Efficient emails have interaction the reader and encourage them to take motion. There are many methods to try to try this, however GIFs in electronic mail advertising and marketing have one thing nearly magical about them.
Why? For one factor, folks don’t actually anticipate to see shifting photographs in an electronic mail.
However it’s additionally as a result of photographs are extra highly effective and extra memorable than phrases. They get consideration. They elicit emotion. GIFs in electronic mail advertising and marketing can talk a key thought shortly and successfully.
GIFs aren’t only for social media. Sure, they do properly at getting consideration in that crowded panorama. However the electronic mail inbox is crowded too, and when readers scan by means of an electronic mail after opening it, a GIF is certain to catch their consideration and make them spend extra time together with your electronic mail.
After all, it’s about extra than simply throwing in random finds from Giphy. You’ll get probably the most out of including and creating animated GIFs for electronic mail campaigns if you happen to accomplish that strategically. We’re going to discover some manufacturers which can be utilizing GIFs to make their emails extra impactful.
However first – let’s reply just a few questions on GIFs in electronic mail.
Are GIFs in electronic mail supported?
You’ll assume that by now, supporting GIFs could be fairly commonplace amongst electronic mail purchasers. And you’ll be appropriate… aside from some variations of Outlook.
Desktop variations of Outlook (2007 – 2016) don’t help animated GIFs. Outlook 2019 performs an animated GIF as soon as after which produces a play button to see it once more. Nonetheless, GIFs will work simply high-quality for subscribers utilizing Outlook.com and on the app utilizing iOS or Android.
E mail builders can tackle Outlook GIF help points with some conditional code that creates a GIF fallback, which shows a static picture as an alternative. The opposite choice is to ensure the primary body of a GIF has crucial data, since that’s what desktop variations of Outlook will show.
Don’t miss our different ideas for fixing Outlook electronic mail rendering points.
A method round that is to write code that tells Outlook the right way to deal with GIFs in your electronic mail. That doesn’t fully resolve the issue, but it surely does present a greater expertise for the reader.
Why use GIFs in emails?
A greater query is likely to be, why not use GIFs in electronic mail advertising and marketing? Let’s be sincere, it’s a fantastic (and fairly simple) technique to convey static emails to life. However that’s not the one purpose.
Methods to make use of GIFs in electronic mail:
- Create an animated call-to-action (CTA)
- Embrace as a substitute for video in electronic mail
- Present how one thing works with an animation
- Add humor to an electronic mail marketing campaign
- Draw consideration to one thing essential in an electronic mail
- Showcase a number of merchandise in a single picture
When Dell used GIFs in one in every of their electronic mail campaigns, they noticed a 42% enhance in clicks. Extra importantly, they earned a 109% enhance in income. Granted, that was again in 2014. Nonetheless, it’s nonetheless an instance of how electronic mail design modifications could make an enormous distinction.
Let’s take a look at the technique from 5 manufacturers which have used GIFs in emails extra not too long ago.
6 manufacturers utilizing GIFs in electronic mail creatively
It’s fairly easy to move over to Giphy and search for pre-made GIFs referencing popular culture, present occasions, animals, and many extra. And there’s nothing flawed with that — so if you happen to discover one thing that matches inside the tenor of your electronic mail, go together with it.
However by way of advertising and marketing that nudges prospects and subscribers to take motion and obtain true worth out of your electronic mail, you normally need to make your personal GIF photographs. Let’s take a look at just a few examples.
1. Apple: GIF as how-to content material
Apple despatched an electronic mail displaying subscribers the right way to handle and simplify their iTunes subscriptions. The e-mail included a GIF, proven under, that walked subscribers by means of precisely the right way to find the suitable settings on their gadget.
This GIF delivered worth to customers by giving useful data and fixing a selected drawback many confronted.
2. Adobe: GIF illustrates a function
To unfold the information of one in every of their coolest product options, Adobe used a GIF to convey their electronic mail to life. Their subscribers may instantly see the ability of the device. For his or her present prospects, this might additional solidify their reliance on and loyalty to Adobe. And for a lot of of their potential prospects, the “wow issue” of this demonstration was probably sufficient to transform them.
3. EPIC: GIF promotes a sale
A typical use of GIFs is just to attract consideration. EPIC despatched out an electronic mail selling huge reductions. Folks get these types of emails on a regular basis and reductions alone typically don’t get sufficient consideration. However anybody who opened this electronic mail could be drawn to the colourful GIF animation and provides the message above-average consideration.
On this case, EPIC’s electronic mail GIF isn’t what most of consider as a typical GIF. The model used the GIF file format so as to add a shifting background to a graphic. There’s no popular culture reference, no merchandise, not even any animated textual content. It’s easy, but it surely’s additionally type of… hypnotizing.
4. Loom: GIF as a substitute for video
One other efficient manner to make use of GIF animation in emails is to preview or promote an precise video — like what Loom did right here. Movies don’t normally play in emails, however if you happen to create a GIF from the one with a ‘play’ button overlaying the picture, it will probably appeal to extra clicks to the true factor.
5. Everlane: GIF showcases a number of merchandise
Right here’s an electronic mail instance from Everlane the place the GIF does the promoting. This form of animation works properly for merchandise which can be very comparable however are available in a wide range of colours, shapes, flavors, sizes, and so forth. On this case, the GIF exhibits completely different t-shirts worn by completely different fashions.
So, proper within the electronic mail, with out even clicking, the subscriber has already began the procuring course of.
6. Starbucks: GIF to assist create buzz
While you’ve acquired a particular occasion or an enormous announcement, a bit animation can boost your electronic mail marketing campaign, making it extra memorable. Starbucks did this with an unique animated GIF to advertise pop-up events the place subscribers may get free espresso.
If the information you’re sharing is thrilling, it solely is sensible to create a extra thrilling electronic mail!
Fast ideas for utilizing GIFs in electronic mail advertising and marketing
GIFs are a fantastic addition to your electronic mail design, however that doesn’t imply you may throw just a few in and name it a day. Listed below are some tricks to get probably the most from utilizing GIFs.
1. Don’t overdo it
Placing a GIF in each electronic mail will, ultimately, be like placing a GIF in no emails. In advertising and marketing, if you happen to do one thing on a regular basis, it inevitably finally ends up turning into background noise. Use GIFs neatly, strategically, and selectively.
2. Contemplate electronic mail accessibility
Animations which can be too quick and flashy can really trigger hurt to individuals who endure from seizures. So go simple on the motion.
And if you happen to bury essential copy inside the GIF picture itself — as with every different picture — you run the danger of individuals not seeing that textual content if the GIF doesn’t present up for some purpose. And for folks with visible impairments, together with colour blindness, you run the danger of them lacking your message.
So watch out when together with key messaging on the precise GIF until you repeat the identical message elsewhere within the electronic mail.
3. Embrace fallbacks
Anytime you add complicated components to an electronic mail, you enhance the probabilities of it not working. Whereas there’s a lot you are able to do to reduce this, as you’ll see in a bit, you do need to embody a static picture that may present up rather than the GIF if for some purpose it doesn’t perform.
4. Use GIFs to tease video content material
You noticed this earlier within the Loom instance. Video usually doesn’t play in emails. It may be achieved, but it surely’s difficult and never universally supported by electronic mail purchasers. There’s an excellent probability many subscribers received’t see it.
So if you wish to ship a video by way of electronic mail, you usually have to simply embody a screenshot with a play button that clicks by means of to the video. With GIFs, you may make the video look like enjoying, which may enhance clicks.
5. Watch the file dimension of GIFs in electronic mail
This once more is true with any graphics. Giant file sizes enhance load time, and subscribers shortly lose endurance if they’ve to take a seat there whereas the picture slowly comes into view.
Similar to you need to scale back file sizes for normal images and graphics, you’ll want to hold your GIF file sizes small too.
Optimizing GIFs for the e-mail inbox
Gradual load instances. GIF animations not displaying up or not animating (Outlook!). Incorrect picture placement. There are a number of the way your GIFs and different graphics can present up incorrectly when your subscribers open your emails on the handfuls and dozens of potential units and platforms.
E mail on Acid’s Marketing campaign Precheck automated checklist contains the Picture Validation step, which checks load time for photographs, ensures appropriate borders and widths, and confirms that your GIFs are working correctly.
We even make it simple to do the workaround talked about earlier for subscribers who could also be opening your emails in Outlook. You possibly can shortly select the body in your GIF that you simply need to present up as a picture for Outlook customers, in case the animation doesn’t perform.
Needless to say if you check with E mail on Acid, you received’t be capable to see the GIFs in motion, as our previews are static. Odds are the platform will seize them mid-animation, however relaxation assured that is completely regular. It means they’re animating simply high-quality!
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Writer: The E mail on Acid Staff
The E mail on Acid content material group is made up of digital entrepreneurs, content material creators, and straight-up electronic mail geeks.
Join with us on LinkedIn, comply with us on Fb, and tweet at @EmailonAcid on Twitter for extra candy stuff and nice convos on electronic mail advertising and marketing.
Writer: The E mail on Acid Staff
The E mail on Acid content material group is made up of digital entrepreneurs, content material creators, and straight-up electronic mail geeks.
Join with us on LinkedIn, comply with us on Fb, and tweet at @EmailonAcid on Twitter for extra candy stuff and nice convos on electronic mail advertising and marketing.
