have a bandit day

As a designer, I have a very acute aversion to HTML e-mails. Aversion may not cover all the emotion I have. Fear, Loathing, and Contempt. Wait, wasn’t that a movie?

In any case, the use of HTML emails has increased because:

• All popular email clients send HTML emails: Since the massive majority of email users are not web designers, they don’t’ have the same philosophical or technical objections to the idea of HTML in email.
• HTML emails get results: Businesses sending messages to their customers continually get better results, measured in clicks, interest, and actual sales, with HTML than they do with plain text. Recent studies have shown that email marketing can provide a better return for each dollar spent than any other direct marketing channel.
• HTML emails can be a better experience: HTML can make a message clearer and easier to understand. If you sign up for an email from a clothing company, you probably want to know what new t-shirts are available each week. Having a photo of the new designs is a much faster way than trying to describe it in text.

The catch? You can’t design an HTML the same way you design a webpage.

Using CSS to style (DIVS, external stylesheets) are OUT. Tables and inline CSS are law of the land.
When creating an HTML email, sizing it larger than 700px is a no no.
KISS (keep it simple, stupid.) The more complex the email, the more likely the email client will reject it.
URL’s for images must be absolute. Places the images on a fast and password free server so the user and quickly and easily download them.

Edit: I’ve actually found its much easier to find junk HTML files and modify them for my use. It saves a lot of time and headaches but doesn’t always work so well in Craigslists. Intellectual Property rights are very clear so make sure you’re not stepping on any toes when creating (or modifying) your HTML email.