Xbox Email Modernization & System Redesign
ROLE: CREATIVE DIRECTOR
PROJECT TYPE: DESIGN SYSTEMS, CRM MARKETING, BRAND INTEGRATION
As Creative Director, I led the redesign of Xbox’s email marketing program—transforming it from a fragmented communication channel into a cohesive, gamer-centric platform for content and campaigns. Working across CRM, brand, and design teams, I helped create a modular system that brought the richness of the Xbox universe into the inbox—driving better engagement and more consistent brand experiences across titles and audiences.
The Brief
Xbox wanted to evolve its email program to better reflect the quality of its content and the expectations of its audience. The challenge was twofold: increase user engagement while streamlining campaign production. Emails needed to feel immersive and relevant, but also perform reliably across devices and platforms. The system had to balance the Xbox master brand with the unique identities of dozens of game franchises—without creating visual chaos or mixed messaging.
Creative Direction & Approach
I began by establishing a shared design language across templates—defining structure, hierarchy, and motion patterns that created consistency without sacrificing creativity. My team and I developed a modular system of content blocks that allowed marketers to build campaign-specific emails with clarity and speed, avoiding the clutter of one-size-fits-all messaging.
Visually, I directed a shift toward more immersive layouts and moments of delight—making space for bold key art, brand stories, and quick paths to action. The designs were mobile-first, built with performance in mind, and grounded in player behavior: fast to scan, easy to engage, hard to ignore.
The results
The new system simplified production and significantly improved engagement. Marketers could now build beautiful, on-brand campaigns without relying on developers or starting from scratch. And for players, Xbox emails became a more exciting, intuitive way to stay connected to the games and content they cared about.
Along with our completed design system we created and delivered detailed documentation within an Xbox Email Design Playbook—including a system overview, guidelines, best-practices, development notes, and detailed instructions for using every template and component to create effective, beautiful, best-in-class email communications.
By bringing system thinking and creative storytelling into the inbox, we turned a functional channel into a brand asset—one that delivers both value and excitement with every send.
