Embedding a newsletter directly into an email can give it a professional look, increase engagement, and allow recipients to view the content without needing to click on links or attachments. Here’s a guide on how to do it effectively:
1. Create the Newsletter Design
First, design your newsletter layout, which typically includes text, images, and calls to action. There are two main ways to do this:
- Using an Email Marketing Platform: Platforms like Mailchimp, ConvertKit, or MailerLite offer drag-and-drop editors and ready-made templates for creating newsletter designs.
- Manual HTML Design: If you’re comfortable with HTML, you can design your newsletter from scratch using HTML and inline CSS. This gives you full control over the appearance but requires coding knowledge. Best Practices:
- Keep the design simple and clean to ensure it renders well across different email clients.
- Use images and text in a balanced way. Too many images can increase load time, and email clients may block images by default.
- Use a single-column layout for mobile-friendly design.
2. Embed the Newsletter as HTML in Email
Once your design is ready, you’ll need to embed it into the email itself. Here’s how:
Option 1: Using an Email Marketing Platform
- Step 1: Create your email campaign in the platform. Most platforms have pre-built templates to help you design a professional-looking newsletter.
- Step 2: Customize the content by adding your own text, images, and links. These platforms provide options for including personalized elements, such as the recipient’s name.
- Step 3: Once your newsletter is designed, preview it to ensure that it looks good on both desktop and mobile devices.
- Step 4: Send a test email to yourself. Most email marketing platforms offer this feature to check how the email will appear in different inboxes.
- Step 5: Once you’re satisfied, schedule or send the email to your list of subscribers. Note: These platforms automatically handle all the HTML and styling for you, making it the easiest option for embedding newsletters.
Option 2: Manually Embedding HTML in Gmail or Outlook
- Step 1: Create your newsletter using HTML and inline CSS. Make sure all the styling is inline (email clients don’t support external stylesheets).
- Step 2: Open your email client (like Gmail or Outlook).
- Step 3: In Gmail:
- Open a new email.
- Right-click inside the body of the email and choose “Inspect” (if you’re using Chrome).
- In the code inspector, find the
<div>that corresponds to the body of the email. - Replace the content of the email body with your HTML code.
- Send a test email to ensure everything renders correctly.
- In Outlook:
- You can use add-ins like Outlook’s “Insert HTML” tool to embed custom HTML, or paste the HTML code into an HTML editor and copy-paste the results into the email.
- Make sure all images are hosted online and referenced by their direct URLs in the HTML code.
- Avoid using JavaScript, as most email clients do not support it.
- Use table-based layouts rather than divs and flexbox, as they’re more widely supported by email clients.
3. Use Embedded Images and Links
Make sure all the images in your newsletter are properly embedded:
- Hosted Images: Upload images to a server (or use an image hosting service) and insert the image URL into the
<img>tag in your HTML. - Alt Text: Always include descriptive alt text for images in case the recipient’s email client blocks images.
- Clickable Links: Ensure that buttons, CTAs, and links are clearly visible and easy to click. Use large clickable areas, especially for mobile users.
4. Test the Email Across Devices and Clients
Email rendering varies between clients (like Gmail, Outlook, and Yahoo) and across devices (desktop, tablet, mobile). Before sending, test your email thoroughly:
- Use email testing tools like Litmus or Email on Acid to preview your newsletter across multiple email clients and devices.
- Send test emails to different accounts (Gmail, Outlook, Yahoo) and view them on different devices (desktop, tablet, mobile) to ensure consistency.
- Ensure the images are displaying correctly and the text is aligned properly.
5. Send the Email
Once the email looks good and passes all tests:
- Send it to your list: If using an email marketing platform, this step is easy as they’ll handle the sending for you. If doing it manually, you can copy and paste the HTML into your email client and send it.
- Monitor performance: Track open rates, click-through rates, and other engagement metrics to optimize future newsletters.
Key Tips for Embedding Newsletters:
- Use Inline CSS: Most email clients strip external CSS, so ensure all styles are inline.
- Mobile Optimization: Many readers check emails on mobile, so make sure your newsletter is responsive.
- Test, Test, Test: Email clients (like Outlook, Gmail, and Apple Mail) render HTML differently. Always test before sending.
- Keep the File Size Small: Large emails may load slowly or get blocked. Use optimized images and clean code.