In this article, you'll learn how to create MD2 messages using existing HTML.

HTML paste

Many organizations already have a branded design they want to use in their mailings. If this is the case for your organization, you can easily paste this HTML code directly into MD2.

1. Navigate to Mailing Designer 2.0 > Create > From HTML.
2. Make sure you're on the Code tab.

3. Paste the code for your design in the left panel; Communications Professional previews your design in the right panel. Click Preview to refresh the preview panel.

NOTE: Note that for any hyperlinks to work directly from the preview panel, they must have the appropriate protocol (HTTP:// or HTTPS://) as part of the URL.

1. Click Tidy to clean up your code's formatting.
2. Click Hyperlink Tool to generate the markup for any hyperlinks.
3. Click the Magnifying Glass icon to search your lines of code for a specific term.

Content code

You can use the following Content Code as the online version URL for your mailing:

%%WEB_VERSION%%

EXAMPLE: You could use the following code to directly link to the web version:

<a href="%%WEB_VERSION%%">Web Version</a>

NOTE: See Content Codes to learn more.

Hyperlink tool

Generally, you'll want to include hyperlinks in your mailings that take readers to organizational resources, including those created from HTML. However, if you're not an HTML expert, things like web tracking attributes, classes, and styling can be difficult to decipher and configure.

To help alleviate this, Communications Professional includes a hyperlink tool that generates the exact markup you need to ensure that your hyperlinks work correctly.

To generate a hyperlink:

1. On the Code tab of an HTML message, make sure you're on the HTML sub-tab.
2. Click Hyperlink Tool to expand the page and reveal the hyperlink generation tool.

3. Click the hyperlink dropdown and select the type of hyperlink to add (note that each type has its own selection options).
4. When ready, click Generate Hyperlink Markup. If necessary, check the Disable Tracking box to ensure that the subsequent HTML excludes any tracking information (this automatically adds the necessary attribute to disable web tracking).

5. Click Copy Markup to copy the HTML markup to your computer’s clipboard. You can now add the code to your mailing.

Unsubscribe link

Remember to generate and include an unsubscribe link in all of your mailings. To learn more about unsubscribe link requirements, check out the following articles.

• CAN-SPAM and Anti-Spam Requirements (United States)
• Canada's Anti-Spam Legislation (CASL) (Canada)