A journey to the dark side: Optimising your emails for dark mode

Are you ready to take your emails to the next level? It's time to embrace the dark side and optimise your emails for dark mode. Not only will it make your emails look cooler and more modern, but it will also reduce eye strain and save battery life on mobile devices. Plus, who doesn't want to feel like a tech-savvy mastermind reading important, classified information? Jokes.

In this article, we'll explore why you should optimise your emails for dark mode and how to do it like a pro. So, grab a seat, turn down the lights and let's get started on this journey to the dark side.

What is dark mode?

According to Litmus, dark mode is a “darker colour palette for low-light or nighttime environments.” In simple terms, dark mode is a display setting that changes the background colour of your device's screen from white to black.

Why go to the dark side?

Well, optimising emails for dark mode can significantly improve the user experience, leading to better engagement rates and increased customer satisfaction. According to Earthweb, 81.9% of people who use smartphones prefer their screen display to be in dark mode. This statistic alone shows that a lot of your subscribers could actually be viewing your emails in dark mode. This means you should be optimising for dark mode

Here are some of the key benefits of dark mode and why people choose to use it:

It's easier on the eyes: Dark mode reduces eye strain, especially in low-light environments. Your subscribers can finally read your emails without squinting or getting a headache.

It saves battery life: Dark mode uses less energy, which means your subscribers’ batteries will last longer on their mobile devices. By optimising your emails for dark mode, you can help reduce the energy consumption of your subscribers’ devices, which can improve their overall experience with your brand.

It's aesthetically pleasing: Dark mode is sleek, modern and just plain cool. It can give your brand a more sophisticated look and make you stand out from the competition.

Image Source: Mail Blaze

How to optimise emails for dark mode

Now that we've explored the benefits of optimising emails for dark mode, let's look at how you can do it. Here are some tips to help you get started:

1. Tweak your logo

To make sure that your logo still pops even when viewed in dark mode, consider saving it as a Portal Network Graphics (PNG). PNG is a versatile format that makes the background of an image transparent, making it a great choice for images that need to look great in any mode.

Another option is to make a banner. So, rather than placing your logo at the top centre of your email, you can make that top space a banner image with your logo on it.

2. Contrast is going to matter

When designing your email, it's important to choose colours that work well in both light and dark modes. Avoid using colours that are too bright or saturated because they may appear washed out or jarring in dark mode. We suggest using darker colours in your image’s background and lighter colours in the foreground.

Image Source: Mail Blaze

3. Have transparent dividers

Dividers are useful to use when you want to keep the elements in your template organised. They’re essentially used for separating two form elements using a divider that draws a distinct line between them. However, when optimising for dark mode, you might want these to be invisible.

You can do this in Mail Blaze by navigating to the CAMPAIGNS dropdown menu item when you’ve logged in to your account. Then, open the campaign that you’d like to optimise for dark mode once you’re at the Campaigns detail window.

At the bottom of your screen you’ll see the following options:

• Details
• Set up
• Template
• Design
• Confirmation
• Done

Click the DESIGN tab. You’ll be able to see your template and be able to customise it as you wish. You’ll see the sidebar panel that contains 4 tabs: CONTENT, STRUCTURE, PREBUILT and SETTINGS.

Navigate to CONTENT. It contains all content elements that can be dragged into the structure sections in the builder window. Click on the DIVIDER element and drag it onto your template. Now, you can click on the divider that you have dragged onto your template and navigate to the COLOUR block. Click on it and drag your cursor towards the colourless zone.

Image Source: Mail Blaze

Now your divider will be transparent and ready to use for a dark mode optimised campaign.

4. Make your images transparent

What makes PNG images special is that they support transparent backgrounds, meaning you can make parts of the image see-through. This is particularly useful for logos or icons that you want to place on top of another image or background.

Go forth and embrace the dark side

So, there you have it! Optimising your emails for dark mode may seem like a small task but it can have a big impact on the overall user experience and engagement with your emails.

Whether you're a die-hard dark mode fan or just looking for ways to improve your email design, following these tips can help you create a cohesive and visually appealing email that looks great in both light and dark modes.

Now go forth, fellow email marketers and embrace the darkness! Your readers will thank you for it. Who knows, maybe someday we'll all be living in a world where everything is optimised for dark mode – a world where black is the new white.