Performance indicators show that email marketing campaigns have a better return on investments or ROI than social media campaigns. Businesses make sure they venture out to email marketing, keeping this fact in mind. But, creating an email marketing campaign is a process that requires a lot of thought, consideration, and planning. For starters, you need to find an email signature generator that will quickly highlight your call to action or CTA. After this, the next step in the email marketing process is to write a winning subject line.

Finally, you need to save the best for the last-- the body text. Once you have the required email marketing infrastructure in place, you need to make sure the primary content or the body of your emails are in line with your branding goals. This is when you should ask yourself: Do you need template builders for marketing emails? The short answer is it depends, and the long answer is that you want to mix up the template based on what you are sending, and the focus is on what the audience wants.

Writing in plain text makes emails look trustworthy

Plain text emails are plain and as the name suggests, they are emails with standard formatting. Believe it or not, plain text emails are still a thing, and many businesses successfully use this to strengthen their email marketing efforts. In fact, plain text emails have a 21% higher click to open rate or COTR in comparison to the flashy template emails. These emails are simple, get the point across, and attract audience engagement.

For example, a tracking email does not have to be too fancy and can use a simple plain text format to get the point across. So, mix it up a little, and when possible, writing in plain text is also a good idea because it makes emails look trustworthy. 

You can add CTA to email signatures

Whether you have a plain text email or a fancy template, an email signature is non-negotiable. Your email marketing campaign's goal is to direct your readers to your website and ultimately make a buying decision. Typically, readers are directed to websites through a CTA. Email signatures are a great place to state your CTA, as it is the last thing your readers see.

A personal email signature is a great way to allow your students to connect with you, the sender, and direct your readers to your website. There are plenty of great email signature providers, and they are designed with banners where you can add a CTA to email signatures. 

Sophisticated email templates are too promotional

Sophisticate email templates are visually appealing, but they come with some asterisks as well. For starters, they appear to be overly promotional. This risk can create a disconnect with your target audience. In addition, if sophisticated designs are not responsive, then they might not be compatible across all devices and platforms.

So, at times when you are sharing crucial information about your brand, it might be wiser to stick with plain text design. This design will get your point across, and you do not need to rely on any template builders for your marketing emails. 

People answer simple emails a lot more often

We have established that plain text emails have a higher COTR. If your readers are more likely to open your email, this increases the probability of you getting a response. Also, emails that are in plain text are less likely to end up in a spam folder. There are some messages like transaction details, for example, which must get through to your consumers.

This simple design allows your readers to read, process, and respond. All of this illustrates that some people prefer simple emails, and people respond to simple emails a lot more. 

You can create necessary visuals yourself

Choosing a plain text email does not mean that you need to let go of your email content's visual elements. For example, an optimized email signature can include things like a banner. And if you want to include some visual elements within the text, you can create something yourself with Canva or Photoshop.

The key is to keep it simple, experiment a little and make sure the designs are consistent with your branding efforts. You can create necessary visuals yourself and reap the benefits of attractive COTRs that plain text emails bring.

Plain text emails are less spammy

Plain text emails are plain and less likely to go to your spam inbox; this is a proven fact. But just sending a plain text email with no thought put into it will not make it less spammy and more engaging. While there is no known sure-shot way of ensuring your email does not reach the spam folder, a plain text email like a transaction confirmation email always reaches your inbox.

Even if you must use a template for a particular design, make sure you also have the plain text version available so that your email content is less spammy and visible to all your readers.

Optimizing templates for different email clients is hard

If you are engaging in email marketing, you need to understand market segmentation's importance. The most significant risk of email templates is that some devices might not be able to access the content. Optimize your email content by having a clear plan of action. It is difficult to optimize a template so that it is responsive across all platforms. If you share some crucial information, like a survey request that needs to be accessed by all your readers, then a template might not be the best idea. Since optimizing templates for different email clients is hard, sometimes it's best to stick with plain text emails.  

Though templates are great visually, they are not necessarily a statistically better email marketing option. Though there is no definite answer on whether you should go fully plain text or fully template, there seem to be many experts pointing towards a mix of both. Do your homework and list the pros and cons of both templates and plain text and decide what works best for both.

A plain text transaction confirmation email might be great, but there might be a more attractive way to show your users gratitude with a seasonal greeting coupon. Like every other marketing decision, weigh your pros and cons and go with the option that brings the best results.