Videos have been a powerful medium and the consumption of video content has grown trifold since the pandemic caused a workplace paradigm.

One of the most interesting and rewarding applications has been the use of videos in emails.

Individuals and businesses have started using videos in their emails to make the email personalized and engaging. This act has rewarded them with new business deals and better email engagement.

If you are someone who is looking to use videos on your email marketing channel, you can get started for free with Vmaker to create your videos on the go.

Learn more about Vmaker Screen Recorder.

Now, back to the objective of this blog.

While Vmaker covers one part of video emails (creating videos) we wanted to cover the other part of the process as well – emails.

We partnered with the Mailshake team to deliver a complete view of the entire process. We hosted Will Taylor from Mailshake to talk more about how individuals and solopreneurs can use video emails to generate more engagement and win new business.

To gain your undivided attention here is a stat I googled on video consumption – As of 2021, an average person is predicted to spend 100 minutes per day watching online videos.

With the average screen time being 7 hours and 11 minutes in the US, and the favor towards consuming video content compared to text content, the numbers are always poised to rise.

Marketing is a function that capitalises on user behaviour and as always brands have picked up on the same.

A wise man once said don’t build a marketing team build an ad agency for your brand.

You have to create content which your users enjoy, educate and can empathise (let’s frame it as the EEE framework for content creation)

WIth videos currently on top of the pyramid of content consumption, the good brands started finding a way to create video content in the EEE framework to make them work.

Emails has been a traditional channel in marketing playbooks and even after decades since the inception the importance and the returns from email engagement continue to grow.

Given a choice, even today I will personally pick an email list with 10,000 subscribers compared to a social following of 10,000.

From the user perspective, they need something new in their emails to make it engaging. Frankly, the average inbox is swamped with thousands of emails begging for attention that it paved way for a new concept called ‘Inbox Zero’

But with the involvement of videos and attractive thumbnails, you can help your emails stand out.

Video emails are a great asset to aid your creativity in email communication. This has helped marketers gain 3X results compared to the traditional HTML or plain text email formats.

But, this does not mean all your emails have to be video-based.

Given the amount of hype so far, it is natural to feel tempted (hopefully) to use videos in all forms of communication right away.

But videos should be used wisely with specific goals and cadences.

There are different types of videos you can create based on the objective

• Introduction videos
• Presentation videos
• Product Demo videos
• Sales Videos

And more..

Break down the objective and analyse what type of content will yield benefit for the user.

Do remember, videos are an add on and not a replacement for your regular text. Even if you are considering sending videos on emails, do append the same with text to set the context and the action performed once the user clicks on the video link.

If you are looking at the ways in which you can embed videos to your email, check this blog ~ Video Emails: How to Send a Video via Email

Bonus: Top Video Email Platforms Ranked | Video Emails

The next step in the video email workflow is to personalize the experience. And by personalization, we don’t mean mentioning their first name and their company name or their designation.

Email marketing and email marketing platforms have evolved a lot, that the usage of names and basic info on emails don’t create a personalized engagement anymore, they are page 1.

So, what else can you do?

Go through the prospect’s profile and try to pick something from their bio. One example is mentioning their favourite sports team or their recent tweet.

If none of these things work, you can still create a human touch in your emails by sharing a glimpse of your own environment.

Yes, I am referring to the email screenshot that has their pet do image added to it. Who doesn’t love that?

In short, try to add elements to your emails that can create a human connection than showing this is nothing short of a system-generated disclaimer statement feel.

Ah! No marketing plan is complete without a column or a slide that has the 3 Golden alphabets ROI.

Unlike other channels, video ROI management is straightforward (unless you want to get into the dark or hidden touchpoints of a buyer journey)

Video email metrics are no different from your regular email metrics, except that this time you add a couple more metrics to measure.

You should check the CTR to the video, the average view duration and post watch action (share, engage with the video etc.)

To get this closer to the revenue circle, we at Vmaker added a new feature to our platform. We added the option to include a CTA right there in the video player page.

This helps your user to watch the video and then take the next action right from the video player page instead of switching tabs or platforms.

This simple element has brought the overall engagement directly in lieu of the conversion metric.

Don’t forget to test the emails with A/B options wherever possible. You have to arrive at a template after multiple experiments and continue to experiment to improvise.

Too little to choose from too many. That’s the scenario in the market today for any product.

But, to help you get started you can choose from the below options,

• Vmaker to create your videos (You’re here anyway why not try it?!)
• Mailshake for email automation (They added some great value here)
• A laptop with a webcam (yes external cams work great, but not a hindrance)
• AI Video Editor (You have it covered if you choose Vmaker. Vmaker AI turns raw video footage into published-ready video in a minuties.)
• Time (You might not have heard this before but ‘good things take time and practice’)

This arsenal should help you get started with video emails right away.

The best time to start video emails was yesterday and the next best time to start video email marketing is now. (Another quote you might not have heard before)

I suggest you try a few quick videos amongst your internal team members before you roll out big time.

While you do so, be prepared to roll out a few imperfect videos and work on perfection as a process rather than an end result.

The consumption style of videos is only going to increase with VR and technologies coming into the picture. Your brand should not miss out on the same.​​

Videos make things easier to consume. People tend to retain more information from what they see and hear compared to what they read.

The growth in consumption and the added benefit of retention capability have made videos a go-to content format for businesses today.

Today, videos are being used in marketing, sales, customer support, and even in internal team communication.

The shift in work culture due to the pandemic has fuelled the growth of this adoption at a faster pace.

Even with all these advantages, videos are still not used to their optimum potential and we are still working on this goal each day.

Video Emails

Video emails are usually emails that carry videos. The above introduction has shared the understanding of how videos are flaring far better than other content types today.

Yet, the distribution of videos has not been easy. The video formats, length, hosting will all affect the consumption of videos.

Emails of all this is one channel that has benefitted by the inclusion of videos.

Though you cannot embed videos directly to your emails, there are still other ways to use emails as a channel to distribute your videos.

Choosing a video email platform is tricky since they solve a piece of your overall marketing puzzle and hence they should gel well with other platforms in use.

Apart from this, there are a few parameters you should consider while choosing your video email platform.

Video Creation

Video creation covers the initial recording part of the videos. The platform should allow you to record and edit videos seamlessly.

For example, Vmaker comes with a mac application and a chrome extension to record your videos on the go. The dashboard is maintained in the cloud to help you access all your recordings from anywhere.

The platform should also allow you to use an external mic or camera without any complexity.

Video Production

Any activity that drives friction will not be carried out efficiently. With video creation, you need to be as friction-free as possible.

Make sure the platform comes in with an inbuilt editor that can help you do the basic editing to your recorded videos without having to look for an external tool.

The process should be simple and should not require a tech-savvy person to oversee the same.

Video Hosting and Analytics

Instead of YouTube or Vimeo, if you can get free hosting with the platform you can save more $. The hosting should allow unlimited streaming at a higher bit rate to offer a great viewing experience.

Video analytics will help you measure engagement with the video. A list of anonymous views and inhouse view segregation will help in each campaign to personalize the follow-ups.

Here are some of the top platforms you can check out to improve your video email game this year. Each platform has its own merit and they serve a specific purpose. Whether it is nurturing, prospecting, or customer support – you will find the right platform below.

We have to top the list with Vmaker for obvious reasons. Vmaker is a webcam and screen recording tool that can help you record and send personalized videos over email.

Ranked by G2 as a High performer in their summer report, Vmaker has been widely used by Content creators, Sales and Marketing professionals, and YouTubers.

Vmaker helps you with the following benefits:

• Native Gmail integration to record or send recordings from your email compose tab
• You can record, edit and host videos with your custom branded player page
• Collaborative work option with your team
• Add a custom Call-to-Action button on your video player page
• Unlimited cloud storage

These are a few options of the major chunk that makes Vmaker stand out from the crowd. The fact that you can use the free version to record videos at 720P with an unlimited number of recordings makes it the first choice to give it a try.

The paid plans start at $7 and the teams plan starts at $10.

VideoPeel is an online video platform to generate social proof such as customer testimonials, and success stories in the form of videos.

It allows you to receive video testimonials from your clients and share them to your audience via your website or other communication platforms.

The pricing for VideoPeel is not available directly on their website. But going by external sources, the pricing starts at $69 per month.

HippoVideo is an online video personalization platform. This is primarily used by sales professionals in prospecting scenarios to send personalized videos to their email list at scale.

The platform allows you to record, edit, and personalized videos based on custom variables.

The pricing for the platform starts at $15 per month.

VideoAsk is a new name in the block introduced by the famous experience management platform Typeform.

VideoAsk allows you to customize all client communications with videos. Be it emails, website chat, or testimonials, you can customize the entire communication via videos.

Customers or users have the option to engage back using videos or by using text.

The platform is majorly used in the customer relationship segment to create a personalized appeal in communication.

The Grow plan with VideoAsk starts at $24 and the Brand plan starts at $40 when you bill yearly.

Adilo is primarily a video hosting platform that also allows you to record, play and analyze the videos.

Focused on creating more engagement and closing more sales with videos, Adilo allows you to record and host 4K videos, podcasts, upload external videos, and more.

The basic plan for Adilo starts at $29 a month and the growth and unlimited plans start at $49 and $149 respectively.

Sendspark is a video recording platform that allows you to record and send videos over email. They find their application across sales, marketing, and customer success roles.

Sendspark can be integrated with some of the top email platforms such as Outreach, Hubspot, Outlook, Gmail, and more.

The application comes in the form of a chrome extension and the pricing starts at $12 for pro plan and $15 for a business plan when billed annually.

Vidyard is a video platform that powers virtual selling. It helps you to record and share videos with your prospects on sales pitches, proposals, demos, and more.

The platform comes in with video recording, hosting, personalization, and analytics options.

The pricing for the same starts at $15/mo for pro plan and the teams plan at $300 per month.

Dubb is an online video communication platform that allows you to send video messages to drive more engagement and conversions.

Dubb is poised to replace text messages with video messages across all communication platforms such as email, website chat, messengers, etc.

With Dubb, you can create videos and embed them on your landing pages to drive more engagement. Dubb also offers contact level tracking to personalize follow-ups.

The pricing starts at $32 for the pro plan and $80 for the annual plan.

BombBomb is an upcoming popular name amongst video platforms to utilize the power of video emails. 

Poised to improve the customer engagement with the power of videos, their video platform pricing starts at $29/mo, and the plus plan starts at $49/month. 

Bomb Bomb is widely preferred to improve sales, customer experience, and for internal communication. 

EasySendy Pro is a video email marketing platform that integrates all your various marketing channels and accelerates traffic and conversion rate.

Using EasySendy, You can easily create and send personalized video content via Email on a scale to capture the recipient’s attention.

You can also create and push successful campaigns through different SMTP relays like Amazon SES, Mandrill, SendGrid, Sparkpost, Leadersend, MailGun, SendinBlue, and more.

Get Started with video emails

Video emails tend to work wonders if you play them with the right mix. You have to find the right proportions of content, video production, tools, and the right CTA. 

If you can nail this mix right you will see a 3X jump in results right away. 

Get started with Vmaker for your video emails and try our all-in-one record, edit, host, and share functionality to create and share videos on the scale.

If you enjoyed reading the above article, then here are a few cherry-picked ones you might be interested in reading further!

Heat up your cold sales emails with personalized videos

Video Emails: How to Send a Video via Email

The Ultimate Guide to Screen Recorder

How to Record Gameplay on PS4

Best screen recorder for Mac

Adding videos to your emails is a great way to boost your email engagement. It has proven to improve the email metrics overall and help meet the end goals.

We can conclude mutually that adding videos to your email is a good idea, but email senders do not usually allow you to embed videos to emails. This is to avoid spam and increase the deliverability rate.

Saying that I have listed a few options on how to send videos through email to get the best results.

In addition, I have also added some of the best practices to follow while sending videos through emails to maximize your email engagement.

You can always use the Vmaker chrome extension to quickly create or insert your videos through your Gmail compose tab.

Of all the types of emails that are being sent, video emails have proven to bring home the most engagement than their counterparts.

With videos, you give the user a chance to watch the content or read the content. People love having limited choices and the luxury to choose.

Videos also help you add a face to the thumbnail and create a personalized touch to your content. People love talking to people more than to brand names.

When you get a few seconds of your reader’s time you want to leave a lasting impression and videos help you do that.

So, how do you send videos through your email?

Do you embed them or send just the links?

Do you work on the thumbnail and what if the thumbnail preview is disabled?

Will your email be blocked by spam filters? If so, how to avoid them?

These are some of the questions I have tried answering in the below lines, read on to find out.

As I mentioned earlier, most platforms such as Gmail, Outlook, Yahoo, etc. do not support native video embed options. It makes sense from their end when they want to maximize email deliverability.

But from your end, you need to maximize the user experience when they engage with your email.

I have listed a few options below to balance out both ends – Sending videos in your email without hurting the deliverability rate.

Using Vmaker is one of the easiest ways to record or send one of your recordings to your audience via email.

You can use the Vmaker chrome extension. Once you have installed it, open the chrome compose tab in your Gmail.

Once you have opened you will see the Vmaker logo right next to the send button.

Click on the logo and choose either of the options suggested. If you are using it for the first time, choose the record video option. If you have already recorded your video, you can choose the insert video option.

Once you are done recording, the video is automatically hosted on our platform and the link will be added to the email with the thumbnail.

When people click on the link they will be redirected to the player page where they can watch the video.

This option is the best if you are someone who loves to improve the email engagement in one on one videos.

Bonus Tip

If you are using Vmaker and sending videos in one on one emails, you can have a better hold of the analytics.

When you go to your player page, you can watch the video analytics where you can see how many people have watched your video.

This will give you a confirmation on whether people have seen your video or not.

This is one of the most used methods and an easy way to send videos through your email. It is the one to go for if you are adding videos as a part of your email automation.

In this method, you will add a video as a hyperlink to your video thumbnail image attached to the email with a play button.

When people click on that image, they will be taken to the video platform where they can watch the video.

Follow the below steps to embed videos using the thumbnail method

1. Record a video and host it on a platform. If you are using Vmaker, it will be posted to our platform automatically and you can copy the video link
2. Create a thumbnail image for your video
3. Add the thumbnail image to your email compose section
4. Right-click on the thumbnail image and insert your video link
5. You are all set to go

When people click on the image, it will take them to the video player page on Vmaker or YouTube or wherever you have hosted the video and they can play the video from there.

Bonus Tip

If you use Vmaker for your videos, you have the option of custom branding. With custom branding, you can add a Call to Action button to the player page.

This allows you to have a video landing page with your own logo and brand colors. 

This again improves conversion by paving the way for your audience to take an action from the same page after watching the video.

Embedding emails using the HTML5 code snippet delivers the best user experience. Why? Because it allows the reader to play the video within the email.

Ask any marketer, they will tell you that the more you reduce the number of clicks the better the chances of conversion.

But, why aren’t people using this option and why am I suggesting this at the end?

Well, for all unfortunate reasons, not every platform supports the HTML5 email embed option. There are only a handful of platforms that allow you to embed and play embedded videos.

This means if your reader is not viewing the email in one of the supported platforms, then they will not be able to watch the video spoiling the mission.

Below is the list of platforms that support HTML5 video email embed

While it offers the best user experience, it has a higher risk in deliverability and this is the reason most video email software are not supporting the system today.

You can check this link to find the detailed instructions and embed codes to embed a video natively to the platform.

Attaching a direct YouTube URL is another method but I won’t recommend that again. If you just attach a YouTube URL to your email, then Gmail by default creates a preview of the thumbnail to the attachment section.

This is a better option compared to attaching a Google drive link – which won’t create any preview.

But you have to catch the attention of the user without having them scroll to the end.

Plus having the thumbnail+image option will help you create a better appeal in the initial frame and leads to better engagement.

Best practices to improve your video email engagement

Adding videos to your email is the first part of the job. To ensure successful engagement, you need to work on other aspects of the emails.

Here are some points to improve your video email engagement.

• Use the word ‘video’ in your subject line. This has been statistically shown to improve the open rate of emails.
• Add your video with context. Don’t send them just the video, instead of adding some context in the text mentioning what the video is about and what can they expect once they click to watch the video
• Explain what happens when they click. This is important. If your link will take them to an external link then do mention what happens once the user clicks on the link. Whether the video plays there or if it takes them to an external site, or should check the video attached at the end of the email.
• Analyze the time to send the video. Make sure you run some experiments to find the optimum time for engagement. You are shooting a killer arrow and you don’t wanna fire it in the dark.
• Test the email before you spend – Test the email by sending test emails to multiple email domains and checking the preview in multiple email tools such as a mobile, desktop, tablet, and in software such as Gmail, Outlook, and others.

If you nail this down, you will see a green curve soaring in the weekly email report.

To ensure high deliverability and security of your emails, consider implementing a DMARC setup. DMARC helps protect your domain from being used in phishing and spoofing attacks, thereby improving the chances that your video emails will reach your audience without being marked as spam.

Try Vmaker for Free

If you are looking for an easy solution to record and add videos to your emails, you should give Vmaker a try.

It helps you to record and add videos from your Gmail application (more integrations are on the way).

You can also record your video via the app, edit them with external videos and audio and then insert the recording into your emails.

It makes the process complete by supporting with video analytics and the option to add a CTA to the player page making your audience take the next action right after watching the video.

If you enjoyed reading the above article, then here are a few cherry-picked ones you might be interested in reading further!

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