Enter Content and Customize Message

This is the screen where you specify the text and content of your message. Depending on the template you selected on the Choose Template screen, you will be prompted to enter text and images for the components of that template. You can see which components are in each template by clicking the topic for your template in the Choose Template Help topic.

The message components are listed as hyperlinks at the left of the Customize Message screen. The hyperlink for the component you are working on will be highlighted. You can click on the component hyperlink to open the component or go through the components in order as described in the step by step instructions below. Every template has Formatting settings for color defaults and a Subject line. The other components will vary depending on the template you choose.

Each component of the message has its own text area, and a toolbar that allows you to produce neatly formatted HTML text for your message.

To customize your message:

  1. Begin by setting up the Formatting component, default colors and Subject line:

A note about picking your default colors: When you click on the color picker button, a color "swatch" will display the standard 216-color web-safe palette. Click on the color you want to select it. You can also enter a color code in hexadecimal #RRGGBB format if you need a specific color not in the palette.

  1. Click the Next button to save and move to the next component.

  2. Enter content for the component and use the options outlined below to format the component as appropriate. When you are finished formatting the component, click the Next button to save and move to the next component.

You can change the text formatting by highlighting the text in the text area with your mouse and using the following toolbar options:

  • - To change the Font Type of the selected text, click the drop-down and select the new Font Type from the list. NOTE: The HTML Editor uses the default font set up in Microsoft Explorer. If you do not highlight and format font for the text, then the default font for the email system the subscriber uses will display in the message.

  • - To change the Point Size of the selected text, click the drop-down and select the new Point Size from the list.

  • - To make the selected text bold, click the B button. To change bolded text back to normal, highlight the text and click the B button.

  • - To make the selected text italic, click the I button. To change italicized text back to normal, highlight the text and click the I button.

  • - To underline the selected text, click the U button. To change underlined text back to normal, highlight the text and click the U button.

  • - To make the selected text left aligned, click this button.

  • - To make the selected text centered, click this button.

  • - To make the selected text right aligned, click this button.

  • - To make the selected text into a numbered list, click this button.

  • - To make the selected text into a bulleted list, click this button.

  • - To decrease the indent (move it to the left) of the selected text, click this button.

  • - To increase the indent (move it to the right) of the selected text, click this button.

  • - To change the color of the selected text, click this button and select a new color. NOTE: This only changes the color of the selected text. Any unselected text will remain the default color.

  • - To highlight the selected text with a color, click this button and select a color.

You can insert the following into the component:

  • - To insert a divider in the text, click this button.

  • - To turn the selected text into a hyperlink, click this button and enter the URL. NOTE: The hyperlink must be accessible to all recipients, such as a web page on the internet.

  • - To insert a graphic into the message, click this button. You will then be prompted to select one of your existing graphics, or upload a new graphic, in the Browse For Image screen.

  • - To insert a table into the message, click this button. You will be prompted for the dimensions of your table and the specified table will be inserted into your message.

  • - To insert a mail merge field into the message, click this button and specify the field in the Insert Field screen.

  • - To insert a trademark symbol in the text, click this button.

  • - To insert a copyright symbol in the text, click this button.

  • - To insert a registered trademark symbol in the text, click this button.

You can view the HTML code for the component:

  • - To view the HTML code for the component, click this button. If you are viewing the HTML code, click this button to view the formatted text.

HINT: If you create the text for your message in another program, such as Microsoft Word, save the document as HTML (Web Page). You can then copy the formatted message text into a template component or ResponseMailer's Blank Template and retain your original text formatting.

  1. When you reach the last component, clicking the Next button will save the content and open the Edit Message screen where you can mark the message Completed.

To preview the message as you format the components, click the Preview button and a view of the message will appear in a pop-up window.