Part 4: Designing with Images
(This post continues IMN’s series on email newsletter best practices. Previously we looked at better email newsletter design with colors. Also check out the secrets to building a better distribution contact list and trimming contact list deadweight.)
Are there any rules for using images with people in them?
If you can see the person’s face in the image, then yes, there are some rules to know and follow.
If you choose an image to accompany an article, you want that image to serve your written content. You don’t want the image to overpower your content or send mixed signals.
When you look at a photo of a person, your eyes are drawn to that person’s face. Specifically, your eyes are drawn to that person’s eyes.
That means images with people in them have some serious potential to draw in your audience and keep them hooked. It also means images with people used improperly can confuse your audience or make them ignore your content.
The five cardinal rules for using images with faces in them are below.
- Use an image anywhere if the person’s face is visible but the eyes are closed, obscured, or otherwise not visible.
- If multiple people’s faces are visible but none of their eyes are visible, you can use that image anywhere.
- If a person’s face and eyes are visible, align content to fall directly within the line of sight of the person. (For example, if the person is looking to the right, put accompanying content to the right of the image.)
- If multiple people’s faces and eyes are visible – and they’re all looking in the same direction – align content to fall directly within their line of sight.
- If multiple people’s faces and eyes are visible – but they’re all looking in different directions – don’t use the image with content. The image is too ambiguous and your content will be ignored.
Check out this great post from Web Marketing Today for more examples and explanations behind the science of using human faces in images.
Why won’t my images show up?
Email clients and service providers want to transmit messages from one inbox to another as efficiently and safely as possible. Their top priority is keeping the user on the receiving end of an email happy.
Your images won’t display automatically display because most email clients and web-based applications want to avoid annoying their users. It’s nothing personal, but it can frustrate marketers – especially when their entire email newsletter is reduced to a red “x” in a little box.
If you want your newsletter subscribers to see your newsletter every time, ask them to take action. Below are some suggestions:
- “Can’t see the images in this email? Change your automatic download preferences.”
- “Want to see the rest of your newsletter? Add us to your Safe Senders list.”
- “Can’t see the images in this newsletter? Allow images to download for this email.”
You can place a message like these at the top of your newsletter or the top of the email message. Not all of your subscribers will take action, but another strategy below may reach to get your visuals noticed.
What can I do about images that won’t show?
A previous IMN post about email design principles discussed alternative text, also known as “ALT tags.” An ALT tag describes a specific image to the reader, allowing readers to understand the message behind the image in case the reader can’t see the image.
Email marketers should use an ALT tag for every image in their emails. But what’s the best way to use them?
Look at the photo below and pretend it accompanies the feature article in your company’s next email newsletter. The article is about email etiquette for aspiring entrepreneurs. What will your ALT tag say?
Many people will write a simple chunk of text, such as “Woman typing on keyboard.” However, ALT tags can do much more for your images. Remember, the text is shown in place of an image. If your subscribers don’t want to download your newsletter images, your ALT tags should convey the missing messages in their newsletters.
Every image conveys two messages: The literal subject or action, and the implied subject or action. The literal subject is what is shown in the image. The implied subject is determined by the context in which that image is shown
For our example, the literal message is, “A woman types on a keyboard.” However, in the context of the email etiquette article, the implied message is, “Writing appropriate emails can be hard.”
So, what would a smart ALT tag for this image be? “Starting your own business? Click here to avoid writing emails that might cost you big time!”
This ALT tag includes a clear call-to-action to get your subscribers to open your newsletter and read the article. It conveys the implicit message of your image, which is more important for your newsletter than the literal message.
Conclusion
Now you have the tools to give your newsletters – and their images – more chances at success with your subscribers. Just remember: Follow the cardinal rules, ask readers to download your images, and use ALT tags for every image.
Have more ideas or questions about email newsletter success? Share your newsletter secrets with us on Facebook or Twitter, hashtag #BetterEmail.
