Thursday, July 28, 2022

New integrated email marketing tools for Gmail

What’s changing

For select Google Workspace editions, we’re adding two new features in Gmail which you can use to easily send professional-looking emails to large audiences: 

  • Layouts: You can select from a predefined set of email templates, which include images, text elements, and buttons. You can further customize these templates with your own color schemes, logos, images, footer text, and links.




  • Mail merge: This feature allows you to send mass emails without the need to BCC all recipients. You can add merge tags like @firstname or link a Google Sheet to use custom merge tags. You will also get replies in separate threads, making conversations easier to manage. By default, mail merge emails include an unsubscribe link unique to each recipient — any external recipients who unsubscribe are automatically excluded from future mail merge emails from you. 


Additionally, we are introducing an Admin setting to control whether these features are on or off for your users. The admin settings are rolling out now, allowing time to configure availability for their end users in advance. See below for more information. 


These features are only available for Gmail on the web at this time. 


Who’s impacted 

Admins and end users 


Why you’d use them 

We hope these features allow you to quickly and easily create announcements, newsletters, and other mass-email scenarios. Additionally, your recipients will have the ability to unsubscribe from future mail merge emails. 


Getting started 

Admins: 
  • Layouts: This feature is ON by default and at the domain level. You can turn layouts on or off for specific domains, OUs, or groups. 
  • Mail merge: 
    • For Google Workspace Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Education Standard, and Education Plus customers, this feature is restricted to internal recipients by default
    • For Google Workspace Business Standard and Business Plus customers, mail merge is available by default for external recipients
    • For all Google Workspace editions, you can turn mail merge ON for external recipients at the OU or Group level
  • Note: 
    • These feature launches do not impact the existing send quotas for users.
    • If your organization has disabled Google Drive, Gmail layouts are turned off automatically. 

  • Visit the Help Center to learn more about managing Gmail settings for your users, customizing access policies for different organizational units or groups. 
  • End users: If enabled by your admin, visit the Help Center to learn more about using layouts and mail merge in Gmail. 

Rollout pace 

Admin Controls 
End user functionality 


    Availability 

    • Available to Google Workspace Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Education Standard, Education Plus and Workspace Individual customers
    • Not available to Google Workspace Essentials, Education Fundamentals, Education Teaching & Learning, Business Starter, Enterprise Essentials and Frontline customers

    Resources