Small Business Email: HTML vs. Text

When it comes to sending emails for small businesses, the house is divided between two camps. One favors sending HTML emails while the other is leaning towards plain or text-only emails.

There are several misconceptions involved in this debate. HTML emails are generally favored due to its aesthetically pleasing color and graphic combination just like a web page while plain text emails, as the name suggests, belong to the dull type because they simply contain text. While there is truth to this, at least to some extent, it cannot be denied that each email type has its own perilous and promising features.

For one, all email clients display text correctly and this is an advantage point for plain text emails. Prospective clients can see what email marketers see on their screen, not to mention that the message gets more personal. The drawback of using text-only email, however, is its limited use or lack of colors and graphics. This has a powerful effect on the visual impact of the email. Also, it is often difficult to generate click-throughs in text-only emails because the links have to be typed out completely.

The obvious advantage of HTML emails over plain text ones is the visual impact. It always establishes a brand image with an HTML email. The results, unlike text-only emails, are easily measurable as well because text links are clickable. An HTML email, however, does have its own major drawbacks. Since not all email clients permit the use of image and complex code, an HTML email may not fully register in front of the recipient. Images are blocked so potential customers cannot entirely see what the HTML email contains. Some parts may be missing and this spells the potential to have HTML emails ignored by recipients.

After surveying the ins and outs of both email types, there is one simple solution marketers can employ to make sure that the email delivers favorable results. Have potential clients choose which format they prefer during the registration. This means that you can select what type of email should so and so get. It’s a formula that spells a win-win situation for both marketers and clients.