Animation in email is a simple way to bring email marketing to life and give it some personality. In this article, we explain how to insert a GIF into an email and show 5 great examples of GIFs used in campaigns by popular brands.
GIF is an image format well-suited for emailing that supports animated images. A GIF has a small file size and consists of a short, looping animation. |
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Why use GIFs in email
1. To draw the reader's attention to a specific offer and "hint" at a particular action.
Take a look at how Auchan draws the subscriber's attention to a promotion — buy a pastry with tea and get cashback as a bonus. A simple GIF, but it catches the eye and works.
2. To replace several images with one dynamic GIF.
Here's how Asos did it. It looks stylish, and readers don't have to scroll through the email to see every look.
3. To add personality. A GIF doesn't have to serve some grand purpose. You can insert one simply to make the email more appealing.
In its "Top 10 movies and shows of the week" newsletter, Ivi uses animation to display the entire top ten inside one TV-screen window. A cool solution instead of plain text.
4. To set the right mood. Sometimes a GIF animation helps reinforce the theme of an email.
In its pre-New Year campaign, CDEK added a winter GIF with snowflakes to immerse readers in a "Last Christmas I gave you my heart" mood. The vibe speaks for itself — all that's left is to read about exclusive holiday offers, head to the website, and "be the first to order."
5. To bring a character to life. If your brand has a mascot, or you've created a character for a promotion, why not animate it in your email?
X5 brought a coin to life to draw attention to its loyalty program. It might seem like a small detail, but it looks a lot more fun than a plain image.
How to add a GIF to an email
A GIF is embedded in an email exactly the same way as a regular image. Use the <img> tag to add an animation to your campaign.
You can create animated images for your emails yourself using:
- Adobe After Effects
- Photoshop
- Instagiffer
Or there's a simpler option. You can download GIFs from free stock libraries and integrate them into your emails just as effectively. Here are 3 sites where you can download themed animations for free:
Every GIF comes with embed code — all you need to do is copy it.
What else you need to know about GIFs
- For a GIF to display well across all email clients, its file size shouldn't be too large — keep it under 1 MB.
- Don't cram too many GIF animations into a single email — you risk making it feel spammy. On top of that, they won't autoplay in the desktop version of Outlook.
- Just like any other email, emails with animations and video need to be tested. Otherwise, you might end up with a reader opening their inbox and seeing a plain static image instead of the animation.