Get Responsive: 5 tips for mobile friendly newsletters

There are now more than 1.8 billion mobile users around the globe (smartinsight, 2014). In the U.S., people spend 60% or more of their time with digital media on mobile devices and apps (techcrunch, 2014). Mobile devices have clearly become the preferred ways of accessing information. Companies that don’t consider how their brand and communication materials look and function on mobile devices could alienate and perhaps even lose customers because of it.

The wide adoption and use of mobile devices changes how email marketing and other communication tools are developed and the strategies behind them. Below is a list of key areas to consider to help make your brand more mobile friendly:

1. Consider ALL devices. Responsive email designs allow for optimal viewing regardless of the device. To create a positive experience for your users, think about what information they might need while on their mobile devices. They don’t necessarily need to read about everything, just the important details and an easy call-to-action (CTA). Keep your design simple and your content short and to the point.
2. Add custom CTAs (call-to-action). It is important to customize the CTAs based on different devices. With desktop computers, a simple contact form or email address is usually the preferred method. However, a contact form is not as convenient for a mobile user – consider adding a click-to-call button instead.
3. Make subject lines short. The subject line is key to get people to open an email campaign. While longer subject lines give more space to be creative, they hinder effectiveness on a mobile device. The mobile email browser will display only a portion of what can be seen on a desktop browser (around six to eight words max). So next time you are crafting your business email campaign, think about where your audience will read the email and on what device.
4. Customize the email preview. With a shorter subject, the preview area can be crucial to give quick insight into the content within the email. For example, if you are sending out a fall email newsletter you could write: “The seasons are changing and it’s time to refresh your blog strategy!” to give audiences a glimpse as to what the newsletter will talk about…in this case, blog strategy.
5. Don’t neglect the design. People are always checking their emails especially on the mobile device. The look and feel of the email is just as important as a website and viewing non-responsive emails can be difficult. Take into consideration the font sizes (headlines vs body copy), amount of content and imagery. Make sure you preview and test the email from the desktop down to the small smartphone size and check to see if all components are legible on all devices.

Now more than ever, people rely on their phone to stay connected to the world around them so make sure your target audiences are viewing the right messages regardless of what device they’re using.

If setting up your next email campaign to include responsive design seems a little daunting, contact us today at (303) 394-2366 or send an email to info@philosophycommunication.com, and we’ll be happy to develop and optimize your mobile strategy.