Video Email Marketing: Everything You Need to Know

It’s time to think beyond social media when strategizing your video campaigns. For instance, video email marketing is a great way to reach your potential customers in a format they consume just as much as social! If it seems a little daunting to you, here’s a primer on everything you need to know about using video in email marketing to create a powerful and effective lever for advertising your business.

What is Video Email Marketing?

Video email marketing involves incorporating videos and GIFs into your email marketing communications. 

As emails proliferate in your inbox, marketers are always looking for ways to add interest and variety. Video gives you a way to unwind, consume a good deal of information, and bond with friends and family. So it makes sense that marketing emails are increasingly making use of the addition of video to add an extra visual dimension — one which speaks to how increasing numbers of Americans process the world around them. 

Recent statistics show that 85% of Americans watch video content online, and those numbers only go up in international markets like China.

Is Video Effective for Marketing?

In brief, yes. Video is very effective for marketing. 

There are billions of digital video viewers worldwide, so the chances are good that your potential customers are among them. Statistics show that 54% of consumers say they wish to see more videos from the brands they love, and 80% of small business owners credit YouTube with expanding their customer base. This is why video marketing for small businesses has become increasingly popular over the years.

Why is Video So Effective for Marketing?

There are many video marketing benefits, including:

• Video is eye-catching and, throughout the pandemic, has become absolutely essential to everyday life including critical activities such as learning, working, unwinding, and, yes, shopping. Indeed, many social media sites, such as Instagram, are trying to collapse the boundary between watching video and shopping, merging the acts of browsing and buying with one click. Learn more about social media video marketing.
• Video is disarmingly entertaining (or it should be) and thus can get around consumer resistance to reading a string of marketing claims. It can be a fun leisure activity, like watching your favorite videos on YouTube. 
• Video improves your SEO rankings, as it adds valuable backlinks (ie, links to other sites such as YouTube, where your video is likely hosted), which Google and other search engines perceive as votes toward the popularity and authority of your site. Learn more about video marketing for SEO.
• Video keeps consumers engaged with your emails. Pressing play forces you to stop and watch, rather than just skim (or tune out, altogether).
• Video offers the chance of virality, which can lead to exponential growth in viewership. If you come up with something that’s entertaining and shareable enough, it can really grow your customer base. It’s unlikely that too many people forward marketing emails that are text-only.
• If you’re a smaller outfit, video can build trust and authority. You could achieve this via a sense of personal connection through a direct address to the camera, which can add a much-needed human face to a marketing email, or it could be via an animated “explainer” video. Either way, video builds a sense of authority around your brand and enhances its aura.
• Videos are easier than text to consume on a small screen. Think of how much time you spend on your phone. It’s just easier (and more absorbing) to watch video than read.

Even including the word “video” in your subject line can lead to an increase in open rates.

How Long Should a Video in an Email Be?

Good marketing videos in emails are short and to the point. You probably know from experience that a longer video is less likely to hold your attention to the bitter end. 

A good rule of thumb is to aim for 30-60 seconds — or even shorter for your video ad examples. The beauty of video is you can pack a lot of information into one, in a palatable way, via the use of techniques like graphics and animation. Think about shooting for the length of a teaser trailer or TV ad to make the most of your audience’s attention span.

How to Embed YouTube Video in Email

YouTube makes it very simple to embed video in email. 

If you’re using Gmail, simply copy the YouTube URL and paste it in. When it shows up to a reader, there will be a thumbnail you can click on.

If you’re using Outlook, you can also just copy and paste your YouTube URL into the body of your email. You can then delete the initial link, and the thumbnail will remain. 

You can take it to the next level by taking your own screenshot to use as the thumbnail you want to appear in the body of the text. 

Note that these common mail platforms won’t give you the most elegant inclusion of your videos, but will rather include them as attachments your recipient clicks on to play. Large marketing-blast email services like Mailchimp can embed your videos more smoothly within your newsletters.

What Email Customers Support Embedded Videos?

You may see differing takes on this online, but all email customers allow you to embed and send video. There are differences in how smooth this process is, however. And bear in mind that you and your recipient may have different email customers. 

Email customers geared toward marketers will make it a smoother experience. Some of the better ones include Outlook for Mac, Apple Mail, Thunderbird, Mailchimp, and iOS Mail. 

On the more challenging platforms, there are workarounds. For example, you could create and insert an animated GIF that acts as a preview of a video you can click on to play. Even with those workarounds, it’s absolutely worth using videos in your email.

Related: Social Media Video Ad Specs & Placements Guide

7 Ways to Use Video in Email Marketing Campaigns

Here are some of the most compelling ways your brand could use video production to stand out.

Method #1: Behind the Scenes Videos

Think about taking your audience behind the scenes of one particularly photogenic aspect of your process. They’ll feel more invested in your brand, and you can show off something you’re proud of. If you have a food or beverage brand, for example, you could highlight your sustainability efforts or the purity of your ingredients. By adding an element of education and background texture to your emails, viewers will come away with a new appreciation of your brand.

Method #2: User-Generated Content (UGC)

UGC rates highly when it comes to authority and trustworthiness. It involves real people giving testimonials about your product or showing how they use it in their everyday life. It can add a shot of relatability and humanity to your emails.

Method #3: Viral Videos

You can’t guarantee that a video goes viral, but think about creating videos that are funny, emotional, or eye-catching enough to warrant being shared with friends and family. Consider the types of videos that you’ve forwarded to friends and the kinds of qualities they have in common. Can you come up with something similar for your brand?

Method #4: New Product Announcements

You can harness the excitement of a movie teaser trailer by using video to announce your new product line, as well as possible giveaways.

Method #5: Bonus Content

If you make supplements, for example, you could use product videos to suggest new recipes or uses for your products. You could also use video to discuss related wellness activities, like meditation or yoga. Content that’s useful, friendly, and indirectly related to your product can help build trust and authority for you.

Method #6: Animated Explainer Videos

Animation and graphics are simply fun to watch. If your brand wants to tout its sustainability efforts (for example) or a system that it’s particularly proud of, an animated explainer video is a great way of getting the message across in a way that’s entertaining and easy to follow.

Method #7: Seasonal and Timely Content

If your business has specific holiday demands and spikes, consider sending out timely content (e.g. Halloween, Christmas, New Year’s) to add an extra sense of joy and personalization to your marketing campaign. There are endless amounts of video marketing ideas you can try!

Create High-Quality Videos at Scale

One of the critical aspects of email marketing with video is that your content needs to be of the highest quality to compete with all the other distractions fighting for your readers’ and viewers’ attention. 

A good video marketing strategy will be able to produce enough content to keep your audience well-entertained while sticking to your marketing budget. That takes smarts, experience, and a well-honed sense of the rapidly-changing landscape of marketing and video in 2022. 

QuickFrame loves to make outstanding videos that stay on budget, reach your audience, and get you results. Get in touch today to make your video marketing emails sing.

Video Email Marketing: Final Thoughts

Video content marketing is the future. It’s a way to build trust and a sense of personal connection with your potential customers, and it cuts through the noise. But executing it takes skill. Make sure you’re getting the most out of your video email marketing strategy by working with QuickFrame’s intelligent video production platform. They won’t rest until they get it right and get real results for your brand.