How to customize HTML email templates that impresses your audience: Part 2

How to customize HTML email templates that impresses your audience: Part 2

In the first part of the series, we covered basic customization of emails. We learned how to edit text and use variables. We also learned how to add your logo.

In this part, we will focus on the next level of customization where we will tinker with some HTML code. As long as you can copy paste text, we will make through this without learning knowing what HTML stands for.

We will learn how to add
  1. Logos
  2. Working with images
  3. Fonts
  4. Background colors
We recommend you to read through the notes first.



1. How to replace Zoho logos with your brand logo  

Estimated Completion Time - less than 20 minutes
  • Log in to Zoho Bookings. Navigate to the email template you wish to edit. (Services > Service Notifications)
  • Click on the HTML button among the formatting tools. Now click Ctrl + F (Windows) or Command + F (MacOS). A search bar will pop up.
  • Now type in 'src' without quotation marks and hit enter.
  • You'll find that src shows up in two places; The first src points to the Zoho Bookings logo, and the second to Zoho Logo.
  • Copy the image URL from your website or Imgur.



Voila! You have successfully inserted your brand logo into your email template.

2.  Working with images

Note - By now, you should have replaced the default link with your logo's link.

a. To alter the height and width of your images  

  • The first step is to locate the image tag in the HTML code.
  • Log in to Zoho Bookings.
  • Navigate to the email template you wish to edit. (Services > Service Notifications)
  • Click on the HTML button among the formatting tools.
  • Search for 'src.'
  • The following is the default Zoho bookings logo tag. Note that the link you see will differ from the below link if you already changed your logo.
  • Change the numbers to alter the width.
  • To change its height, insert the following code at the end of it.
  1. height = __
Like this
Here is another example of how to adjust height and width. We are trying to adjust it for the default Zoho logo. You can apply the same for your image as well. In our example the width and height are not provided.
No worries, we can add them manually.
  1. height = __ width = __
The code will look like this after adding height and weight.
  1. <img style='padding-top: 3px;' src='https://zoho.com/sites/default/files/bookings/imagesemail/zoho.png' height = 100 width = 80>

b. Aligning the images left or right   

  1. The first step is to locate the image tag in the HTML code.
  2. Log in to Zoho Bookings.
  3. Navigate to the email template you wish to edit. (Services > Service Notifications)
  4. Click on the HTML button among the formatting tools.
  5. To align the image, right/left or center, search for the following text.
  1. <td style='vertical-align: middle;' align='right'>
You can find it in two places. Instead of left, you can put it as right and vice versa. Center alignment works well only when you have a single logo. Refer to the following video to learn more about this.



3. Changing Fonts    

Fonts help you to be consistent with your brand next to Logos. To change your fonts and background colors,
  • Log in to Zoho Bookings.
  • Navigate to the email template you wish to edit. (Services > Service Notifications)
  • Click on the HTML button among the formatting tools.
  • Click Ctrl + F. Type in 'font-family' (without quotes) inside the text box. You'll find something like this.
  1. font-family: 'Open Sans','Trebuchet MS',sans-serif;
  • There are three things here. Two specific fonts(Open Sans, Trebuchet MS), and the third one is the font family (sans-serif).
  • To ensure maximum compatibility between operating systems and browsers, follow the below format. Read more about it here.
  • To replace the font, type in the font name of your choice. I wish to have Times New Roman as my first font and Montserrat as my backup. If this were the case, I would change my code to this.
  1. font-family: Montserrat,'Helvet',sans-serif;

Font Notes

  • If your fonts have spaces in your font names, put them between quotes. Ex: 'Times New Roman.'
  • For font families with multiple words, you should use '-.' Ex: sans-serif
  • Font changes don't dynamically reflect on your email template in bookings like background colors, or logo sizes. However, these changes apply to outgoing emails. (Refer to video)
  • We recommend you stick to system fonts and families for better compatibility between different browsers and operating systems. Here are a few of those.
auto
inherit
revert
ui-rounded
cursive
initial
sans-serif
ui-sans-serif
emoji
math
serif

fangsong
monospace
system-ui

fantasy
none
ui-monospace

4.  Changing Background Colors

Estimated Completion Time - 20 minutes

To change the email's background  

  • Click Ctrl + F (in windows) or Cmd + F (in mac).
  • Now type in 'background: #fff' in the search box without quotes. (Note - there is a space between ':' and '#')
  • Instead of the three letters, you can type in the color code of your choice
  • You can also verify this guide to change the email template's colors - Link

To change the background of the whole email

  • Click Ctrl + F (in windows) or Cmd + F (in mac) and search for
  1. .zb-email-success{background:#F2F1F7;
  • Instead of the six-letter code, you can insert a color code of your choice.
  • To find the color code of your website, you can upload screenshots of the color you are trying to replicate from your website to this site - Color Picker Online.
  • The above process works for 'Booked', 'Rescheduled', 'Marked as Completed', and 'Marked as Noshow' emails
  • To change the BG color of cancelled emails, search for
  1. .zb-email-cancel{background:#F9F0F1;

Notes

Sometimes you might not be comfortable working with the in-built editor.

In those cases, use online editors like codepen.io. Once you make the changes, paste the code into Zoho Bookings Dashboard. Refer to the following video to learn more about it. As soon as you enter codepen.io. Hit save. The first save alone is manual. The rest are automated.


If you haven't taken a backup yet, check out the following video to take one.


What if you make mistakes?

If at any point you wish to revert to your default template, copy the backup from the text document you have created and paste it back there. However, don't worry if you've failed to create a backup. 
  • Create a dummy service.
  • Now navigate to services > service notification > configure.
  • Now copy the entire HTML code without changing anything.
  • Now navigate back to the broken template.
  • All you have to do is to click paste and hit save.
  • Voila! Your default template is back.
  • Before editing your template, please take a backup.
  • Note - If you made mistakes in the customer's booked template, please copy the same template and replace it accordingly.


Conclusion

While we understand that our HTML editing interface isn't for everyone, our engineers are working hard to make it so.

Meanwhile, these are other methods of editing HTML templates. In part three, we will explore ways to supercharge our email templates.




    Access your files securely from anywhere

        All-in-one knowledge management and training platform for your employees and customers.







                              Zoho Developer Community




                                                    • Desk Community Learning Series


                                                    • Digest


                                                    • Functions


                                                    • Meetups


                                                    • Kbase


                                                    • Resources


                                                    • Glossary


                                                    • Desk Marketplace


                                                    • MVP Corner


                                                    • Word of the Day


                                                    • Ask the Experts





                                                              Manage your brands on social media



                                                                    Zoho TeamInbox Resources



                                                                        Zoho CRM Plus Resources

                                                                          Zoho Books Resources


                                                                            Zoho Subscriptions Resources

                                                                              Zoho Projects Resources


                                                                                Zoho Sprints Resources


                                                                                  Qntrl Resources


                                                                                    Zoho Creator Resources



                                                                                        Zoho CRM Resources

                                                                                        • CRM Community Learning Series

                                                                                          CRM Community Learning Series


                                                                                        • Kaizen

                                                                                          Kaizen

                                                                                        • Functions

                                                                                          Functions

                                                                                        • Meetups

                                                                                          Meetups

                                                                                        • Kbase

                                                                                          Kbase

                                                                                        • Resources

                                                                                          Resources

                                                                                        • Digest

                                                                                          Digest

                                                                                        • CRM Marketplace

                                                                                          CRM Marketplace

                                                                                        • MVP Corner

                                                                                          MVP Corner









                                                                                            Design. Discuss. Deliver.

                                                                                            Create visually engaging stories with Zoho Show.

                                                                                            Get Started Now


                                                                                              Zoho Show Resources

                                                                                                Zoho Writer

                                                                                                Get Started. Write Away!

                                                                                                Writer is a powerful online word processor, designed for collaborative work.

                                                                                                  Zoho CRM コンテンツ




                                                                                                    Nederlandse Hulpbronnen


                                                                                                        ご検討中の方




                                                                                                                • Recent Topics

                                                                                                                • Batch/lot # and Storage bin location

                                                                                                                  Hi I want to ask for a feature on Zoho inventory I own a warehouse and I've gone through different management software solutions with no luck until I found Zoho, it has been a game changer for my business with up to the minute information, I'm extremely happy with it. It's almost perfect. And I say Almost because the only thing missing for me (and I'm sure I'm not alone) is the need of being able to identify the lot number of my inventory and where it is located in the warehouse. Due to the nature
                                                                                                                • Adding Sender Address with Basic Plan

                                                                                                                  According to the knowledge base, I should be able to add Sender addresses with the Basic Plan. But whenever I try to add an email, it takes me to a search window and I cannot find any emails in the list. Even mine, which is the admin. email.
                                                                                                                • Conditional Field Visibility in Bigin CRM

                                                                                                                  I would like to request support for conditional field visibility within Bigin CRM. This feature should allow administrators to configure show/hide rules for fields based on predefined criteria (e.g., field values, picklist selections, stage changes,
                                                                                                                • Bill automation in Zoho Books

                                                                                                                  Hi I am looking for 3rd-party options for bill automation in zoho which are economical and preferably have accurate scanning. What options do I have? Zoho's native scanning is a bit pricey
                                                                                                                • Reporting Tags

                                                                                                                  We've been using reporting tags for years (before itemizing was available) and now we are finding reporting these tags are impossible to track. Reports have changed in the customization and our columns of reporting tags no longer show up. We do not use
                                                                                                                • Consumption based inventory

                                                                                                                  I am currently using Zoho Books for my hospitality business, which includes lodging and restaurant services. We purchase many items in bulk for storage and consumption as needed. I'd like these items to be recorded as inventory when purchased and categorized
                                                                                                                • Smarter Access Control: Role-Based Access vs. Responsibility-Based Profiles

                                                                                                                  Every business has roles, responsibilities, and workflows. While roles help define structure, responsibilities within those roles are rarely the same. As your team grows, some members need access to only a specific set of features. Others require visibility
                                                                                                                • Partner with HDFC And Sbi Bank.

                                                                                                                  Hdfc and sbi both are very popular bank if zoho books become partner with this banks then many of the zoho books users will benefit premium features of partnered banks.
                                                                                                                • API in E-Invoice/GST portal

                                                                                                                  Hi, Do I have to change the api in gst/e-invoice portal as I use zoho e books for my e-invoicing. If yes, please confirm the process.
                                                                                                                • Member role in zoho meeting

                                                                                                                  does a user with member role can see other users in the organization
                                                                                                                • How to post more than 4 Images on Instagram?

                                                                                                                  Hi I read several articles to the topic od how to post more than 4 images on instagram, but i can't figure out how it works. I can't find the content editor and i installesd the z share extension for google chrome. Could someone please help me? Than
                                                                                                                • Clone Recurring Expenses

                                                                                                                  Our bookkeeping practices make extensive use of the "clone" feature for bills, expenses, invoices, etc. This cuts down significantly on both the amount of typing that needs to be done manually and, more importantly, the mental overhead of choosing the
                                                                                                                • Zoho Books - How to Invoke a Custom Function in Schedulers

                                                                                                                  We have multiple schedulers that send emails to customers in batches. Currently, we are maintaining the same code across several schedulers. Is it possible to use a custom function inside a scheduler script? If yes, how can we invoke the custom function
                                                                                                                • Special characters (like â, â, æ) breaking when input in a field (encoding issue)

                                                                                                                  Hey everyone, We are currently dealing with a probably encoding issue when we populate a field (mostly but not exclusively, 'Last Name' for Leads and Contracts). If the user manually inputs special characters (like ä, â, á etc.) from Scandinavian languages,
                                                                                                                • Set Custom Icon for Custom Modules in new Zoho CRM UI

                                                                                                                • Notes badge as a quick action in the list view

                                                                                                                  Hello all, We are introducing the Notes badge in the list view of all modules as a quick action you can perform for each record, in addition to the existing Activity badge. With this enhancement, users will have quick visibility into the notes associated
                                                                                                                • Is Zoho Live Chat compatible with WordPress CMS?

                                                                                                                  Hello, I have a website called www.jjrlab.com and I'm interested in using Zoho Chat on it. Does it support WordPress CMS? Thanks.
                                                                                                                • Introducing spam detection for webforms: An additional layer of protection to keep your Zoho CRM clean and secure

                                                                                                                  Greetings all, One of the most highly anticipated feature launches—Spam Detection in webforms—has finally arrived! Webforms are a vital tool for record generation, but they're also vulnerable to submissions from unauthenticated or malicious sources, which
                                                                                                                • Bring your CRM and Desk app inside SalesIQ with widgets

                                                                                                                  Have you ever been confused and frustrated with multiple open tabs and switching back and forth from SalesIQ to other apps to perform your business-specific operations? How effective would it be to have all the required tools and data of the apps you
                                                                                                                • Speak Your Customers' Language: SalesIQ's chatbots now support 30 languages 🤖

                                                                                                                  We're unveiling some major upgrades to our chatbot that are set to revolutionize your experience! Now SalesIQ support 30 languages for both Zobot and Answer bot. By speaking your customers' language, you can enhance engagement, improve customer satisfaction,
                                                                                                                • Repeat Column merge in ZOHO writer columns doesn't allow to set max columns per row

                                                                                                                  I'm using ZOHO writer to merge data from a ZOHO CRM subform and I want it to make a table. We're using Insert Table for Column Repeat, because this is what we need. (Name of column (Teamname) and underneath that a list of names of teammembers). It works
                                                                                                                • Persisting email signals to contact timeline?

                                                                                                                  Hello there. Regarding the email signals that are logged when a contact opens an email, am I correct that these signals are not logged to a contact's timeline? Ideally, I would like to have this context available for future follow-ups, if the contact
                                                                                                                • Trouble with using Apostrophe in Name of Customers and Vendors

                                                                                                                  We have had an ongoing issue with how the system recognizes an apostrophe in the name of customers and vendors. The search will not return any results for a name that includes the mark; ie one of our vendors names is "L'Heritage" and when entering the
                                                                                                                • Really want the field "Company" in the activities module!

                                                                                                                  Hi team! Something we are really missing is able to see the field Company when working in the activities module. We have a lot of tasks and need to see what company it's related to. It's really annoying to not be able to see it.🙈 Thx!
                                                                                                                • Upcoming update to Google Drive integration in Zoho Creator

                                                                                                                  Hello everyone, We're writing to inform you about an upcoming update to how Zoho Creator integrates with Google Drive. In Zoho Creator, during actions like importing files to create an app or attaching files to fields, you can choose files directly from
                                                                                                                • Managing Scheduled Replies

                                                                                                                  Communication is most effective when the intended message reaches the right person at the right time. However, this can be challenging when communication occurs across different time zones. By scheduling replies, businesses can ensure that responses reach
                                                                                                                • Show price book list price

                                                                                                                  When using price books, once you add products to the price book in the Products related list you can display the Unit price which is the default list price; however, there is no option to show the price book list price. To see the price book list price
                                                                                                                • Allow Attaching Quartz Recordings to Existing Zoho Support Tickets

                                                                                                                  Hi Zoho Team, We would like to request an enhancement to how Zoho Quartz recordings integrate with Zoho Support tickets. Current Behavior: At the moment, each Quartz recording automatically creates a new support ticket. However, in many real-world scenarios:
                                                                                                                • Can I hide empty Contact fields from view?

                                                                                                                  Some contacts have a lot of empty fields, others are mostly filled. Is there a way I can hide/show empty fields without changing the actual Layout? I would like to de-clutter my view, and also be able to add information later as I am able. I would be
                                                                                                                • Manage user roles and profiles from the Bigin app (iOS and macOS)

                                                                                                                  Hello everyone! We're happy to announce that you can manage user roles and profiles from the Bigin mobile app. The Users & Controls section has three subsections: Users, Profiles, and Roles. Users Employees who belong to your Bigin organization are called
                                                                                                                • Support Bots and Automations in External Channels

                                                                                                                  Hello Zoho Cliq Team, How are you? We actively use Zoho Cliq for collaboration, including with our external developers. For this purpose, external channels are a key tool since they work seamlessly within the same interface as all of our other channels
                                                                                                                • Form to PDF template

                                                                                                                  I am looking to create a Form and when information is inputted, it will merge it into a PDF template we already have. There could be multiple lines in the form and each line inputs information into a new page of a PDF template.
                                                                                                                • Please verify my account

                                                                                                                  Hi, We have just launched our website and received media coverage in our country. Hundreds of users are signing up for our platform every day. We would like to send them a welcome email, but we are unable to do so because our ZeptoMail account has not
                                                                                                                • Subject character limit increase

                                                                                                                  We have an occasional user case where subject lines exceed 500 characters which is the ZeptoMail imposed limit. While I understand long subject lines are not "best practice", these are particular notification emails with specific information for client
                                                                                                                • Account blocked

                                                                                                                  Yesterday I got my Zeptomail account blocked due to too many hard bounces. My account is used exclusively for sending transactional emails (eg. your order has been shipped, a form has been filled, etc) and the sudden blocking impacted hundreds of websites
                                                                                                                • Nested notebooks

                                                                                                                  Dear Sir/Madam, I would like to know if it is possible to nest notebooks. It would be very helpful when there are too many, as it would improve organization. Thank you for your response. Best regards.
                                                                                                                • Cannot see correct DNS config for mail after moving domain to another provider

                                                                                                                  I have moved my domain from one provider to another and after that zoho mail stopped working (expected). Problem is, zoho mail admin panel still shows (10 hours after move) that all records are correct while I haven't changed anything in my domain DNS
                                                                                                                • Proactive Alert for Existing Open Tickets per Contact / Account

                                                                                                                  Hello Zoho Desk Team, Greetings, and hope you’re doing well. We would like to submit a feature request aimed at improving agent awareness and efficiency when handling tickets in Zoho Desk. Use case When an agent opens a ticket (new or existing), it is
                                                                                                                • Ticket resolution field - can you add links, video, and images?

                                                                                                                  Seems like the ticket resolution fields is just a text field. Any plans to add the ability to add links, images...the same functionality in the problem description box? I would like to send the customer a link to a KB article, a link to our Wiki, embed
                                                                                                                • Ticket Resolution - Add rich formatting, screenshots and attachments

                                                                                                                  The resolution field only allows plain text at the moment. Many of our resolutions involve posting screenshots as evidence, it would be great for us to be able to have rich text formatting, be able to paste screenshots and add attachments in the solution
                                                                                                                • Next Page