html email template

[Evoir]

I am designing a new site for a client, and they want to be able to send html email. I advised against it, but, you know...

So, I never use html email, my email client simply does nto read it. I am in the dark. They want a "template" with their new header and footer to create thier new email newsletter with. Do I simply supply them with validated html? I know you can create html emails in Outlook on a PC, I just don't have that!

Also, is there any links to information that can disuade them from going this route? Thanks!

[Evoir]

Oh, and someone helped me a few years ago (was it kitchin?) and I can't find the PMs or emails. Sorry to be asking the same stuff again years later!

[Bob]

Evie,

Just take a walk down memory lane ;)
http://www.aota.net/forums/showthread.php?postid=93636#post93636

-Bob

[sheila]

Here's a link to another discussion on the same topic, although this one is a bit older much of the discussion still seems applicable to the current email situation.
http://www.aota.net/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=11526&highlight=html+mailing+list

I doubt the average user has any idea to turn their nose up at HTML. However, things they will not like are:
(1) Large emails that take a long time to download.
(2) Emails that get tagged/filtered by their ISP or other filtering service as spam. These are likely to be missed. And HTML messages are much more likely to be tagged as spam.

I would suggest running the email template as a test through SpamAssassin to see what score it gets. Obviously, the scores will vary depending on the content. But the HTML markup for the template will remain the same from mailing to mailing, so...

Are you sure he doesn't want to send out a multipart email with both HTML and plain text (alternative) parts? This is much better received in general than a plain HTML message.

It is much easier by far to compose HTML and/or multipart emails in an email client. Certainly it is possible to write a script to handle this, but it requires special attention to the email's headers to handle the content type properly.

[Evoir]

Yes, yes... a mul;tipart email is what they want. But, I need to create a template from the new design I am creating.

In re-reading that old thread, I'm pleased to say my stance has not changed! :)

Oh, and I think it was Randall that helped me in email... looking for those emails now :\

[Randall]

I still have those emails. I think we determined that the Mac version of Outlook Express doesn't allow you to edit HTML directly like the Windows version does. In the Windows version, when you're composing a message, you select "Source Edit" from the View menu. That gives you three tabs along the bottom of the message: Edit, Source and Preview. Since then, I've learned that Thunderbird (http://www.mozilla.org/products/thunderbird/releases/#install) has some direct HTML editing features, and those should be available in the Mac version. But I'm not sure how you'd get from there to an Outlook or OE template.

Randall

[Evoir]

Hey Randall! Is there such a thing as creating an Outlook template? One that you can call up and write a new email in and send out as a multipart email?

[Randall]

Is there such a thing as creating an Outlook template? One that you can call up and write a new email in and send out as a multipart email? Yes and no.

After a good deal of experimentation, I figured out a way to get a preformatted HTML email into Outlook 2000 and saved as an Outlook Template. (I had to design the actual template in Thunderbird, because Outlook's own HTML editing capabilities are extremely limited.) The results were quite good, if not as clean as the original HTML.

But sadly, Outlook 2000 does not include a plain-text part for emails created from a template. :(

I'll have to see if that's been fixed in Outlook XP or 2003.

Randall

[Bob]

IF you must... ;)

Creating a HTML formatted email in Thunderbird is easy and can be saved as a Template and Thunderbird has the ability to send as text and html...

It's FREE and cross platform compatible...

-Bob