HTML Email best practices, resources and inspiration

Jan 12, 2009

If you use a email account then most probably you know what HTML emails are. It is like subset of conventional email format which supports better formatting options unlike plain text email.


Most of online business choose html emails as a way to communicate with customers in form of newsletters. Designed HTML emails are not just a pretty appearence of information but for some companies its a part of their marketing and branding. Unlike website design, designing HTML emails and making sure it's deliverability is more complex due to poor standards support by numerous email clients both web based and desktop application based. Poor CSS and semantic code support are some of the main problems.

In this article we tried to help you out with resources and information you will ever need for designing HTML emails with best possible practices, testing it and making sure your html email gets delivered without any problem.

Bookmark this article using links down for future reference and also subscribe to our RSS feed for articles like this.

Also follow this blog on twitter at http://twitter.com/designlabel.

Best Practices

Email design guidelines by Campaign Monitor

This article highlight main email design guidelines that should be kept in mind while designing those good looking email newsletters. The first rule is that you should have permission to send email from users sending emails to users that have not given permission is not only bad thing to do but is also against SPAM laws.

Guide to CSS support in email clients

If you design HTML emails often then this would be worth printing for reference. This guide marks which CSS features is supported and which is not by different popular email clients. ( both web based / desktop apps ) This guide is available in PDF (.pdf) and Excel (.xls) format.

Email Marketing Strategy: Shortcuts to Success

HTML Emails - Taming the Beast

This article by David Greiner gives information on how to design keeping in mind common practices and problems using real life examples.

Ensuring your HTML emails look great and get delivered

David Greiner explains what you need to do to ensure that your emails not only look great in today’s email clients but also actually make it to where they’re going.

6 Easy Ways to Improve Your HTML Emails

This article by a email designer for other email designers is a precious resource of information who are just starting out in this field. Tips like design emails to degrade gracefully helps in designing more usable HTML emails.

Six Steps to Avoid Spam Filters

This article emphasizes on sending email to legitimate users and less frequently.

9 best practices for email design

Mobile email design

Resources and information on designing emails for mobile media.

Coding an HTML Email

Articles written by Mike Kleiman on coding emails.

A Designer's Guide to HTML Email

Article on designing html emails from designer's point of view.

The Principles of Beautiful HTML Email

Email Anatomy from Head to Footer

Stupid HTML Email Design Mistakes

How To Code HTML Emails

Best Practices in Writing Email Subject Lines

Email Marketing Subject Line Comparison

Growing Your Permission Email List

Free Email Marketing Guide from MailChimp

HTML Email - Rich Media the Right Way

Stupid HTML Email Design Mistakes

How to Code HTML Email Newsletters

The “getting started checklist” for new clients

What you need to know about permission

Image blocking in email clients

How do alt attributes appear in email?

How wide should my emails be?

Using forms in email

Using Flash in email

How Email Firewalls Work

How Spam Filters Think

How can I reduce the number of spam complaints I get?

Complying with CAN-SPAM laws

Guidelines for proper mailing list management

Email Marketing Roundtable group

DMNews PDF essential guides

Email Marketing Metrics Report by Mailer Mailer

Testing tools and services

Premailer

This free online service lets you convert your CSS to inline to make it more stable on various email clients.

Test Your Email's Spam Score & Deliverability

Anandgraves HTML Email Validator

The HTML Email Validator checks your HTML for compatibility with HTML email.

HTML eMail Troubleshooter

MailChimp Inbox Inspector

Fingerprint

Litmus Email testing

PreviewMyEmail

Email Standards Project

Free HTML Email Templates

Campaign Monitor Themes

30+ Free html emails already tested in all major email clients.

Mailchimp Templates

Cakemail

Free html email templates by Cakemail licensed under Creative Commons Attribution Share-Alike license.

Carbon Graffiti

Free basic layout templates very useful for using as starting point. Different styles are available.

Mailchimp Holidays Templates

Sparklist

Inspiration

Campaign Monitor Html email gallery

Spam Meltdown

A blog based gallery of html email design with detailed information.

Spam Meltdown

Mail Chimp Showcase

Other Blogs on HTML Email's

Adventures in Email Marketing

Be Relevant Blog

Vertical response blog

 

12 Comments so far


Susan - January 12, 2009 8:17 PM

I recently came across your blog and have been reading along. I thought I would leave my first comment. I don't know what to say except that I have enjoyed reading. Nice blog. I will keep visiting this blog very often.


Susan

http://www.car-insurance-choices.com

Your blog is very nice

bollywood girls - January 12, 2009 8:34 PM

i like your blog ....

Francois Lane - January 14, 2009 11:44 AM

Thank you very much for mentioning CakeMail in your post. Anyone interested in checking out our free templates can do so by visiting our website at: http://www.cakemail.com/newsletter-templates.

Email marketing best practices are very important to us. We invite you to read our Delivrability section: http://www.cakemail.com/deliverability
We also regularly talk about email practices, design, and others in our blog: http://www.cakemail.com/blog

Best success in the new year to you and your readers.

François Lane
Founder and CEO, CakeMail

Jon Aizlewood - January 29, 2009 1:40 AM

Thanks for the CarbonGraffiti Email Templates link/screen grab guys! More templates on the way soon, stay tuned for details!

Cheers,
Jon Aizlewood

Frequent Reader - March 24, 2009 1:04 AM

Hello all,
While I surf blog , i found a all new trick in http://pic-memory.blogspot.com/

Vistor can comment and EMBED VIDEO YOUTUBE , IMAGE .
EX : View Source.
http://pic-memory.blogspot.com/2009/02/photos-women-latin-asian-pictu...

Written very smart!
I wonder how they do it ? Anyone know about this , please tell me :D
(sr for my bad english ^_^)

email: ya76oo@ya76oo.com
thanks.

Reynold Hugh - June 22, 2009 11:39 PM

What a wonderful Stuff!
Template Magician

website design New York City - July 21, 2009 5:45 AM

your post is helpful and informative

James Bickerton - July 30, 2009 1:30 PM

Apart from all the junk here in the comments this is a fantastic site. A new HTML email inspiration resource that may interest you and your readers is http://www.inboxaward.com

We launched monday.

Many thanks

James

email templates - January 8, 2010 9:52 AM

Phenomenal list! Thanks for gathering all of this into one place, I'm sure I will be referencing back to this list of email resources frequently, I just don't have enough time in one day to check out all of them.

sam - September 17, 2010 11:28 PM

HTML emails are really useful now days..thanks
www.webconnecttechnologies.com

newsletter templates - September 29, 2010 6:16 AM

James, took a look at your site Inbox Award but they seem to have stopped being updated...

Post a Comment