E-commerce Link : Time for a Tuneup

Breathe some new life into your e-mail templates

Is your e-mail design working hard enough for you? There are many elements that go into any e-mail template: the pre-header, the header, setting the appropriate width, deciding on the number of columns, calls to action and more. All of these need to fit together harmoniously to provide your readers with a good experience that motivates them to click through for more.

Here are some ideas you can put to use to help you tune up your e-mail template(s):

• The pre-header: This element is at the very top of your e-mail, which is usually above the logo. The text included here is generally smaller than the font size used for the body of the e-mail. Any recipient who has the preview pane enabled first will see whatever information you have here.

Consumer marketers should consider including a snippet or short statement highlighting the main message. Often, the snippet is a variation of the subject line, although it also could consist of a table of contents if the e-mail features multiple stories. Below that, the marketer could include additional administrative messaging such as "view online version," "add us to your safe list" and even "forward to a friend."

B-to-B marketers may have on-the-go professionals viewing e-mails on mobile devices. If so, there can be display or rendering issues with the balance of the message. The first item this audience should see is some variation of "view mobile version." If recipients click on this, take them to a text or HTML-lite version of the content with no images for ease of viewing.

• Header and navigation: This area contains your logo along with other elements such as the name of the e-mail program, a positioning statement and the date. Roughly, 30 percent to 40 percent of promotional e-mails and informational newsletters include site navigation tabs to major online departments. If you use this technique, cull the number of tabs to include only your major areas.

The height of the header should be compact. Those who view e-mails in the preview pane should be able to see some of your content or offer. A large header takes up a lot of room and cuts down on your effectiveness and readability.

• E-mail width: Conventional wisdom says that your e-mail should be between 600 and 700 pixels wide. This width gives you the best chance of having it display in the variety of e-mail readers used by your recipients.

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