Why a Code block and not an Image block?

Mailchimp's Image block works with images you upload, and an uploaded GIF is a copy that plays the same frames forever. A Code block keeps pointing at flashtimer, where the timer is drawn fresh at every open. See Mailchimp timers.

Does it work on the Free plan?

Yes. Embedding a timer in Mailchimp works on every plan. Sending it straight into a draft campaign needs Pro.

Can every subscriber get their own deadline?

Yes, with an evergreen timer and Mailchimp's subscriber ID merge tag, each contact's countdown starts when they first open the email.

Summer sale

Summer sale email example with a beach-bright countdown

A swim and travel brand's summer sale, sent from Mailchimp. The timer goes into a Code block so it stays live at every open, in coral boxes that match the email's colors.

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Rows of turquoise beach umbrellas on white sand, seen from above — The summer sale is on: up to 50% off

Countdown to the end of the Salt & Sun summer sale — The summer sale is on: up to 50% off

The email

As your readers will see it

Switch to mobile to see how it reflows on a phone, where most of your readers will open it.

Salt & Sun

The summer sale is on: up to 50% off

Salt & Sun <hello@saltandsun.co>

to me

Today

salt & sun

Summer
sale

Up to 50% off

Swimwear, hats, shades and everything for the beach bag, for a few sunny days only.

Shop the summer sale

A smiling woman in a black swimsuit on a beach with gulls — Tide one-piece
$48 $96

A straw hat with a pink bow on pebbles — Shore straw hat
$27 $54

Red cat-eye sunglasses on a blue and yellow background — Siesta shades
$35 $70

Yellow beach umbrellas on the sand, seen from above

Free shipping all summeron every order over $50

Salt & Sun

5 Saltbush Walk, Byron Bay, Australia

You're getting this because you signed up at saltandsun.co.

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Brands, people and addresses in these examples are fictional. The timers are real, rendered by flashtimer.

Why it works

What makes this email work

The photo is the holiday. An aerial beach full of umbrellas says summer before the headline does.
Products with personality. Tilted, framed product shots feel like holiday snaps rather than a price list.
The timer is in the brand's colors. Coral boxes on sand look designed for this email, not dropped into it.
A reason to come back. Free shipping all summer gives readers who miss the sale something to return for.

Subject lines

Other subject lines to try

Test two against each other. The timer stays the same, so you learn what the words do.

Salt & Sun
The summer sale is on: up to 50% off
Salt & Sun
Half price swim, for a few sunny days
Salt & Sun
Your beach bag, sorted (and 50% off)
Salt & Sun
Last weekend of the summer sale

Build it

Build it in flashtimer

1Style it in your colors
Choose Boxes with white digits on coral and deep teal labels, on the sand color of the email.
2Set the end of the sale
End the timer when the sale ends, and write what late openers see: The sale's over. Free shipping isn't.
3Use a Code block in Mailchimp
Click Embed, then Copy HTML, and paste it into a Code block. An image you upload to Mailchimp would be a frozen copy that never counts down.
4Test before you send
Send a test to yourself and open it twice a minute apart. The numbers should have moved.

Questions

Answered before you ask.

More examples

See all examples