Using images in emails significantly impacts the click-through rates (CTRs) and overall engagement of your email campaign.
Images in emails can boost your CTR by 42%, according to a Vero analysis of over 5,000 campaigns. Visual content is more captivating and readily captures your readers’ attention. The illustrations also help readers understand the message faster.
You need to follow specific practices when adding images to your email content. For example, you must ensure the image used is relevant to the content of the mail and of good quality.
In this blog post, I will explain the benefits of using images in email campaigns and some of the best practices for ensuring effectiveness.
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Benefits of using images in email campaigns
Here are some benefits of using images in your email campaigns, including:
1. Increased engagement
Using images in emails helps to increase engagement with your content compared to a plain block of text because images are visual content, and they help to capture attention and convey emotions.
2. Increased conversions
With increased engagement comes increased conversions. When people connect with your content, they are more likely to take a requested action, and using images in your emails will help your readers connect with your content more.
3. Effective communication
Visuals, like images, can help you convey information more efficiently. Images like a graphic design for an event or an infographic explaining a concept will be more beneficial to your readers than a block of text describing the event or concept.
4. Brand recognition
Using brand-specific images and image elements like color, fonts, design style, etc., will help increase brand recognition. However, consistency is necessary for this to be effective.
Best practices for using images in email campaigns
To ensure the effectiveness of the images used in your campaigns, here are some of the best practices to follow:
1. Maintain brand consistency
As much as you want to use an image that can capture your audience’s attention, you should not neglect the idea of brand identity.
While creating or using stock images, you want to ensure they carry your brand identity as much as possible. For example, if your brand identity is professional, you want to stick with professional pictures; if it is casual and funny, you want to use humor-driven pictures.
2. Consider your text-to-image ratio
Your text-to-image ratio for each of your emails has to be balanced.
Visuals should illustrate the text content rather than be the entire focus of your email. The usual rule of thumb for images in email is a 60:40 ratio in support of texts, and while some schools of thought have suggested an 80:20 ratio, a 60:40 ratio is suitable.
A high ratio of images to text can cause your emails to end up in a spam folder or significantly reduce the loading time of each email.
3. Use appropriate & relevant images
For your image in an email campaign to perform excellently, you are expected to use images that align with the content of your email.
Using irrelevant images can distract readers from the main message.
For example, if you are promoting a specific service, you need to use images particular to that service instead of generic or out-of-context pictures.
4. Use quality images
In addition to using appropriate and relevant images for your email campaigns, you must ensure they are high quality. This can be achieved by creating original images or using images from stock websites like Unsplash, Pexels, Adobe, Shutterstock, etc.
However, original images are the best for your email campaigns because they help reinforce your brand identity.
5. Use the right image format
When using images in emails, it is best to stick to the standard image formats – PNGs (Portable Network Graphics), GIFs (Graphics Interchange Format), and JPGs (Joint Photographic Experts Group). These formats are best for your email images.
However, while JPGs are smaller in size than PNGs and GIFs, image compression can cause image information to be lost when sending emails. You should consider this when choosing the image format.
6. Reduce image sizes
When using images in emails, it is best to reduce file sizes. This affects the loading time and increases the probability that your email will be marked as spam.
According to Drip, an image should not take too much space; 600-800 kb is ideal.
7. Carry out A/B testing
When it comes to email marketing, A/B testing is non-negotiable.
When incorporating images in your emails, it is good to experiment with different types of images and strategies. It doesn’t matter if the pattern you currently use works; with enough testing, you might see another workable pattern with higher results.
You can experiment with different image placements, formats, sizes, styles, etc., to know which seems more effective for your audience.
The role of videos and GIFs in engaging email content
Aside from images in email content, email marketers also incorporate other multimedia content, including videos and GIFs.
The use of GIFs and videos helps interpret complicated messages into a digestible and impactful form. Videos are also impactful because they can convey emotion and display processes in a way that images cannot.
This makes them perfect for brands that want to display their product features; they are also excellent ways to share product tutorials for better understanding and engagement. Recipients pick up the point passed across by merely seeing the visuals.
However, when incorporating GIFs and videos, it is best to optimize them and carry out A/B testing to ensure device compatibility and friendliness.
Some email marketers do not add videos to their emails directly to be on the safer side; instead, they include the link to the video and a strong CTA. This way, the subscriber decides whether to watch the video or not.
Conclusion
Including images in emails is more captivating and can readily capture your readers’ attention than plain text; they offer clearer illustrations of your message. However, this can only work when they are applied effectively in the right way.
Using images in email campaigns and a good email marketing platform will help you upscale your email marketing efforts.
You will see increased engagement, CTR, and even conversion rates.
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