Category: Email Marketing

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Creating an HTML form that sends email responses to your inbox

Yes, it is true that improving the UX of a website will cost a lot of money. Also, you don’t need to spend a lot of money every time you face a problem with your website. There are simple fixes.

The question is, how can you find out if your target audience is enjoying the website experience? The answer is very simple. All you have to do is have HTML forms on your website.

This is a great way to get customer feedback about their experience. These forms will offer you insights on how to improve the website UX for more conversions in the future.

Did you know that 74% of the marketers make use of the forms to get more leads? Whether you want to convert more visitors to leads, gather information for the sales team, or want to create solid brand awareness, the forms can help you in a lot more ways than you can think of.

Therefore, in this blog today, we are going to help you in creating HTML forms that send email responses. However, it is not that simple. It will depend on how you work and on what platform you are working with.

If you are only working on HTML then it is pretty easy. Here is a sample code:

“

method=”POST”

enctype=”multipart/form-data”

name=”EmailTestForm”>

Name:



Message:


“

This will create a form like this:

basic HTML form
basic HTML form

This is a basic HTML form. However, the problem is, it doesn’t send the feedback directly to an email. Instead, the HTML code opens an email client window to submit the form.

The problems of email forms in HTML

The reason why browsers don’t allow submitting forms directly to an email address is sending emails directly from an HTML web form that will reveal the visitors’ email address. Thus, the visitor will become vulnerable to malicious activities like phishing.

An HTML code activates the default mail client on the user’s computer. The web browser sends a request to the email service provider and not to the specific address.

The HTML code needs a JavaScript to validate the form and PHP coding for communicating with your email server and send the content to a mailbox. The following three sets of code will get your job done.

HTML:

“

Your Name: Email Address:

Message:

“

JavaScript:

“

“

PHP:

“

$errors = ”;

$myemail = ‘yourname@website.com’;//<—–Put Your email address here. if(empty($_POST[‘name’]) ||

empty($_POST[’email’]) ||

empty($_POST[‘message’]))

{

$errors .= “n Error: all fields are required”;

}

$name = $_POST[‘name’];

$email_address = $_POST[’email’];

$message = $_POST[‘message’];

if (!preg_match(

“/^[_a-z0-9-]+(.[_a-z0-9-]+)*@[a-z0-9-]+(.[a-z0-9-]+)*(.[a-z]{2,3})$/i”, $email_address))

{

$errors .= “n Error: Invalid email address”;

}

if( empty($errors))

{

$to = $myemail;

$email_subject = “Contact form submission: $name”;

$email_body = “You have received a new message. “.

” Here are the details:n Name: $name n “.

“Email: $email_addressn Message n $message”;

$headers = “From: $myemailn”;

$headers .= “Reply-To: $email_address”;

mail($to,$email_subject,$email_body,$headers);

//redirect to the ‘thank you’ page

header(‘Location: contact-form-thank-you.html’);

}

?>

“

How to create an HTML form that emails the responses to the mailbox?

Now, the above-mentioned codes are not difficult but it will take a lot of time for you. If you don’t want to use so many codes, then the following options will get the job done.

Form plugins for WordPress

WordPress brings you a lot of paid and free plugins for you to work on. With these plugins, you can create multiple forms that perform correctly.

Ninja Forms: These are perfect for beginners. You can create custom forms, modify each field, and then save them for later. If you need to indicate required fields or custom input masks for international phone numbers, then this one can do it for you. Also, you can even add your own raw HTML to include videos or custom graphics to increase branding. Ninja forms also help you in avoiding spams through Google reCaptcha, honeypot options, and more.

WP Forms: It includes a user-friendly interface along with a drag-and-drop builder for creating beautiful and functional forms. You can use the free Lite version or you can opt for the paid version as well. The conditional smart logic allows you to choose whether or not to display the additional fields depending on the previous answers.

Also, WPForms securely integrates with multiple payment options like Stripe, PayPal, and more. Thus, it is perfectly suitable for e-commerce applications. You can use the WPForms for developing your email list.

Gravity Forms: Gravity Forms help a lot in saving time. The interface is simple, easy to use, and integrates with numerous popular services like Paypal, Slack, Zapier, Campaign Monitor, and Stripe. There are 30 premade customizable templates that will help you get started.

You can use the conditional logic technology for creating dynamic entry fields depending on answers to different questions. Gravity Forms are committed to responsive design. The forms look perfect on every device. Also, Gravity Forms will send a notification with every submission.

Shopify form Apps

Shopify offers its own series of applications that will help in creating a form and send email responses.

Using the Hulk Apps Easy to Advance Form Builder, you can use premade templates or design your own forms for multiple purposes. You can use them for getting leads. collect payments and also manage customers.

You can create HTML forms that email multiple addresses along with notifications. Also, you can design completely responsive forms for free.

Also, you can use the form builder for custom forms using AAAeCommerce Inc. You can use the easy drag-and-drop builder for creating mobile-responsive forms. You get a lot of similar features like the WP plugins integrated with email apps and PayPal. If you want to create an HTML form that will send responses to an email, you can choose multiple recipients with this.

Google Form

With the Google Forms, you will be able to create beautiful surveys for your email marketing campaigns. Since it is through Google, you and your team can easily collaborate.

The best thing about Google Forms is, you can upload logos, graphics and the website builder will choose the right color to match. The forms are mobile responsive. Also, Google will change them into real-time charts and graphs.

In conclusion, it can be said that user feedbacks are very important in web development, designing, and digital marketing. You will find it very hard to create a strictly HTML form that submits to an email. The technology will not communicate with an email server. However, you can use the HTML form that emails responses by using JavaScript and PHP. Also, you can opt for the user-friendly drag-and-drop plugins.

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More Gmail Work Tools! Google targets to get ahead of Microsoft Corp.

With an attempt to get ahead of Microsoft Corporation, Google announced that the corporate Gmail users will have more work tools. The corporate Gmail customers can no edit documents and other files without having to leave the email service.

The end-goal is to lure more customers from Microsoft by integrating more work tools in Gmail. Google announced it during its cloud unit’s annual customer and partner conference. It was a virtual conference for several weeks because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

To date, Microsoft had the sole authority over the global market for corporate email and document-editing tools. Google has been looking to catch up with the features of Microsoft Office for more than a decade.

A brief analysis of Gmail & Microsoft Outlook

Being a business owner everyone constantly looks for ways to save money and enhance productivity. For a lot of years, Microsoft Office has become the most popular option for email marketing and other activities.

Over the years, Google too has done a commendable job on developing their set of applications suite, aka the G-suite. The cloud-based platform offers Gmail’s powerful email client for business. Gmail is now the most preferred email client all over the globe.

A lot of people are switching from Outlook to Gmail because of the ease of use. Now, is shifting from Microsoft Outlook to Google a good idea? This is what we are going to share in this blog today.

Google’s attempt to cross over Microsoft – A clash of the Titans

According to Google, it has developed a competitive edge over Microsoft Corp. Gmail will become the single hub for work to have access to text chats, new documents, and video calls. On the other hand, Microsoft offers limited integrations between email, chat tools, outlook, and teams.

Both companies have added video-calling features and more collaborative tools. This has helped them in attracting new business from different companies operating from home amidst this pandemic.

Javier Soltero, a Google vice-president, and an ex-employee of Microsoft stated in an interview, “Microsoft is still telling you there are two separate places to check, two different habits, two inboxes to look at. They are not incentivized to do a deep integration between Teams and Outlook.”

Consumers, who are using the free version of Gmail, might also have access to the new and integrated work tools in the future. There have been no comments from Microsoft as of yet. Google has introduced some options that already exist on Microsoft Teams.

These features include the ability for the chat users to list an “out of office” notice. You can also “pin” conversations so that you can find them later.

Who bags the trophy? Gmail or Microsoft 365 Outlook

Both Gmail and Outlook offer similar email services and features, but there are a few differences as well. Let us have a detailed look at the features of Gmail and Outlook.

Features of Gmail:

  • Unlimited storage plans
  • Modern Interface
  • Available in desktop and mobile applications in all plans
  • Offline accessibility
  • Scheduling emails
  • Send & request money through email
  • In-built follow-up reminders
  • Smart compose feature with suggestions and words
  • Missing attachment notification
  • In-built language translators
  • Separate confidential mode to set an expiration date for emails

Features of Outlook

  • Available in mobile and desktop version
  • In-built appointment booking tool (standard & premium plans)
  • Offline accessibility
  • Customization feature to suit the user’s preference
  • Sorting options to find emails by date, size, and sender
  • No-attachment notification
  • Ignore conversations feature to put email threads in trash
  • Share & delegate multiple calendars

Gmail is a better option for businesses to save time and increase productivity. For instance, you can send & receive money through email, translate emails from a foreign language, and set expiration dates on emails.

Outlook is the better option for traditional companies with a large number of staff members who manage other’s inboxes and calendars.

When should you choose Gmail?

Gmail comes with tools included for collaboration and productivity in all monthly plans, with a user-friendly interface. It is better for startups. International businesses can use Gmail because of its translation facility. This makes it easy to send and receive emails in multiple languages. You can also send and receive money via Gmail.

When to Choose Microsoft Outlook?

Microsoft 365 outlook is the right tool to choose if you are seeking the best value for an entry-level plan. It costs less than Gmail and offers more storage. It is a great option for companies that require productivity tools. With Microsoft Outlook, you can easily manage other user’s inboxes, calendars, meetings, and schedule appointments.

Gmail’s weaknesses

  • It is a bit more expensive than Outlook.
  • Gmail doesn’t offer in-built appointment scheduling tools.
  • There are no secretarial features like the capability to easily manage multiple calendars.

Outlook’s weaknesses

  • Lesser time-saving and productivity tool than Gmail.
  • The advertised prices require an annual commitment.
  • It doesn’t with plans for unlimited storage.

Microsoft 365 Outlook offers more productivity solutions to hierarchical companies. It is suitable where a significant number of staff members in administration needs tools to help in managing others.

Most of the companies either use Gmail or Microsoft Outlook because of the cloud office suite that offers calendars, collaboration, spreadsheets, and documents. Gmail has already set the bar high. Microsoft, with its 2016 update, is now much more equipped to compete with Google.

G-suite email creative is a better option for modern and creative businesses. Microsoft 365 is a better option for traditional companies. The primary reason is G-suite offers a wide range of collaborative tools that serve teams in a better way.

For the majority of the business owners, the best option is to use Gmail as a part of G-suite. It is much more cost-effective, collaborative, and functional. It also offers better synchronization options. The best part is it has the most-preferred search engines in the world.