Today, I want to talk to you about my favorite thing in the whole world after buying shoes. That is email marketing, specifically doing it on Mailchimp. When I first started my business I was using another email marketing provider that got bought out. They were great when they were a small team but all things changed. So, I jumped shipping and swam over to Mailchimp.
Last month, I taught you how to make a header for your newsletter campaigns. Today, I want to show you how to make a template or two in Mailchimp. What are templates? They are pre made layouts for your newsletter that will make your life a lot easier. When sending out campaigns for business I have four template options that I use. My current Mailchimp template options are Bi-weekly, sales, information, & exclusive content. Having these templates pre made cuts down on my time and I am able to do more.
First, open up your Mailchimp account and you will be on the dashboard.
Steps
Click “template” at the top of your dashboard
Click “create template” on your template page
You will land on this page for your template design. Mail chimp does offer themes you can chose from. I personally like the idea of creating ones that fit my brand overall design and feel.
After you select whichever layout you prefer (I selected the basic 1 column). You will arrive at this page. Once you land here is where all the fun happens. We will be adding information based on the type of template you are wanting.
First let’s add your designed header. After you have your header you want to decided how you want your email to follow. If you are a product based company you will probably insert a call to action lead photo. If you are a service based company you might lead with a hello and some information. I tend to lead with a hello and state what we will be discussing.
In my newsletter I prefer sectioning off my content. I do this by adding the “divider” and I also use section titles with specific colors. Using bright bold colors helps content stand out. It alerts my audience that this information is important. I tell all my clients when you do hyperlinks make sure you utilize your company colors not the standard blue or black.
Next, I add more photos and content. Repeating each step until I have a newsletter design I like. In all of my templates there is a part where my audience can “tweet me” an answer I asked in the newsletter. I simply separated it and used specifically colors.
Finally, I close each newsletter out with my social media icons and other information at the footer of the newsletter design. When you are done designing your newsletter you will name each template. Later this month, I will show you how to make specific call to action banners that you will use in your newsletters. In addition, to some other types on how to make sure your audience is engaging you.
Photo by Norbert Levajsics on Unsplash
