Quikly
← Blog

3 brands using urgency marketing to boost email acquisition

Lindsay Keener · November 4, 2021

subscribe-note

Despite email marketing being a tried-and-true tactic, getting new email subscribers is no easy feat. Modern email marketing issues like consumer inundation, consumer empowerment and low attention spans can create large roadblocks for marketers looking to increase email acquisition rates.

So, marketers are left asking one very crucial question: How can brands overcome these roadblocks to acquire more email subscribers?

For many marketers, understanding the power of urgency marketing can help. 

Top brands using urgency marketing for email acquisition

Considering the major influence thinking patterns have on consumers, using urgency-marketing psychology to increase email subscribers has helped some of the nation’s largest brands.

DSW

DSW — which offers the latest in designer shoes, boots, handbags and more — has consistently leveraged psychology within urgency marketing to achieve its email acquisition goals.

Within each digital activation, consumers are informed that a limited number of special offers will drop soon, and when they do, fastest to click earns the top reward. This creates scarcity, fear of missing out (FOMO), anticipation and even some fun competition

It also drives results. In one 5-day activation, DSW was able to drive 51,000 new email subscribers (as well as 17,000 new Instagram followers; 1,000 incremental app installs each day; and 4,300 transactions that had a measurable impact on sales). (Get the full story here.)

McDonald’s

Fast-food leader McDonald’s created an email acquisition activation that also leveraged urgency marketing to help facilitate consumer participation through email opt-ins. 

As part of their activation, McDonald’s provided customers with a chance to win free meals for a year. Consumers provided their email addresses, information on their favorite meals and other forms of customer data. Over the course of one month, consumers were able to submit their responses multiple times, repeatedly building anticipation and increasing brand awareness. 

This leveraged FOMO, scarcity and anticipation around the top reward of meals for a year to increase subscribers.

KUIU

As part of an urgency-marketing strategy, KUIU, a leader in hunting clothes and supplies, has also leveraged FOMO, scarcity and anticipation to help drive more email subscribers.

In one recent activation, fans of the brand were offered the opportunity to earn up to $500 via a KUIU gift card by opting in for a chance to win. The reward was sent out on a first-come, first-served basis, promoting an immediate need for action from consumers.

As part of the sign-up process, consumers were prompted to include contact information in the form of their email addresses, immediately growing the KUIU email list. 

Ultimately, the act of incorporating urgency tactics into email marketing can help with email acquisition, while offering fun, fresh methods of brand engagement for customers.

Keep reading

Urgency Marketingecommerce conversionshopify marketing

Master Urgency Marketing for Shopify Success

Most Shopify teams are stuck in the same loop right now. Traffic gets more expensive, conversion pressure goes up, and the fastest way to hit the number is another promotion. Then the next one has to be a little louder, a little broader, or a little cheaper to get the same response.

May 10, 2026

Urgency Marketingshopify salessummer sale ideas

Boost Sales: Creative Summer Sale Ideas for Shopify

It is late June. Paid traffic is getting more expensive, inboxes are packed with holiday-adjacent promos, and the fastest way to hit a short-term revenue target looks like another 20% off banner across the whole site. Many Shopify brands make that choice, then spend the next quarter paying for it through lower margins, softer full-price conversion, and customers who learn to wait for the next code.

Apr 29, 2026

Urgency Marketingconversion optimizationecommerce marketingflash sale ideas

Creative Flash Sale Ideas for Shopify in 2026

Most flash sale advice still sounds the same. Add a countdown, slash prices, blast your list, hope the spike is worth the margin hit. That playbook still creates movement, but it also creates side effects most Shopify brands know too well. Customers start waiting for the next discount. Profit gets thinner. The brand starts to feel promotional instead of considered.

Apr 23, 2026

Don't take our word for it.
See it on your store.

Enter your URL to get a free urgency campaign tailored to your store and goals.