Hi all. My application sends a welcome email on user registration, which is great. Ideally I’d like to send a html email (am happy with the code) but it seems the rich text editor is the only option. Is that correct?
Yes, but the rich text editor generate in fact BBCode, which is very close to HTML. You can have links, images, etc. That won’t do it?
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Hi Emmanuel
Yes, the editor is fine but I can’t do table layouts etc. What I wanted to do was send a welcome email using the same Mailchimp template used for ongoing updates. It’s not a massive problem.
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Some basic BBCode resources:
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Maybe you could use the Blockspring Gmail “Send An Email” block, if you are OK with having the user receive an email from a gmail account (I’ve yet to test if it’s also compatible with Google Apps for Work…in which case you could send it from your @domain.com email). It takes HTML
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Get permission to email.
You can do this by having a sign-up link on your webpage. You can also allow current email subscribers to forward your HTML email to their friends and asking them to sign up to receive it in their own email account. It is permissible to send email to current customers as well.
Unwanted emails are considered spam. It is frustrating for individuals to receive emails for which they never asked to receive.
Do not use email addresses from forwards or personal emails. This is not only unprofessional, but also considered spam.
Use code for email readers.
Not all email readers have the same capabilities as web browsers. Design your email so more people will be able to view the HTML version instead of having to revert to the plain-text version.
Structure content by using tables. Tables give you the most reliability in email readers. Define the width of table cells to ensure consistency in format. If in doubt, keep the width narrow.
Store images on a live web server. Otherwise, your readers will not be able to view them.
Use absolute paths for links and images. Absolute paths include the “[http://” http://"] at the beginning.
Rely on the text to communicate your message.
Though it is more appealing to use colors and graphics, there is a good chance that someone on your email list will not be able to view your HTML email, no matter how well it is designed. Spam filters can block images and attachments. They also tend to filter emails of substantial size, which can include you if you have large image files or numerous images.
Follow Federal Trade Commission guidelines.
These guidelines are set up to protect consumers by ensuring proper privacy settings and making certain that legitimate businesses are behind email marketing.
Provide a way to opt out of your email list. This can be an automatic unsubscribe link at the bottom of your email. You can also identify an email address for them to contact and ask to be removed if they no longer wish to receive your emails at any point in the future.
Include your business’s name and physical mailing address. Readers need to know that you are a valid businesses and not a scheme or spammer.
Ensure that the “from” and “reply-to” addresses are valid and active. Provide a way for readers to contact you if they have questions or are interested in supporting your business.
Choose an appropriate subject line. Your subject should be a concise description of what the email contains, not invalid sales offers or false promotions.
Test your HTML email.
Look to see if links are intact and active. Ensure that images and fonts appear correctly. Check to see if your table is too wide.
Test your email in as many email readers as possible. Each email reader is programmed differently and may show your HTML email in a different format.
Perform a spam test to make sure your email will make it through the majority of spam filters. You can get your spam rating through many email service providers or test it online through spam filter websites.
Send HTML email.
Use an email service provider (ESP), if possible. An ESP will help you manage your contact list and enable you to send a larger amount of HTML email without using up your limited bandwidth. Otherwise, insert email addresses into the BCC field of your email so addressees remain confidential.
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Thanks for all the replies. In order to get nested tables and identical presentation to the project’s mailchimp templates, I used the notifications feature in Mixpanel instead. I pasted in the mailchimp HTML, modified the content and set a notification rule in mixpanel based on one of the tracked events in the bubble project. Working very nicely.
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I hadn’t tried that but will take a look. Thanks.