Email Marketing – Instructions & Tutorials (DF)
Overview
For this project, you will design one email marketing blast using the professional web app Mailchimp.com. Companies use email marketing blasts to reach customers directly with product and event announcements, sales, specials, educational information, how to use a product, and recipes.
I create my email blasts using Mail Chimp’s online web interface.
Grading checklist
- Design one email marketing blast on Mailchimp.com (create your own free account)
- You will choose from a product, service, or event you are passionate about. Make sure it’s class-appropriate.
- Design your own header in Illustrator – use the template/tutorial below
- Get free photos on unsplash.com, pexels.com, or pixabay.com. Or use your own.
- Participate in class presentations and critiques
Email marketing best practices
Make all images 1200 pixels, and MailChimp will automatically resize them for you.
This is helpful because you may use an image for a smaller block one time and a larger one the next time. You only have to store one image in MailChimp.
Use photos in their original high resolution. A 4000×3000 pixel photo is okay. If you shoot in RAW format, that might be too much—but you can always reduce the size in the MailChimp image editor (built into Mailchimp’s web-based interface).
Here’s a link to MailChimp’s Image Recommendations: https://mailchimp.com/help/image-requirements-for-templates/.
Email Best Practices
- Use a managed service like Mail Chimp or Constant Contact
- Focus on one main message per email blast
- Use buttons for call-to-actions
- Send one email per week
- Use a responsive template
- Schedule to send when your recipient most needs it (food = dinner time)
- Why do people sign up for email newsletters?
- Want more info on the subject or topic
- Want a focused message delivered to them
- Sales, coupons, deals
Student Email Examples
Industry Email examples
Below are several real email marketing examples from various companies. Notice how each delivers the company’s brand and focuses on one main message. Most use one main image and headline to draw the viewer in and show them where to start.
These examples also benefit from:
- Logo to identify the company
- Brand colors throughout
- Consistent design style and layout
- Consistent typeface
- Lots of artwork
Avoid emails with too many images
Here’s what happens to your view if you only use images for your email content. Avoid this by using text for your header and opening paragraph. This will grab your viewer’s attention and get them to either wait for the images to load or click to view them.
Create your email (A step-by-step tutorial)
1. Create your own MailChimp.com account and log in
First, go to mailchimp.com, create your own account, and then log in. Be sure to save your login credentials. You may want to use your email in your portfolio.
2. Review the Mail Chimp web-based interface
I’ll show you how to create your first email during class. We’ll do it together so you have a starting point when you create your own.
Below is the email we’ll create together. It also shows what you should include in your email design
3. Design your email in Mail Chimp
Download the work along file:
I will walk you through the MailChimp web-based email designer in class. We’ll create one email together, and then you’ll create one yourself. The user interface is user-friendly, so you’ll be creating your own emails in no time at all.
Here’s a tutorial video introducing you to MailChimp’s online email designer
(11:11)
4. Choose your email’s topic
It can be pretty much anything you’re interested in or passionate about. Make sure it’s a classroom-friendly topic.
A few topic ideas to get your ideas flowing:
- Pet adoption event
- A local volunteering event
- A local farmer’s market?
- A favorite food you like to eat
- A favorite brand of clothing or shoes you wear
- A sustainability tip to share with your clients—how to save energy or water
- The benefits of riding your bike to school or work
- A local business or restaurant you like to eat at
5. Write your email first
Headline
This should be about 3–5 words and tell your audience what you are trying to tell them in your email.
Body copy
Then write a few sentences that elaborate on your headline’s message.
Call-to-action
Lastly, write your call to action. This should come at the end of your email message. What do you want them to do once they read your message? Give them a coupon with 25% off? Send them to your website to find a retailer near them? Ask them to donate to your cause? Send them to a specific page on your website and have them start shopping?
Type these directly into your Mail Chimp email.
6. Choose photographs
Once you have defined your message, you’ll need to find photos. These photos will help communicate your email’s message to your audience.
Get these photos from unsplash.com, pixabay.com, or pexels.com. You may also use your own photos if they have enough resolution and help communicate your message.
7. Make your photos web-friendly
This is an optional step because MailChimp recented updated it’s interface to downsize photos for you. But, you can do this is you want. I’d make your photos 1200 pixels wide. The video shows 600 pixels, which is the old MailChimp. The fastest and simplest approach to optimize your photos for use in your email (or on any website).
(2:19)
A slightly different approach to optimizing photos using Bridge and Photoshop. Watch this tutorial video that shows you how to make all of your photos web-friendly, 600×500 pixel images. Again, make your photos 1200 pixels wide. It will also show you how to place them into your Mail Chimp email.
(10:00)
8. Create your own header
Download the header .ai template
This is the Adobe Illustrator template to use for your header.
Watch this video showing how to make a header, save it, and upload it
This tutorial will show you how to create your 600 x 200 px email header in Illustrator (make yours 1200 pixels wide), save it as a web-friendly image, and upload it to your Mail Chimp email.
7:00 minutes
Watch this video to learn how to further adjust your header’s colors and logo
5:00 minutes
Once you finish and upload your header you should be done. That’s it! Your email blast should be done.
9. How to merge several screen captures together for your critiques
This video will show you how to take screen-captures of your final email blast in Mail Chimp, piece it together in Photoshop, save it for the web, and use it for your peer critique or post to social media.
9:00 minutes
Nice work!