Steal These 6 Brands' Email Marketing Techniques

The fastest way to get better at email marketing isn't a course, it's studying six brands who've each nailed one specific technique. Bite turns a skeptical ingredient list into a trust-building infographic. Sult builds its hero section around one unexpected image instead of a product shot. Maev pairs a clean layout with direct response copy that still reads like a person, not a coupon. Oura Ring sells an identity instead of a feature list. Graza cross-sells by showing its product actually being used. And Liquid Death has a brand voice so distinct it barely needs a logo. Below is exactly what each one does, with real screenshots, so you can steal the technique instead of guessing at it.

Bite: turn your ingredient list into an infographic

Most skincare and CPG brands bury their ingredient list in a tiny footer, which is exactly where a skeptical customer expects a company to hide something. Bite does the opposite. On its product pages, it pulls out the ingredients that actually matter (like nano-hydroxyapatite, a remineralizing agent) and explains, in one line each, what they do and why they're there. It reads less like a legal requirement and more like a reason to buy.

Sult: build the hero section around one unexpected image

Most DTC hero sections default to a clean product shot on a plain background. Sult's homepage does something stranger: a close-up shot looking through a glass jar at a model's face, with the headline SEASON YOUR WATER stamped over it in neon yellow-green. It's disorienting for about half a second, which is exactly long enough to stop a scroll. The lesson isn't "use a weird photo", it's that a hero built around one strong, specific image will beat a generic lifestyle shot almost every time.

Maev: pair a clean layout with copy that does the selling

Maev's welcome email doesn't lean on a busy layout to do the work. The design is simple: one photo, one headline (Healthier Bowl, Healthier Dog), then real stats (90% of surveyed customers reported improved digestion, out of a survey of 845 customers). The copy follows a direct response structure, claim, then proof, then offer, but it reads like someone explaining why they switched dog food, not a coupon blast. Restrained design plus specific, provable copy is worth copying no matter what you sell.

Oura Ring: sell who someone becomes, not what the product does

Oura Ring's homepage headline is "Subtle. Power." Two words, no feature list, no spec sheet. The identity is the pitch: understated, in control, quietly capable. Everything else on the page, including a ring resting on a rock next to a ladybug, reinforces that identity instead of explaining sensors or battery life. If you're in a feature-heavy category (wearables, supplements, tools), identity-based copy is often the fastest way out of a spec sheet arms race with competitors.

Graza: cross-sell by showing the product actually being used

Graza doesn't cross-sell with a "you might also like" grid. In one email, headlined "PLATEWARE!!!", a hand drizzles Graza olive oil over a shared table spread of vegetables, dip, and crackers, with more Graza bottles already sitting on the table. The cross-sell is implicit: the product looks better as part of a spread than it does alone. If you sell something that's genuinely used alongside other things (food, beauty, tools), showing that real context does more work than a bundle discount banner.

Liquid Death: build a brand voice distinct enough to carry the email alone

Liquid Death's emails don't hedge. One subject line reads "Find Ice-Cold Singles In Your Area," styled like a heavy metal concert poster, to sell canned iced tea. There's no attempt to sound trustworthy or professional. The entire bet is that the voice itself is memorable enough to get opened and remembered. That's harder to pull off than it looks (most brands that try "edgy" just sound like they're trying), but it's proof a genuinely distinct voice can replace a lot of the visual polish other brands lean on.

How to actually use this

• Pick one technique to test first. Don't try to copy all six at once.
• Selling something with real ingredients or materials? Try Bite's plain-language breakdown before adding another product shot.
• If your hero section looks like every competitor's, swap the product photo for one strong, specific image and see if engagement changes.
• If your copy already converts but feels generic, add one specific claim and one real proof point instead of a bigger discount.

Frequently asked questions

Is it legal to use another brand's email marketing techniques?

Yes. Marketing techniques, like an infographic layout or a copywriting structure, aren't copyrightable. What's not fine is copying another brand's actual creative assets, their exact photos, copy, or code, and reusing them as your own. Study the technique, then build your own version with your own product and photography.

Which of these six techniques works best for a small ecommerce brand?

Start with whichever one matches your biggest objection. If customers are skeptical about ingredients or materials, start with Bite's infographic approach. If your emails already convert but feel forgettable, start with Liquid Death's approach to voice.

Do I need a professional photographer to copy Sult's hero section technique?

No. The technique is choosing one strong, specific, slightly unexpected image over a generic product shot, not the production value behind it. A well-composed phone photo with a clear idea beats an expensive but generic studio shot.

How often should a brand refresh its email templates?

There's no fixed schedule. Performance is a better signal than a calendar date: if open or click rates on a flow have been flat for two or three months, that's a stronger trigger to test a new layout or technique than a scheduled refresh.

None of these six brands are doing something technically complicated. They've each just committed fully to one specific technique instead of trying to do everything at once. If you want help figuring out which technique fits your brand and building it into your actual Klaviyo flows, that's exactly the kind of work our email marketing services cover.