I get a lot of promotional emails every day. Fortunately, they do not interrupt my day with the constant din of notifications. True confessions: just about everything I receive goes through my Sanebox application and filtered into a SaneNews folder or a SaneLater folder. Near the end of the day, I get a summary from Sanebox of everything that came in. Scanning the list of emails and their respective subject headings is like being a judge of my own email award show. Shall we call it the “Spammies?” I guess maybe not, since I did opt in for most of them.

Yet, I really don’t mind. Though most offer some information of value, I usually only pick a few to read. I’m amazed at how rarely they offer much of a creative hook to grab my attention. I often wonder ‘Why not?’ It seems like most of it is safe, formulaic, and utterly lacking in personality. It’s treated as more of a ‘just the facts ma’am’ than a true creative assignment.

So imagine my surprise as I scanned the list and this subject heading popped off the screen, “Would you race against an ostrich?” from Kinomap, my favorite cycling app. THANK YOU! Thank you for making me grin, stand up and cheer at an email! Why, YES, I would like to race against an ostrich!

I wondered at first if this was a joke as this email did arrive on April Fools day. Nope, I can actually race against said ostrich in South Africa virtually through the magic of this app and my trainer. It’s a short .64 of a mile, but the sheer entertainment value alone makes it worth doing.

It was a brilliant email that gave this avid cyclist all the information she could want. I was also really happy to learn they are offering more video content of actual races. And to compete with other apps such as Zwift, they’ve added a multi-player mode.

And finally, it came with an invitation for readers to upload their own video for other users to ride virtually. That’s what makes this app stand out. You get to explore places around the world that you might not otherwise discover. Anyone with a GoPro, portable video camera or cell phone can play.

Leave it to such an innovative company to find an inventive way to connect with their customers in an email. That’s why I’m giving it this week’s “Creative High Five.” What about you? Have you received any emails lately that caught your attention in an unexpected way?

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