[thelist] HTML in email

[aardvark]

> From: "Ross Johnston" <rossjohnston at wnw.quik.co.nz>
>
> One thing is for sure, you had better get used to HTML email

and you had better get used to it going to dev/null before it gets 
read... HTML mail rarely gets opened over here, especially when i 
don't know the person who sent it... and with more and more 
security exploits in products like Outlook, HTML mail is more of a 
virus delivery mechanism than anything...

(i was staying out of this thread, but that opening comment was 
just insulting to my intelligence)

> With email  being the biggest activity on the web, site operators who
> don't use it fully for communications and promotions will  lose out in
> a big way, and fully has to mean HTML

how?  people have said the same thing about every technology and 
plug-in that's been trotted out since the web started... and i've 
heard that comment about HTML mail for years, and somehow it 
hasn't failed my business...

> By using email you can take the initiative and keep in touch with
> vistiors bringing them back time and time with links to new items or
> products. For that reason every  website should have an  email
> strategy and part of that strategy has to be the contemplation or use
> of a more graphical form than text.

well, let's assume you don't mean spam... what's wrong with a 
hyperlink in a plain-text email?  most mail clients recognize 
hyperlinks and have an easy enough time allowing users to click 
links in messages....

> Remember ma and pa have been putting  graphics and pics  in email  for
> a while now and the most used email clients such as Outlook Express
> have HTML as default.

ma and pa have been sending them as attachments, and they don't 
use Outlook...

and just because Outlook has HTML as default (which, btw, it 
doesn't, it's MS RTF) does not in any way imply that it's better... in 
fact, i blame MS for contributing to the abuse of bandwidth i see...

i equate HTML mail with newbies, anyway...

> Hey has anyone thought it could be fun.

wow, i never thought of that... just think of the sunday afternoons i 
could spend reading HTML email... i'd never to have to surf to see 
crappy design, chew bandwidth, or have my information tracked... 
that's a *blast*...

> Ross Johnston
> ross at eresponse.co.nz
> http://www.eresponse.co.nz/

interesting business model...

btw... have you seen the article on the site?
http://evolt.org/article/list/25/781/index.html