Increasing email open rates is a popular topic, with many publications and webinars dedicated to the subject. However, many overlook the point that video email cannot be watched without first having the email opened.

It's understandable to feel a little anxious when starting in the video world, but don't worry- it can be done!

If your video email open rates aren't what you thought they would be, then here are some easy ways to help you succeed.

Here is the gist of the article in a video!

11 Ways To Increase Your Video Email Open Rates

1. Your Email Address Must Be Familiar And Trust Worthy

The "From" name and email address are at the very top of your message. It may not be as important to list these things in output, but it is still a good practice to maintain consistency.

The majority of people will read the email if it is sent from a familiar email address. According to a survey of email marketing statistics, 42% of the people first looked at who was sending an email before deciding whether or not to respond.

Be Trustworthy

Prospects can understand who is sending an email and what their interest in doing so just by looking at your email address. This can make the difference between getting a response from your recipient which increases click rates and conversion rates.

I recommend using only addresses where the "From" name matches your email address (e.g., if JohnSmith@gmail is sending an email on behalf of his company XYZ Inc then use johnsmith@XYZinc).

Finally, make sure there isn't any confusing words or grammatical errors, your recipient will know immediately whether this message was sent by a brand who is only half interested.

2. Subject Line Must Be Clear And Compelling

Do you know what they say about good things coming in small packages? Well, smart subject lines are proof of this which can help increase your video email open rates.

Well, the easiest way to make a good subject line is to make sure it stands out and is consistent in tone. You can do this by ensuring that you don't use an excessive amount of all caps.

For example:

It might also be a good idea to take from what's been said in the body of your email and summarize it accurately for the title.

Hey Jane👋 I have recorded a personal video for you👇
Hey Susan👋, I called you yesterday at 12 PM🕛

To sum up, if you want the prospect to respond, then you'll need a subject line that is clear and consistent in tone with what is written in the rest of your email body. Use emojis in the subject line to make it pop with the recipient's name!

The more creative you get with how you craft your subject line, it will positively impact your email campaign's success rates.

If something is unclear, feel free to read this blog anytime: 9 Open Worthy Video Email Subject Lines.

3. Use The Word Video In The Subject Line

If you're looking for a way that will grab prospect's attention and get their gears turning in anticipation, then this tip is perfect. Add "video" as an ingredient into any subject line for maximum open rates.

Even though email statistics on the internet are somewhat exaggerated, isn't it fantastic if your open rate rises by at least 5% due to this?

via GIPHY

The perfect length for your subject line is whatever will make it interesting, creative, and engaging. If you search online, there are a lot of numbers being thrown around, but 50 characters is usually the recommended one.

One great idea presented in The Rebel's Guide To Email Marketing by Jason Falls & D J Waldow says that shorter marketing emails generate more opens but lower engagement inside while longer ones do just the opposite at first glance. This in turn leads to highest video email open rates.

Also Read: 9 Personalized Video Email Examples To Keep Your Prospects Engaged

4. Identify The Right Frequency For Your Audience

It's not surprising that marketers and salespeople are chatting with prospects who don't listen.

Right Frequency For Your Audience

But this is exactly what many people do when it comes to marketing - sending out one email per day and averaging only 10% open rates may be fine as long as different people open all of those messages!

Long term deliverability is critical if you want to experiment with increasing email frequency.

However, too much of a good thing can turn off some subscribers and create other problems, like low engagement rates or even spam complaints from Google & Microsoft, who may place your account in their promotions tab (or worse!).

Every day, people are bombarded with emails. Some of these may be from nonprofits looking to make a difference in the world, and other times you get an offer for something as mundane as a breakfast cereal!

To be an effective email marketer, you need to know when your audience has opened the last message.

By breaking them into segments - people who've engaged within one month and a half of opening an email; or 3 months or six months since their most recent engagement. You can better target what's relevant for each segment with video automated workflows!

5. Avoid Repetition Of Strategy

Email marketing is a delicate art. Sending the same subject lines like sending out witty Churchill quotes or referring to your readers as "snowflakes,"  may work one time but not all the time to improve your open rates.

This is why varying the content of emails can work wonders for getting them to open and decrease your low open rate!

But even when you're trying to spruce up your subject lines with some interesting content, it can be tough if people are too savvy about what's coming their way!

via GIPHY

When it's too similar every single time- even with allusions like Avenger references -people will start figuring out that they've seen this before, so put some variety into those subject lines for the target audience!

For example, if your subject line includes "Hey Steve, I've recorded a personal video for you," it may work once, but if you start sending other emails with the same subject line, prospects will ignore you.

80 Powerful Sales Email Subject Lines [Copy Now]
The ability to whip up engaging sales email subject lines is directly proportional to the open & response rates.

6. Personalize Your Email

Personalizing your email is a good strategy for getting your recipients to respond. There are no substitutes for genuine sentiment, humor, or personal anecdotes while engaging with the recipient.

With video emails, you can add a human touch to your email and build trust.

Personalized Video Email

The most relevant content in an email is always the personalized content that you haven't sent before.

For this reason, the best emails include just enough information to get readers interested and then shift into newer material with a link to article or a personal video.

This approach lets prospects know that there's more where they just came from, and it does wonders for building trust and continued engagement with your audience.

Also, personalization is so much more than just customizing the content based on what you know about them. This includes things like making sure your tone of voice matches their needs, being personable without being too cozy or prying into personal matters- it's all up for debate!

7. Use Demographics

You can use the same demographics for the mail list, like city and state/province. But it's best not to base your choice on these two pieces of information because there is so much more!

Use Demographics

You might also want the ideal prospects age group or what kinds of holidays they celebrate - birthdays or Christmas in particular tend to be prominent at times when prospects' need cheering up.

8. Write An Attractive Preheader

The unsung hero of email open rates is your preheader text. It's the short message you send before every newsletter or digest that tells people what they'll be reading, and it can make all the difference in whether they click on those links!

What is preheader text?

Preheader text is the intriguing and witty opening line that appears directly below or to the right of your message. The subject line typically becomes bolded, while preheaders are left unembellished so they can draw attention from their wit rather than relying on word choice alone!

The GetResponse benchmarks found that preheader text could increase email open rates by as much as 3%. The research shows it also resulted in a more than 1% higher click-through rate, from having preheader on email and email newsletters– but especially this one.

Preheader Text

The preheader reflects the tone of voice in which messages are delivered. It is important to make them complementary, so one will match another but also offer explanations without being too wordy!

9. Inject Some Humor

Making someone laugh is the most generous thing you can do (except for donating money). You may genuinely connect with a person by putting them in a good mood, regardless of whether you give away cash or not.

Inject Humor

This is why injecting humor in your email subject line or preheader can make a huge difference on your key performance indicators.

10. Sometimes Negative Subject Lines Works

The old carrots versus stick hypothesis comes in handy. Do you know how you react better when a stimulus is scary and does not offer any gains? It's true; loss aversion packs a punch!

The idea can be used to craft powerful subject lines that speak from the heart, with human nature principles behind it to the right people.

Using a negative headline can be very effective when a positive or neutral headline does not catch a reader's eye.

To illustrate this point, let's take a look at an example of what most readers would consider being too harsh of a title - "You're going to want to read this!!"

The article discusses how people often subscribe because they were curious about the content after seeing such an aggressive attention-grabbing headline. In this case, curiosity is enough motivation for many people to click open the email and increase average click rate.

Also Read: Learn How To "Put A Face To The Name" In This Virtual Selling Era!

11. A/B Test Alternative Subject Lines To Research The Effectiveness

To A/B test subject lines on your email campaigns, you either need to create two different versions of the same email body or design two completely unrelated emails.

A/B Test

The email that gets the higher response rate is usually the one with the better subject line. To ensure your business video emails stand out, write a subject line that's provocative but relevant at the same time.

Do You Want To Increase Your Email Open Rates?

Personalized video emails are an excellent way for sales organizations to connect with prospects. Focusing on the value of a one-on-one connection from your prospects can lead you in new ways when uniquely promoting your messaging!

In today's fast-paced world where information is constantly being updated about all industries, this includes email marketing campaigns too.

Emails have become shorter nowadays because people don't want long blocks or paragraphs.  

This is why video emails are gaining traction as it focuses on face-to-face communication. Your emails become more interesting when you use Videoform! Video emails are great because they're personalized and add a human touch to your message and surpass average email benchmarks.

Plus, it's easy, taking just one step from the tools that already work for the target audience: Gmail or HubSpot--anything. No need to send out plain old text messages anymore!

Get started with a free trial now!