Now that the biggest days of email marketing are behind us—aka Black Friday and Cyber Monday (BFCM)—we had to ask ourselves: Which brands reigned supreme in the inbox this year?
In addition to mining our own Promotions tab, we scanned tens of thousands of emails using a new tool we’re developing (more on that at the end of this post). After noting which ones captured our attention, we hand-selected the top three in the following categories:
- Best Promotions
- Best Abandonment Messages
- Most Inventive
But that’s not all: We’ve created an extra-special lookbook with even more awards for Best Email Design, Best Undesigned Email and Best Subject Line. Keep scrolling for the sneak peek, and download the lookbook for the complete list to share with your team.
Did we miss some worthy contenders? Let us know on social who else should have made the cut.
Now, without further ado, here are the best emails from Cyber Week 2025.
Best Promotions
Scholastic Supports Schools With a Sitewide Cyber Sale
Every parent knows that books make great gifts, and Scholastic sweetens the deal in a way that supports its mission to inspire children to become lifelong readers.
In its one-day-only Cyber Monday promotion, the children’s book publisher offers 30% off sitewide, which wouldn’t be as noteworthy if not for the banner that reads, “Your purchase directly benefits Your School!”
When you click through to sign in and shop, your local school is listed at the top, ready to benefit from your holiday book buying. We appreciate the added touch to encourage the giving spirit.
Virgin Voyages Celebrates Twosomes on the High Seas
There’s nothing wrong with flying solo on your next vacation, but Virgin Voyages knows that sometimes the best things come in pairs.
With a countdown timer ticking down the final hours, the cruise line ramps up urgency for its 80% off 2nd Sailor sale on Black Friday, which included up to $400 in free drinks—a pretty phenomenal deal if we say so.
The imagery is aspirational and consistent with multiple photos of the same cruisegoers, as well as a “glow-up” pic of the newly refreshed Scarlet Lady ship. This promotion sells adults-only luxury effortlessly, inspiring subscribers to book a trip with their special someone.
{{virgin-voyages="/blog-ctas"}}
Uncommon Goods Calls Out the Competition
The kind of person who shops at Uncommon Goods wants gift ideas off the beaten path. So this listicle-style promotion of the “10 holiday gifts you can’t find on Amazon…or anywhere else” is perfect for their ideal customer.
The email’s S-curve styled design of alternating numbers and product images leads subscribers to scroll through some truly unique options, such as a personalized pet portrait ornament and a birth month flower spoon rest.
We also can’t help but chuckle at the SMS call-to-action at the very end, with the copy, “Texts: like tiny emails you won’t forget to open.”
Overall, this promotion by Uncommon Goods side-eyes the competition with tongue-in-cheek humor and presents that aren’t cookie-cutter.
Best Abandonment Messages
Lululemon Gets Specific With Its Workout Gear Reminders
Many brands phone it in with their Black Friday abandonment campaigns—but not Lululemon. The activewear company says, “We know what you’re looking for—and we have it,” and proves it with a personalized subject line that describes the exact item on the subscriber’s radar.
The product is featured in a big, bold format, with a short description and several clear calls to action. The gear may be getting all the love, but we love it when a brand gets right to the point.
TikTok Shop Recovers Carts Via Lightning-Fast Flash Sales
As the modern equivalent of televised home shopping, TikTok Shop moves inventory fast. Very fast. So it makes sense that the social commerce platform wouldn’t leave money sitting in abandoned carts.
TikTok Shop incentivizes subscribers by referring to them by name in the subject line and highlighting Black Friday flash deals on the items left behind. For price-sensitive shoppers or people who need a little extra push, this reminder gets them to check out in record time.
Target Compliments Shoppers’ Great Taste
Consumers these days expect a savvy cart-abandonment alert, but browse abandonment can be tricky to get right without coming off as creepy. Target seems to have learned its lesson after its infamous personalization snafu, as seen in this cheeky subject line: “We noticed you noticing something pretty great.”
In the email itself, Target features the women’s sweaters that were viewed, along with alternative options in case those items weren’t quite right. With the headline, “It’s an *add-to-cart* kind of day,” customers feel supported without any pressure that gets too close for comfort.
Most Inventive
YETI Offers Four Top-Secret Drops in Four Days
Cyber Week is an excellent time to show off your cross-channel marketing skills, which YETI does with its immediately intriguing Gear Garage promotion. The outdoor gear brand motivates customers to download its Wild Card wallet pass by promising four days of exclusive access to upcoming releases.
The entire email is elusive, from its subject line, “The Gear Garage Is Opening Soon,” to its mentions of “rare finds” and “color comebacks.” The nature-based imagery doesn’t provide any hints, so curious shoppers must download the pass to find out more.
Ironside Computers Turns Shopping Into a Game
At first glance, this Black Friday promotion from Ironside Computers may not be the most compelling. 5% off wouldn’t mean much at other consumer brands.
But there’s way more than meets the eye, as seen with the copy at the top, which reads, “Psst…giveaway key hidden somewhere in this email.”
All of a sudden, every pixel matters as subscribers scramble to find what they need to enter the Toadstood Hollow high-end build giveaway. Good emails get you to open, great emails get you to click, but only the best emails keep you entertained with secret games.
The Bitter Southerner Gives Meaning to the Shopping Season
Georgia-based media company The Bitter Southerner stands in its convictions with the bold headline, “Less Cyber. More Human.” In addition to offering 20% off sitewide, the publisher declares that $5 will be donated to Feeding America with each order.
This anti-Cyber Monday promotion emphatically insists, “The word cyber leaves us cold,” which definitely stands out in a wave of consumerism-driven messages. If The Bitter Southerner’s mission is to make a better world, then consider this promotion a job well done.
Deck the Halls With Holiday Emails
Cyber Week 2025 may be wrapped, but there’s a whole month of holiday email marketing to go. We’ll be keeping a list of all the messages we receive (and checking it twice), but if you’re wondering where we found them, we can’t confirm nor deny—yet.
Stay tuned for more details about the world’s most epic email search engine, and until then, download our Cyber Week lookbook to view all the winners of our awards.
Want to give your holiday emails a makeover? Try Inbox Monster’s Creative Suite. You can test gifs and interactive content with live previews, collaborate with your team in real-time and render emails across 118+ clients and devices.
Book a demo to see the Creative Suite in action today.
{{less-time="/blog-ctas"}}
