What You’ll Accomplish
You’ll create a new email asset, apply brand settings, structure and add content, preview and test, and prepare it for sending. If you’re looking to get the most out of Knak, we highly recommend checking out our free Knak Academy course. It walks you through how to build emails and landing pages faster, with best practices from our team. Find out more here.
Before You Begin
Make sure to:
Log in and select the correct Brand.
Confirm you have permission to build in the correct Campaign folder.
Gather assets like images, copy, links, and reusable modules.
Step 1: Select Brand & Campaign
In the Studio or dashboard, select your brand.
Navigate to the correct Folder and Campaign.
Click Create Email or Create Email From a Theme.
Step 2: Set Up Email Info & Sending Details
Click the email details section at the top of the create tab, here you can enter:
From Name
From Email
Subject Line
Preview Text
Email Title
Go to the info tab and enter
Tracking or advanced settings such as custom HTML if needed.
Step 3: Build the Email
Use the Create tab to customize layout and content. Work through these sections:
Email Settings
Set global properties like:
Email width and mobile breakpoint
Adjust email layout
Enable dark mode editing
Background image/color
Link color
Font for the email to inherit
Language
Structure
Use layout blocks like 1-column or 2-column rows.
Drag and drop them into the canvas.
Content
Add content blocks like:
Images
Text boxes
Buttons
Dividers
Spacers
Social Icons
HTML (by default this option is disabled for emails, if you need to enable this reach out to Knak support)
Nested Sections
If you have LiveClicker or Movable Ink integrations you'll see the option to add these as well
Edit the content block attributes to customize your email further.
Modules
Drag in pre-built modules like headers and footers. Find out more about creating modules from an asset here.
You can also clone modules, delete unnecessary ones, or break apart module to edit pieces individually if needed (this feature is only available if you have the break apart module role permission.)
Step 4: Preview, Optimize & Test
Preview
Use preview mode to check desktop and mobile versions.
Toggle between dark mode and light mode edits. Note: keep in mind dark mode editing is not supported in all email clients. Learn more here.
You can also use our email client testing feature to view how emails will appear in different email clients.
Toggle visibility for different dynamic content segments.
Optimize
In the Optimize tab, check best practices to make sure your email is optimized according to our audit item checklist. The optimize tab will show you all items and whether each item has passed, warning or failed. Every issue will have a high or medium impact.
Optimize checks for the following issues for emails:
Optimize checks for the following issues for emails:
Alternate Text - Checks if Alt text is provided on images
Asset Translation - Checks if the translated variant is up to date with the parent asset
Background Height - The section height is greater than 2050 pixels
Border Color - Checks to see the colors used will work with Dark Mode
Button Border - Checks to see if there's enough contrast on the border of the button
Button Links - Checks if all button links have URLs added
Button Over Background Image - Checks to see if there's a button over a background image as rounded corners will be square on Outlook
Color Contrast - Checks to see if there is low contrast between the background and text colors
Content Links - Checks if a valid link exists, helps ensure that all links in text content actually point somewhere meaningful rather than being empty or incomplete
Dark Mode Color Choices - Check to see the selection of text and background colors used in Dark Mode
Dark Mode Color Contrast - Checks to see if there is low contrast between the background and text colors used in Dark Mode
Deleted/Unpublished Modules - Checks that the modules in the email are not deleted or unpublished
Email Preference Link - Checks to see if it has an unsubscribe or email preference center link
Email Size - Checks to see if the email is below 102kb
Email Title - Email title is longer than 30 characters
From Address - Checks if a valid from address exists
Image Dimensions - The width or height of an image element breaks the rules set in the editor restrictions for that module
Out Of Date Modules - Checks if all modules used in the email are up to date
Preview Text - Preview text is less than 15 characters
Reply-To Address - Checks if a valid reply-to email exists
Subject Line - Checks if a subject line exists
Variant Segment Assignment - Checks if dynamic content variants have segmentations assigned
Email Testing
Send test emails from Knak to your local email accounts through the Actions Menu and selecting Send Test Email.
Run render tests across devices and inboxes through our Email Testing Feature:
Step 5: Review, Approvals & Publish
Use the Collaborate tab to leave comments.
Use the Reviews tab for approval workflows.
Once approved, go to the Actions Menu to:
Sync with your Marketing Automation Platform (MAP) or Email Service Provider (ESP)
Or download HTML if you need to manually import your HTML
Step 6: Launch & Monitor
Launch your email via your MAP or ESP.
Track performance (opens, clicks, conversions).
Use our Knak Performance Insight Feature to improve future emails.
We offer Performance Insights for Marketo, Salesforce Marketing Cloud, and Account Engagement.
Tips & Best Practices
Keep fonts, colors, and logos consistent with your brand.
Reuse high-performing modules to save time.
Always preview emails on both desktop and mobile.
Write preview text that supports the subject line.
Add alt text to improve accessibility.
Self enroll in Knak Academy to sharpen your email-building skills!
Need more help? Contact support via live chat using the chat bubble in the bottom right corner or email support@knak.com.