Animated GIFs: Why They are so Popular and How to Effectively Use Them in Your Email Marketing Strategy

A way to experience a 103% increase in the Conversion rate and a 42% increase in the Click-through rate of your emails? Try using animated GIFs! (Source: Marketing Sherpa.)

This format is indeed not new — it was developed by CompuServe in 1987. Its popularity, however, has really exploded in recent years.

From social media to blog posts, GIFs are literally everywhere on users’ screens. In the last few years, they started showing up in our emails as well.

According to Litmus, more than half of marketers (51.28%) uses them in their Email Marketing campaigns.

What makes animated GIFs so appealing to Marketing Managers?

It is not hard to see why this image format based on the illusion of motion is so successful. Animated GIFs are in fact:

• Attention-grabbing
• Similar to video without being in a video format (which not every email client supports)
• A great way to use a few images to show your products or services that it might not be quick to explain in words

Of course, there are also cons to GIFs. For instance, they are not supported by all platforms, especially older ones (like Office 2007–2013). Besides, they can also be quite heavy and have slow load times.

Here are some best practices in the use of GIFs

If you want to effectively use GIFs in you emails, make sure that they:

• Load quickly (keep in mind that half of recipients will not spend longer than two seconds reading your email)
• Have small file size (according to Chamaileon, it should ideally weigh not more than 300 KB)
• Start with a stunning first frame (so that if an email client only displays a static image, it would still be a nice one)
• Are not over the top, but add value to the product or message you intend to communicate
• Are suitable for your product, service, industry, and target-audience (using a playful GIF in a fashion newsletter might work, however using it in an email promoting a drug might not be such a good idea, right?)

There are many ways GIFs can add value to your email. In your Email Marketing strategy you can use them to:

1. Inform about personalized promotions and/or sales
2. Create a sense of urgency using a countdown timer
3. Send teasers for events coming soon
4. Make transactional emails more aesthetically pleasing
5. Wish customers a Merry Christmas, Happy Valentine’s Day, or Happy Birthday

Case studies: The results of 2 eCommerce Businesses in the Food and Home & Garden industries

The benefits of GIFs are quite obvious. But what results can they effectively bring for your eCommerce business?

Let’s take a look at how 2 shops in different industries improved theirs using GIFs in their Email Marketing campaigns.

The shop in the Home & Garden industry experienced higher rates in the Welcome Series — one of the most important automations to start a positive relationship with potential customers. Considering the three months during which GIFs have been used in comparison with the previous three months during which no GIF was used, it can indeed be noticed that the Click rate increased by 1–2 percentage points.

The shop in the Food industry also saw better rates in relation to the Welcome emails. During the period taken into account, the average Click rate of the Welcome Series went from 23.8% to 25.5%. The most striking data in relation to the Welcome Series, though, are those of the average Conversion rate, which saw an increase of over 9 percentage points (from 10.9% to 20.12%)!

GIFs are extremely powerful tools to captivate and engage your audience, resulting in a higher number of opens and conversions. After all, they did not become so fashionable without reason!

We can certainly wonder for how long this trend started a few years ago is destined to last. But as long as it lasts, why not make the most of it?

Start testing animated GIFs in your Email Marketing strategy for your eCommerce business!