Since starting Copy Accelerator…

One thing I’ve been surprised to discover is how many people don’t put an image in their email creatives.

It makes a BIG difference.

Case in point: one of our Copy Accelerator Members posted in our FB Group posted a while back about how he finally took my advice and added an image to his control email…

And it increased his email click-through rate (CTR) by 30%.

That’s a really big bump.

For every 1,000 clicks, his email generates…

He’s now getting an extra 300.

So, let’s say his offer converts at 2% on email (a reasonable assumption, it’s probably more)…

That means for every 1,000 clicks…

He’s getting an extra 6 sales.

That might not sound like a huge difference…

But I also know his AOV is roughly $200.

So, that’s an extra $1,200 in revenue for every 1,000 clicks his email gets.

Plus, let’s consider the fact that a good email creative can easily generate at least 100,000 clicks…

So, with a 30% boost to CTR over 100,000 clicks…

And assuming all of the metrics I just mentioned above…

That’s 600 extra sales during the lifetime of the creative…

And an extra $120,000 in revenue.

And, if the email creative gets to a million clicks (most don’t, but some blockbusters do)…

That would, of course, be an extra 6,000 sales total and $1,200,000 in extra revenue…

All from adding an image to the creative.

Talk about an easy way to make a million dollars, right?!

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Part of me feels like I’m preaching to the choir here, but I know from first-hand experience that I’m not.

Even Cody, who is my partner on some health offers, rarely puts images in the emails he sends to his list or gives to affiliates.

Which is nuts, because of how much the CTR can be increased…

And yet, while I know it’s a mistake…

I’m too lazy to nag him about it normally…

Even though it’s probably costing both of us a ton of money.

[After I publish this blog post, though – I’m going to forward it to him and go back to nagging. Because this is something that needs to be tested with every email he sends – whether it’s for one of our offers, an affiliate offer, or one of his offers that don’t involve me.]

And it’s not just Cody, by the way…

I see so many people sending out direct response emails to their lists, or giving swipes to affiliates, without an image…

And they’re missing out BIG TIME.

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Now, a few more notes on this…

1. Choosing the right image is vital. Don’t use stock photos. Don’t use boring photos. You’re trying to find curiosity-driving, “WTF” images that get people’s attention and compel them to click.

2. Test different images. This is crucial. Your first step for your email creative should be to test no image vs. an image you think will be strong. But then, after that, and regardless of which one wins (no image or image), begin testing additional images too. I’ve seen cases where one image increases the clickthrough rate by 50% compared to another. It’s really that crucial.

3. The images you use need to be RELEVANT. This is super important. It doesn’t mean you have to be literal. But your images should be an extension of your subject line and the rest of your body copy.

Building off #3…

Let me make another important point on email creatives:

The whole point of the subject line is to create curiosity and get somebody to open the email…

The whole point of the first sentence of the email is to continue that curiosity, and get them to read the next line…

And the whole point of the second line is to get them to read the third…

Until you eventually…

Transition to your calls to action and your links.

The reason this is so important…

Is because, as I just mentioned…

Your image is just an extension of the subject line and body copy: it’s another curiosity element you’re providing, and one that should be used to induce a click…

But it has to be relevant.

Because if it’s not…

And you just share a picture of some strange looking fruit even though your email is about debt relief and has nothing to do with fruit…

Then while yeah, you may get more clicks to your landing page…

Those clicks won’t be all that valuable, since many of the folks who clicked on the fruit were just curious in the image, but not necessarily the subject matter you provide.

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Okay, that’s it for emails…

Have an awesome day!

– SPG

P.S. This post originally came from an email I sent to my private list. If you want to see more stuff like this from me, you can apply to join my list using this link.