In the present era, creation of email templates becomes imperative for almost every business as email marketing makes their business quite simpler. But, generating email templates is not enough until they are reader & inbox-friendly and optimized. Now, many of you must be wondering that what it takes to include all these factors in your emails. Here is a list of the best tricks and tips to help business people fix the issues that they face while designing templates for email marketing:
1. Consider Software Usages
It means to say that do not go for Microsoft Word for the sake of writing email template code. But, you should try good email creator.
2. Avoid Flashy Design
Try to keep your design as simple as possible because if the design will be too flashy then reader’s attention goes to the design instead of message.
3. Keep Emails Width Within 650 Pixels
By keeping your emails width under 650 pixels, you can ensure their display in Outlook preview pane. This allows you to keep your customer base intact.
4. Do Away With Body Attributes
There are email clients that do not give importance to body attributes. Therefore, you should go along with a light gray table having 100% width and then compile the email content within the table.
5. Treat Tables As The Best Friend
The people, who have been coding for years, find it a bit awkward, but it is really significant to use tables in the email template design. It allows you to set uniformity of the email on each email client.
6. Say No To HTML Bullet Points
Though bullets look nice, but they do not actually appear good when used in an email. So, go for a plain text alternative, such as asterisks (*) or dashes (-).
7. Embrace Inline CSS
You are aware of the fact that Hotmail, Yahoo and Gmail, all of them are browser-based email. Other email clients based on browsers strip the things out such as DOCTYPE, BODY, and HEAD tags. You can avoid such issues by using Inline CSS.
8. Go Slowly With Video
Video is not such a stuff, which works well in all email clients, as most of the email clients do not allow you to view a good media. So, you can include an image and link its video with the web page.
9. Prefer Complete Image Paths
Make sure that image in your email template must be hosted on the website and associate this image path with the page URL (hosted page). This will help you find the image URL anytime just by making a right click or with view image info. It must end with .gif or .jpg in place of .com.
10. Write Down Incline CSS
Many people find it better to opt shorthand, but they should write the CSS in full.
11. Include Height & Width Of Image
This might be a minor thing, but these two factors allow you to maintain the structural integrity of your email clients on various email clients.
12. Avoid PNGs
PNG should not be included in email templates, as it does not get supported in the Lotus Notes.
13. Remember Image Alt Text
People think that Alt Text is merely used for search engines to help them read images on your site. But, it is also used for the readers to make sure that the images they were expecting have been rendered in the inbox.
14. Images Should Be Right In Size & Number
This means to say that do not make the size of images too large and include only necessary images. Too big and too many images will only increase the loading time of an email.
15. Ensure The Inclusion Of Company Name, Unsubscribe Link & Physical Address
By including all these elements, you can keep your email template in a better situation and send it to the customers without hesitation.
16. Include Image Alt Text
It is essential to add image Alt Text as merely Alt Text is not sufficient to read images on your website.
17. Accompany It With A Plain Text Email Template
We all are aware of the fact that everyone does not render the email in HTML. Some people decide it on the basis of their email client and device on which they read it. In this way, plain text seems to be the best option.
Conclusion
The best tips & tricks to make an email template design friendly with readers and inbox have been mentioned above. Though there are also other tips, but these are the best out of them.
