Specifications:
- e-broadcast must be constructed in HTML using tables, not divisions (or 'divs'), at a recommended width of 600 pixels.
- Images must either be supplied together the HTML file, OR be hosted live on the internet, not on your own company’s local server (the image links MUST BE ABSOLUTE ie. http://www.yourcompany.com/yourimagesfolder/imagename
NOT LOCAL ../yourimagesfolder/imagename). Include an ‘alt’ tag - this is just a description of the image that will show when the image is disabled
- The email broadcasting system does not support tracking links, therefore all links must go to the correct web page
- Be aware that some email clients (such as Hotmail) strip out CSS (Cascading Styles Sheets), so inline styling is recommended. Do not reference an external style sheet - always have your styles declared inline.
- Do not use background images. These do not work in Hotmail, Outlook 2007, Google Mail and Lotus Notes, to mention but 4 of the 10 most commonly used email clients.
- There are many email clients in use by recipients, and all of them will treat your e-broadcast differently - especially where CSS (Cascading Styles Sheets) is concerned; click here to view a guide to CSS support across the 10 most commonly used email clients.
Client must supply:
- HTML file together with images (or with any included images hosted on a website and referenced absolutely)
- Sending name@ymgbroadcast.com (eg. smithtours@ymgbroadcast.com)
- Subject heading (for subject box)
- Any e-mail addresses to be seeded onto the e-broadcast list (maximum five addresses please)
- Final WRITTEN signoff via email
You will receive an email proof before dispatch. To authorise dispatch, please email your Yandell Publishing contact with your written authorisation.
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e-broadcast best practices:
- Keep your subject line short; studies have shown that subject lines with fewer than 60 characters generate higher open rates
- Preview Pane; the preview pane is the first part of your email template that recipients see - this is roughly the top 10cm or 200 pixels. Many recipients judge whether ot not they open your email based on what they see within the preview pane, therefore grab the recipient's attention to encourage them to download the images and read on
- Call to action in Preview Pane; ensure that your e-brodcast key call to action is within the preview pane. This encourages recipients to click straight through to your website
- Anchor links; use anchor links to link to articles within your email, especially if your email is long
- Short concise content; recipients scroll and scan your email so keep it short and to the point
- Image to text ratio; a common spamming technique is to hide bad text and viruses within an image, therefore try to have an even image to text ratio - if something can be text, have it as text. Refrain from placing call to actions in graphics such as 'click here' links as these will only be visible once images are downloaded
- Use Alt/Title tags on images; this is a description of the image which is shown when images are turned off. Many email clients have images turned off by default, therefore using alt text gives the recipient an indication of what the image is and encourages them to download
- Links; make sure there are plenty of opportunities for the recipient to click through to your website. Try to ensure you have text call to actions as well as image ones
- Using CAPS; try to avoid using sentences containing only CAPS within your email and the subject line, as spam filters see this as 'shouting' and could potentially block your email
Further questions?
For further information contact Gareth Davies on 01908 613323 or email gareth.d@yandellmedia.com
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