With the creation of HTML newsletters, it is imperative to incorporate text, many of the following factors may interrupt the viewer’s ability to view the visual aspects of images and graphics and therefore the text is imperative: 

• Code compliance differences with various email programs
• Viewers differing computer settings
• Viewers who can’t or choose not to view the images of your newsletter

Because of these factors, it is imperative that text of your newsletter be accessible to the viewer whether the images are visible or not.  Below are a few do’s and don’ts when creating your html newsletters:

DON’T:

• Make your entire newsletter graphic based
• Leave your pictures without description
• Forget to create a text version of your html newsletter

DO:

• Make you newsletter text based and have minimal graphic or picture based text 
• Add detailed alt description tags to your images and graphics
• Test your newsletter to make sure text will show correctly in various email programs without the images/graphics appearing
• Create a text version of your commercial html newsletter

Disability Reasons
Not only is it important to have text based newsletters for viewing purposes, but also for various disabilities and functional limitations, such as the visibly impaired, physical, language, and cognitive disabilities. Some users may not be able to use a mouse, while others may be listening to your newsletter using a screen reader that sends information to a text-to-speech synthesizer or refreshable Braille display. The blind depend on text versions. For text emails, it is important to have alt tags used to describe images. Having image descriptions helps the visibly impaired ‘see’ pictures through screen readers. Give your viewers every opportunity to access your newsletter.

Code Compliance Reasons
There are many different email programs that your newsletter will be sent through - Yahoo, Gmail, Hotmail, Outlook, AOL, etc.  It is important to realize each program has code requirements and therefore you want to create an html commercial newsletter compliant in various versions and programs.  Testing and sending your newsletter to different programs will help you see what improvements to make.

• HTML Inline styles & table tags versus CSS Style sheets & div tags
   
  The main code compliance that will help improve newsletters to work well in various programs is to use HTML tables and inline styles versus CSS style sheets and div tags. Keeping all styles inline, as well as, replace all CSS div tags with table tags.  This will make a significant difference with email program compliance. For example, the newest version Outlook 2007 no longer recognizes CSS and therefore any style rules or div tags will not be recognized and the newsletter will be distorted aesthetically with the CSS code not being recognized.

Text Version Send-Outs
A text version newsletter does not have html code; it basically is taking all the text from your html version and placing it as a separate newsletter to send out. Newsletter programs will send the text version at the same time the html version is sent out. Any subscriber with a text base email will receive the text version.

Branding Logo Graphics
Many fonts are not accessible through basic inline-style font-families.  For this reason often-times main headers or company names/logos are graphics.  This is when alt tags are crucial with describing the newsletter images and graphics.  Any text that you make an image, it is important to have alt tags describing the text-image, especially your logo and company name. Your logo is crucial for company branding, if the image is not showing, alt tags become a crucial aspect to branding your product, name, and logo.

ALT Tag for Header Image

Header Image
 

 
Conclusion
Text is the basis of newsletters and communicating your message whether the commercial aspect can be viewed or not.  Keep text the center focus as you create your newsletter. Always make your information accessible no matter what computer settings or email program a client uses. Clients are less likely to fully open an email if they can’t see what it’s about or the company it is coming from. Text will broaden results and the actions you would like your cliental to take! This is just one more step to success with email newsletters!
 

Men and women are different. A profound observation, I know.

While modern culture and changing gender roles have closed the ranks to some degree and have made our differences less pronounced, they do still exist. Stereotyping the sexes proves to be a tricky line to walk, is sometimes offensive, and is never completely accurate for all individuals. There is no denying, however, that the genders are different. We look, think, act, and feel differently and our hearts and minds operate in a completely dissimilar manner much of the time.

Setting aside all other aspects of life, gender differences often make the shopping and purchasing processes of men and woman distinctly unalike. Men shop with a specific purpose, while women shop as an activity or as a social outlet. Men often decide to buy quickly, but women generally need to be exposed to a product or service numerous times before committing. Men need to digest information in a logical, concise order and will focus on facts and figures in making their selection. Women can receive information in any order and piece it together beautifully, but they focus on social influences more than on the hard data. Men rarely ask for help. Women need to ask questions. Men don’t usually consider price with routine purchases, but women regard it as very important. Most significantly, when men make a purchase it is generally to fill a basic need or as an investment, but women often buy to make themselves feel good emotionally.

Because the purchasing process is so dissimilar between the sexes, a website’s copy should take that into consideration. If your property caters primarily to business travelers, the copy should be aimed at the needs and wants of men (Men are still the majority in the business world, though this is changing.). If your business deals largely with spa weekends and family retreats, web copy catering to females might be more effective in converting lookers into bookers.

However, more often than not, your copy will need to appeal to both sexes. Here are some suggestions for helping each:

• Make sure contact information is prominent on each page for women, as they will be more apt to want to speak to a real person. Also make FAQs easily available to answer common questions that are often asked.
• Focus on the amenities that will fill a male’s vacation needs, while still writing about views, atmosphere, and environment which will help a woman make an emotional connection with the property.
• Write personal, conversational copy for women, but have bullet points and links to “more information” for men.
• In general, if you seek to improve a male’s standing or position while improving a woman’s feeling and emotion, your copy will “speak” to both effectively.

Chevrolet.com offers a great example of a company using copy to “speak” to customers on a gender level. The headline shown with the Silverado truck is a mere four words:

OUR COUNTRY. OUR TRUCK

It is short and sweet, but says so much. It’s offering men identity as well as status. It says that to own a Silverado is to be an American man. It is tying pride in vehicle ownership to National pride and patriotism. This is a powerful statement to men.

In contrast, the headline offered with the Uplander minivan reads:

THE FAMILY SPORT VAN

Minivans are driven primarily by women and it’s not uncommon to see them marketed with some sort of family focus. Relationships and the feelings that accompany them are powerful motivators for female purchasers.

In the SUV section of Chevrolet.com, the company continues to speak more to men by offering a rise in status with their headlines:

LIVE BETTER WITH ALL THIS, YOU’LL BE ALL THAT

Gender is central to identity and the way in which each of us thinks and sees the world. Companies and copywriters that understand this and consciously use the differences of the sexes to their advantage will meet with unmatched success.