Right now, you are probably using email marketing to drive more viewers to your videos. Or perhaps you’re using video marketing to get more subscribers for your email list.

But are you using video to boost your email engagement? If your emails aren’t performing as well as you would like, this is an excellent – not to mention very easy – way to increase both open rates and clickthrough rates!

In fact, an internal study by GetResponse has found that video emails get 96% higher clickthrough rates. Not too shabby, is it?

But wait, there’s more – according to Syndacast, just mentioning the word “video” in the subject line of your email boosts open rates by 19%, clickthrough rates by 56%, and reduces unsubscribes by 26%.

Clearly, there’s something there, and your email marketing would benefit from incorporating video. So today we’re going to share with you three quick and easy ways to do just that. Let’s dive in!

Improve Email

1. Boost click-through rates with visually appealing thumbnails

When you write an email about a video, inserting a plain-text link will do the job… but it won’t give you the optimal clickthrough rate.

No, you want something that practically screams, “Click me!” – and we know of at least three neat tricks to make it happen:

  • Insert a gif from the video, with a play button overlaid – it looks really cool and exceptionally clickable.
  • Insert an intriguing still from the video itself – this is an old trick used by content creators on YouTube, and it translates extremely well to email.
  • Insert a still from the video with parts of it blurry, and write “Click to reveal [whatever it is you’re hiding from them]” – an excellent way to stoke people’s curiosity.

Small touches like these do more than just make people click – they introduce visual elements into your emails, which is a proven way to increase engagement.

So if you’re writing to your subscribers about a video, make sure you both show and tell what awaits them!

2. Create irresistible calls-to-action to specific sections of the video

Here’s another very simple trick to boost clickthrough rates by taking advantage of curiosity… In your call-to-action, don’t link to the video in general, but to a specific timestamp within the video.

It’s a trick that many entrepreneurs are using to promote their podcasts, but it works brilliantly with video, too. If you have a long-form piece of content with multiple valuable takeaways, or pieces of advice, it’s very easy to get people hooked by writing something like:

“And in case you don’t have the time to watch the whole thing, here’s the best part where I reveal how to [do something awesome and useful] (starts at 5:30)”

That’s it! Now you have an incredibly compelling call-to-action that doesn’t feel pushy or salesy – it’s hard not to click.

3. Maximize content consumption with embedded videos

Sometimes, conversions aren’t a priority. For example, let’s say you’re making an important announcement to your subscribers. You want people to read all the way through, not click or do something else. You want to minimize distractions and ensure full engagement.

But you also know that people won’t read all the way to the end – that’s just human nature. You could endlessly tweak your copy to make it more engaging, or insert all sorts of images, infographics, and other eye-teasers to keep readers interested…

…or you could just embed a video!

Note that, whatever email service provider you’re using, they would need to support HTML5 tags to make the video play. And just in case it doesn’t happen, make sure there’s an alternative image and text being displayed to direct people to the website after all.

We still think about email as static messages – but they don’t have to be, not in 2016! You can use video and other visuals to enhance your subscribers’ experience, and boost engagement dramatically.

It’s not about getting fancy with your design, or adding unnecessary stuff just for the sake of pizzaz, but about presenting what you have to say in a way that grabs attention and compels to take action.

And now you have 3 useful tricks up your sleeve to do just that – enjoy your improved conversions!

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