Why Test Emails Are Important

Before sending a newsletter to your entire recipient list, it is essential to test it thoroughly. Test emails help you check the following aspects:

• Correct display of all content (texts, images, buttons) in various email programs
• Functionality of all links and interactive elements
• Correct display of personalizations (e.g., salutation, individualized content)
• Optimal display on different devices (desktop, tablet, smartphone)
• Error-free subject line and sender information

A thorough testing phase can help You avoid embarrassing mistakes and increase the effectiveness of your email campaigns.

Starting Test Sending

To create a test email in MAILINGWORK, follow these steps:

1. Open your created email in MAILINGWORK. It should already contain all desired content and be ready for testing.
2. Navigate to the "Test" tab in the upper menu bar. 
3. Click on the "Send a test" button in the Test tab.
   

Configuring Test Sending

After clicking on "Send a test," a pop-up window with various settings opens. These options allow you to specify exactly how your test sending should look and to whom it should go.

Choosing Format

In the "Format" section, You can choose between the following options:

• Multipart Format (recommended): This option sends Your email in both HTML and text format. The recipient's client can then decide which version to display. This is the safest option as it ensures compatibility with all email clients. Even if a recipient blocks HTML emails, they will be able to see the text version.
• HTML Format: With this option, Your email is sent exclusively in HTML format. This allows You to test the HTML version in isolation, but can cause problems for recipients who block HTML emails. Use this option when You specifically want to check the HTML layout.
• Text Format: This option sends Your email exclusively as a text version without formatting. This is useful to check how Your email appears to recipients who block HTML emails or where HTML display does not work for other reasons.

It is recommended to use the Multipart Format initially, as it most closely resembles the final sending.

Adjusting Subject

In the "Subject for test sends" field, you can adjust or supplement the subject of your test email if necessary. This is particularly useful for:

• Clearly marking the test sending as such (e.g., by prefixing with "[TEST]")
• Distinguishing between different test versions (e.g., "Test Version A", "Test Version B")
• Marking specific test aspects (e.g., "Test - Check personalization")

Note that this change only applies to the test sending and does not alter the actual subject of your email for the main sending.

Adding Recipients

In the "Recipients" section, you specify to whom the test email should be sent. This is a critical step as it determines who will review your email before the final sending.

1. Go to the "Recipients" section in the test sending dialog.
2. Choose one of the following options:
   • Adress of personalization: This option uses the email address associated with the data record you selected for personalization (see "Personalization" section). This is particularly useful when you want to check if the personalization elements work correctly. If you choose this option, the test email will be sent to the same email address that is stored in the personalization data.
   • Individual Test Address: This option allows you to manually enter one or more email addresses that don't necessarily have to be in your subscriber database. After selecting this option from the dropdown menu, click on the "Create" button to open an input field. Enter the desired email address there and confirm. This is particularly useful for internal tests or when you want to send the email to colleagues or supervisors for approval.
3. The added address(es) now appear(s) in the "Recipients" field. you can add multiple recipients to have the email tested by different people or on different devices.
4. Activate the checkbox next to each address that should receive the test sending. This way, You can also specifically select individual recipients from a longer list.

Best Practice: It is advisable to send test emails to different email addresses that use different email clients (e.g., Gmail, Outlook, Apple Mail) to check the display in the most common programs.

Setting Personalization

The personalization settings influence which subscriber data is used for the dynamic content of Your email. This is particularly important if your email contains personalized elements such as salutations, individual product recommendations, or other dynamic content.

Choose one of the following options:

• Individual Personalization: With this option, you can specifically select a particular data record from your subscriber database. This allows you to test the personalization for a specific subscriber. After selecting this option, a search field appears where you can search for specific subscribers, e.g., by email address or other stored information. This option is particularly useful when you want to ensure that certain personalization elements are displayed correctly for a specific subscriber.
• Random Personalization: This option randomly selects a data record from your subscribers. This is useful to get a general impression of how the personalization would look for an average recipient. You can use this option multiple times in succession to test different random personalizations and ensure that your email works correctly with different data sets.

The selected personalization affects how placeholders or other dynamic fields in your test email are replaced.

Important Note on Using the Personalization Address

Sending Test Email

After you have made all settings, you can send the test email:

1. Check all settings once more (format, subject, recipients, personalization)
2. Click on the "Send" button at the bottom of the test sending dialog
3. The system will now send your test email according to the selected settings

The test email is usually delivered within a few minutes. If the test email does not arrive after a longer period, please check:

• Whether the email address was entered correctly
• Whether the test email may have landed in the spam folder

After Test Sending

After you have received your test email, you should check the following aspects:

• Are all contents displayed correctly?
• Do all links and buttons work as expected?
• Are all images visible and loading correctly?
• Is the personalization displayed correctly?
• Is the email easily readable on different devices (desktop, smartphone, tablet)?
• Is the subject line correct and appealing?

If you notice problems or need for improvement, you can adjust your email accordingly and send another test until you are satisfied with the result.