As my business develops, I’ve found it useful to send out
newsletters from time to time announcing new products, sales, special events
and other things likely to be of interest to at least some customers. So far,
they’ve always been in the form of a basic text message with no images, fancy
graphics, or other enhancements. That’s simple to do, and everyone can read
them quickly and easily, if they care to.
I know most businesses now use HTML newsletters, because they regularly arrive in my inbox as colorful spreads designed to stimulate the
visual system and get people to click on the relevant links. On one of my
e-mail programs they show up right away, as intended, but on the other one they
show up as text, sometimes jumbled, with little boxes containing question marks unless I “allow”
display of images. That’s kind of annoying.
I must be some kind of alien creature out of step with the rest of society because I really don’t care whether messages are
decorated or not. What’s important is whether the content interests me. After a
while all of those HTML messages start looking as conceptually similar as the
old black and white text did. That’s just me. I have to think that other people
are different given the ubiquity of fancy graphics, so want to ask you, dear
readers, what you think about HTML newsletters. I'm sitting on the fence trying to decide whether it’s worth it
to take on the tedious and soul-sucking task of coding in HTML or pay one of
those geekly services a monthly fee to do it for me. Your input will help guide my decision.
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Here are my questions: Do you enjoy reading HTML newsletters
more than plain text ones? Would you be more likely to go to a website from a
button in an HTML newsletter than from a highlighted link in a plain text one?
Does the fancy presentation do more to enhance your image of the company that
sent it than a simple text message would? Would there be enough of a change in
your perception of the company to make you think that their products are
superior to those of the company that sends a bare-bones text message?
If you answer these questions you will be entered into a
drawing to win a goodie bag containing carded samples of The Vagabond Prince
Enchanted Forest, PK Perfumes Gold Leather, and some other assorted surprises
including an old-style Olympic Orchids 5 ml perfume travel spray in one of the
remaining fragrances still in this packaging. The drawing will be held on Sunday, June 23.
[Woman reading indoors by J. Raoux (1734); woman reading outdoors by N. Bogdanov-Belsky (1892); HTML newsletter template from one of the many newsletter services that pop up in a Google search]
Hi Ellen,
ReplyDeleteThe less complicated the message the better as far as I'm concerned. I don't enjoy reading long winded newsletters even if the pictures are great. I actually prefer a short texted newsletter. A fancy presentation doesn't change my image or perception of a company, but a well thought out and functioning website does make a difference to me. Also, a highlighted link is just fine. I would rather have a good price on the product than a bunch of pictures and buttons in a slick newsletter. As far as I'm concerned the most effective promotions are the draws on sites like Cafleurebon, australianperfumejunkies, etc. Don't waste your time and money on fancy newsletters.
Gail, sounds like you and I are on the same page. There are far too many gratuitous newsletters coming into my mailbox, so I try not to send one unless there's actually something to say.
DeleteI agree about the need for an attractive and well-functioning website, and struggle with website issues on an ongoing basis.
Regarding newsletters, the slick HTML ones are now the norm, so maybe a simple text e-mail will stand out from the rest instead of just blending into the noise - or am I rationalizing?
No, you are not rationalizing. A simple text e-mail WILL stand out from the rest. Plain text seems, somehow, more personal. Too many of the HTML newsletters appear to be no more than expensive advertising copy designed to draw in the target demographic. I'd rather be "invited" with an e-mail than be "sold" by means of calculated graphics.
DeleteI do like an aesthetically pleasing messages and am more likely to react to those... But they don't have to be anything fancy or high-tech, I'm just as likely to click on a button as on a link. I am drawn to brands with a beautiful and cohesive brand imagery but it doesn't matter to me if a message from the brand is in HTML or plain text.
ReplyDeleteI am inundated by email, so I prefer plain text- I don't have to worry about opening new windows so I can see the message, or getting infected images or links. I am grateful when I can get the data quickly, safely, and straight up! There's too much "beautiful marketing" out there already, and I'm over-saturated! 'Tis a Gift To Be Simple.
ReplyDeleteHey Ellen,
ReplyDeletePlain text please. As long as there's a link I can click through to it's better. Just give me the information.
Portia xx
Thanks to all of you who have responded. It's heartening to see that I'm not the only one who's jaded by all of the slick advertising junk e-mail that arrives in large quantities every day. Marla makes a good point about infected images or links. Gail makes another good point about the impersonal nature of HTML spreads. They're the e-version of those hard-copy advertising flyers from the box stores that clog my real mailbox and that I shred to pack orchid plants in. Nadja makes a good point about brand imagery, and I'm working on that! I think the take-home message is that what's important is good communication and efficient transfer of information. You're all signed up for the drawing.
ReplyDeleteThere's a couple of nice mail services that are free to use. Mad Mimi, and Mail Chimp are both really easy to use, and you can choose if you want html newsletters or not.
ReplyDeleteAmanda
Amanda, Thanks for the suggestion. I've seen all of the services that are out there and the only reason I can see for using one is for the ready-made html template(s) that they provide. For non-html, the regular e-mail that's set up through my website works just fine. I could use it for html, too, if I wanted to produce that sort of newsletter. You didn't say whether you prefer to receive html newsletters or plain text ones.
DeleteI really do enjoy the html ones better. I find that I click more often on those than the plain text :)
DeleteAmanda
Amanda, thanks! That's good to know.
DeleteIt really depends on what the newsletter is about. For political, medical, association updates, etc. plain text is just fine. But for anything art, craft or plant related, I tend to prefer HTML. Trying to tell me how wonderful a plant is so I'll buy it? Don't make me click through to see it.
ReplyDeleteI DO prefer that the pictures be relatively small so the newsletter isn't a huge file. Long newsletters with tons of pictures get annoying, going through the whole thing- but I tend to think that about text newsletters, too. I prefer fairly short ones.
I don't necessarily think a product is superior if it's talked about in a text newsletter; after all, I buy a LOT of seeds from J.L. Hudson, a company that does not have any pictures in their newsletters, website or catalog. But a lot of people do pay more attention to pictures than text. They seem to be the same folks who will buy a poor quality perfume in a fancy bottle!
I'm torn on whether perfume is more suitable to text or HTML; to me, I want to know the notes etc and really don't care what the bottle looks like. Nor do I need a picture of cinnamon sticks to make me think it's spicy.
Laurie, I can see the utility of having photos to illustrate specific plants, crafts, or other items for sale, and I do have photos on my website, but I'm talking more about HTML newsletters with generic and/or gratuitous graphics designed to look pretty and/or "professional", without really informing anyone about a specific product.
DeleteMaybe this is the answer. If there's a specific product like a new perfume release, it might make sense to have an HTML newsletter with photos. For announcements of sales and such, plain text with clickable links might work best.