Templates: Publisher
In the Publisher environment every document has a template. The template contains the global layout of the mail and the elements that are present in every email, such as a company logo and unsubscribe link. There are also blank spots that can be filled with content later. If you want to send a mailing you should make a template first and use the document to add the actual content. This allows for quick re-using of previous layout and buttons.
There is often a difference between the people who make the templates and people who compose the documents and add the content. Templates are often made by webdesigners or programmers with knowledge of HTML and CSS. They determine what the email should look like and where the content should be placed. The marketeer can then add the text and images and send the email.
In this article we discuss the basics of designing templates, but this is not a course in HTML, as this is a prerequisite. If you lack HTML knowledge you can use the default template, find one on the internet or have a Copernica partner design one for you. We assume at least basic knowledge of HTML.
Keep it simple
In Copernica Publisher you can make templates with HTML. You can create
these in the E-mailings menu where you can enter the source code. In
general the more simpler the HTML, the more clients can view your email
as you intended. Try to keep the HTML as simple as you can.
Emails are read in many different ways on many different devices. There are older laptops, newer laptops, programs to access email and webmail environments. People often use old software that remove complicated scripts and CSS code. All of this means your template should be as robust as possible. A simple template is more robust than a more complicated one and leads to less problems and a bigger reach.
Eventually, as a Copernica user, you are free to design the template how you want. We sent the HTML 100% the way you entered it, so feel free to write it how you want.
Content blocks
Templates have blank spaces that are used to place content when actually creating the document. Such blank spaces are called content blocks, as this is where the content will be places. There are three content blocks: text, image and loop. The text and image tags are simply used to place text or images respectively. The loop block allows for repetition in the document, whether it be of text or images. It is possible to add minimum and maximum values, but in principle it can be used as often as needed.
Watch out for brackets
Within a template the square brackets have a special meaning; They are used to mark content blocks and you can use them for if statements and template variables. Because of this special meaning you have to watch out for errors caused by using them "normally". You can use [ldelim] and [rdelim] instead of '[' and ']' respectively to prevent errors in the template. You can also use [literal] and [\literal] to indicate where a literal block, where brackets are ignored, start and end.
Example:
<style type="text/css">
div[ldelim]class=x[rdelim] {
font-weight: bold;
}
</style>Of course, if you have a bigger piece of CSS this is very annoying; Every delimiter would have to be replaced. In this case it is better to use the literal block.
<style type="text/css">
[literal]
div[class=x] {
font-weight: bold;
}
[/literal]
</style>Static images
Images are usually added at document level, but it's also possible to
include images in your template, such as your company logo. You can
do this with normal , just make sure that the image your refer to
is linked to the template. You can manage these images under "Files and images".
These images are hosted on Copernica's servers in order to track the clicks
and opens.
Headers
Headers are used to add information to an email. There are standardized headers such as "From" and "Subject", but you can also use so called "x-headers". Using these you can add any type of information you like. You can use them to make analyzing your campaign easier, for example. You can also send a BCC (Blind Carbon Copy) or add the List unsubscribe header. See also the article on headers