Email marketing campaigns and the value of HTML5

“This is perhaps one of those "WT?" moments I mentioned in the introduction. These three elements are (XHTML authors, are you sitting down?) entirely optional, because browsers assume them anyway.”
~~ Bruce Lawson
Author of "Introducing HTML5", Web Evangelist for Opera, and one of the team behind the Web Standards Curriculum

Since 2002 when email marketing became mainstream, marketers have been trying to create the look, feel and interactivity of email campaigns to be more like that of Web sites and filled with rich media.

HTML5 was developed over 5 years ago and is still not mainstream, but many believe that HTML5 advancements are getting closer to becoming new standard open platform and driving force for incorporating videos in email campaigns?

According to businessinsider.com article "Which Large Sites are Using HTML5? " about 56% of the top 25 Alexa Web 2.0 sites, are using HTML5.

Right now, video is unable to be embedded into an email, and marketers are left with the alternative of providing links to landing pages for email recipients to view videos. The most popular, Adobe Flash, is a proprietary software and although it has more features than HTML5, many companies are beginning to support HTML5.

With the latest HTML5 video integration for email platforms, email marketers will now be able to deliver full motion, high-quality video directly to a recipient’s inbox. However, according to a report on REELSEO.com there are limitations. (Left, social media sign courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net)



The report titled “Video Email Marketing Advances With HTML5 Video” by Justin Foster mentions that HTML5 video on the iPad and iPhone is a step in the right direction for in-email video, but unless the other mail clients are somehow accounted for (e.g. Gmail, Outlook, Lotus Notes, Yahoo! Mail), overall video penetration and proper rendering across an entire audience will remain a challenge for marketers.

Do you believe that Adobe Flash will be replaced by HTML5 within the next few years? Do you currently use or plan on using HTML5?

Photos courtesy of wikipedia.org (unless otherwise noted).




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