There are many people who are worried about whether to introduce HTML email or text email method when doing email marketing for the first time. HTML emails and text emails each have their own characteristics, advantages, and disadvantages.
The key to email marketing is to adopt a method that best conveys what the sender wants to convey to the recipient. In this article, based on the characteristics and differences between HTML mail and text mail, I will explain what kind of use it should be used. Let us help you with your day-to-day marketing operations.
Table of Contents
- Differences between HTML emails and text emails
- Which is best for B2B, HTML email or text email?
- Examples of different email delivery formats
- Multipart delivery configuration required
- Understand the difference between HTML emails and text emails and choose the most effective method
Differences between HTML emails and text emails
Both HTML email and text email are email services that utilize the Internet, but their features and uses are very different.
Please see the table below for the main differences between HTML and plain text emails.
| HTML EMAIL | TEXT MAIL | |
|---|---|---|
| Composition | image + text | text |
| Man-hours | many | few |
| Ease of effect measurement | easy | Somewhat troublesome |
| Freedom of layout | expensive | low |
| size capacity | big | small |
In the next chapter, I will explain the features, advantages, and disadvantages of text emails and HTML emails.
What is text email
A plain text email is an email that consists only of text. You can’t change the color of the text or insert an image in the text, but it’s simple and easy to create, making it easy to handle even for beginners in email marketing.
Text mail itself is a method that has been around for a long time, and it is widely established as an approach method that can be expected to be cost-effective, regardless of the industry or business type, and is still used in all business situations.
Advantages of text email
The advantage of text mail is “convenience”. Specific benefits include:
- Since the amount of data is small, the burden on the server when sending and receiving is low.
- Can be displayed without depending on the recipient’s mailer
- Can be used without knowledge, experience, or specialized tools
Disadvantages of text email
Although text mail is convenient, it also has the following disadvantages.
- Unable to measure effects such as opening rate and click rate (separate measures are required)
- Cannot hide parameters for effect measurement (e.g. email links)
- Limited visual appeal due to text only
Especially in email marketing, continuous verification and improvement after sending is important, but text emails cannot be tagged, so the scope of measurement is limited.
What is HTML email
HTML emails are emails written in HTML, a markup language. You can freely change the color and font size of the text. Also, by placing images and buttons in the text, it is possible to visually appeal to the recipient of the email.
Benefits of HTML emails
Advantages of HTML emails include:
- It is possible to measure email measures such as email open rate and click rate
- You can hide the link for effect measurement with an image or a normal address
- Visually appeal to email readers with images and layout design
In the case of HTML emails, it is possible to deliver attractive emails with good design, and the main feature is that the effect can be measured by placing tags in the HTML code.
Disadvantages of HTML emails
On the other hand, HTML emails have the following disadvantages:
- Professional knowledge such as HTML and CSS is required for production
- Emails are not displayed correctly depending on the viewing environment on the recipient’s side
- The email itself is larger than a plain text email
HTML mails can take a long time to receive, or receive errors, depending on the recipient’s environment.
Which is best for B2B, HTML email or text email?
Until now, it has been common sense to use text emails in B2B, and as of 2020, more than half of the email formats used in business are in text format. On the other hand, business use of HTML mail has increased in recent years.
HTML emails can be visually appealing to email readers because images can be inserted and the layout can be designed. If you use an email delivery service, you can measure KPIs such as the opening rate. Therefore, it can be said that the benefits of adopting HTML emails in business are great.
B2B has avoided using HTML emails for several reasons:
- strong security concerns
HTML emails have a background in being frequently used in spam emails, and it is technically possible to incorporate viruses into emails by making full use of programming languages. In fact, HTML mail is often used for “spoofing mail” for the purpose of fraud.
- Some companies have set up not to receive HTML mail itself
Depending on the company, for the purpose of strengthening security, there are settings that prevent HTML mail itself from being received, or convert HTML mail to text mail and display it. For this reason, it has been said that HTML emails have a lower delivery rate.
The receiving environment for HTML mail, which had the above disadvantages, is now being improved due to the development of virus checks and spam filters.
According to the “Survey of Business Email Conditions” conducted annually by the Japan Business Email Association , in 2018, the usage rate of HTML/rich text format was 21.87%, but as shown in the figure below, In the same survey in 2020, it is 31.43%, which shows that it is increasing.
It is thought that the increase in the usage rate is due to the fact that HTML email has become more compatible with smartphones.
When smartphones began to spread, there was a problem that the layout of images, etc., would collapse when viewing HTML emails on smartphones. In recent years, e-mail delivery services optimized for smartphones have appeared one after another, and it is now possible to read any HTML e-mail.
Let’s take advantage of the email distribution service and actively incorporate HTML emails into your marketing measures.
Examples of different email delivery formats
HTML emails are said to be more appealing than text-only emails because the design can be arranged.
However, depending on the purpose and use, HTML mail may not be suitable. This section introduces usage examples for each delivery format of HTML mail and text mail.
Notice/Seminar Notice
For announcements to customers, announcements of seminars, etc., HTML format is recommended because images can be inserted. By inserting part of the slides projected at the seminar into the email, a concrete image will be generated and it will be easier to get interested.
Information on campaigns and sales
HTML emails are recommended for promotional campaigns and sale information. Inserting product images and pop layouts can further increase the reader’s willingness to buy.
Furthermore, by embedding an open tag, it is possible to measure the effect, such as how much sales promotion effect was obtained by the email.
When sending with the personal name of the person in charge
Text mail is recommended when the person in charge of mail delivery sends it under a personal name, such as a follow-up mail to an existing customer. The customer, who is the recipient of the email, can feel secure that “the person in charge is following up properly.”
Especially in the case of HTML mail, the design takes precedence, so it may be felt that it is one of the mail magazines and sales mails aimed at an unspecified number of people.
regular newsletter delivery
For e-mail magazine distribution, it is important to “raise awareness” through continuous distribution and “build relationships” by disseminating high-quality information, so HTML mail with high visual expression is recommended.
For example, when introducing a blog article in an e-mail magazine, inserting an eye-catching image in addition to the article title name can prevent the e-mail magazine reader from getting bored.
Multipart delivery configuration required
Currently, HTML mail is becoming more popular, but there are some people who cannot (or do not) receive HTML mail. Therefore, “multi-part delivery” is essential to deliver mail to as many people as possible.
This section describes multipart delivery in detail. Especially if you are considering using HTML emails, keep this in mind.
What is multipart delivery?
Multipart delivery is a mechanism to deliver both HTML mail and text mail. By performing multi-part delivery, text mail is automatically delivered when HTML mail cannot be received.
HTML emails may not be optimized depending on the receiving environment. In particular, it is said that in the case of mobile carrier email addresses (@docomo.ne.jp, etc.), images are often not displayed correctly. Even though the penetration rate of smartphones is increasing, some people still use feature phones. Furthermore, some companies prohibit the reception of HTML emails from the viewpoint of information security.
As a consideration for those who cannot receive HTML mail, multi-part delivery is considered a manner of mail delivery.
How to set up multipart delivery
Multi-part delivery using email software such as Gmail and Outlook requires expertise such as editing the source code. This is because editing the mail source is set so that it cannot be easily edited in order to prevent crimes such as spoofing.
When performing multipart delivery, it is recommended to use a mail delivery service. HubSpot’s email creation and delivery feature has the ability to automatically send text emails (known as plain text) to people who can’t receive HTML emails, so it works for both users.
Understand the difference between HTML emails and text emails and choose the most effective method
HTML emails and text emails each have advantages and disadvantages, so it is important to understand the characteristics and use them properly. Especially in recent years, more and more people read websites and emails on their smartphones, so the use of HTML emails is increasing in email marketing.
Therefore, if you have only delivered text emails, we recommend that you consider introducing HTML emails. Either way, the most important part of successful email marketing is making sure your content is useful to your readers.
Depending on the recipient’s reception environment and settings, you may not be able to receive HTML emails, so be sure to set up multi-part delivery to ensure delivery. In particular, we recommend using an email delivery service when performing HTML delivery or multi-part delivery.
