A video does not play in an inbox. It is announced there, and the whole job is making that announcement without depending on the image.
The video does not play in the inbox
The built-in player does not work reliably.
The solution is not technical, it is editorial: a still image pulled from the video, with a face and a play sign, linking to a page where the video starts by itself.
Choose as the thumbnail an image from the middle of the video, not the first: the first is almost always empty, and the face is not settled in it yet.
Where it belongs
Three scenarios, in this order of effectiveness.
The abandoned basket, where the video answers the exact hesitation: the size, the material, the assembly, the timescale. The welcome message, where it replaces the brand introduction nobody reads. And the reactivation of dormant customers, where it serves as an honest pretext to get back in touch.
Start with the abandoned basket: it is the only scenario where the recipient has already expressed an intention.
What it changes after purchase
That is the most profitable and most neglected use.
A video sent after the order, showing how to use, install, maintain, turns an order into a second order. It also reduces returns and the number of messages to customer service, which can be measured directly.
Send it when the parcel arrives, not when it ships: that is when the person has the product in their hands.
Consent and lists
This part is settled before any campaign.
The rules applicable to consent, prior information, data retention, unsubscribing and compulsory statements depend on your activity and are checked with the competent authority and with a lawyer before sending.
Two principles hold whatever happens: write only to people who asked for it, and make unsubscribing easier than subscribing. A purchased list costs more than it brings in, including in sender reputation.
How to measure
Three figures, and only one decides.
The click rate on the thumbnail, which judges the written promise. The play rate on the landing page, which judges the video. And the revenue attributed to the scenario, which judges the whole.
If the click is good and the play weak, change the video. If the click is weak, change the first line of text: in this channel it is almost always the problem.
Where the video sits by message
| Message | What the video replaces | Length |
|---|---|---|
| Purchase confirmation | Three paragraphs of explanation | 15 s |
| After delivery | The manual nobody reads | 25 s |
| Thirty-day follow-up | An offer reminder | 10 s |
What gets the message opened
A thumbnail showing the product and a subject line stating the question the video answers.
What gets it closed
A heavy attachment, autoplay with sound, a video that repeats the text.
The Spanish calendar
It shifts sends more than people think.
Late hours push opening times into the evening. Summer empties professional inboxes. And sale periods and local festivals saturate the inbox for several days.
So shoot your loyalty videos outside those peaks, and keep for those periods the short messages, with no video, which fare better in a full inbox.
