Customizing the Email Preheader
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Customizing the Email Preheader
- 2 Minutes to read
- Print
- DarkLight
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Goal
Customize the preheader text in your email message to control what recipients see after the subject line.
Background Information
A preheader is the short summary text that appears after the subject line in most email clients. It’s sometimes called preview text or snippet text. Crafting a well-written preheader can increase open rates and improve engagement.
Different email clients display between 50 and 140 characters.
We recommend writing preheaders that are 85–100 characters long.
The Message Preview window displays the first 130 characters of the preheader to help with design.
By default, the email preheader pulls from the first 130 characters of the non-code portion of your email (everything after the <body> tag). If that includes content like an unsubscribe link, it may not be ideal to display. You can override this default using a simple HTML workaround.
Procedure
Go to:
Create New > Message > Email Message > HTML Email, or
Messages > Draft Messages > Email > Edit, or
Messages > Prepared Messages > Email > Edit
Follow the email creation process until you reach Step 2 - Content.
In the Email (HTML) space, enter the
<body>tag for your email.Directly below the
<body>tag, insert the following HTML code using the HTML CODE view:
<div style="display:none;font-size:1px;color:#FFFFFF;line-height:1px;max-height:0px;max-width:0px;opacity:0;overflow:hidden;"> Your preheader text goes here </div>Replace
"Your custom preheader text goes here."with the text you want to appear as the preheader.Use a color value that matches your email background (e.g.,
#FFFFFFfor white) to help hide the text.
Click Preview to open the Message Preview window.
Your custom preheader text will appear beneath the Email Subject Line but will not display in the email body.
Switch to the HTML EDITOR view to verify that the text is not visible in the body of the email.
Best Practices
✔ Keep it relevant: Use the preheader to complement your subject line. Together, they should clearly convey the value of the email.
✔ Avoid repetition: Don’t repeat the subject line in the preheader. Use it to expand or tease more content.
✔ Stay within recommended length: Aim for 85–100 characters to ensure optimal display across major email clients.
✔ Use hidden text properly: Always match the hidden text color to your background and use display:none and other styles to prevent it from showing in the email body.
✔ Preview before sending: Use the Message Preview window to confirm your custom preheader displays correctly and doesn’t show unwanted content (like unsubscribe links).
✔ Test across clients: Since not all email clients handle hidden text the same way, test your email on multiple platforms (e.g., Gmail, Outlook, Apple Mail) to verify consistency.
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