First call on every new SFMC engagement: do new emails go through a drag-and-drop Template in Content Builder, or do marketers paste raw HTML for each send?
The decision shapes the next 2 years of maintenance. Here's how we pick.
Template-based email
Built in Content Builder using drag-and-drop layout blocks. Marketers who don't code pull Content Blocks into predefined slots.
Benefits:
- No developer needed for each new email.
- Lockable content areas (header, footer, brand styles) that marketers can't accidentally break.
- One template serves many emails - update the template and every email using it picks up the change.
Template-based is the default we recommend for teams with multiple marketers and recurring email types.
HTML paste email
Developer writes the full HTML/CSS and pastes it into SFMC. Total control over layout, custom fonts, animations, anything the drag-and-drop can't express.
When HTML paste is the right choice:
- Design requirements beyond what Content Builder renders
- One-off highly customized sends (hero campaigns, product launches)
- Agency already delivers HTML files
Non-negotiable additions when pasting HTML:
- Open tracking pixel
- Physical mailing address (CAN-SPAM requirement)
- Unsubscribe link
Use SFMC's system-defined code snippets in Content Builder to insert these. Don't hand-roll them - the snippets handle format variations across send types correctly.
Mistake 1: No locked content areas
Template has a brand-correct header. Marketer drags, deletes the logo by accident, sends 200k emails with a blank top block.
Fix: when building the template, open Content Area > Properties, mark header and footer locked. Marketers see the areas but can't edit them.
Every template we ship locks at least header, footer, and primary brand colors.
Mistake 2: One template per email
Team creates a separate template for each email. Client changes brand color - now 50 templates need the same edit.
Templates should cover email types (newsletter, promotional, transactional confirmation), not individual sends. Build the template to accept varying content in its flexible slots; keep header, footer, and style rules centralized.
Rule of thumb: if you have 50 emails but only 5-10 templates, you're doing it right. If each email has its own template, the refactor is overdue.
Hybrid approach
On mid-complexity engagements we often use both:
- Templates for recurring sends (weekly newsletter, triggered welcome, transactional)
- HTML paste for high-design hero campaigns that ship once
Content Blocks built in one mode can be reused in the other. A "shared footer block" works in templates and HTML pasted emails alike.
Quick decision table
| Situation | Use |
|---|---|
| Recurring newsletter sent weekly | Template |
| Marketing team of 5+ people | Template |
| One-off hero campaign with custom design | HTML paste |
| Transactional confirmations | Template |
| Brand guidelines are strict, design simple | Template with locked areas |
| Agency delivers full HTML per send | HTML paste |
Takeaway
Templates with locked content areas are the default for almost every engagement. HTML paste is for the 10% of sends where design requirements exceed Content Builder's capabilities. Getting the split right at account setup saves the client team from a year of template sprawl later.
Setting up SFMC Content Builder for a new client? Our Salesforce team designs template libraries with locked brand areas and reusable Content Blocks on production engagements. Get in touch ->
See our full platform services for the stack we cover.
