(Screenshot Of The Results, After File Size Compression)
Why Size Matters… with Email
(There is such thing as too big)
Let’s cut to the chase.
Your email file size determines the bandwidth needed for your readers to first download before they can view your email. Your readers can’t view your email because it takes too long to load (especially on their phones) due to the image file being too big.
It’s unlikely that your email is going to convert because readers just aren’t as patient nowadays as they used to be.
Just think about the other 100+ emails they have to go through everyday. They’re constantly scrolling the other hundreds of emails they’re getting.
And if it’s your email that doesn’t even load fast enough, they’re not going to lose sleep over skipping over yours. On to the next…
If this happens to them enough coming from you, they’re marking you as spam. They don’t know this, but you should know that this also decreases your sender score and inbox rate.
What’s exactly weighing down your success in email marketing?
Images have the chunkiest portion of weight in your email file size. Multiple product images with fancy HTML elements, or slapping on any of those huge images will likely result in a big, fat, and slow-to-load email.
Now compare that to an email with minimal images or simply using just text. These aren’t the flashiest types of emails, but at least it gets the message out there – and it’s pretty good at it too.
How exactly does the file size of your emails impact your inbox rate?
Think about your reader’s user experience. No reader wants to wait even for a few seconds, for an email to load. They will grow tired and impatient of your emails, eventually marking them as spam and/or unsubscribing from you which will negatively impact your email inbox rate.
3 Things You Can Do (or not do, which is even easier)
- Try your best to eliminate animated GIF in your email, because every frame in an animated GIF is essentially its own image. The more frames your GIF has, the heavier it will be. Follow the rule of thumb of 20% image and 80% text ratio.
- Use TINY JPG to reduce your email images before sending out your email.
- Reduce the amount of “Rich-HTML” elements inside your emails.
Take a look at the email on the left below. All the information about the offers and the CTA are contained in the image. When the images are turned off, the same email appears as the image on the right.
