I. INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND
Jasmin Salas
Hello, and welcome to our latest episode of The Check with Joseki Tech. I am Jasmin Salas, the Director of Marketing here at Joseki Tech, and I am joined by Dmitry, our in-house marketing email HTML specialist. Dmitry, could you introduce yourself and share a bit about your HTML background and experience?
Dmitry Volkov
Hello everyone. I've been working with email templates for the past ten years, and it is my main area of expertise. Most of my work involves developing custom HTML for emails.
II. HTML TEMPLATES VS. EMAIL BUILDERS
Jasmin Salas
Jumping right in, HTML templates are something many large businesses must adopt, whether they prefer to or not. Email is a significant market segment, and many modern systems and CRM platforms include email-building systems integrated into their infrastructure. However, these systems could be better at rendering or sending emails en masse. Based on your expertise, Dmitry, what are the advantages of building custom HTML templates?
Dmitry Volkov
Most email builders have limitations, particularly with the email structure. For example, they offer a limited number of available sections, like full-width images, text, or two columns, and generally nothing else. Another significant issue with these systems is their limited responsiveness. For instance, in the case of two-column sections on mobile devices, the left column always stacks above the right column. When creating a template in HTML, we have much more flexibility. We can stack elements differently or choose not to stack them at all. We can create custom designs while maintaining a good ratio of images to text. Another point is that custom-coded HTML is always more optimized than a builder's code. We've tested hundreds, even thousands, of email builders, and none are perfect.
Dmitry Volkov
They all have some issues and rendering problems. None offer the hacks or fixes that allow email templates to render well in all supported email clients, including older versions of Outlook. That's the most crucial reason why we should use custom-coded HTML templates.
Jasmin Salas
I also have experience with HTML builders like Litmus and HubSpot. When you build within these systems, you can proof it—using Litmus, for instance—and see how it renders. But when you test and send the email to your audience, it often doesn't display correctly. Images might not appear correctly in dark mode, or image links might be broken. Ensuring all these elements work together is crucial because you want to provide the best possible experience for your customer. If you're trying to send an email, you must ensure it renders correctly when the recipient sees it.
Dmitry Volkov
That's a great point. Many of our clients ask how we test our templates. They require that templates pass the Litmus test every few months. While Litmus is the best testing software available, it's not entirely reliable. For example, it might show issues that don't appear in native clients or vice versa. That's why we prefer manual testing in native email clients on real devices. Each template is manually tested across all supported email clients on Mac, Windows, Outlook, Gmail, iPhones, Android phones, etc. Only through this extensive testing can we guarantee that our templates will work perfectly for our customers.
III. RECENT CHANGES AND BEST PRACTICES
Jasmin Salas
That's insightful. There have been some standards and changes in HTML over the past five years. Many previously built systems to support these emails no longer do so effectively and require new fixes. Dmitry, could you discuss any recent changes in the industry?
Dmitry Volkov
Regarding HTML best practices, my team and I always strive to meet the latest industry standards. We monitor all the changes in the email industry. For example, even the most modern email builders still use an outdated approach. To make templates look good in Outlook, they incorporate Outlook-specific conditional code throughout the template, meaning the client receives code that's nearly twice as big. This can cause issues even in Gmail, where the code exceeds 100 KB.
Jasmin Salas
Yes, there's always a limitation on the size of the email. We try to keep it under 60 KB because it will render properly at that size. The customer won't see it fully if an email is larger than that. Companies invest a lot of money to build these HTML emails, either through their building system and their CRM or through custom HTML builds, but then the customer won't see it. Newer systems are coming about that might fix these issues. As you mentioned, Litmus is a great testing tool, but from personal experience, Litmus can sometimes mislead you about how the email will render. Ultimately, testing on the platform where the email will be opened is crucial. Otherwise, it's pointless.
Dmitry Volkov
Email responsiveness started to be supported about six or seven years ago. Now, we can make email templates responsive in Gmail, the most popular email client on mobile devices today. However, some builders still use coding approaches that are ten years old, and as a result, email templates are not responsive in Gmail, and your customers will never read a small, unreadable text. Another point is that we can make background images work well in custom code in Outlook. Still, most email services advise against using background images in HTML code, although it is generally possible.
IV. CONCLUSION
Jasmin Salas
Thank you so much for joining me today, Dmitry. This has been very informative for our customers and anyone interested in watching. Thank you, and have a great day.
Comentarios