Custom HTML Email Templates: The Good, The Bad, And The Fixable By Expert Design Services

It’s not what you say; it’s how you say it.

Anyone who has crafted an email campaign knows the relevance of these words in email marketing. The way your email looks and feels is just as important—if not more so—as the message itself.

A well-designed and well-written email not just captures attention and conveys professionalism, but also drives sales conversions. On the other hand, a poorly executed one meets with indifference or, worse, an unsubscribe.

That’s why so many marketers tend to create custom email templates. Others stick with ready-made templates, which are fine for simpler needs.

If you are a brand with a brand identity and beyond-basic email design requirements, custom HTML email templates are the obvious choice.

Of course, like most things in emails, custom email templates do suffer from certain challenges, like the steep learning curve that comes with hand-coding from scratch.

But the good part is that most of them are not really the deal-breakers when you have a custom email template design service on your side.

Let’s break it all down—the benefits, the challenges, and how design services help you solve these challenges.

The Good: Merits of Custom HTML Email Templates

Whether you partner with a custom email template design service like Email Mavlers or get it done in-house, a well-done custom HTML email template is sure to reap the following benefits.

1)   More Control and Flexibility Over Design and Layout

Why would you spend time perfecting your website design if you’re not going to carry that consistency into your emails? The only reason we could think of is that you do not want to reflect your brand’s personality and values.

Because custom HTML email templates do the opposite of that. They help you standardize your email design and align it perfectly with your brand identity. To the extent that eventually, your subscribers come to associate your brand with a particular type of color palette and presentation. This is of great help in offering your audience a seamless experience from your emails to your website.

Take minimalism, for example. If that’s your brand, custom email templates let you carry that clean, simple style across all your email communications and make it a brand’s signature element.

We love this simple but powerful example from Email Uplers. Let’s compare its website and email below.

Notice how their website (Image 1) and emails (image 2) align perfectly. The logo, typography, CTA buttons, graphics, and the signature bright yellow background with black and white accents. All these elements create consistent designs that help users immediately associate the email with the brand they see on the website.

And let’s talk about Dark Mode.

The dark mode coding technique was one of the top 5 email techniques for creating better user email experiences. Custom-coded templates help you customize (read safeguard) your email campaigns for both dark and light mode settings. That’s not always the case with off-shelf email templates.

Plus, with custom HTML templates, you have the flexibility to explore and test hosted fonts, an option often missing in free templates.

2)   Reusability and Efficiency

You would be wrong to think that custom HTML email templates are just a one-time effort. You can build them in such a way that they can be reused. Custom HTML email templates can form a solid foundation to build on multiple campaigns, saving your team time and effort.

How?

Set up a design library with a standard set of reusable content blocks. You can use them repeatedly to design new templates while quickly maintaining their style consistency. Plus, you can customize the existing templates to match different purposes and audiences.

Another thing to remember is to establish consistent spacing between email ensign elements such as text, images, and buttons. It will help you accelerate custom template production.

3)   Enhanced Functionality

The scope of email design with custom HTML email templates is restricted by only one thing: your imagination.

Unlike pre-built templates, which lock you into elements only provided by the template, custom email templates let you add any advanced feature to make your email campaigns more engaging.

Advanced interactivity, dynamic content, GIFs, AMP-powered games, etc are within reach. You can add your own code and CSS style to create unique email template designs.

The Bad: Demerits of Custom HTML Email Templates

1)   Time-Consuming and Complex

Building a custom HTML email template is not a task for the faint of heart. It demands advanced coding chops and platform-agnostic expertise that only a seasoned developer can deliver.

Then there’s the testing. The developer must ensure your email looks perfect across every client and device, which is equally challenging.

This makes creating a custom template a far more time-intensive and complex process than using pre-built templates or drag-and-drop builders.

2)   Higher Costs

Naturally, custom HTML email templates are an investment. You need to hire developers and designers, which can strain budgets, especially for startups or small businesses.

3)   Not for Quick Turnarounds

Custom HTML email templates are not the best move for last-minute campaigns.

The process takes time and involves multiple people.

The email marketer defines the purpose, the copywriter drafts the email copy, and the designer creates a wireframe-based design. Once the design is approved, the developer converts it into an HTML email, followed by extensive testing.

Since the timeline doesn’t fit rushed schedules, pre-built templates or drag-and-drop builders are more practical choices when in need of speed.

4)   Compatibility Issues

Compatibility is a recurring challenge for email marketers as email clients come with their own set of design constraints.

Advanced elements like Flash, JavaScript, or HTML forms are often unsupported, limiting functionality. Plus, varying HTML and CSS support levels across email platforms lead to inconsistencies.

The Fixable: How Custom Email Template Design Services Address These Challenges

While the challenges of custom HTML email templates exist, expert email design services can make the process more manageable. Here’s how—

• Skilled designers and developers navigate the complexities of HTML and CSS with ease. They can craft error-free custom code that renders well across devices and email clients. So you can save time and energy during the development process.
• Getting your custom HTML email templates coded by expert design services IS an upfront investment. But you also build scalable and reusable templates that can be customized over and over again. The value that your brand gets over time without additional costs for each new campaign is undeniable.
• Design services like Email Uplers specialize in a wide range of coding expertise and resources to nail time-sensitive projects. Their expert team delivers fully functional, responsive email templates and test reports with the fastest TAT of up to 8 hours.
• Expert email design and coding services deliver more than a custom HTML email template. The templates get extensively tested across numerous email clients to ensure flawless rendering across multiple devices and browsers. They also check code compatibility with your ESP and add fallbacks for interactivity.
• Interactive emails are a demanding task that most brands avoid taking on. Design services have the expertise for creating and testing custom interactivity email templates. From simple GIFs to complex gamification, these experts can design interactive elements unique to your brand, helping you stand out.

Wrapping Up

You can use pre-built templates or create a custom HTML email template. But the latter helps you make a lasting impression with its tailor-made designs and aesthetics.

Yes, custom templates are not without their challenges.

By partnering with a reputable custom email template design service, you can unlock the full potential of custom templates. Delivering a flawless experience that fits your brand’s needs and dazzles your subscribers.