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Building Time-Saving Email Templates. Presented by Chris Smith, Design Services Team Lead. Exactly what makes an email template time-saving?. It’s flexible enough to add, subtract or reposition items of importance Any admin can manage the content The styling is all in the template
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Building Time-Saving Email Templates Presented by Chris Smith,Design Services Team Lead
Exactly what makes an email template time-saving? • It’s flexible enough to add, subtract or reposition items of importance • Any admin can manage the content • The styling is all in the template • If you’re thinking mobile, think simple & one column (at first)
Flexibility is all in the design • The number of articles can easily be adjusted • Column content can be easily repositioned • News items must be added by 3’s • Adding events would cause awkward white space • Content position is locked in place
Tame those “wild” admins by using the News Module • Create a newsletter specific News Listing Type • Create a hidden Newsletter Admin page in your sitemap and go to that page • Drop the News Module that utilizes the newsletter listing type on this admin page
Tame those “wild” admins by using the News Module • Turn on Content Builder • Edit the News Module pattern to show thumbnail images
Tame those “wild” admins by using the News Module • Save the default options for the Manage Calendar / Listing step to advance to the Listing Format step • Select the Edit checkbox and choose Next • Select the HTML view
Tame those “wild” admins by using the News Module Paste the code below as your listing format and choose Next to advance through the rest of the steps: <p><strong>[Link][Content Name][/Link]</strong>[Tool Icons]</p> <imgsrc="[ThumbnailUrl]" alt="[Content Name]" /> <p>[Preview]</p>
Tame those “wild” admins by using the News Module • Was all that worth it? • By patternizing the content in your template you’ve reduced the burden on the admin down to 3 things: • Article Title • Thumbnail Image • Preview Text
Basic styling: Skin Builder setup tips • Set a max width of 600 and units to px • Set default styles as a backup • Make sure all hex colors have the #
Stay calm, we’re going to talk about the HTML editor • Why should I use the HTML editor? • You have better control over the layout and styling of content • You will reduce the amount of unnecessary markup • Troubleshooting issues will become much easier • You’ll never achieve consistency without it
Getting to know HTML Tables Things to think about • Tables cancel out most of the skin builder font styling • All styling must be handled inline • You can, and should, nest tables when necessary to achieve your desired layout. This can be overwhelming at first so stick to easier layouts while learning Why should I use tables? • Tables provide the best structure and reduce the risk of your template breaking • Styling is more consistent when driven by tables vs. header or paragraph tags • Tables override a lot of inconsistent formatting from different email readers
Getting to know HTML Tables So what is an HTML Table? • <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" border="0"> • </table> • <tr> • </tr> • <td width="600" align="left" style=""></td> • <table> = HTML Table • <tr> = Table Row • <td> = Table Data or Table Cell
Getting to know HTML Tables Remember the News Module?
Getting to know HTML Tables <table width="400" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" border="0" style="border-collapse:collapse; "> <tr> <td width="95" align="left" valign="top" style="padding:0px“><imgsrc="[ThumbnailUrl]" alt="[Title]" width="75" /></td> <td width="305" align="left" valign="top" style="padding:0px"> <table width="100%" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" border="0 " style="border-collapse:collapse; "> <tr> <td width="100%" align="left" style="padding-bottom:8px; font-weight:bold; font-family:Arial,Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size:16px; color:#229bcd;">[Title]</td> </tr> <tr> <td width="100%" align="left" style="padding-bottom:5px; font-family:Arial,Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size:13px;">[Preview Text]</td> </tr> </table> </td> </tr> </table> Remember the News Module?
Getting to know HTML Tables <table width="400" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" border="0"> <tr> <td width="95" align="left" valign="top"> <imgsrc="[ThumbnailUrl]" alt="[Title]" width="75" /> </td> <td width="305" align="left" valign="top"> <table width="100%" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" border="0"> <tr> <td width="100%" align="left">[Title]</td> </tr> <tr> <td width="100%" align="left">[Preview Text]</td> </tr> </table> </td> </tr> </table> Remember the News Module?
Getting to know HTML Tables <table width="400" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" border="0"> <tr> <td width="95" align="left" valign="top"> <imgsrc="[ThumbnailUrl]" alt="[Title]" width="75" /> </td> <td width="305" align="left" valign="top"> <table width="100%" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" border="0"> <tr> <td width="100%" align="left">[Title]</td> </tr> <tr> <td width="100%" align="left">[Preview Text]</td> </tr> </table> </td> </tr> </table> Remember the News Module?
Getting to know HTML Tables <table width="400" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" border="0"> <tr> <td width="95" align="left" valign="top"> <imgsrc="[ThumbnailUrl]" alt="[Title]" width="75" /> </td> <td width="305" align="left" valign="top"> <table width="100%" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" border="0"> <tr> <td width="100%" align="left">[Title]</td> </tr> <tr> <td width="100%" align="left">[Preview Text]</td> </tr> </table> </td> </tr> </table> Remember the News Module?
Getting to know HTML Tables <table width="400" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" border="0"> <tr> <td width="95" align="left" valign="top"> <imgsrc="[ThumbnailUrl]" alt="[Title]" width="75" /> </td> <td width="305" align="left" valign="top"> <table width="100%" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" border="0"> <tr> <td width="100%" align="left">[Title]</td> </tr> <tr> <td width="100%" align="left">[Preview Text]</td> </tr> </table> </td> </tr> </table> Remember the News Module?
Getting to know HTML Tables <table width="400" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" border="0"> <tr> <td width="95" align="left" valign="top"> <imgsrc="[ThumbnailUrl]" alt="[Title]" width="75" /> </td> <td width="305" align="left" valign="top"> <table width="100%" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" border="0"> <tr> <td width="100%" align="left">[Title]</td> </tr> <tr> <td width="100%" align="left">[Preview Text]</td> </tr> </table> </td> </tr> </table> Remember the News Module?
So where do I get started? Must have resources for anyone interested in building email tempaltes • http://www.campaignmonitor.com/css http://www.campaignmonitor.com/resources/will-it-work/guidelines • http://www.campaignmonitor.com/guides/mobile http://www.emailology.org/#2 http://litmus.com