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Getting more visitors to your website is crucial when you’re looking to consistently generate leads. However, if your website isn’t optimized, all that increased traffic goes to waste and say goodbye to boosted revenue and conversions.  When money and business growth are on the line, identifying the areas in which your website isn’t optimized for…
The post 5 Signs Your Website Isn’t Optimized appeared first on Benchmark Email.

Adding GIFs to your emails is a great way to add some engaging, dynamic content that helps your campaigns stand out. It’s not always straightforward though. In the post, we’ll tell you exactly how it’s done.
For a format created in 1987, GIFs can do a lot to make your email marketing efforts seem modern. They’re not just for fun and memes, either; sometimes, GIFs can communicate ideas or concepts much quicker than words or still images.
However, GIFs only work if they, well, work. If a GIF shows up as a still image or take seconds to load, you’ve lost any advantage the format might bring.
Whether you have a GIF ready to go or you’re trying to familiarize yourself with the format, knowing how to put a GIF in an email is only part of the picture. Make sure you not only add your GIF correctly but also choose the right GIF by following these steps.
In this post we’ll cover:

Optimizing your GIFs for email
Adding a GIF to an email
Choosing an appropriate GIF
Examples of great email GIF usage

Optimize your GIFs for email
Every modern email platform allows you to embed animated GIFs, but they can’t guarantee an identical user experience. User variance — from screen size and internet speed to the option to turn off GIFs in Microsoft Outlook — means you have to be careful to make sure your readers don’t miss out on anything. Optimizing your GIFs is a quick way to make sure everyone sees the message you meant to send.
Everything you need your audience to see should be visible in the first frame of the GIF. Switching off GIF animations, as some email clients allow you to do, doesn’t lead to a blank box — it just shows a static image. That picture might not be able to communicate quite as well as your GIF, but it should cover the basics.
You’ll also want to make sure your GIF is a maximum of 600 pixels wide (typical newsletter width), so it’s not cut off on smaller phone screens. Keep your audience’s data in mind, as well; the target file size for your GIF should be 0.5 MB. You can go up to 1 MB if necessary, but smaller files mean quicker downloads and less chance to lose a viewer. GIF file too big? Try reducing the number of frames using a tool like GIF Cutter. For GIFs you made, you can also try limiting the number of colors used.
Finally, add some alt text for those who are using screen readers or have switched off image loading entirely. This is a good accessibility practice for every image you post on your website, on social media, and in emails.
Insert your GIF using one of these methods
No matter what email client you’re using, inserting an animated GIF is a cinch.
Drag and drop
Best for: Gmail
When you see a GIF you like, simply click and hold on the image and then drag it over to your email client. (You’ll need to have the window with your email message visible at the same time as the page with your GIF for this to work.) This method doesn’t work in every email client, just those that support drag-and-drop uploading.
Copy the URL
Best for: Everything else
Sites like GIPHY and Tenor make it easy to copy a GIF link from the share options; sites like Google Image Search don’t. You can always find the URL of a GIF by right-clicking the image and selecting “Copy Image Link.”
Once you have the URL in your clipboard, go back to your email client and find the Insert Photo button. If you’re using an email template, find an image block (or GIF block, if your client offers one). Click it, select the “paste URL” option (if necessary), and then paste away.
Check to make sure the link you copied ends with the .gif extension, as some sites share the page URL rather than the image URL. If the link you have doesn’t end in .gif, try adding it yourself and see if the image pops up.
Download and then re-upload
Best for: When the other options aren’t working
This method is the most involved and doesn’t come with any special benefits (unless you habitually download GIFs and have one ready to go). However, if your email client is refusing to copy an image that’s hosted on another site, you may have to upload a fresh version.
To download a GIF, right-click the image and select “Save Image As.” Make sure the file keeps the .gif extension or you’ll lose the animation! It’s smart to double-check a GIF after downloading to make sure your device saved the correct image format.
In your email client, compose a new email, click the Add Image button, and select the option to upload a new file. Navigate to the GIF you saved, select it, then hit “Done.”
Make sure you’re using a GIF for the right purposes
GIFs are best used for replacing video rather than for frivolous laughs. They change the tone of an email and risk irritating audiences because they take longer to load. When used correctly, they can enlighten and inspire your audience. When used excessively, they can annoy your readers or obscure important information.
Demonstrating product or feature functionality is a great use of GIFs. Why take 500 words explaining how something works when you can just show it in action? GIFs that educate your audience will make the right kind of impression and drive interest.
GIFs are also great for teasing multimedia content. Embedding videos in email is a bad idea because, unlike GIFs, they’re not universally supported. They also come with much larger file sizes — and load times. Rather than sending a clip, turn your video into a GIF and cut to the most tantalizing bits to build suspense.
Images can sometimes explain things much better — or more quickly — than words. Use GIFs to set the mood for your message or share multiple bits of information in a quick, easy-to-understand format. If a visual can convey a complex idea in a few seconds, why would you bother to write out a full description?
Learn from these great GIF examples

Zip
How do you personalize content when the end product isn’t for your audience? This GIF shares multiple buzzy brands and products right at the top of the email, so gifters know they have options when they shop using Zip.

UNIQLO
Instead of trying to guess whether their shoppers are looking for men’s clothes or women’s clothes, Uniqlo made a GIF that has something for both audiences. We love how the GIF includes multiple sections: the product image, a description, and size and price information.

360Learning
In the back quarter of a lengthy roundup email, 360Learning chose to respect their readers’ time with this GIF that’s essentially an animated slide deck. It provides a bullet-point overview of the product to help readers decide whether to dig into the details beneath the GIF or keep scrolling to the next item.

Madison Reed
This before and after from Madison Reed is a great product demonstration. Unlike photos — which we expect to be digitally enhanced — GIFs seem more raw and real. (This is also a great example of how to get the most out of user-generated content.)

MyFonts
When introducing the Brutalista typeface, MyFonts went above and beyond to educate the consumer about it and demonstrate how it could be used. Having one product photo is good for sales — but having multiple product photos covering multiple contexts is great.
GIF to it!
GIFs aren’t right for every marketing campaign, but when used strategically, they can increase an email’s effectiveness. Many audiences struggle to keep up with their inboxes, which means they only give each email a few seconds to impress them. If your GIF can present the most important information in a concise and visually appealing way, you may earn a few more minutes of your readers’ time.

The post How to Up Your Marketing Game by Using Animated GIFs in Your Emails appeared first on Campaign Monitor.

In June 2021, over 440,000 businesses were launched, making it a record high since the start of the pandemic in March 2020.

Many are focusing on ecommerce businesses, as they offer an easier point of entry. There’s no physical space to scope out, rent to pay, or permits to obtain. However, that doesn’t mean starting an online business is a piece of cake.
Learn what it takes to start an ecommerce business and the steps to start one today.

Tips for Starting an Online Business
1. Design your website with intention.
Your website is your storefront – you don’t want potential customers arriving, looking around, and walking right out.
Think of your website title and meta description as your window display. You want the description to be enticing enough to beat out the competition and get users to click on your website.
Your homepage is the first thing visitors see when they land (or walk in). What will you present to make them keep scrolling? Maybe it’s your latest offer or a striking image from your latest campaign, or perhaps it’s a simple but compelling CTA that will invite curiosity.
Users should be able to navigate your site seamlessly with little friction. That requires a lot of planning, designing, and iterating.
Just as you would take time to curate every section of your store, be sure to give that same care with your website. Every section should have a clear goal and lead users to your desired action.
A first impression can last and can be hard to change – so make sure it’s a good one.
2. Don’t skimp on your creative assets.
We’ve already mentioned the importance of designing your website with care and intention.
Now, let’s get into the elements that will make up your website: your copy and visual elements, such as images and videos.
Your creative assets can make or break your brand perception. Don’t believe me? Look at insurance company The General.
The company recently rebranded and revamped its entire marketing strategy because the public doubted the brand’s credibility due to its perceived low-budget ads. They even addressed it in a commercial.
All this to say that it’s vital that you invest in high-quality visuals as they will be a representation of your brand.
As for your copy, this is important to ensure every message you are putting out is driving the action you want. Otherwise, you may get visitors to your site but not get them to convert. If you don’t feel equipped to take this on yourself, hire a copywriter who specializes in your industry.
For your visual assets, you can:

Outsource the work to a marketing or branding agency, or work directly with professionals on a contract basis.
Leverage sites like Pexels and Unsplash to get some high-quality stock product photos and videos that are free for commercial use.
Use sites like Canva to create beautiful visuals that fit within your brand identity.

3. Social media will be key to your success.
Think of social media as a high-traffic area you want your store to be in.
Social media is one of the biggest discovery points for ecommerce brands, aside from search. If you post content where your audience lives online, you can help them discover your company and build a strong community of brand loyalists.
If you’re doing it right, social media gets them interested in your brand, your website gets them to stick around and move to that next step in the buyer’s journey.
4. Help customers help themselves.
Many ecommerce brands struggle with customer service.
They often have a small team that’s unable to manage large volumes of requests from customers. One way to combat this is by offering helpful resources to current and prospective customers so they can the answers they need quickly.
After running your business for a while, you may notice that you get the same questions repeatedly. This is a clear sign that customers are experiencing friction on your site and need more support. FAQ and knowledge base pages are great ways to address that.
An FAQ section will not only be great for SEO, but also address your visitors’ most pressing questions. A knowledge base will help your customers troubleshoot and solve their issues on their own.
This will also allow your team to focus on addressing more important issues instead of fielding simple requests.
5. Automate when and where you can.
On the topic of customer service, automation is the name of the game.
There are many ways to automate interactions in a way that leads them further down the buyer’s journey. For instance, you could set up a chatbot that is designed to answer common questions from website visitors.
Automation can also look like:

Email workflow after a customer makes a purchase to ask for a product/service review.
Ticket creation for a member of your sales team to reach out to a prospect once they visit the pricing page.
Unpublishing out-of-stock products and email notification sent to fulfillment team.

If you have a workflow in place, there’s probably a way to automate it.
6. Leverage multi-channel selling.
As an ecommerce business, you want to maximize your reach and be everywhere your audience lives.
You may have some customers who shop directly from your store on your website. However, you may have some who shop exclusively on Amazon or Etsy.
To maximize your earning potential, sell your products on multiple marketplaces, as long as they align with your target audience and product.

How to Start Your Own Business Online
1. Identify a gap in the market and validate your idea.
The best ideas stem from personal experience.
Maybe you experienced friction when completing a task and figured out a way to streamline it. Or perhaps you thought of a product that would make your life 10 times simpler.
Wherever the inspiration comes from, it’s definitely worth exploring.
If you’re having trouble coming up with an idea, try the SCAMPER method for brainstorming:

Substitute – If there’s an existing product/service you want to model yours after, perhaps you can substitute some elements to make it unique. Think vegan ice cream.

Combine – You also have the option of combining two existing products to make one great one.

Adapt – Have a product that you think needs some changes? See how you can adapt it to the times, the audience, or the location.

Modify, Minify, or Magnify – This urges you to look at an existing product or service, and identify certain elements that could use some tweaking.

Put to another use – Although something may have originally been used for one purpose, doesn’t mean you can’t repurpose it for something else. For instance, Misfits Market takes grocery items that are deemed too ugly for the stores and repurposes them by selling them directly to consumers.

Eliminate – If you find a current product or process clunky and complex, perhaps you can develop a simpler way of doing things.

Reserve/Rearrange – The way you present a product or idea can have a big impact on how it’s perceived. This can be your entry into the market.

These options give you the freedom of developing something without the pressure of starting from scratch.
2. Validate your idea.
Once you identify a product or service, you have to validate it.
The hard truth is that not every idea is sustainable for a business. In this stage, you want to make sure that there’s an audience for it and a need in the market.
How do you accomplish this? There are a few ways:

Research – Resources like Google Trends can help you separate fads from trends that have longevity.
Competitive analysis – Are there other companies currently offering the same or a similar product? How are they performing?
Crowdfunding – Crowdfunding puts the power in the hands of the people by allowing them to fund ideas they believe in. This is a great way to confirm the need for your product but also get funds to jumpstart your business.

3. Develop your product and/or service.
This stage is the one that may take the longest.
You’ll need to figure out manufacturing, sourcing, packaging, shipping, pricing – all of the -ings.
The process you follow will all depend on your business type and industry. For instance, if you are developing a new product, that will involve a lot more steps than if you are white labeling (the process of purchasing products from a supplier and marketing it under your brand).
Need more help on this? Read this article on the product development process.
4. Name and file your business.
Once you have a clear understanding of your business and what it offers, you must come up with a name.
When it comes to naming your business, here are a few tips to keep in mind:

Avoid names that can limit your business. Say I name my business “Martina Bretous Copywriting,” it insinuates that I only offer copywriting as a service. Say I expand into marketing as a whole, I’ll have to do more work to let my audience know.
Make sure the name is not already trademarked or tied to a business in your same industry.
Consider a name that’s catchy and has a relevant meaning.
Say your business name out loud to see how it sounds.
Avoid names that are too general. E.g.: “Lux Clothing”
If you’re debating between a few options, see if the domains and social media handles are available. That can help you narrow down the best choice for you.

After submitting your business name to your state department, you’ll also want to apply for an employee identification number (EIN) for tax purposes.
Lastly, do you need any permits and licenses to operate? Be sure to speak with a professional about the rules and regulations in your state and submit proper documentation before launching your business.
5. Build your brand identity.

Now that the legal details are all covered, you can get to the fun part: Building your brand.
This step is key as it will influence how you market your brand to your target audience. In this step, you’ll need to ask yourself a few questions:

What is our mission?
What do we stand for?
If this brand was a person, how would we describe them?
How do we want to be perceived in the market?

From there, you can start working on your brand logo, colors, tone, and other creative assets that reflect your identity.
6. Secure your domain and social media handles.
Developing a strong online presence will be instrumental to the success of your ecommerce business. As such, you want to start early.
It’s easy to find and buy a domain online. Top domain sites include:

Google Domains
GoDaddy
NameCheap
Domain.com

Many site builders, like Squarespace and Wix, and most hosting platforms also allow you to buy your domains directly from them. That way, the site that owns your domain will be the same one where you host your ecommerce site.
7. Choose an ecommerce platform.

The internet is full of ecommerce platforms, each offering different features and benefits.
To start, determine the level of customization you want. There are four categories of ecommerce platforms you can choose from:

Strictly ecommerce platforms that offer tiered packages based on your needs. Think Shopify, BigCommerce, and Shift4Shop.

Website builders with templates and ecommerce tools like Square, Wix, Squarespace that can be used to build any site but offer features like product catalog management, shipping tools, abandoned cart recovery.

Ecommerce WordPress plugins, like WooCommerce, that are ideal for people who already use the CMS and are familiar with its platform, and want to build from it.

To decide, look at what your timeline and what you want to accomplish. Pre-built websites make it easy to build an ecommerce site quickly. However, they’re not very customizable and can be limiting.
On the flip side, there are fully customizable platforms that offer a lot but can take much longer to set up.
Top features to look for in an ecommerce platform include:

Product and order management
Mobile compatibility
Reporting and analytics
Built-in SEO capabilities
Abandoned cart recovery
Third-party system integrations
Advanced content management system
Multi-channel sales

8. Develop a marketing strategy.
The last step before launching your business is developing a pre- and post-launch strategy.
The idea behind a pre-launch strategy is to get your target audience excited about your product or service before it’s available. If done right, you’ll have a line of customers waiting to try out your products.
A post-launch strategy is a more long-term marketing strategy that involves tying your business objectives to specific marketing goals, such as building brand awareness and acquiring more leads.
Your marketing strategy should also account for audiences at all stages of the buyer’s journey. If you focus too much on the top of the funnel, you won’t be able to convert leads into customers. If you focus on the bottom of the funnel, you won’t be able to attract new customers to your business.
In 2022, building an ecommerce business is more accessible than it’s ever been. If you follow the steps outlined above, you’ll have your company up and running in no time.