Relational Campaign email designs from top brands
1. Changing the world
Objective
This email aims to engage Term Sheet readers by inviting them to nominate innovative companies for Fortune’s Change the World list, while also promoting newsletter subscriptions and highlighting recent venture deals and executive movements to reinforce the publication’s authority in business and finance.
Why this works
Fortune smartly reframes its Change the World list as an inclusive, reader-driven initiative, not just an editorial award, which invites participation while subtly validating the reader’s influence in shaping global business impact.
How to implement
By spotlighting startups under $1B revenue alongside big names, the email democratizes impact storytelling, making it feel attainable and relevant to a broader audience, a powerful psychological nudge for nominations and engagement.
Pro Tip
The primary CTA 'Sign up today' appears twice, once buried in a mid-email promo and again at the bottom, but lacks visual hierarchy or urgency; adding a contrasting button with a benefit-driven label like 'Get Daily Finance Insights' would boost conversion. • The nomination call-to-action is text-based and lacks a prominent button or visual cue; converting the Google Form link into a bold, colored CTA button labeled 'Nominate a Company Now' would increase participation by reducing friction.
2. Meet 2023's Most Powerful Women
Objective
This email aims to inform subscribers about Fortune’s 2023 Most Powerful Women list while reinforcing the brand’s authority in business leadership coverage. It also seeks to drive engagement through list exploration and newsletter subscriptions.
Why this works
The email opens with a warm, personalized greeting that immediately connects with its audience while anchoring the content in timely, high-impact news about influential women leaders across global industries.
How to implement
By weaving in specific executive names, rankings, and company achievements, the email transforms a listicle into a compelling narrative that highlights real-world impact, making the content feel exclusive and deeply researched rather than generic.
Pro Tip
Add a countdown timer or urgency cue near the 'See the full list here' link to encourage immediate clicks, especially since the list is a time-sensitive editorial highlight. • Reposition the primary 'Subscribe' CTA above the footer to increase visibility, currently buried at the bottom, it competes with social sharing and legal links, reducing conversion potential.
3. AMD wants Nvidia's AI crown
Objective
This email aims to position AMD as a serious contender to Nvidia in the AI chip market by highlighting leadership insights and industry momentum, while driving newsletter subscriptions through authoritative, data-driven storytelling.
Why this works
The email leverages a bold, competitive headline to immediately frame AMD’s ambition against Nvidia, creating narrative tension that pulls readers into a deeper, data-backed analysis of market dynamics and leadership strategy.
How to implement
By embedding direct quotes from industry insiders like Laminar’s co-founder and Microsoft’s CTO, the email builds credibility and urgency around AMD’s AI momentum, making technical claims feel grounded in real-world validation rather than corporate hype.
Pro Tip
Add a subtle countdown or urgency trigger near the CTA (e.g., 'Join 50,000+ subscribers before our next AI deep-dive drops') to nudge readers toward immediate action without compromising the editorial tone. • Include a short, bold pull-quote from Lisa Su or Kevin Scott in the hero section to visually anchor the email’s core message and increase emotional resonance before the reader dives into the body text.
4. Women’s workplace ambitions
Objective
This email aims to inform readers about the persistent gender gap in workplace promotions despite women’s equal ambition, while positioning Fortune as a thought leader in workplace equity and driving newsletter subscriptions through compelling data and expert insights.
Why this works
The email masterfully debunks the myth that women are less ambitious by anchoring its argument in hard data from McKinsey and LeanIn.org, making the message both credible and emotionally resonant for professionals invested in workplace equity.
How to implement
By weaving in direct quotes from high-profile executives like Sheryl Sandberg and Alexis Krivkovich, the email transforms dry statistics into human stories, creating a sense of urgency and authority that compels readers to take the issue seriously and trust Fortune’s editorial lens.
Pro Tip
The CTA 'SUBSCRIBE' is visually strong but lacks urgency or benefit-driven language; rephrasing it to 'Get the Full Report + Weekly Insights, Subscribe Now' would better align with the email’s educational value and increase conversion. • The 'Reporter’s Notebook' and 'Around the Table' sections, while informative, dilute focus from the core message; consider collapsing them into a single 'Key Takeaways' box with bullet points to improve scannability and reinforce the main narrative.
5. Nvidia's rocket ride
Objective
This email aims to inform tech investors and industry professionals about Nvidia’s extraordinary financial performance and strategic hiring surge, positioning the company as a dominant force in the AI computing era while subtly encouraging newsletter engagement and event sign-ups.
Why this works
The email masterfully frames Nvidia’s earnings surge not just as a financial win but as the dawn of a new computing era, leveraging CEO quotes and hiring data to emotionally anchor readers in the magnitude of the company’s strategic pivot toward AI infrastructure.
How to implement
By spotlighting specific job postings and salary ranges, the email transforms abstract corporate growth into tangible human stories, subtly signaling opportunity to tech talent while reinforcing Nvidia’s market dominance through workforce expansion metrics.
Pro Tip
The primary CTA for the San Francisco event is visually underwhelming and buried mid-email; elevate it with a contrasting button or hero banner to match the urgency of Nvidia’s momentum and drive higher registration rates. • Add a brief visual timeline or infographic summarizing Nvidia’s revenue jump, hiring surge, and AI milestones to break up text density and reinforce key data points for skimmers who may miss the narrative depth.
6. CEO Daily: Enlisting workers on AI
Objective
This email aims to inform senior business leaders about critical developments in AI policy, labor negotiations, and global economic trends while positioning Fortune as a trusted source for strategic business intelligence. It also seeks to convert readers into subscribers by showcasing the value of its newsletter suite.
Why this works
The email smartly anchors its AI discussion in a real-world labor agreement, making abstract tech policy feel immediate and actionable for executives who need to align workforce strategy with innovation roadmaps.
How to implement
By weaving in curated external content under 'Around the Watercooler,' the newsletter builds credibility through editorial curation, subtly signaling to readers that Fortune is the hub for the most relevant, cross-industry business intelligence.
Pro Tip
Add a visual hierarchy to the 'Top News' section, using icons or subtle dividers, to help readers quickly distinguish between legal, economic, and HR-related updates, improving scanability for time-pressed executives. • Include a short, bold pull quote from the main article (e.g., 'Employees have a greater say in when and how to use AI') near the top to immediately signal the email’s core value proposition and increase emotional resonance.
7. CEO Daily: CEOs prepare for a shutdown
Objective
This email aims to inform senior business leaders about the looming U.S. government shutdown and its potential economic impact, while reinforcing Fortune’s authority on CEO-level insights and driving newsletter subscriptions through timely, high-stakes content.
Why this works
The email opens with a strong, urgent hook, tying a political event directly to CEO concerns, immediately signaling relevance to its high-level audience and justifying why they should keep reading despite a crowded inbox.
How to implement
By embedding credible data points from Goldman Sachs and the Committee for Economic Development, the email builds authority without overwhelming the reader, making complex economic risks feel tangible and actionable for business leaders.
Pro Tip
Add a visual hierarchy to the 'Top News' section, such as bold headlines or icons, to help readers quickly scan key stories, since the current plain text format risks losing attention in a dense, text-heavy layout. • Include a brief, personalized subject line preview or teaser in the header (e.g., 'Why 91% of CEOs are bracing for shutdown fallout') to reinforce relevance before the reader even opens the email, increasing open-to-read-through rates.
8. The key to daily meditation
Objective
This email aims to educate readers on the optimal timing and duration for daily meditation by featuring expert advice, while also promoting Fortune Well’s broader wellness content and encouraging continued engagement through related articles and podcast episodes.
Why this works
The email smartly frames meditation not as a rigid ritual but as a flexible daily habit, using expert quotes to validate personalization, making it feel accessible rather than intimidating to beginners who fear they don’t have ‘enough time’ or ‘the right moment.’
How to implement
By embedding a compelling video thumbnail about Singapore’s longevity secrets within a wellness newsletter, the campaign leverages curiosity-driven content adjacency, subtly connecting urban lifestyle, mental health, and longevity to keep readers scrolling without feeling sold to.
Pro Tip
The primary CTA ‘Read more at Fortune Well’ is buried near the bottom and lacks urgency or benefit-driven language; repositioning it after the main meditation advice with a stronger hook like ‘Start your 10-minute routine today’ would improve conversion. • The suicide prevention section, while important, disrupts the meditation theme’s flow and emotional tone; consider moving it to a dedicated footer module or separate email to preserve thematic cohesion and reader focus on the core wellness topic.
9. Proof of state: White House shake-up
Objective
This email aims to inform subscribers about a major shift in U.S. crypto policy leadership and its potential implications for stablecoin legislation, while also reinforcing Fortune Crypto’s authority on Washington’s regulatory landscape.
Why this works
The email brilliantly frames political upheaval as a strategic inflection point for crypto policy, transforming a personnel change into a narrative about legislative momentum and market opportunity.
How to implement
By weaving in colorful insider anecdotes and personality-driven details, like the 'electronics-free courthouse' and 'glow-up' courtroom sketches, it humanizes dense policy topics and keeps readers emotionally invested in the story.
Pro Tip
Add a visual timeline or flowchart near the top to map out the leadership changes and their potential impact on crypto bills, this would help readers quickly grasp the stakes without wading through dense paragraphs. • Reposition the 'SUBSCRIBE' CTA higher in the email, perhaps after the hero section or alongside the meme, to capture attention while reader interest is highest, rather than relegating it to the bottom.
10. CalSTRS doubles down on emerging VCs
Objective
This email aims to inform finance and venture capital professionals about CalSTRS’s strategic shift toward emerging venture managers by appointing Sapphire Partners, while also showcasing recent venture deals, private equity moves, and industry trends to reinforce Fortune’s authority in financial journalism.
Why this works
Fortune masterfully frames CalSTRS’s pivot as a strategic industry signal, not just a fund move, positioning it as a must-watch trend for LPs and emerging managers alike, which elevates the story from news to insight.
How to implement
The inclusion of a clean, data-backed IRR chart visually reinforces the performance argument for emerging managers, making complex financial outcomes instantly digestible and lending credibility to the narrative without overwhelming the reader.
Pro Tip
The primary CTA 'Subscribe' appears only at the bottom after a long scroll, reducing conversion potential; placing a sticky or mid-content CTA button would capture interest while readers are still engaged with the high-value content. • The 'Venture Deals' section lists numerous companies without visual hierarchy or filtering, adding icons, tags (e.g., 'AI', 'Climate'), or a sortable table would help readers quickly identify relevant deals and improve scanability.