Generating Email output

The Email context outputs HTML email with embedded formatting to an email client through the use of an email server. The HTML generated by this context is meant to be compatible with as many clients and as many devices as possible.

Email is sent in a single batch for the whole record set.

To test a template, you can send a test email first.

Output, generated from an Email template, can have the following attachments:

• The contents of the Print context, in the form of a single PDF attachment.
• Other files, an image or a PDF leaflet for example.

To learn how to attach other files, see Email attachments.

Before generating Email output

• Make sure that a data set is loaded, that any necessary files, such as images and attachments, are in place, and that the correct settings are selected (see below).
• You may want to rasterize certain elements, such as <div> elements, business graphics, or headings with a special font type. Rasterizing converts the element to a JPG or PNG image. This is very useful to support as many clients as possible. For example, some email clients may not support SVG, so converting a resource to JPG instead would ensure that most email clients would actually see the output.
  To rasterize an element, right-click it and select Rasterize options. For a JPG image you can set the quality of the resulting image in a percentage.

Email output settings in the Email context and sections

The following settings for the Email context and Email sections have an impact on how the actual emails are sent.

• An Email To Script must be available in the template and refer to a valid email address; see Email header settings. If any record does not have a valid email, this record is skipped automatically when generating email output.

  When you send a test email, the Email To Script will not be used; instead, the email will be sent to the address that you specify in the Send Test Email dialog.

• The subject of the email is a property of an email section. See Subject.
• The sender(s), recipient(s) and the subject can be set using Script Wizards; see Email header settings.
• Default SMTP settings can be set in the preferences; see Email header settings.
• If there are multiple Email sections, only one of them can be merged with each record. Make sure that the correct section has been set as the default; see Setting a default Email template for output.

  To dynamically select a section for output, use a Control Script; see Control Scripts.

• PDF attachments can be compressed to make the files smaller; see Compressing PDF attachments.

To generate Email output:

1. Open a template with an Email context.
2. Load a data file or database compatible with this template. See Loading data.
3. On the File menu, click Send Email or Send Test Email. In the dialog that appears you can, among other things, attach the Print context or the Web context to the email. See Send Email or Send Test Email for a description of all the options. Finally, click OK.

   About testing emails

   When you send a test email, the Email To Script will not be used; instead, the email will be sent to the address that you specify in the Send Test Email dialog. If you have a Litmus account, you can enter your Litmus test address. To make the test address appear by default, you can set the default test address in the Email Preferences: select Window > Preferences, click the arrow next to Email, click General and type the test address next to Email Test address.

   For a description of how to test your email for different email clients, see this how-to: Test your emails with Litmus. For more information on Litmus, please see http://litmus.com/