Motion that matters: how animated graphics improve email performance

In the fast-moving world of lifecycle marketing, capturing attention and driving action often depends on the subtleties of design and timing. For email marketers, CRM managers, and lifecycle teams at growing eCommerce and digital brands, the use of animated graphics in email design is a powerful lever. In this post we’ll walk through best practices for using animated graphics, including GIFs, cinemagraphs, and short looping animations, in your email campaigns, covering when to use them, how to optimise them, what to watch out for, and how they tie into your broader lifecycle messaging strategy.

1. Why animated graphics matter

• Animated graphics help your emails stand out in the inbox. One guide cites that communications including images (and by extension, motion) saw up to a 650% higher engagement than text-only posts. 

• More specifically, emails with animated GIFs have been shown to improve click-through and conversion rates if executed well. 

• For lifecycle marketing, including welcome flows, cart abandonment, post-purchase nurture, and re-engagement, the ability to show motion allows you to tell a story faster (for example, showing a product in action, simplifying a process, or setting a mood) rather than relying only on static images.

• That said, animated graphics are not a magic bullet. If done poorly, such as with a large file size, irrelevant animation, or distracting motion, they can hurt deliverability, load times, and user experience. 

2. When to use animation in your email lifecycle flows

Here are key opportunities within email lifecycle campaigns where animated graphics can add meaningful lift:

• Welcome/onboarding flow: A short animation introducing your brand, how the product works, or showing a happy outcome can boost engagement early in the customer lifecycle.

• Product showcase & feature highlight: Instead of static images of a product, show a quick loop of the product in use or from multiple angles, this can increase click-throughs.

• Cart abandonment & incentive emails: Use motion to show urgency (e.g., ticking timer, “items still in your cart”). The animation invites interaction and may reduce friction.

• Post-purchase and cross-sell flows: Animation can visually show “next steps” (e.g., how to use the product) or highlight complementary products in motion to drive interest.

• Re-engagement campaigns: A lively visual can re-capture attention of dormant subscribers more effectively than purely static content.

3. Best practices for animated graphics in email

a) Keep it purposeful

• The animation should support your message, not distract from it. If the motion doesn’t directly reinforce the CTA or key value proposition, skip it.

• Use motion to demonstrate or guide, such as in a product demo, a feature reveal, or a process step, rather than for purely decorative movement.

b) Optimise for performance and deliverability

• File size matters. Big animations slow down load time, especially on mobile, and may trigger deliverability issues. One recommendation: keep GIFs under ~1 MB.

• Test across email clients. Some clients (e.g., older Outlook versions) only show the first frame of a GIF, so design that first frame to convey the key message.

• Dimension and resolution: keep animations reasonably sized for mobile display and fast loading.

• Provide fallback: ensure that if animation doesn’t render the user still sees a meaningful image or first frame.

c) Tone, timing and repetition

• Keep loops short, ideally around three to five seconds, and subtle enough to avoid overwhelming the reader.

• Be mindful of motion sensitivity and accessibility. Some users may be distracted or impaired by constant movement.

• Don’t overuse animations in a single email. Balance them with static imagery and text to maintain focus.

d) Align with brand & lifecycle context

• Animation style should reflect your brand’s tone and identity, whether playful, premium, or minimalist.

• In lifecycle flows, make sure the motion matches the stage. For example, in a welcome email you may want warmer, brand-reinforcing motion, while in a cart abandonment email you may want to create a sense of urgency or highlight an incentive.

• Leverage data to test animated versus static images in similar emails and learn what your audience responds to. Audience behavior can differ across segments.

4. Designing animations efficiently with Figma and Gifmock

Creating polished animated graphics doesn’t have to be complex or time-consuming. Tools like Gifmock, featured in our post “Figma plugins to revolutionize your email marketing design process”, allow design teams to quickly mock up animations directly from Figma frames and export them as optimized GIFs.

With Gifmock, you can:

• Turn static Figma frames into smooth animations within minutes.

• Control playback speed and loop settings before exporting.

• Reduce file sizes without sacrificing quality, which helps with email deliverability and load time.

• Preview how the animation will appear in the inbox context before sending.

For busy lifecycle teams balancing multiple flows and A/B tests, integrating Gifmock into your design process helps streamline collaboration between designers, marketers, and CRM specialists. It is an efficient bridge between visual ideation and technical email execution, helping motion stay purposeful and performance-friendly.

5. Pitfalls to avoid

• Don’t assume animation always improves performance. Some research shows that static images may outperform animation when load times, distraction or compatibility issues come into play.

• Avoid heavy animations that push email size up or slow rendering. Sluggish emails can reduce engagement and harm future deliverability.

• Be careful with unsupported clients. If animation fails silently or only shows a blank, you may lose impact or confuse the user.

• Avoid excessive novelty for novelty’s sake. If the animation does not map back to a clear business outcome or CTA (click, purchase, sign-up), it can feel gimmicky.

• Accessibility matters: animations should not interfere with readability, and alt text or static fallback should be provided for users requiring it.

6. Measurement and optimization

High-performing lifecycle teams treat animated graphics as an element to test, measure, and iterate, just like any other part of their email strategy.

• Track metrics such as click-through rate (CTR), conversion (purchase or next-step), engagement (time spent, scroll depth) for emails with vs without animation.

• Segment your audience: test whether heavy users vs new users respond differently to animation.

• Monitor deliverability: did using animation change bounce rates, spam complaints, or rendering issues?

• Review interaction behaviour: did recipients click on the animated part, did it increase interest in the CTA? Use heatmaps if available.

• Optimize: iterate on file size, number of frames, loop duration, whether the animation starts automatically or on hover (if supported), and messaging around the animation.

7. Summary

Animated graphics are a powerful tool in your email and lifecycle toolkit when used strategically. For eCommerce and digital brands, they help tell a visual story in an inbox full of static messages, boost engagement, and elevate brand experience. That said, success depends on purposeful design, technical optimisation, lifecycle stage alignment, and consistent measurement.

With plugins like Gifmock, teams can now integrate animation seamlessly into their design workflow, reducing friction and improving collaboration. At Scalero, we always advise starting small, testing often, and letting the data decide when and how motion becomes part of your email design standard.

If you’re ready to test animated graphics in your next flow, or want support building a measurement framework around them, let’s talk.