How Does This Look in Your Preview Pane?
If you're like 26.6% of online consumers, you use preview panes when viewing your e-mails. And, why not? Preview panes are incredibly convenient — they make sorting and scanning through your inbox quick and easy.
The growing prevalence of preview panes should, however, make you a more thoughtful e-marketer. If subscribers are viewing your e-newsletter in a preview pane, at first glance they are only seeing a small percentage of the eye-catching HTML message that you so carefully designed. But, fear not! We're here to help make sure that your subscribers open your messages after viewing them in those handy preview panes. Read on to learn more!
1. WHY ARE PREVIEW PANES SO IMPORTANT?
Preview panes, which can be horizontal or vertical, allow subscribers who use them to quickly and easily view your messages before they decide whether or not to open them. This means that your busy subscribers are quickly making judgments about the content and importance of your messages in relation to their time constraints and personal interests.
Take a look at how messages appear in preview panes:
Horizontal preview panes, which appear at the bottom of the inbox, drastically limit the content that your subscribers will see. In fact, they may only see your header image!
Vertical preview panes appear on the right side of the inbox and are much better for e-marketers! They allow users to view the top-left side of your messages. This is preferable because the chances are better that subscribers will get to more of your message content, in addition to a part of your header image. Of course, we don't get to choose which pane our readers use, but there are steps we can take to increase the chances that subscribers will open a message after viewing it in either type.
2. GET YOUR MESSAGES OPENED!
Don't let preview panes scare you — learn how to work with them! The key is to make a great first impression in the preview pane by providing the most important and relevant information at a glance. Use your knowledge of preview panes as you layout your newsletters, and entice readers to fully open and read your messages.
Here are a few tips for working with preview panes:
- Make sure your header image really stands out. Use eye-catching images that are are colorful and creative. Advertisers use puppies and babies to attract attention. What does your audience want to see?
- Make sure your most important information comes first! Don't expect subscribers to search for your main point; clearly and conveniently display it at the top of each newsletter, the top-left if you can. Some of your subscribers may not have time to read and scroll through to the end of your newsletters, so organize articles by importance.
- Important links, such as links to your website, should also be included in the top half of your newsletter.
- Mix it up and test it! When you send yourself a test message, make sure it looks appealing in your preview pane. Test it using both horizontal and vertical preview panes if you have the option. Does it look exactly the same in the preview pane as your last issue? While your design should remain consistent, make sure your subscribers see new information in their preview panes from issue to issue.
Questions about preview panes? Contact us at (314) 918-8088 or techsupport@kateycharles.com.
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