As a European, one of the things I envy about Americans is the huge variety of products available to them.
Take something as simple as protein snacks, for example.
When I visit a supermarket here in Spain, I have one… maybe two good options to choose from.
And so every time I see one of those “grocery haul” videos from some fitness influencer in North America, my eyes just fill with jealousy.
I’m like… you can just go to Costco and buy protein ice cream, protein bars, protein pancakes, protein waffles, protein chips, protein donuts, and protein cookies?
Tf?
And for every product category, you have like 10 different brands.
The damage I would do…
To be honest, I don’t have access to most of the brands that I write about in this blog.
Sadly, today’s no different.
We’re looking at an email campaign from a brand called Carnivore Snax.
This brand sells meat chips.
Yes, this is my second time analyzing an email from a meat brand.
I like these brands because they rely less on fancy graphics and more on direct response copywriting.
I call these campaigns “ugly emails.”
It’s a term that comes from the Meta advertising world, where brands deliberately create “ugly ads” so people scrolling their FB/IG feed are more likely to stop and engage.
The same logic applies to email marketing.
The less your emails look like ads, the more likely people are to engage with them.
Before we jump into today’s analysis, here’s what this series is all about:
What is Emails That Sell?
Each week, I break down an email from a DTC e-commerce brand. Some of these brands are absolutely killing it when it comes to email marketing.
My goal with this series is to challenge conventional email marketing. Expect to learn different copywriting techniques, sales psychology, and consumer behavior — everything that moves you away from hard-selling discount campaigns and other mass-market tactics.
If you have an email you want me to break down, send it over to me on LinkedIn or at marketing@siimpettai.com.
Let’s get into it now:
First of all, I love the angle of this email:
“Just eat the entire bag”
The downside to most snacks is that you can’t have the entire pack without feeling guilty.
(If you’re like me, you have it all anyway)
But that’s not the case with Carnivore Snax.
I actually checked the nutritional profile of their Ribeye steak chips, and guess what?
It’s pretty damn good.
You get 12g of protein, and it’s just 170 kcal.
99% of snack brands can’t compete with that.
When you’re coming up with email campaign angles for your brand, always ask yourself… can a competitor get away with saying the same thing?
If the answer is no, then you know you have a powerful message.
I mean… can you imagine Lay’s encouraging people to eat an entire bag of potato chips?
That’s like 5x the calories and zero protein.
Reckless.
Let’s look at the meme now:
This is funny.
Obviously, it’s far from scientific, but who cares, really?
I’m pretty sure the target audience here isn’t looking to read about the “5 reasons why the Carnivore diet is good for you.”
For one, they already know.
And two, they get that information shoved down their throats by every other brand.
But this… this is what gets your emails opened and read.
When you send emails like this, subscribers will look forward to opening them because they associate the activity with a positive emotion, like laughter.
Using humor is just one of the ways to stand out.
If there’s one nitpicking critique I have, it’s that it’s currently missing a call to action button.
When I looked at their other email campaigns, they usually have a CTA link in every hero section, so maybe they just forgot this time?
Anyway, onwards…
This is gold.
Most of the “rules” we’ve been taught about food are straight-up BS.
For example, you know where the quote “Breakfast is the most important meal of the day” comes from?
John Harvey Kellogg.
Yeah, the same guy who sold cornflakes full of sugar and shit.
It was just a marketing slogan from the 1920s that has stuck in our minds ever since, serving as the “holy grail” of dieting.
It’s 12 pm as I’m writing this article, and I don’t have any food in my system.
I feel fine.
Maybe… just maybe breakfast isn’t as important as they say?
And I’m pretty sure if I ate breakfast, having a zero-carb snack like Carnivore Snax would be a much better option than any of those cereal brands labeled as “healthy”…
So I really like the angle here.
The next part is where all the desire is created:
Notice the visual prompts?
“Open it up”
“Take a sniff”
“Reach your hand in”
I can almost imagine myself with a bag of Snax steak chips in my hand.
“Pull out some meat”
Okay, pause…
“Don’t just stare at it… eat it.”
Double pause.
“Repeat again.”
“Do not stop until the bag is empty.”
In all seriousness, the copywriting really shines here.
This is the type of copy you should write if you want to create desire around your product.
The mixture of short and longer sentences makes it flow really well, too.
Next time you write anything, I suggest you try reading it out loud.
Does it sound natural and conversational or a bit clunky?
The final sentence is important:
“Nothing bad can happen to you when you’ve got a belly full of Snax.”
As someone who has never tried Carnivore Snax, some questions that I have in my mind are:
“Will I crave more because of the sodium?”
“Will I actually be full?”
“How will I feel energy-wise?”
Personally, I would’ve added a sentence or two here to crush these objections.
Finally, let’s have a look at the footer:
I like that they’ve added navigation links in the footer.
Most brands add CTA links in the header, which is just a distraction.
For a consumable brand, it makes sense to upsell the subscription.
You can also link to other product categories or bestsellers to increase click rates.
Aaand… that’s it.
Great email, Carnivore Snax!
TL;DR
Key takeaway #1: Write more ugly emails. The less your emails look like ads, the better.
Key takeaway #2: Say stuff your competitors can’t say.
Key takeaway #3: Use humour if your brand allows it.
Key takeaway #4: Create a positive feeling around opening your emails.
Key takeaway #5: Write visual copy to create desire.
Key takeaway #6: Read your copy out loud. Does it sound natural?
Key takeaway #7: Upsell the subscription in the footer.
What’s next
Go check out Carnivore Snax, especially if you’re a meat lover like me.
I haven’t tried their meat chips myself, but they look delicious and sound pretty healthy.
Also, get on their email list. They constantly send emails that make me laugh.
If you haven’t already, subscribe to my email list to get every Emails That Sell analysis plus my weekly newsletter.
