I’ve seen it so many times, (well technically I didn’t “see” anything at all): a newsletter arrives in my inbox, and, since I don’t load HTML images automatically, all I is see is blank space or maybe a couple big red “X’s”… I know who the newsletter is from but without loading any of the images I have no idea what their offer is.
There are a lot of savvy people out there who like to take the wheel and direct their own Email Marketing initiatives. There’s nothing wrong with that, but if you don’t take the necessary steps you’re probably just wasting your time.
Here are three important steps one should consider when drafting up a newsletter:
- Never use an image to deliver all your content: if your whole offer is drafted as an image and your recipient does not allow HTML emails, well you’re out of luck. The best advise is to “recreate” your image using an HTML editor so that any and all text elements render as text. (see fig. 1)
- If images are necessary use ALT Tags: make sure you utilize ALT tags and don’t describe the image, describe the content you are promoting. If your images don’t display in your recipient’s inbox, they still see or “read” the content that was intended for them. (see fig. 2)
- Test your newsletters in different email accounts: If you’re not testing your newsletters in different email accounts, i.e. Hotmail, Gmail, Yahoo, then as stated above, you’re out of luck. There are so many elements within a newsletter that look perfect when you’re drafting it but not so perfect when viewed in different accounts. The solution? Test test test…
Fig. 1
This is an example of an image only newsletter with NO ALT Text:
Fig. 2
Although this is an image only newsletter, the designers used ALT text in a very creative way.
Describing their offers so that you still get the details without loading any of the images:
If you absolutely have to take the wheel and create your own newsletters, following these simple steps will definitely give you a good start in the right direction.
For more helpful hints, or to talk about how Hall can help with your Email Marketing initiatives, leave a comment or contact me directly!
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