Know-How Exchange : E-Marketing

It depends on if you're looking to create an HTML newsletter or a PDF. PDFs can be generated using your favorite word processor using your built-in software.

Your basic email program probably isn't your best choice for emailing (but will do in a pinch), since you don't want to send your email to everyone at once via Bcc or To fields. Instead, you'll want to use either a email service providers (Constant Contact, My Emma, etc.) or a bulk emailer program.

Some articles to read:
* https://graphicdesign.about.com/od/howto/a/newsletter.htm
* https://www.softheap.com/1stmacmailer.html
* https://homepage.mac.com/julifos/soft/newsletter/index.html

If you have your own web server ad tehnically inclined you can try php list as a mailer. It does take a little work to set up but works well. Ihave also used mach5 mailer.

For both of these you send either regualr text or html formatted emails. To create html formatted emails I would suggest getting Dreamweaver.

If all of this sounds to complicated try a service like Contstant Contact.

Mike

Are you using an ESP to send out the emails? If so, most have templates that you can use or guidelines for if you're designing your own.

A great email designer for look and best practices is Brett Houle of SendLabs (brett@sendlabs.com).

-Josh Nason
Email Marketing Guy.com

Are you using an Email Service Provider (ESP)? This is important to know to give a good answer to your question.

Most ESPs have a few ways to create an email:

1. Fetch from your Web site (I will describe more about what I mean below).

2. Upload an HTML document.

3. Code directly in HTML.

4. Work in the built in editor that your ESP provides.

An ESP is a Web-based service that is sort of like using software except, of course, the ESPs servers do all the heavy lifting. Most services provide a built in editor but, by the very nature of embedded Web-based editors, it is going to be a bit limited.

Some ESPs enable you to create your newsletter, upload it to your own Web site, and then fetch the completed newsletter into the editor. That way, you can use high powered Web page editors like Dreamweaver (more expensive) or low-cost ones like Coffeecup (less expensive), upload them to your Website and then fetch the completed newsletter into your ESPs editor. You can then use that one time or as a reusable custom template.

I work for the StreamSend Email Marketing Service and we have a Knowledge Base screen cast on How to Create Your First Email.

The StreamSend email marketing knowledge base has other good information and I am sure other ESPs have useful material in their knowledge bases as well.