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January 01, 2002
Sending HTML Newsletters
HTML newsletters are a powerful outreach tool. They can draw readers to your Web site, deliver interactive content, and focus marketing efforts by matching user preferences. But before you start mailing off your Web pages, there are a few things you should know. Netscape provides a good explanation of the process on their In-Box Direct Technical Information page. Below are the highlights:
1. Here's the most critical tip: Don't just cut and paste the contents of an HTML file into an email and send it to the list. The Unix mailer program on the receiving server won't recognize the body of your message as HTML. It looks at the header. If the header says the MIME type is plain text, then all the end user sees is source code -- even if they're viewing it in Netscape Messenger or Microsoft Outlook Express. And it ain't pretty. What you need to do is modify the header, which is something you can't do in email clients such as Messenger, Outlook Express, or Eudora.
To ensure the recipient gets the mail as the HTML page you intended, compose your message directly in a Unix mailer program. That way, you can modify the MIME type in the header as follows:
% sendmail list@some.server.somewhere.com
Curt Degenhart gives HTML email a big thumbs down. Check out his rant in this week's Web Review.
Make sure you put all the headers at the top of the message with single line breaks in between. Once sendmail reads two contiguous line breaks, it assumes the remaining text is the message body. Also, add a single period (.) at the end of the message.
2. A good first precaution in HTML newsletter distribution is to confirm with the users that they can actually receive HTML email. On your subscription form, verify that the users get mail through an HTML-aware client and access their mail through a standard Internet connection (one that uses SMTP, POP3, and MIME protocols). Someone who surfs the Web at work but only has a company-wide cc:Mail or Lotus Notes messaging might try to sign up. It would be helpful to briefly explain why they can't and recommend some free Web-based email services so they can.
3. Finally, as with any Web production, you want to test, test, test. Make sure that what appears seamless on your Web site looks equally inviting in email, or change it. For instance, in the current version of Messenger, frames, page anchors, and custom backgrounds are not supported. Mail read offline will contain only generic graphic icons.
For the most part, the content you design for your Web site can easily be repurposed for a newsletter. Just be sure you have the correct MIME type in the header, customize delivery so the mail doesn't go out to ASCII-only clients, and test it in several HTML email clients.
Comparing HTML-Aware Email Clients
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