HTML messages allow for text formatting, multiple columns,
images, and brand recognition.
They are growing in popularity and over 95% of customer
email programs today will support HTML email. Unfortunately
most spam is also formatted using HTML and thus
differentiating between requested email and HTML spam
messages can be difficult.
HTML emails are therefore more likely to trigger spam
filters. According to email deliverability expert Dori
Friend, you should NEVER use HTML email. Dori's advice is
supported by some studies.
A 2004 study by AWeber.com shows that plain text messages
are undeliverable 1.15% of the time and HTML only messages
were undeliverable 2.3% of the time.
But on the other hand we have seen tests were they changed
from html to plain text and the open rates dropted with
over 15%.
The whole Text vs. HTML email problem is still widely
debated in ecommerce circles and the best advice we can
give you is to test it out on your own.
Test and determine what works best for your customer base.
Your test results will always be your most reliable source
of information.
Here are some things to consider when making your decision:
· Over 95% of customer email clients are capable of
receiving HTML emails. The compatibility rate will continue
to increase. Few outdated email clients cannot display
HTML, but you can pretty much bet that the majority of your
customers will have newer versions of email clients.
· A surprisingly large portion of the population
still uses dial-up to connect to the internet. This creates
a longer load time for HTML emails.
· Spam filters are becoming increasingly
sophisticated and often block HTML emails since most spam
comes in that format. Work related and personal emails are
generally in text and do not have delivery problems.
· HTML file sizes are typically larger than text
emails and might therefore automatically get transferred to
a user's Bulk/Junk or Trash folders. Aim to create HTML
emails less than 24k in size.
Text has limited formatting features when compared to HTML,
but it does not necessarily mean it is less effective.
Whether you use Text or HTML, be sure to follow these
formatting rules.
Tips for Formatting Text Emails:
· Use a text editor such as Notepad or WordPad when
formatting your emails. Do NOT use Microsoft Word as it
embeds a lot of formatting bugs that make it difficult to
work with and results in errors on the recipients' ends.
· In text emails don't make the text bold,
italicized, colored, or centered. Instead you can use
CAPITAL letters for the words or phrases that need emphasis.
But don't go overboard; too much capitalization is
difficult to read, gives the impression of yelling, and
resembles spam. In fact many spam filters will deduct
points for every CAPITALIZATION.
· The width most email clients can properly display
is 65 characters (including spaces). Use a hard return
(i.e. press the "Enter" key) every 60 characters or so.
Remember that spaces count too. Exceeding 65 characters
runs the risk of your recipients seeing awkward line breaks
or cut off sentences.
· Create your text email first in Courier font and
then in Arial. These are the most commonly used display
fonts by email clients. Adjust line breaks and "white
space" (i.e. the space between paragraphs). Your message
will not look the same in both fonts, so do not stress over
it. Concentrate on perfecting the format in Courier.
Tips for Formatting HTML Emails:
· Use an HTML editor like Dreamweaver and take
advantage of all the easy to use formatting options. Here
you can play around with the text alignment, font size,
colors and more, and you don't even need to know HTML!
· Just as with text emails, HTML emails should not
exceed a specified width. Wrap your message in a table no
wider than 420 pixels. Your message may get cut off or not
print properly if your table width is too large.
· Try to avoid using images. People with slow
connections will have a hard time downloading them and
those viewing your message offline will not see them at
all, which could appear unprofessional on your part.
· Some email clients like Gmail initially don't show
images, so make sure your messages are readable with or
without images. We understand that images can be an
essential component of your message, and if that's the
case, then be sure to compress your image files properly.
· Use your formatting options tastefully. HTML
allows you to make text bold, italicized, and underlined.
You can use color and embed hyperlinks rather than use long
URLs. You have a lot more ways to make your message
visually appealing, however you want to be careful not to
go too far.
We've offered you some tips and suggestions for creating
both Text and HTML emails. Run regular tests to see which
format produces better results; it's possible that your
readers may change their mind from one email to the next
and that's OK.
If you know how to effectively format each type you can
cater to any audience.
----------------------------------------------------
Bjorn Brands is a successful entrepreneur who transitioned
from having his own building company to a great online
business. Check out his site and see for yourself how his
FREE course can help you do the same.
http://www.moneyacces.com
No comments:
Post a Comment