How Video & Animation Can Boost the Effectiveness of Your Email Marketing

Animation has become a popular marketing practice that can help companies connect with their audience and communicate a brand message creatively. Combining email marketing and animated storytelling, you can skyrocket open rates and multiply conversions. Here we consider how.

The fantastic and effective marketing mix of animation and email marketing can do wonders with your website traffic and conversions. We already know about the power of video in email marketing. It’s not surprising that video can increase open rates by 19% and click rates by 65% while reducing unsubscribe rates by 26%, according to recent studies. However, what about the animation? You may wonder how animation can boost email marketing effectiveness. This article provides a brief overview of all the benefits of using an animated GIF or video in email campaigns.

4 efficient tips for using the video in email marketing

Before we talk about the animation, it’s worth considering general tips on using the video in email marketing wisely. Without further ado, let’s take a look at these four practices.

Write text to supplement your video

It’s recommended to create a compelling text copy to accompany your video. According to Kissmetrics, spam filters may recognize your email as spam if it contains only the video. Try to write an attractive text that takes the email receiver straight to the point and clearly describes what the video is about. It helps you make a positive impression of your brand. You show them that your company carries about delivering the real value to its customers, as you let them quickly decide whether they want to watch the video or not by providing its short description.

Place your CTA prominently

Don’t forget to place your call to action in a prominent place. It’s advisable to place the CTA in both your text copy and video. You can use social media links, contact form, download button, or anything else under the CTA. It allows you to drive the audience to the intended place and achieve your goal faster.

Choose an alluring thumbnail for your video

An appealing gateway to your content can help you increase your CTR. Using an alluring thumbnail for your video is a great practice that will amplify your email marketing efforts. You can choose a GIF, a beautiful screenshot from your video, or a custom image with your logo and other branding elements. Let your audience understand what they can expect from the video at a glance.

Send the audience to your site when they click on the thumbnail

Avoid sending heavy videos in email. Better place the link behind the thumbnail and send viewers directly to your website to watch the full video. It will help your drive website traffic and boost SEO. On the other hand, it will make your email “lighter” and delivered to the user more successfully without making people wait for the video to be uploaded.

The benefits of using animation in emails

The video is a powerful content type making people more engaged with a brand message. However, the animation can make it even more exciting. There is no need to create a full-motion video of Disney’s level. You can produce a short animated commercial, animated explainer video, or even a GIF for your email marketing campaign to achieve better results. Here we consider several reasons for using animation in emails.

Speak in a more creative and compelling way

The animation is a perfect practice for speaking to your audience more creatively than other brands in their inbox. You will definitely stand out if you choose animation as the visual part of your email campaign. Although animation seems to be obviously one of the most engaging content types, a few brands use it. Just check your email. Are there many companies using animated videos? Likely, no.

Connect your brand with people at the emotional level

The cartoony elements in your email will help you drive human emotions and create a halo of fun and excitement around your brand. Animation is an effective practice for customer engagement. Introducing your brand as the storyteller that offers them entertainment apart from products and services can help you set a more “personal” connection with your audience.

Increase customer loyalty and build trust

There is no better way to create an atmosphere of trust around the brand than through a cute and fun animation. People tend to trust companies that offer them something more than products and services. The animation delivers two big values to customers: it’s entertainment and aesthetic satisfaction. Stylish animation combined with fun visual metaphors can help your brand set trust-based relationships with customers as they will feel that you’re trying not only to sell anything but also to create a pleasant experience for people interacting with your company in emails.

Be original and build a strong brand image

Consider presenting your new products or services by incorporating an animated video or GIF in your email newsletter. You can place products in surprising contexts that help convey the product’s personality in animated content. Thus, you can explain not only the product’s functionality but reveal its mood and set emotional bonds with potential customers. Moreover, you can employ original and eye-catching animation to announce upcoming events in a more creative and memorable way.

Are you, maybe, going to reach out to the “cold audience” in the email advertising campaign? An animated video is the best way to introduce your brand to people hearing about it for the first time. It will help you establish a powerful first impression and create an unforgettable image.

Incredible animation and video email marketing examples

Would you like to see how other successful companies have implemented these practices in their email marketing campaigns? Don’t lose your chance to enjoy these seven incredible animation and video email examples presented below.

Awesome Merch: welcome emails

Do you want to be original and offer new customers an interesting experience with your brand? You can produce a short introductory video to tell more about your company in an extraordinary way. Here is how Awesome Merch has done it in an email marketing campaign.

Nike: Birthday greetings

If your brand has information about customer birthdays, it’s a great opportunity to take a more personalized approach to them. You can greet them on their birthdays by sending Birthday emails with a personal discount. Here is how Nike has implemented it once. The company has created a fun animated video to inform its customers about a 25% discount on their birthdays.

Fundbox: holiday discounts

Celebrate holidays together with your customers like Funbox. This brand has crafted a cute animated GIF to motivate customers to click the CTA-button leading to its online store. Following the holiday mood, the brand used an engaging call to action letting users know that the discount is waiting for them behind this link.

Microsoft: present new products and features

You can also apply the engagement power of animation to present new products, features, or services. Here is an example of an animated email created by Microsoft. The company uses a fun GIF with a cat to present Outlook as a personal email service and calendar.

Postable: Notifications and updates

Take a look at how Postable has used animation to spice up its email notifications. The brand has created an animated GIF to engage customers, add a pinch of fun to the email, and emphasize the speed of their service. It’s a good practice that helps them set a positive brand image in the customer’s eyes.

Wrap up

Do you want to engage your target audience and create a halo of excitement around your company in the online world? Animation, GIFs, and videos can help you. Wisely combined with email marketing, they can empower your brand to set an emotional connection with customers and earn their loyalty. These are the two most popular and lovable types of content for modern users.

Thousands of forward-thinking businesses around the world have already unlocked the power of animation for customer engagement. They actively apply this marketing practice to their email campaigns and see tremendous results. Above, we have considered five great examples of how successful brands have used animation and videos in their email marketing campaigns.

Animation and videos used in the emails help communicate a brand message more creatively and set a brand apart from the competition (yes, it even exists in your customer’s inbox). They enable companies to build a powerful brand image and reputation. Hopefully, these animation and video email marketing insights will inspire you to rethink your email marketing strategy and take a more creative approach to consumers.

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