You may think the era of email is winding down. People now use instant platforms to communicate instead, as social networking, texting, and messaging have taken the world by storm. Among industry leaders, especially, there's a lot of chatter about email marketing soon becoming irrelevant.
Yet, the reality remains: Email is just as prevalent now as it was 10 years ago.
The number of emails sent will reach record highs over the next three years, a study has predicted. Email shows no signs of stopping or slowing down, and marketers continue to harness the benefits of email marketing in new and unique ways.
Because email reaches a wide audience, it is one of the best marketing platforms. When email is handled intentionally, and when it's coupled with smart automation tools, marketers can use it to target specific types of contacts for more refined results.
Email is also the most affordable channel for most companies. The cost of a standard email marketing platform subscription is nothing compared with what you might spend on other channels.
Why should you add a video component to your email marketing?
Most marketers are aware of the huge boost that video can provide to a campaign's engagement value; yet, email marketing campaigns continuously lack video components. What is it that keeps marketers from implementing video in email campaigns?
- First, most people don't understand how to use video in marketing campaigns, and they don't have the time to figure it out. Because email marketing platforms don't offer a way to directly embed content within the body of the email, marketers don't want to bother with workarounds or alternatives.
- Second, because platforms designed to embed video are constantly evolving, it can often be difficult to distinguish what is and isn't possible.
Despite such concerns, the inclusion of video in your email marketing strategy is too effective to disregard. Video in an email campaign is powerful because it gives your leads a tangible, relatable idea of what your company is about.
Whether you want to show behind-the-scenes content to humanize your team or use a personalized video message from your CEO to make the viewer feel welcomed, video can be quicker and more meaningful than written content alone.
Videos can also educate leads in a way that nurtures them toward taking action with your product or service and proving your value to them upfront.
What are some best-practices to maximize the value of video email efforts?
Now that you know why video is so important in email marketing campaigns, the next step is to begin implementing video in email.
Here are three approaches for making the most of your video and email combination.
1. Align video with each email's purpose
It's important to consider the power of personalized video content and one-on-one communications with your customers. If your email is about getting people to try a new product, share a video with example use cases. If you're sending a welcome email engaging new subscribers, share a brand video or a video welcome message from your CEO.
The more your video matches the overall intention of the email, the more likely your audience will see the value of both the email and the video. Connecting the images they're seeing to the message they're reading further establishes your brand credibility and allows more conversions to occur.
2. Test different kinds of video
As you start to incorporate video into your marketing emails, try various video types until you find the ones that work for your specific goals. Consider testing the video length, style, and content, as well as any graphics, colors, and sounds that may affect how your content resonates with the audience. For example, you may find that sending a video with an overview of the company is best received in an email for recruiting purposes.
You can try endless combinations and adjustments in your experimentation to find the perfect fit. Of course, you can always adjust your strategy over time as you learn what works.
3. Customize videos for specific audiences
Another way to be successful with email is to make the content itself super-customized to the recipient. Email is often far too anonymous, and even a little personalization can go a long way toward making leads feel more engaged with your business.
For certain types of emails, such as sales outreach with warm leads, consider filming a video on your computer's webcam, addressing your recipient by name, and giving them the information they need in video form. You'll stand out in their crowded inbox and provide a novel way to interact with your brand's content.
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As email continues to grow in use, email recipients are continually digging through their inboxes to find messages that engage and educate them. A video email marketing strategy can help you stand out from the rest by moving past the initial barriers and becoming more memorable to your email leads.
More Resources on Email Marketing With Video
Mixing Video With Email Marketing: Four Inspiring Examples and Three Quick Tips
