This month’s Customer Email Showcase takes us to the Windy City for a peek at a well designed email from furniture retailer Chiasso. Changing seasons traditionally trigger a flurry of activity in the retail sector as shorts and flip flops get swapped out for sweaters and boots. Chiasso keeps customers abreast of seasonal changes via email; this message continues their strategy of announcing the catalog mailing, building anticipation in the consumer.
1. Alt text - Chiasso knows
that most recipients won’t see images at open and they wisely include what may be the most thorough alt text we’ve seen. Instead of the image, readers are provided with a full description of each product, including price! Very impressive.
2. Header/Footer - The header is full of useful navigation, including a search feature, and the footer contains all the CAN-SPAM compliant boilerplate that Bronto loves. The addition of the privacy policy is a great touch.
3. Links - 
Brian Mehler, Chiasso’s webmaster and jack-of-all-trades, changed the format of the Fall catalog message to include photos of actual rooms rather than products floating on a background. This results in 15 products being displayed - compared to 6 in the Summer catalog message - and each one has a direct link. If something catches your eye, you can go right to it with no extra navigation.
4. Color - It doesn’t take a trained eye to pick out the color theme - there’s brown…and there’s blue. The email is designed to complement the product and does an excellent job of it. The only exceptions are the two red links, both of which point (with urgency) to the Sales Center, and the green gift card logo incorporated into the footer.
5. Branding - Chiasso designs their messages to be an extension of their brand; the look is similar in style and feel to the home page, right down to their affinity for lower-case letters. Clicking through feels like navigating to another page of the site rather than a departure.
For an organization that retails stylish furnishings, anything less than a polished, consistent message would be a red flag. Brian tells us the ROI on Chiasso’s catalog announcement messages continues to increase. With design this good, we’re not surprised.
DJ Waldow
Account Manager at Bronto
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