6 Tips For Creating A Mobile-Friendly Email Message (Part 2) 2279

6 Tips For Creating A Mobile-Friendly Email Message (Part 2)

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Last week, in Part 1, we covered simplifying the layout, the call to action and the size of an email template. If you have not read Part 1, please be sure to check it out after reading this entry! Today, we will be looking at subject lines, image use in email messages, and font size.



Make the Subject Meaningful

The subject line of an email message may seem somewhat insignificant when creating an email message, but a poorly written subject line may deter your reader from clicking on and reading the email message.

A good subject line tells your reader what's inside. Clearly state what is in the email message, and avoid writing it like an advertisement. Use different subject lines so that your content is fresh and does not get stale. Try different types of subject lines as well, and see which works best with your audience. Some examples of subject lines include:
  • Ask a question — How many of our pets found homes last year?
  • Include a deadline — Class of 1999 Reunion is May 5th. Register today!
  • Add a teaser — Pennies for Paws Gala: Get a Sneak Preview!
  • Use an actionable command — Join Us for Our Annual Breast Cancer Walk
  • Use a list — Top 5 Threats to the Chesapeake Bay
Another important tip is to keep your subject lines short and simple. Many email clients on mobile devices will only display up to 50 characters, and the subject line is akin to the headline of our message. Make sure the important content is up front, and try to avoid cutting your subject line off.

Get to know your audience and monitor the reports of your previous message to see what is working for you. The more you know your audience, the more information you have in order to produce effective and creative subject lines that generate email opens, click-throughs and conversions.

Don't be afraid to be unique and try new subject lines!

Re-size and Limit Your Images

Although the vast majority of our audience will be on broadband connections at home and at work, we may be on our mobile devices in areas where we're on 3G (or slower) connections. For this reason, it is important that we re-size our images in an image editor before we add them to our email message (or page part in NetCommunity). It's important to note that re-sizing an image in the NetCommunity editor does not change the actual file size of the image.

For example, if I add a photo to my email message in NetCommunity and I use the editor to scale it down, I am only changing the dimensions of the image. I have not changed the file size! On a mobile device, the image may take a little while to download if the file size is large, especially if there are multiple images and we're on a slower connection. Loading larger images also uses up bandwidth, so let's create smaller images in order to conserve bandwidth usage. If an email takes too long to load, the reader may become impatient, and not read the full contents of the message.

Increase the Font Size and Use Touch-Friendly Images

A font on a desktop is smaller on mobile devices. This is something we must take into consideration when creating an email message. I recommend a font size of at least 14 pixels, and in many cases you can even go larger.

You’ll want to make it as easy as possible for your audience to click on a button, so if you do use clickable images, be sure that they are easy to touch with a finger! Your images should have a minimum target area of about 44 × 44 pixels (or larger).

It's also important that you add ALT text to your images in case the images are not shown. That way, if the image is not displayed, the ALT text is displayed in its place. A good example of ALT text for a call to action button may be: Click here to donate online.

Conclusion

These tips are essential to creating a mobile-friendly email message, and they are relatively easy to implement. Let’s make it easier for your audience to read your messages and/or contribute to your cause!

If you do not currently have a mobile-friendly email template, you can find plenty of free templates by searching for single-column email templates on Google, or reach out to a web designer that is knowledgeable about mobile-friendly email templates.

If you'd like for Blackbaud to design a mobile-friendly email template, please contact your Blackbaud Account Manager to get started.

Want to see examples of really good emails? Check out Really Good Emails!

*Please note that Blackbaud NetCommunity Support does not provide advanced design support, and any design services need to go through your Account Manager.
News ARCHIVED | Blackbaud NetCommunity™ Blog 05/02/2016 8:58am EDT

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