Email Marketing Strategy for The Ordinary

This email marketing strategy was developed as an extension of the “Your Skin Type = Your Routine” campaign concept for The Ordinary. The goal was to translate the campaign’s clarity-first positioning into a cohesive lifecycle email system that educates, reassures, and converts customers at every stage of their journey.

Rather than treating email as a promotional channel, this system positions it as a guidance tool helping customers feel confident, informed, and supported in their skincare decisions.

In skincare, purchase hesitation often happens after interest is captured. Customers may add products to their cart but abandon due to uncertainty, confusion, or lack of confidence in product selection.

For a science-driven brand like The Ordinary, the challenge isn’t awareness it’s decision clarity and trust reinforcement across the customer journey.

To design an email marketing system that:

Reinforces personalization without overwhelming the customer

Aligns education with conversion

Extends the brand’s science-first voice into post-click experiences

Increases cart completion, cross-sell potential, and post-purchase confidence

Every email touchpoint was designed to feel like a natural extension of the campaign—consistent in tone, language, and visual restraint. The system uses skin type as the organizing principle, allowing content, product recommendations, and messaging to feel relevant and intentional.

Purpose: Orientation & Trust Building

The welcome email introduces customers to the “Your Skin Type = Your Routine” framework, immediately reinforcing clarity and confidence.

Strategic Role: Top-of-funnel education that reduces friction before purchase.

Purpose: Reassurance & Objection Removal

This email addresses hesitation by reframing the cart contents through the lens of skin type and routine logic.

Strategic Role: Mid-funnel conversion support that turns uncertainty into confidence.

Purpose: Value Expansion Without Pressure

Cross-selling is framed as routine completion, not upselling.

This maintains trust while increasing AOV through relevance rather than volume.

Strategic Role: Conversion optimization through personalization.

Purpose: Retention, Confidence & Long-Term Value

The post-purchase email reinforces correct usage, expectations, and routine sequencing. It ensures customers feel supported after checkout, reducing buyer’s remorse and increasing product satisfaction.

Strategic Role: Retention and lifetime value growth through education.

Across all emails, the tone remains:

Science-first but approachable

Clear, calm, and confidence-building

Focused on guidance rather than persuasion

The copy avoids urgency-driven language and instead leans into clarity, reassurance, and expertise reflecting The Ordinary’s brand values.

Strategic keyword placement

Skin-type language used consistently to support segmentation and relevance

This approach supports both conversion performance and long-term brand trust.

Creative Director & Brand Strategist Email Marketing Strategy · Lifecycle Design · Conversion Systems