It’s all too easy to make basic errors when preparing to send email campaigns. Ever forgot to change placeholder links or uploaded the wrong images? These small mistakes can have a massive effect on the success of your email, so we’ve prepared a short checklist to work through before sending email campaigns.
Download a PDF version of the checklist so you have it handy, or if you’d like to pass it on to whoever is responsible for setting up your email content.
1. Have all Content Validation tests have been passed?
When on the email template’s page, switch to the Validate tab and view the Content Validation panel. This checks for easily overlooked issues such as broken links and missing images.
2. Has ‘SpamAssassin’ panel flagged any potential spam issues?
When on the email template’s page, switch to the Validate tab and view the SpamAssassin panel. This checks for issues that might trigger your email to be marked as spam, preventing it from landing in your user’s inbox.
3. Are all links going to correct destinations?
Send yourself test emails and check all the links are going to their correct destinations, including view online and social share tags if you’ve used them. If you do find you’ve sent a campaign with the wrong links, fear not, you can change where the links direct to using the Live Links Editor in the campaign’s report.
4. Do all images have alt tags?
Alt tags are displayed when images are blocked, so are a good way to get a message across to the many users whose images are blocked by default. If you are not au fait with HTML you can use the online editor: right click the image and select Image Properties, and edit the Alternative Text form field.
5. Have you included [UNSUBSCRIPTION_CONTENT] tag, and is it clear in the content?
You should always include a clear unsubscription link in your content – it is a legal requirement when sending marketing emails in the EU and US.
6. Have you previewed any personalised content, is your user data ready to be merged in?
If you’ve used any merge fields for personalisation preview how the content will look for different users. Also double check all the users you are sending to have the required user data fields to be merged in.
7. Does the email display correctly in different email clients?
Email clients are notorious for rendering HTML email in different ways, affecting the layout and visual aesthetic of your email. The Inbox Inspector (found on the Testing tab of your email template page) allows you to quickly preview the email in many popular email clients. If the Inbox Inspector highlights issues you can’t resolve try running the HTML through a validator such as http://validator.w3.org/.
8. Have you included a text-only version?
Sending a text-only version of your HTML emails makes the content available to text-only email clients, including some mobile devices, and makes spam filters much less likely to mark your email as spam. Make sure you proof read the text-only version before sending.
9. Have all ‘Sender Verification’ tests have been passed?
Sender Verification is important in getting your email to land in the users inbox. On the ‘Send’ tab of your email template’s page you’ll find a ‘Sender Verification’ section – make sure all four items have a green tick before them. If any are highlighted in orange or red report these to your email solution’s support desk before sending.
10. Have all your recipients opted-in to receiving email (if sending B2C email)?
Failing to do so will have a massively detrimental effect on your sender reputation; worse still, as this is a legal requirement in the EU you could land yourself in some rather hot (and expensive) water!
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