If a picture is worth a thousand words, then a video has to be worth so much more. And, when you use a video in your e-mail marketing, so much the better. Not too long ago it used to be that adding a video to your e-mail was a daunting task ripe with error messages, but that’s just not the case anymore. Today, it’s pretty simple to add a video to your e-mail campaign. And, it works!
According to a February 2013 study by The Relevancy Group,* 55% of marketers who used video in their e-mail campaigns saw a higher click through rate, 44% saw a spike in time spent viewing the e-mail, and 41% noticed an increase in the number of recipients who forwarded the e-mail on to others.
Not only is video effective, but it also affords you an opportunity to communicate in ways you can’t with a copy-only campaign. And, with the prevalence of the Internet and the popularity of YouTube, videos are now an expected marketing medium.
How to Go About Putting Video in Your E-mail
If you want to add video to your e-mail campaign, you have a few choices:
- Add a script to your page
- Embed a YouTube video to your page or have the video open in a separate application such as Windows Media Player
- Use a static image with a play icon that when clicked will link to a landing page to view the video
- Use HTML5’s tagThe first choice is complicated, and while going the YouTube route works, it’s not the most polished presentation. I like the static image option, but it may mean an extra click for your prospects if their autoplay option is off. I think HTML5 is your best bet because it’s the new standard, allowing you to deliver video to the inbox for desktop, web-based, and mobile e-mail users. That said, working with HTML5 will take some practice. Luckily, there are many tutorials available online. Find one that works with your learning style.
Are you using video in your e-mail campaigns? How’s it working? Share your experiences with us.
Digital Media Insider 