Design an email template
You do not send email messages or select email recipients from Templates. You send email messages from Messages and save email recipients as email lists in Lists. For more information about how to send email messages, see Messages. For more information about email lists, see Lists.
Tip: For best practice information about email, refer to Blackbaud Communication Services Best Practices for Email.
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From Email, click Templates. Templates appears. |
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Click New template. The New template page appears. |
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On the Properties tab, enter a name for the email template in the Template name field. Keep in mind that you use the template for all email messages of this type. |
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In the Description field, enter additional information about the template such as a brief description or notes about the template. |
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In the Data Source field, select the data source. The Data source determines which type of list can be used for messages created from the template and which merge fields are available when you write email content. When you set a data source on a template, messages created from the template can be sent to only lists that use the same type of data source. For more information about the types of data sources, see Template Data Sources. |
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In the Subject, From Name, and From Address fields, enter a default subject to include in the Subject field of email messages you create with the template, as well as an email address and name to include in the From field of email messages. When you create email messages, you can overwrite the subject. |
Note: Because you do not send email from Templates, the program does not include recipients in the Send to field in the email template. The program saves the recipients as an email list in Lists. For information about email lists, see Lists.
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To receive responses from recipients at a different email address than the one you use to send the message, enter a return address in the Reply Address field. |
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To receive failure messages when email messages are not delivered, select Failure to send notification. In the Notification email address field, enter an email address to receive failure messages. |
Note: Failures are email addresses that do not receive the messages. Failure can also be called non-delivery receipts, bouncebacks, UnDeliverables, or Delivery Status Notifications (DSN). For information about how the program handles failures, see Bounced Email Management.
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To assign security rights for the email template, select the Targeting & Security tab. For each user role, you can manage rights to view, edit, delete, and change security. |
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To add users or roles, click Add users and roles. |
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To assign rights, select View, Edit, Delete, or Change Security. |
Note: Edit rights allow users to edit the template and its defaults. To use the template to create email messages, users only need View rights. If users edit a template, the changes do not affect email messages previously created based on the template.
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Click Save. The template opens to the Design tab. |
Note: To see the scroll bar on an email template, you must use a screen resolution of greater than 800 x 600.
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Enter the default content for all email messages created from this template. |
To have personalized information from other Blackbaud programs appear in messages created from this template, add merge fields.
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To display the list of available merge fields, click Merge fields on the Insert tab in the toolbar. To expand the list, click the plus sign next to a field category. |
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To add a merge field to the message, double-click or drag and drop a field in the content area. |
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Put fields where you want them to appear in the body of the email. For example, enter “Hello, First Name." In the email, “Hello, [recipient’s first name]” appears. To move a field, click and drag it to the new location. |
For example, you can create an email template for messages sent to existing program users who attempt to register again. In the bottom pane, you can enter the content required to remind the user he is already a registered user and to provide the existing username and password information.
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To add conditional content to the message to customize it for different types of recipients, click Conditional content on the Insert tab in the toolbar. For more information about conditional content, see Add Conditional Content. |
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Create links to the pages of your website that contain the User Email Preferences Form and your organization’s privacy statement. You must include these links in each email you send. |
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To format the email template’s appearance and layout, use the HTML editor. For information about the HTML editor, see HTML Editor. |
Warning: Blackbaud recommends that you use inline styles, such as <div style=”background-color:Blue;”>Welcome color</div>, when you create and design the email content. Do not define classes or use external references because email vendors, such as Gmail or Outlook, are not guaranteed to render the styles correctly when the recipient reads the email.
Warning: If you select the Messages tab before you click Save, you lose the information you entered on the Design tab.
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To send a message based on the new template, select the Messages tab and click New message. The New Message screen appears. For more information about how to send a message, see Design and send an email message. |
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To save the email template, click Save. |
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To return to Templates, click Return. |