
But a few years ago, there was some discussion online about whether or not plain text emails improved email deliverability. Let us know what you find out!ĭo text emails improve email deliverability? Create a split-test of a few ugly emails and test them against your prettier HTML emails. The jury’s out on this – but you might want to test the theory. There are also reports that ugly emails work better for fundraising as well. Why? They say because ugly emails stand out in the inbox better. Some ecommerce consultants say that “ugly” (aka plain) emails convert better than “pretty” (HTML) emails.You won’t be able to include product photographs or social media icon links if you use a plain text email, but if you’re just getting started with your business, sending a plain-text email is a good enough start. Not all ecommerce websites send text-only transactional emails, but many do. One other instance where you might see a text email now is if you’ve placed an order online. Text-only emails can be a good format for transactional emails.Once all the pretty pictures and design are gone, all that’s left is your copy. How well this tactic will work will depend on your audience and your copywriting skills. And a plain text message does look more like a message you’d get from a friend. Sometimes copywriters, coaches, or consultants will send text-only emails because they want their emails to appear more personal. Plain text emails can have a more personal feel.For those that depend on text-to-speech readers, these emails are easier to be read aloud for those with vision impairments.

This also means they’re better for accessibility. Plain text emails can be read by “internet of things” sort of devices like Apple Watches, or even by apps that can read people’s emails to them while they’re driving.

If you sent them a text-only message, they’d be more likely to be able to read it without having to wait a long time for it to load. So… say you’re sending emails to hikers in the backcountry or to people in other remote places. Text-only emails are great if your subscribers happen to have a slow internet connection. Plain text emails have a smaller file size than HTML emails, so they load faster.Plain text emails still have their place. So why do some email marketing services automatically create text-only emails? Is there ever a good reason to send only a text-based email? When to use a text-based email instead of an HTML email This is why you’re probably sending plain text emails already – because your email service provider automatically makes a text version of every email you send. When two versions of an email are sent (using “ multi-part MIME format,” if you want to get geeky), each subscriber’s email client will show either the HTML or the plain text version, depending on the settings in the subscriber’s email client.įor the email senders who expressly want to send only text emails, many email service providers allow them to set up their email campaign so it only goes out as plain text. And many email services will automatically create a text version of every email. Almost all email marketing services let people send two versions of their emails – text and HTML. This is consistent with email marketing best practices. 62% prefer to send a hybrid HTML/plain text email, and 16% actually prefer to send only text-based emails. One survey of email marketers showed that only 20% of marketers prefer to send only HTML emails. Maybe most marketers, but not all of them. HTML emails look more like a website page, complete with an image, a colored background, and embedded links – all the visual elements most marketers want to have in their emails. All the links are written out.Īnd here’s the HTML version of that same email: The difference between plain text and HTML emailsĪs you can see in the examples above, plain text emails look like… plain text. There are no images or graphics and no formatting. Why you should clean up auto-generated plain text emailsĪ plain text email is what it sounds like: It’s an email message that only includes text.
#Get plain text from html how to#
How to make text-based emails look better.Do plain text emails improve email deliverability?.When to use plain text instead of HTML emails.The difference between plain text and HTML emails.So if paring your email messages down to their simplest form, or making your emails readable on devices like Apple watches sounds interesting, keep reading.

You’ve probably been sending some yourself. And while they are sometimes viewed as “old school,” text-based emails are still read and sent all the time. Plain text emails are a minimalist marketer’s best friend.
