, they might miss it. Moving it up would drive more clicks.

❌ Personalize the headline. The headline feels a bit generic. Addressing the reader by their first name could make the email feel more direct, tailored, and engaging.

🔍 TL;DR: The header is strong and eye-catching. Larger, bolder text, a higher CTA, and a more personal hook could make it even better.

Body Block

What We Love

✔ Amazing food photos. Each section features high-quality, close-up shots of the products, making them impossible to ignore. The visuals sell the food just as much as the words.

✔ CTAs for different needs. Instead of just one generic button, Goldbelly includes separate CTAs for sweets, cakes, dinners, and chocolates. This makes shopping for the right product faster and easier.

✔ Clever, playful copy. The email leans into its music theme with song-inspired headlines like “Once, Twice, Three Times a Cookie.” It’s quirky, creative, and ties back to the Greatest Hits headline, turning the entire email into an experience.

What We’d Do Differently

❌ Make the text bigger. The product names are too small to read easily, especially on a phone. Bigger text would make shopping more effortless.

❌ Create urgency. Time-sensitive offers or mentions of limited stock can push people to buy sooner.

❌ Sprinkle in social proof. No customer reviews or ratings? A short testimonial from a happy client could build trust and boost sales.

❌ Make CTAs pop more. The buttons blend into the background a little too much. Bolder, higher-contrast CTAs would be easier to see and click.

🔍 TL;DR: The body has lots of great visuals and fun copy, but bigger text, urgency, and more eye-catching CTAs would make this section stronger.

Footer Block

What We Love

✔ E-gifting option. Smart move! Letting people send a gift without knowing the recipient’s address makes last-minute shopping easier. There’s also a short step-by-step that explains how it works.

✔ Social & app links. Giving readers a way to stay connected beyond this email is always a good idea.

✔ SMS opt-in. Encouraging people to sign up for texts means more future sales and direct customer engagement.

✔ Creative unsubscribe copy. Instead of a boring “Click to unsubscribe,” they keep it playful, which helps maintain brand personality, even in the fine print.

What We’d Do Differently

❌ Tidy up the layout. The footer feels a little cluttered. A cleaner, more structured design would make it more user-friendly.

❌ Use a fresh image. The same red velvet cake photo is reused from the header. A different image would keep the email visually fresh.

❌ Add a Goldbelly logo. There’s no clear branding in the footer, which feels like a missed opportunity. A logo would reinforce brand identity and make the email look more polished.

🔍 TL;DR: A solid footer with useful links, but a cleaner design, a different image, and a logo could improve it.

Final Thoughts: What Email Marketers Can Learn

Goldbelly’s Valentine’s Day email is fun, engaging, and visually strong. The theme, photography, and copy all work together to make it feel exciting. But some tweaks to text readability, CTA placement, and urgency could take it to the next level.

3 Quick Wins to Steal for Your Next V-Day Email:

✅ Use a fun, creative theme. Tying your copy into a bigger concept (like Goldbelly’s music theme) can make your email feel more engaging.

✅ Prioritize readability. Small text and low-contrast buttons can hurt conversions. Make sure product names and CTAs are easy to read at a glance.

✅ Tap into FOMO. Deadlines and low-stock alerts can push hesitant buyers to act faster. Even a “Last chance to order!” can make a big difference.

Hope this teardown gave you some nice ideas for your upcoming Valentine’s Day campaign!

P.S. You can take a peek at the full email right here.

👀 Industry Intel: Google Ads Releases a Bunch of New Updates for Demand Gen Campaigns

Google is rolling out fresh Demand Gen updates designed to supercharge your ad strategy across YouTube, Discover, and Gmail. Here’s the breakdown:

🔹 AI-Powered Enhancements – Smarter audience targeting and creative recommendations to boost engagement.
🔹 Better YouTube Ad Placements – Expanded options to capture attention in Shorts and in-feed video placements.
🔹 Improved Measurement & Reporting – New insights to track conversions and fine-tune performance.
🔹 Streamlined Creative Tools – AI-generated assets and automation to help you scale faster.

If you're running eCommerce or performance marketing campaigns, this could be a big win for customer acquisition and engagement.

🔗 Full breakdown here

👨‍💻 The Hiring Vault

• Email Funnel Coordinator - Lindon, UT: Bucked Up

• Senior Manager, Retention - El Segundo, CA: Liquid I.V.

• Sr. Manager, Trigger & Lifecycle Email - San Francisco, CA: Athleta

• Senior Analyst, Email Marketing - San Francisco, CA: Williams Sonoma

• Sr. Manager, Lifecycle Marketing - Remote: Ageless RX

• Email Marketing Specialist - Scottsdale, AZ: Plexus Worldwide

• Marketing Communications Manager - Scottsdale, AZ: Sleepyhead

• Email Marketing Manager - New York, NY: ByHeart

• Retention Marketing Manager - Somerville, MA: Puma Group

That's a wrap for today!

Appreciate you hanging with Chase and me—hope you found something you can put to work ASAP. If you did, don’t keep it to yourself! Send ecomemailmarketer.com to your favorite DTC marketer and get them in on the action.

New week, new strategies—let’s make it count. Catch you next time! 🚀

🤘 Jimmy Kim