5 clever ideas to start using video in your email marketing campaigns
According to research, we spend one-third of our total time on the internet watching videos.
Videos are used for both promotion and communication, and they are always effective because people love video content. The level of interaction with video content grows all the time, which is a reason why more and more companies realize that they need video in their marketing strategies.
You can integrate videos into your emails, websites, newsletters, landing pages, etc. It’s a great way to promote your business and to establish a strong connection with your audience.
Videos will certainly cause a positive impact on your shares, sales, and click-throughs. Moreover, people are more likely to purchase a product online if they’ve seen a video about it.
Main benefits of video in emails
Everyone receives tons of emails every day. Some of them are important, some are not so important, and most of them are promotional.
Our brains have already adjusted to getting too much promotional content, which is a reason why it’s getting hard to make your subscribers actually open your emails and read them.
If you want to catch the attention of your audience, your emails should be really engaging and interesting, and here’s where videos come in handy.
Including videos in your emails can boost your click-through rates by up to 300%. In addition, mentionings of personalized videos in subject lines can increase your open rates by more than 270%. Plus, it has never been easier to make professional-looking videos yourself. Check out OnlineVideoEditor, a drag-and-drop simple online video maker, where you can quickly make stunning videos to include in your email marketing campaign to engage your audience.
Here are some of the most important advantages of video for email marketing:
Videos save time
They save both your and your receiver’s time, providing a lot of information in a concise and clear manner. Videos also allow you to explain quite complicated things in the simplest and most effective way.
Videos are shareable
Videos draw more attention than other types of content. Subscribers are more likely to share videos, which is a reason why videos have more impact on a wider audience. Obviously, it can be possible only if you produce quality content.
Videos are good for SEO
Videos quickly become popular and improve your search rankings. Search engines love videos, and videos can also significantly increase sharing on social media.
And now the 5 Clever Ideas…
1. Add “Video” to your subject line
Subject lines are very important, in fact, they to a large extent determine the overall success of your emails. Since your goal is to catch the attention, you should get straight to the point, telling your subscribers that they can find a video inside. People will love videos, especially if they are interested in your topic.
2. Use images or animated GIFs instead of boring links
If you just add a link and ask your subscribers to click it in order to watch your next video, this approach is not going to work.You should show instead of telling, this is what video content is all about.
For example, you can include a thumbnail image that will lead your readers right to the video. Add a fake play button image, and your audience will certainly understand this visual call to action. You can also include a gif that will show a short preview of the video, which is even better.
3. Embed video using HTML5
On one hand, this method is great because your subscribers receive video right in the body of the email, with no need to click several links to get to it.
The more clicks they have to make, the lower the level of conversions. However, this approach is also associated with certain problems: many email providers don’t support embedded videos.
You can easily embed videos if someone on your team can write basic HTML code. The main thing is to properly set the size and resolution so that your video will play correctly on different devices. This is a good approach in general, but it will work only with certain email services and certain subscribers.
4. Create a series of videos
Modern people have an incredibly short attention span, which is even shorter than that of a goldfish. Therefore, if you offer one long video, it will be less interesting than a series of short videos. In addition, such an approach allows for higher and more consistent engagement. Make your videos short, informative, and entertaining.
5. Know when to use and when not to use autoplay
Generally, we suggest that you don’t set your videos to autoplay. When videos start to play automatically, they only distract viewers, and there’s nothing worse than an autoplay video that plays really loud.
However, sometimes, you can and even must use autoplay. For example, if your subscribers have already seen a GIF with a preview, they are ready to see the full video, and you should reduce the number of steps for them to see it. If they click your thumbnail and visit your website, make sure that they will start watching the video straight away.
Conclusion
Video content is one of the hottest marketing trends, and you need to incorporate it into your marketing strategy. Videos are more interesting for your audience than textual content because they provide a lot of information in a concise form. They are engaging and people love to share them, which means a lot of opportunity for digital marketers.
If you want to increase click-through rates, conversions, and sales, video content is a must. It allows you to not only promote your product or service but also do it in the most informative and entertaining way possible, motivating your audience to share your content with others.
The world of marketing is constantly changing, and video is what will help you not to lag behind.
