Did you know that an image is perceived by the human brain 60,000 times faster than text? Yes, that is according to 3M Corporation. Therefore, The human eye is more attracted to an image than a text. Using the latter in an email is a particularly effective method for quickly getting a message across and making an impression.
In this logic, the image has taken an essential place in today’s email marketing strategies. However, specific rules must be applied to integrate images effectively into your emails: image size, image format, structure with text, etc.
Why Use Images in an Email?
1. An image in an email improves the readability of your message
Using images in your email is very useful for airing the message, illustrating it, or making it more appealing to the eye. Text that is too heavy can limit readability and even cause the email recipient to give up reading. Adding one or more images can help the reader better understand the message and identify your brand more quickly because the email will reflect your image!
2. An email marketing campaign with images improves the engagement rate
The click rate of emails with images is 4.5% higher than emails consisting exclusively of text: a boon for companies wanting to improve their email marketing campaign! Indeed, an image is always more attractive than a textual call to action.
Nevertheless, for an optimal effect, adding text before, after, or on the photo is necessary to encourage the recipient to click on it. It is possible to insert a link in the image to redirect the recipient to your website, product, landing page, etc. This method is also mainly used in B to C (business to consumer) to promote products or services to targeted prospects.
The rules for adding an image to an email
1. Don’t overlook the importance of text in an email
If the images are of significant importance to give more impact to your message, you should not abuse them, at the risk of seeing your email land in the recipient’s spam. To avoid this inconvenience, the rule is simple: 60% text for 40% image. As a result, the ratio between text and images will be respected, and your email can pass spam filters.
In addition, some mailboxes block the automatic display of images. To overcome this problem, you can add text with an ALT attribute to describe the image in case the latter does not display correctly.
2. Choose the most relevant image format in an email
Did you know that there are different image formats to personalize the sending of your emails? These are the best different formats you can use for your email:
- Webp formats make the images small but quality photos that make the web load faster and JPG is a universal format for images. These formats have the advantage of being the most minor cumbersome for your emails and allow rapid sending. Convert from webp to jpg for your receiver’s easy access because JPG formats are compatible with most any device, image viewer or browser.
- PNG: This format is recommended for images with a transparent background such as a logo or a small illustration. In addition, the PNG makes it possible to preserve the quality of the intact image, and this, whatever its size. To enhance the clarity and versatility of your images, consider using a background remover, especially for PNG formats, preserving their quality and transparency regardless of size.
- GIF is the best format to add animation to your email. Moreover, the quality of the image remains unchanged even if it is compressed.
3. Use the right size and weight of an image for your email
The ideal size of an image for an email display is 600 pixels wide for computers and 320 pixels wide for mobile phones. Indeed, your email must be responsive.
That is to say, it must be able to be read on all media: computers, mobile phones, or even tablets! You must, therefore, pay attention to the size chosen to guarantee the excellent visibility of your image.
Moreover, for visibility, we advise you to use images that do not exceed 1000 KB in size for faster display and shorter download times.
Incorporating these image guidelines into your email strategy can empower your messages with visual impact, elevating readability and engagement.
Remember, the art lies in the balance: weave images seamlessly with well-crafted text to captivate your audience and deliver an unforgettable email experience.
