Email Template Development — Renders Everywhere

Email clients use wildly inconsistent rendering engines. Outlook on Windows uses Microsoft Word's rendering engine, which supports almost no modern CSS. Gmail strips certain styles. Apple Mail is relatively modern but handles dark mode differently. This means email HTML requires table-based layouts, inline CSS, and constant cross-client testing — techniques that have not been used in web development since 2005.

We test across 90+ clients and environments using Litmus or Email on Acid, including: Gmail (web, iOS, Android), Apple Mail (macOS, iOS), Outlook 2016–2021 on Windows and Mac, Yahoo Mail, Samsung Email, and a representative set of mobile email clients in both light and dark mode.

Yes. Dark mode is supported natively in Apple Mail, Samsung Email, and Gmail on Android. We implement prefers-color-scheme media queries and Outlook-specific dark mode overrides to ensure your template looks intentional — not accidentally inverted — when recipients use dark mode.

Yes. We work in Klaviyo, HubSpot, Mailchimp, ActiveCampaign, Iterable, Braze, Salesforce Marketing Cloud, and custom platforms. We import templates, configure variable merge tags, set up dynamic content blocks, and test sending so templates are immediately ready for use by your marketing team.

MJML is an open-source email framework that compiles to responsive, battle-tested HTML. It dramatically reduces the time required to write email code and produces consistently compatible output. We use MJML for most new email template projects and hand-code only when maximum control over the output HTML is required.

Yes. We replicate your brand typography, colors, spacing, and component styles within the constraints of what email clients support. We provide a Figma design review early in the project that flags any design elements that cannot be reliably rendered across all target clients, and propose email-safe alternatives.

Projects range from a single transactional template to a full suite of 15–20 templates covering welcome, nurture, promotional, transactional, and re-engagement use cases. We recommend starting with a master template and modular block library, then deriving individual campaign templates from that foundation.

A single template with design, development, and cross-client testing takes 1–2 weeks. A full template library of 10+ templates takes 4–8 weeks depending on design complexity. Rush delivery (48–72 hours for a single template) is available for an additional fee.

Yes. We deliver templates that your marketing team can edit through your ESP's drag-and-drop editor for common content changes. For teams who want to edit the raw HTML, we provide documentation covering which sections are safe to modify and which table-based layout elements should not be touched to avoid rendering breakage.

Yes. We can provide email copywriting alongside template development. Our copywriters specialize in transactional email copy, promotional campaigns, and automated lifecycle sequences. We deliver both the design-coded template and the copy ready to send — or we can build templates with placeholder copy for your team to fill in.

Yes. We perform email template audits that identify rendering failures, accessibility issues (poor color contrast, missing alt text, unlabeled CTAs), and code quality problems. We then fix issues, retest, and deliver updated templates alongside a short report explaining what was wrong and how it was corrected.

Yes. We follow email accessibility best practices: semantic heading structure, descriptive alt text on all images, minimum 4.5:1 color contrast ratio, sufficiently large tap targets on mobile, and logical reading order for screen reader users. Accessible email is also better email — clear, structured content improves conversion rates for all recipients.