April Fools’ Day is just around the corner, and you might be looking for some new ideas for your email campaigns to include.
In this blog, learn the best subject lines, creative campaign ideas, and best practices to make your 2025 April Fools’ Day emails stand out.
How to pull off April Fools’ Day email campaigns without hurting your brand
1. Well-timed
Your April Fools’ email must land in your subscribers’ inboxes early on April 1st when people are expecting jokes and surprises.
Sending it after April 1st will waste your efforts as it has already lost relevance. You also miss the first-mover advantage, as many brands have likely reached their inboxes and captured their attention.
If your audience spans different time zones, consider scheduling or using an email marketing tool to send the emails at the right time.
2. Must be brand-relevant
Your April Fools’ joke should feel like an extension of your brand. It should not be way off the line of your brand messaging, as it can come across as outrageous or off-color.
The aim of the April Fools’ email is to showcase humor, create brand engagement, and drive sales. Hence, the marketing teams must have foresight while creating the April Fools’ campaign and not compromise on the brand identity or values.
For example, if your brand carries a more professional tone throughout the year, try to integrate your products or an offer with an engaging yet subtle prank. Highlight the key offering in the subject lines so that more and more subscribers open it.
For example, Kind played a clever prank by announcing the start of pumpkin season and later introducing their pumpkin caramel bars in an April Fools’ email. The email featured a brand-relevant yet subtle joke without being over-the-top.
While, if your brand has a playful tone, you can be more adventurous with your prank. The idea is to maintain brand consistency while still being fun.
The other example, HelloFresh, is a great display of wit. They teased subscribers with a new product that combined two fan-favorite meals—only to pull back at the last moment. While some might see it as outrageous, we see it as a clever and playful move.
3. Have a purpose
An April Fools’ email should do more than just make people laugh—it should also serve a purpose. The goal should be both, engagement and conversions.
Make sure it has a clear call-to-action (CTA), whether to drive traffic to a landing page, promote a new product, or boost social media engagement—your prank should naturally lead to action.
For example, Reebok’s April Fools’ email had one clear purpose—to introduce subscribers to their 50% off running sale—and they made the entire email revolve around it.
Focus on making your email as unique as possible to encourage action. You can also add a gamified element to it. For example, invite subscribers to guess the prank for a discount or tease a fake product and then redirect users to a real promotion.
Soylent introduced a fake lentil-based drink in their April Fools’ email and later cleared the air around it. In the end, they redirected subscribers to their blog with a “Shop Now” CTA.
Pros and cons of using humor in an April Fools’ Day email campaign
Pros
1. Shareability
People love sharing witty and unique humor, one of the reasons why memes on social media are so popular.
When an email includes humor, it feels less like marketing and more like something worth passing along. This organic sharing increases brand reach without extra ad spend.
However, make sure your email’s humor aligns with your audience’s interests and justifies your brand identity so that the brand messaging remains consistent.
2. Higher engagement
People engage more with content that evokes positive emotions. It also makes your brand even more likable and memorable to them.
April Fools’ email instantly sparks curiosity in recipients’ minds because of its witty subject line, which makes them eager to find out more about the email content.
To make your email even more engaging, you can add interactive elements such as games, quizzes, or special offers tied to the prank, encouraging people to participate.
3. Attention-grabbing
Humor captures attention and keeps people reading. People are so used to getting promotional emails that when they get a humorous email, it simply stands out without any effort.
The focus should not be on disappointing them with the email content. Use this attention to boost brand awareness and drive sales with smart product recommendations.
4. Relatability
Humor makes brands feel more human. People connect with brands that understand their daily struggles, inside jokes, or shared experiences.
This connection makes emails feel more like conversations with a friend rather than marketing messages.
5. Improves brand trust
Humor builds positive associations, and positive associations build trust. This is because humor lowers defenses in people, making them feel more comfortable.
April Fools Day campaign breaks the wall of formal marketing and makes the brand come across as more approachable, authentic, and likable.
Cons
1. Could be misinterpreted
Humor is subjective—what one person finds funny, another might find confusing or even offensive.
Take into account cultural differences and avoid using extreme or sensitive language to protect brand reputation.
Brands can also perform A/B testing for their April Fools email before launching it in full force, especially if they are experimenting and unsure about dropping it.
2. Leading to backlash
If a joke is seen as insensitive, offensive, or poorly timed, it can trigger a negative response. Especially in today’s time, where consumers quickly share opinions online, a single misstep can damage a brand’s reputation.
Your marketing team should monitor social media conversations around the topic you plan to feature in your April Fools email. This will help you understand the right approach to take.
3. Limited time until irrelevancy
Humor often relies on trends, pop culture references, or current events, which means it has a short shelf life.
If your team is planning to take a witty take on real topics, make sure those topics are currently trending because no one relates to an outdated topic. They just fall flat.
4. Could distract from the overall message
The primary goal of an email campaign is to engage and drive action—humor should support this, not overshadow it. If a joke takes center stage, recipients might remember the humor but forget the actual message.
A good balance is a must to ensure that the audience laughs but also takes the intended action. For this, make sure the CTA is clear so that the campaign achieves its purpose.
40 subject lines example for your 2025 April Fools’ campaign
Product & Pricing Pranks:
- Oops! We Marked Everything $0—Hurry Before It’s Fixed!
- Breaking: We Now Accept Monopoly Money!
- Introducing Our Edible Shoes—Tastes Like Savings!
- Introducing Our New Invisibility Collection—See It?
- Your Order Ships Free… If You Can Sing!
- New! Self-Washing Clothes – Just Add Imagination
- Your Wishlist Items Are Now Free! (Almost)
- We’re Accepting Barter Trades—Got Any Snacks?
- We Swapped Prices with Luxury Brands—Lucky You!
- Oops! We Accidentally Doubled Your Loyalty Points!
Fake Rebrands & Hilarious Announcements:
- Big News: We’re Rebranding as a Taco Shop!
- We’re Now a Dating App—Swipe Right for Deals!
- We’re Now a Pet-Only Store—Sorry Humans!
- Our Website is Now in Morse Code!
- Breaking: We’re Launching a Space Delivery Service!
- Meet Our New AI CEO—Beep Boop!
- We’re Going Paper-Only… No More Online Shopping!
- Say Hello to Our New Self-Washing Clothes!
- NEW FEATURE: Smell Before You Buy Online!
- Introducing Mind-Controlled Shopping—Just Think & Buy!
Delivery & Order Shenanigans:
- Your Order Shipped… to the Wrong Planet!
- Good News: Your Package Arrived… 10 Years Early!
- Exciting Update! Your Order is Now Teleported!
- Oops! We Sent Your Order to Your Ex!
- We’re Delivering Orders via Drones… And Unicorns!
- Surprise! Your Next Order Comes with a Mystery Box!
- Your Package is Here! (Just Kidding… or Not?)
- New Rule: All Deliveries Must Include a Dance!
- You Ordered What?! Check Your Receipt…
- New Feature: Packages Delivered by Trained Squirrels!
Customer Perks & Loyalty Program Pranks:
- Congrats! You’re Our First-Ever Lifetime VIP!
- Your Loyalty Points Just Multiplied… by Infinity!
- You Unlocked a Secret Discount! Or Did You?
- Today Only: All Customers Get CEO Benefits!
- FLASH REWARD: We Owe YOU Money This Time!
- SURPRISE! We’re Gifting You a Private Shopping Spree!
- New Loyalty Perk: We Do Your Laundry!
- VIP Upgrade! You Now Own Part of Us!
- NEW: A Rewards Program Where You Do Nothing!
- APRIL FOOLS! But Hey, Here’s a Real Discount!
Best practices for running an April Fools’ Day email campaign
1. Be light-hearted
The whole point of sending out an April Fools email is to be funny and establish relatability with your subscribers. Make sure you do not miss this one obvious chance to be witty or funny but in a positive light.
2. Be transparent that it is an April Fools campaign
While pranks can be fun, misleading your audience too much can backfire. Make it clear within the email that it’s an April Fools joke to maintain trust. Subtle hints, disclaimers, or a clever reveal at the end help balance humor with transparency.
3. Don’t be misleading & offer real benefits
Don’t play bait-and-switch, as it can feel misleading and damage trust, especially when other brands are offering real deals and discounts. Make sure you provide some sort of benefit—it could be free shipping, a discount code, or anything that makes the day feel special and encourages a purchase.
4. Ensure your audience is segmented
Not all of your subscribers will appreciate your April Fools’ humor; hence, it is better to perform email segmentation to target only those who are actually more likely to enjoy playful content. You can also use segmented email lists to send different content for better success.
5. Avoid controversial/sensitive content
This is non-negotiable. In every situation, avoid adding any controversial angle to your April Fools’ email. Ask your marketing team to monitor the current sentiments of people around the topic you are planning to include in your campaign and ensure you don’t cross the line. You can also A/B test your April Fools’ email to check reactions before launching it to your real subscribers.
11 best examples of April Fools’ Day emails to gain inspiration
- Quartz
- FlockFoods
- Threadless
- QuestLab
- PizzaHut
- KiwiCo
- Aloha
- Boohoo
- Urban Decay
- Benefit
- Brilliant Earth
1. Quartz
Quartz April Fool’s email takes a direct dig into the famous rumors on the internet. This makes the email instantly engaging and relatable as it feels like more of an inside joke. Also, the email smoothly leads to an offer i.e., a 50% discount on membership, making it worthy for subscribers who opened the email out of curiosity.
2. Flock Foods
This Flock Foods’ April Fool email directly promotes a specific product (XL Hattie B’s Nashville Hot). It includes a 25% discount offer, encouraging subscribers to take immediate action. This is a good strategy and brands can take inspiration from it to focus on one specific product with a discount to drive sales.
3. Threadless
Threadless’ April Fool’s email is witty and engaging, staying relevant to their product since they sell meme-themed apparel. The email keeps April Fool’s spirit alive by emphasizing meme images in this email. This is an interesting blend of brand themes into the April Fool’s occasion.
4. Quest Lab
Quest Lab’s April Fool Email adds a witty element to their service i.e., provide test reports. Their humor instantly relates to their subscribers as it matches with their brand identity and also offers discounts for encouraging action and making the email more meaningful.
5. Pizza Hut
Pizza Hut pranked their subscribers by faking their newly launched breads as part of their April Fool’s email. They made this email more engaging by highlighting how their bread tastes just like their bestsellers’ pizza crusts.
This email gained a mixed reaction from their recipients, some loved their approach while some were clearly disappointed by the news being fake.
6. KiwiCo
KiwiCo takes a straight approach to the April Fool’s Day email. They directly introduced limited-time discounts and free shipping for this particular event. They also introduce their product categories in the email body to increase conversions and offer immediate value to recipients.
7. Aloha
Aloha highlighted their company values with a playful nod to April Fool’s Day—staying true to their mission without any gimmicks or compromising on product quality. They also added product testimonials, the company’s pledge to charity, products, and discounts to make their message more engaging and authentic.
8. Boohoo
This April Fool’s Day email from Boohoo, a fashion brand, highlights immediate value (60% discount), teases the readers (is it a prank?), and encourages recipients to use the discount code to find out. An absolutely engaging storytelling approach that drives subscribers to explore their products—definitely a favorite.
9. Urban Decay
Urban Decay introduced a faux product in their April Fool’s Day email only to lead recipients to their actual product. A risky move, if you ask me, but definitely a clever one. They also well- position their actual product by highlighting its benefits and complementary products.
10. Benefit
Benefit encourages sales with this April Fool’s Day email. The brand offers purchasers three surprise gifts on orders over $30. What makes this offer irresistible is the element of mystery and the fact that its value is mentioned ($16).
To increase the likelihood of purchase, they also highlight being the number one brand for eyebrows and introduce some of their products.
11. Brilliant Earth
This Brilliant Earth email definitely brought smiles and cheers to people’s lives. It is one of the most engaging April Fool’s Day emails, smartly promoting their products. This jewelry brand gamified its approach by encouraging women to participate, choose their favorite rings, and share the results.
♥️Our top favorites♥️
👉Flock Foods for being direct, offering discounts, and clean email layout
👉Boohoo for the storytelling and the huge discount
👉Brilliant Earth for adding the gamified element that encourages participation and increases brand awareness
How to get started with SmartrMail?
You can create and send your April Fool’s Day email campaigns automatically with SmartrMail.
SmartrMail is an easy-to-use email marketing tool that any e-commerce merchant and e-commerce marketer, regardless of their technical skill level, can use. Here is how to implement April Fool’s Day email campaigns with Smartmail:
Step 1: Install SmartrMail on your Store (Shopify, BigCommerce, Neto, WooCommerce). Once installed, SmartrMail automatically imports your store’s data, including your store name, design, customers, order history, and products.
Step 2: Create and import your email lists easily. Once your list is created, you’ll be able to enter subscribers manually, or import subscribers from a CSV file.
Step 3: Set up email popups to increase subscriber lists. You can easily create and design pop-ups with SmartrMail by navigating to its tab.
Step 4: Design your emails with brand-aligned themes with Brand kits on SmartrMail.
With Brand Kit, marketers can edit and add themes, interactive elements, colors, designs, texts, backgrounds, images, etc from a single place.
Step 5: Send your emails automatically. Navigate to the automation tab and create a New Automated Flow for your April Fool’s Day email.
You can easily customize the workflow with the drag-and-drop editor.
Looking for an easy-to-use, advanced email marketing tool for your brand? Book a demo with SmartrMail to see if it fits your needs.
Summing it up
The key to a successful April Fool’s Day email campaign is to be fun, unique, and brand value-aligned. Avoid being too political, controversial, or insensitive.
Use an email marketing tool to implement every event campaign all around the year. It will not only allow you to automate the emails but also help you A/B test campaigns, segment your subscribers, and access detailed analytics for optimization.
You can book a demo with SmartMail today to take your email marketing to the next level.
