16 Ways To Incorporate Videos Into Your Email Marketing

Video is hands-down the most effective marketing medium law firms can use today and adding video to your emails is a great way to boost your email conversions. Video makes complex topics simple, audiences crave it, and it builds a connection that fosters long-term loyalty. When it comes down to it, most people would rather watch a video than read a long email. In fact, video has an undeniable impact on email KPIs:

• Video boosts open rates by 19%.
• Video boosts click-through rates by 65%.
• Video reduces unsubscribes by 26%.

So how can your law firm take advantage of video and make it work in email?

16 Law Firm Video Email Marketing Ideas

1. Create a News Roundup

If your firm has a lot going on, it can be difficult to keep your audience up to date. Rather than writing lengthy paragraphs, develop a short video that gives a breakdown of your latest news, and make sure a “click here to watch” link is included in the email. A link to the full video is essential because video doesn’t just instantly play when embedded in emails. 

2. Share Behind-the-scenes Information

Sharing videos of your staff or office culture is a great way to build trust and credibility. Introduce new employees, provide information about your summer intern program, video office events, or document some of the inner workings of a case. 

3. Follow up on virtual events or webinars.

Webinars and virtual events are a lot of work so it’s important to have an intentional follow-up plan to help you achieve more value out of the effort you put in. A creative way to do so is to share video clips from the event, such as a highlight reel.

4. Point to an Existing Video on Social Media

Communications that inspire action don’t have to begin from scratch. You can leverage videos that are already out there on your social channels to give your email (and social channels) a boost. Link to the relevant social media posts so users will then be prompted to engage with it and follow your social media account.

5. Tease an Upcoming Virtual Event or Webinar

Spark interest with a preview of something exciting coming up. Give a sneak peek at what will be covered or what the audience can expect from your next event. 

6. Add Video Options to Your Footer

If your law firm is active on YouTube, make sure you create an icon to include at the bottom of emails and web pages.

7. Create a Tutorial

Share your expertise and enhance loyalty by developing content that shows you know your stuff, such as how-to’s or Q&As on the steps in a complex legal process. For example, a contract lawyer could create a tutorial on how to fill out complicated documents yourself. 

8. Be Appreciative

Your clients like to feel acknowledged and heard. Develop a short but heartfelt video that expresses gratitude for their business or for attending an event. Consider creating a video with personal “thank you” messages to clients and partners.

9. Share an “About us” Story

One of the simplest ways to get started with video is to create a brief message about your firm – what the company does and stands for, why it was founded, and core values and mission. Even if you feel this messaging is displayed across your marketing materials already, some of the information could be new – and it never hurts to reinforce it anyway. A video of this nature instead of a written description can make your firm and its attorneys seem more personable and authentic to viewers.

10. Film Client Testimonials or Case Studies

Social proof is critical for law firms, and case studies go a long way toward building that credibility. Consider taping an interview with a client or having them film a short statement about working with your firm and their great results. Use these videos as part of a lead nurturing campaign, reaching people in different phases of their client journey. 

11. Create an Animated Header

Consider putting animation into your header image in the form of a GIF. This header video should play automatically and immediately capture your audience’s attention and draw their eye to any pertinent information you’d like displayed in your email header. 

12. Use GIFs Instead of Links

If you typically link to URLs with a button or a simple image, consider creating a gif that prompts users to click here to learn more. Consequently, this should help you get more clicks to your site, as well.

13. Create Bonus Content

Maybe there were some questions you didn’t answer in your webinar or a Q&A session on social media that got cut short. Consider creating specific ‘bonus’ content relevant to events or campaigns that only your email subscribers will get to see with a video.

14. Share Firm Culture

Video is a great way to share your firm’s personality and humanize yourselves. Consider starting a series where you share the stories of different lawyers or showcase your firm’s values in some way.

15. Celebrate Holidays

Holidays are a great time to really get creative with video. Share a short video on holidays where you send well wishes to your subscribers and commemorate the day. For a full list of holidays that you can celebrate on social media or even via email, check out this free calendar: Social Media Holidays Calendar.

16. Break Down Industry Topics

A great idea for a series, or to feature in newsletters, is to have one of your lawyers break down industry topics in biteable videos that you can leverage in emails.

Tips for Using Video in Email Marketing for Lawyers

Video in email is complex. Too many videos can slow down load times. But neglecting to use video means losing opportunities. Here are some tips to help with the process:

• Know when to use or not use autoplay. Sometimes autoplay can be distracting if you want users to read the content before watching a video.
• Embed videos using HTMLs. By doing this, users can watch the videos easily without clicking links.
• Add ‘Video’ to your Subject line. This can help increase open rates and intrigue users.
• Leverage GIFs. GIFs are basically stripped-down versions of videos. While you don’t want all your videos to be GIFs, GIFs are a great option when you want to make your email more intriguing but don’t want to slow down load times with multiple long videos.
• Use a GIF or Thumbnail. While you can insert your video using HTML, you may also want to consider inserting a thumbnail or GIF that links to your video so users can view it no matter the platform they’re on.
• Link to your site. Rather than posting your video on another channel and linking to it (which is fine if your goal is more social media engagement or YouTube subscribers), consider posting it on your website and sharing that link via email if you’d like to up your website sessions.

Takeaway

Video is an incredible way to engage subscribers – both old and new – and these clever strategies are just a few ways your law firm can get started. Don’t forget to keep an eye on your reports and analytics to see which videos are increasing your email open rates and engagement.

If you would like further assistance developing a video marketing strategy or are ready to start producing your own content, reach out to us for help.

This post has been edited and republished from Sep. 14, 2020.