How to Design Email Newsletters for Gmail
An email newsletter promotes your business even when you're off the clock by informing potential and current customers of special deals and prompting them to visit your website. While it's important to test your newsletter in a variety of browsers and email utilities, formatting it for Gmail may cover the bases for all utilities because of its difficult design parameters, according to design website Inspiring Pixel. Gmail doesn't automatically show images within messages, making alternate text and body copy essential to reaching your readers.
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Instructions
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Keep your format on the thin side. Many email utilities allow users to scroll right or left to view a wide message; Gmail does not. Keeping the design format well within the parameters of a typical email's dimensions ensures Gmail users can view the entire email. Specify size for all images for this reason as well.
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Specify all background and text colors. Since Gmail's introduction of themes, a personalized setting that customizes background, link and text colors, messages not formatted using these specifications may be altered in such a way that your text is unreadable. Never keep the background white; if you wish the background to appear white, specify it as a color rather than leaving the option blank. Think carefully about your color scheme and avoid hiding links in a dark background.
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Name all images with alternate text. Gmail, like a few other email utilities, does not automatically show images, in an attempt to load the message quicker. Name your images with the text shown within or a short blurb of what the image is promoting. While utilizing alternate text for every image within the newsletter is a good idea, it is crucial for headlines, offers, promotions and other calls to action, says e-commerce blog Get Elastic.
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Prompt the recipient to add your address to his safe list. Do so near the top of the email, which will follow the "Always allow images from this sender" link. This two-fold prompt ensures future messages from you will show all images clearly without having to click the "Show images" link.
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Utilize body copy. Mixing text within the images instead of a primarily image-based newsletter ensures the recipient understands the tone and current promotion in the message even if his settings prohibit automatically showing images.
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Include necessary information such as prices and product names. Use your newsletter to promote specifics, which are what your readers want to know and should be compelling enough to get him to click through to your website.
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Plant your best deals near the top of the email. Most users, especially those who subscribe to numerous email newsletters, don't scroll through the entire message. Entice them to read on by highlighting the best promotions in the header.
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Add links to reduce the body of the email. Readers have short attention spans, and links to specific products on your website entice them to check out other parts of your site as well. Include links to a web version of the newsletter as well, hosted on your site for archiving; highlight the web version at the top and bottom of your newsletter so your reader doesn't have to scroll through the entire newsletter to find it. Double-check all links to make sure they work and display well.
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Tips & Warnings
Test your newsletter in different browsers. Since it is unlikely all recipients of your newsletter use Gmail, test it with other email utilities as well.
References
- Photo Credit notebook computer image by Lisa Eastman from Fotolia.com
