| It was recently announced that Microsoft intends to | | | | users can still make sense of your email when the |
| continue using Word to edit and render HTML email in | | | | background image doesn't appear. |
| Outlook 2010. This has been greeted with cries of | | | | Note that normal fixed inline images can still be used, |
| protest from email marketing designers the world | | | | so think carefully how you can place them for |
| over. | | | | maximum effect. |
| Many email marketing designers are nostalgic for the | | | | If you are desperate for text overlaying a |
| good old days of Outlook 2003, where Internet | | | | background effect, this is really your only option. |
| Explorer was used for rendering HTML emails and all | | | | - No support for animated .gifs - be aware that if |
| was good with the world. Indeed, protests have | | | | you include animated gifs in your email marketing |
| been registered in many online forums (including | | | | campaign, Outlook 2007 will only display the very first |
| Microsoft's own) about their apparent drifting away | | | | frame of the animation, so put your most important |
| from support for web standards in HTML email. One | | | | message/image at the beginning. |
| of the main launch pads for this debate has been a | | | | - Inline style border support is erratic - particularly |
| Twitter-based call to arms by the Email Standards | | | | style borders used to define vertical borders only. If |
| Project. | | | | you must use them, you can apply a style border to |
| However, experience designing successful email | | | | the cell of a single-cell table, otherwise expect the |
| templates for a variety of common email readers, | | | | columns in your email campaign to look a bit |
| both online and offline has shown that all is not lost | | | | 'staggered' in Outlook 2007/2010. Applying borders to |
| when it comes to creating well-designed and | | | | images (inline-style or otherwise) does not work at all. |
| consistent-looking emails, even for the likes of | | | | - Limited support for advanced CSS style attributes - |
| Outlook 2007 and Lotus Notes. | | | | including width, height, margin, padding, float, clear. |
| As a general rule, email reader support for HTML is | | | | Why use Word to render HTML emails? |
| still a long way off the support internet browsers | | | | A recent White Paper by Microsoft discussed the use |
| offer. This means the best way to ensure your | | | | of Word in Outlook 2007. It suggests it's intended to |
| intended recipients actually get their marketing emails | | | | give a consistent and familiar email experience to all |
| entails: | | | | users of Microsoft Office products, whilst enabling |
| - Keeping to a simple table-based layout, avoiding | | | | the rich-text features of Word for the Outlook email |
| merged columns or rows - use nested tables to | | | | application and improving security by avoiding the use |
| achieve the effect you desire; | | | | of web-browser-based technology. |
| - Do not use style sheets (either included in the | | | | All this can sound quite daunting. However, all you |
| header or linked to separately), use simple inline style | | | | need to remember is not to panic. As long as you |
| declarations instead; | | | | keep things simple, pay attention to the list above |
| - Avoid using fancy dynamic elements - including | | | | and most importantly test, test, then test again - |
| JavaScript and Flash. | | | | you should be able to create really effective HTML |
| Outlook 2007 is different and you should expect | | | | email marketing designs with minimal bother. Not only |
| Outlook 2010 to be the same... | | | | that, you can also gain competitive advantage if you |
| There are a number of additional things to be aware | | | | get your email designs right and your competitors |
| of when designing marketing emails for Outlook 2007 | | | | don't. |
| and 2010, these include: | | | | Sadly, it looks like Word rendering in Outlook is here |
| - No support for background images - You won't be | | | | to stay and it's unlikely the pressure of email |
| able to use fancy background effects with repeated | | | | marketing designers will be enough to change things. |
| gradients and overlaid text. If you still want to go | | | | The sooner you learn the key skills to designing for |
| down this route, ensure that an appropriate cell | | | | Outlook 2007 and 2010 the better. Your business, |
| background colour is applied so Outlook 2007/2010 | | | | clients and customers will thank you for it. |