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Responsive email: examples, best practices, and how to create

Reading Time: 6 minutes

As mobile devices dominate the digital landscape, creating responsive emails that adapt to various screen sizes has become essential. By crafting emails that look great on any device, you can effectively deliver your message to your audience.

In this post, we’ll explore responsive email design, best practices, and a step-by-step guide on creating responsive emails to optimize and get the most out of your email marketing strategies.

In this post:

Boost your ecommerce sales with mobile-friendly emails. Create responsive designs effortlessly, no coding required.

What is a responsive email?

A responsive email automatically adapts the layout and design to fit the screen size of your subscribers’ devices. Responsive designs ensure optimal readability and provide a better user experience across desktop and mobile devices.

With around 60% of email campaigns read on mobile devices, there’s a greater need for responsive designs than ever before. Planning for mobile users has become a vital part of effective email marketing.

Responsive email

Examples of responsive emails

Let’s examine some inspiring examples of responsive email designs from various industries.

1. To’ak Chocolate: a new product email

To’ak Chocolate’s new product email demonstrates how you can adapt a clean, simple design effectively for mobile devices. By using responsive design techniques, To’ak Chocolate saw a conversion rate increase of 394% over their promotional email.

To'ak Chocolate responsive product email

To'ak Chocolate LogoCase study

Learn how To’ak Chocolate increased email-generated revenue by 460%

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2. King Arthur Bakery: a promotional email

King Arthur Bakery’s promotional email is an excellent example of how you can use mobile stacking to create a user-friendly experience on smaller screens. By rearranging content sections to appear one below the other, the email maintains its readability and visual appeal on mobile devices.

King Arthur Bakery responsive promotional email

How to pack more content while keeping your emails neatly organized:

How to use mobile stacking

3. Kerrits: a marketing newsletter

Kerrits’ marketing newsletter demonstrates how a well-structured, responsive design can effectively convey a brand’s message and products across different devices. The use of clear headings, concise text, and visually appealing images makes for an engaging reading experience on both desktop and mobile.

Kerrits responsive marketing newsletter

Read how Kerrits increased revenue-per-email by 50%.

4. Amundsen Sports: a cart recovery email

Amundsen Sports’ cart recovery email is a prime example of how companies can use responsive design to create effective, high-converting emails. With a conversion rate of 57%, this mobile-responsive email showcases the power of a well-crafted, mobile-friendly design in driving sales.

Amundsen Sports responsive cart recovery email

Check out the Amundsen Sports case study.

5. Blume: a limited-time sale

Blume’s limited-time sale email is another great example of a responsive design that effectively adapts to different screen sizes. The use of a single-column layout, a clear call-to-action, and concise text ensures that Blume’s message is conveyed effectively on both desktop and mobile devices.

Blume responsive limited time sale

6. Baking Steel: a sale email

This sale email from Baking Steel shows how a good responsive layout can display products and promotions well on both desktop and mobile. Baking Steel used designs like these in post-purchase email sequences, and saw revenue-per-email up to 217% higher than their promotional campaigns.

Baking Steel responsive sale email
Get responsive email templates designed for ecommerce. Completely customizable.

Responsive email best practices

Creating messages that look great on any device is fundamental to boosting engagement. Here are some email responsive design best practices to follow as you develop your campaign.

Adjust font sizes

Ensure text remains legible using relative font sizes that adjust to screen dimensions. This prevents your text from becoming too small or too large on different devices.

Another good rule of thumb is to stick with one or two main fonts for consistency.

Use section stacking

Section stacking helps create mobile-friendly emails by rearranging content sections to appear one below the other on smaller screens. This ensures your email’s content remains easily readable and accessible on mobile devices.

Choose single-column layouts

Prioritize single-column layouts for better mobile compatibility. This ensures the email content flows smoothly on smaller screens and is easy to read and interact with.

Limit content for concise emails

Too much content in the mobile version will shrink into one narrow column, making an otherwise engaging email an endless wall of text. Keep your emails concise and break text into smaller paragraphs for better readability and easy scanning on mobile devices.

Send test emails

Always test your emails on different devices and email clients to ensure consistent responsiveness. Testing will help you identify and fix any issues before sending your message.

How to create a responsive email

Creating a responsive email design without coding is easy with the right tools. Here’s a step-by-step guide to crafting your responsive emails:

  • Create a new email campaign
  • Pick a template
  • Customize the template
  • Preview and test on mobile

For this tutorial, we’ll use Omnisend (rated 4.8 stars on Shopify, and offers 500 free monthly emails), where you can create a free account to get started.

Make responsive emails

Learn more about Omnisend

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1. Create a new email campaign

Go to Campaigns > New Campaign > Email. Fill out the window that opens. Once you’re done, click the button to proceed.

Creating a new email campaign on Omnisend

Make sure to use the built-in subject line generator to create compelling subject lines quickly.

2. Pick a template

Choose a template that fits the goal of the campaign. All Omnisend templates are responsive by default, so you can be sure your email will look great on any device.

Picking an email template on Omnisend

3. Customize the template

Use the drag-and-drop editor to customize your template. Add your text, images, and branding elements to create a unique email that aligns with your brand.

For more information on working with the Omnisend email builder, check out this helpful resource.

Customizing an email template on Omnisend

4. Preview and test on mobile

Go to Send test email > Preview.

Preview email on Omnisend

Switch between the desktop and the mobile view to see how the email will render on different devices. Send a test email to make sure that the campaign looks perfect.

Switching email preview to desktop on Omnisend

Once you’re done, click Save and choose recipients to continue. In the next window, choose Save and close in the bottom right corner.

Congratulations, your responsive email design is done!

Summary

Responsive email design is crucial for creating emails that look great and perform well on any device. By following best practices, such as adjusting font sizes, using section stacking, choosing single-column layouts, limiting content, and testing your emails, you can deliver your message to your audience effectively.

Creating responsive emails is easy with the right tools. Omnisend offers a user-friendly drag-and-drop editor, responsive templates, and built-in testing features. 

By incorporating responsive email design into your email marketing strategy, you can improve engagement, conversions, and overall customer experience.

Start creating responsive emails for your business today with Omnisend’s free plan.
Bernard Meyer
Article by

Bernard is the Sr. Director of Communications & Creative at Omnisend, with a passion for good research, helping ecommerce businesses with their marketing automation needs, and beating absolutely everyone in Mario Kart 64.