Advancement Marketing Cloud
Creating an email
Emails are created under Content in Email Studio. All emails should be reviewed by a member of the MarComm team prior to creating a draft.
Create in appropriate folder
Select the appropriate folder for the email by expanding the folders under the main Content Builder folder.
Because multiple people create and send emails, it is important the emails are kept organized so others can find them when necessary. The folder names should indicate what emails should go where, but please contact Advancement IT if you have any questions.
Click “Create” in the top right corner and select “Email Message.”
Select a template
Select the appropriate “Saved” template and click “Select.”
If you do not see the templates, make sure “Template” is selected in the dropdown on the left side of the screen.
Email properties
Complete the email name and select the appropriate campaign. Click next to continue.
Naming conventions
As mentioned above, following naming conventions helps others more easily find emails. It also affects reports and analytics. The following naming convention should be used:
[two-letter name code] [date in format of yyyy-mm-dd] [Name of email]
Example: FF 2020 05-22 Incoming Parent Welcome
Important: The email name does show in the tracking links, so be subtle and sensitive in the naming of the email.
Selecting a campaign
Select the appropriate campaign for the email. If you are unsure which one to use, please contact Advancement IT.
Subject and preview text
Keep the subject and preview text short, but descriptive. Target having each one no more than 80 characters. Be aware that formatting cannot be applied to this text.
Content
For each content block, drag over a new block or click on an existing block to edit. When edits are complete, click "Done editing" to return to the main content and auto-save.
Click to learn more about each content type
Text can be copied and pasted from another source, like a Google doc. Copy the text from the source then click the area where it should be pasted. Use Ctrl-Shift-V to paste it without existing formatting.
Formatting, like bold and italics, can be added or changed using the controls on the editor. In general, stick with the defaults in place for text size, font, and color. If different colors need to be used, make them match the header graphic or consult the brand guide for acceptable colors.
If you do not see all of the formatting controls, click on the highlighted arrow.
To add a link to text, highlight the text to be linked then click the link/chain icon.
Paste the link into the form that pops up. If it is an email address, select “Email” in the Link to dropdown. Then add the link and a default subject.
Make sure the tracking alias is something obvious so anyone can tell what it is on a report.
Most email links should have a UTM code, unless they are one-off emails we are not concerned about tracking, such as one-time event email invitations. Please contact Advancement IT with any questions to get the appropriate UTM code.
Buttons should be treated like links in that the alias should be something obvious and useful on a report. They should also have UTM codes, unless they are not needed for the particular email.
The background and border colors should match and should be a color that matches the header image and/or is in brand. The text of the button should be in a contrasting color, usually white, to be readable.
Images should be uploaded to the appropriate folder in content builder. They should also be close to the size that will be used in the email. When in doubt, make the image slightly larger than needed. 600px wide should be the max.
Be sure to provide alt text for every image.
Click the image icon to insert an image
Follow the pop-up to choose or upload an image, then complete the required property fields.
Note that video cannot be displayed directly in an email. The video will need to be housed on YouTube or Vimeo (MarComm can assist with reaching out to the correct contacts for this) and, if the appearance of a video is desired, an image of the video thumbnail can be placed in the email and linked to the video.
Also be aware that emails cannot have attachments. Any documents need to be uploaded to the web server and linked from the email. Please contact Advancement IT for assistance with uploading accessible documents.
Dynamic content
It is possible to dynamically display content in emails based on data. Please contact Advancement IT if this is needed for an email.
Alumni community emails
Alumni community emails have custom code (called AMPScript) in them to dynamically pull the community-specific information, like short link and leader signature. Do not change the script at the top of the email or template without first consulting Advancement IT.