LinkShare makes it easy to communicate with Publishers by Email. You can send Email and electronic newsletters through LinkShare's internal Email system, to Publishers' external Email addresses, or send them both internally and externally. Communicate with individual Publishers or with any selection of Publishers you choose.

Here are the steps to send Email or newsletters:

1. In the Mail Communications area of the Advertiser Homepage, click Send Email Newsletters.


2. Choose between the Basic or Advanced Recipient Criteria query tool to specify the Publishers to whom you wish to send the Email.
   • Basic Recipient Criteria - This screen lets you send an Email to an individual Publisher or to a general segment of Publishers.
   • Advanced Recipient Criteria - This screen allows you greater flexibility in defining the Publishers you would like to send your mail to and is useful when sending newsletters and announcements to a targeted segment of your Publisher base.
     *Important*: In the Basic Criteria area there is only one radio button selection. Therefore, should you wish to send an individual email using the top box, DO NOT check any of the radio buttons in the lower box, as this will override your first selection.
   
   
3. After confirming your recipient criteria, you will be directed to the Compose Mail area. The number of Publishers that meet your criteria is indicated at the top of the page.
   Please note: This number excludes those Publisher accounts that have opted out of receiving your Email. The actual recipient count of your Email may also differ based on the number of invalid Emails, which is determined during the sending process.


4. Indicate the delivery method of your Email. Your options include sending Email as:
   
   • Internal - Email is sent via LinkShare's internal system only and will arrive in the Publisher’s Messages area within the Publisher Dashboard. There is a 3,000-character limit per Email – spaces included.
   • External - Email is delivered to Publishers' external Email addresses only, for example a Publisher’s work email, gmail, hotmail etc.
   • Internal and External - Email is sent via both LinkShare's system and to your Publishers' external Email addresses.
     Please note: If you send mail to Publishers not currently in your program, only internal mail will be sent. External Emails will not be delivered to any Publisher who has opted out of receiving your Email or who has an invalid Email address.
     Fees may apply if you exceed the limit of external Emails allotted for each month.
   
   
5. Indicate the format of your Email. Your may send Email as either:
   
   • Text - Make sure that all characters are in plain text and that your copy does not contain HTML and BODY tags. Do not copy and paste from a word processor (Microsoft Word) that uses special characters, bullets, and so on. Save your file as a text document first or enter your text directly into the field provided.
   • HTML - Make sure to use the appropriate HTML and BODY tags.
   
   
6. Enter the subject line as you wish it to appear in the recipient inbox.


7. Compose your Email in the message field provided.


8. Preview your Email. You will receive an error message if you forget to input a subject line or make a formatting mistake. Make any necessary changes until you are satisfied with the format and appearance of your Email. When you are satisfied, click Submit.
   Tip: Always send your Emails to a test account before releasing it to your Publisher recipients.


9. Next, you will be directed to a confirmation page providing you with a summary of your Email settings, the estimated delivery time, and recipient counts.


10. At this point, you may use the available option buttons to either:
• Confirm your Email to be sent
• Save your Email to send at a later time
• Cancel your Email

Remember: Your Emails are never sent to Publisher accounts that are:

• Temporarily or Permanently Removed – a Publisher who was approved for your program and then removed from it.
• Self-removed – a Publisher who was approved for your program and then subsequently withdrew from participating in it.
• Deactivated – a Publisher who was approved for your program and then subsequently withdrew from participating in the LinkShare Network by deactivating their account
• Terminated – a Publisher who was approved for your program and then was terminated from participating in the network by LinkShare.
• Unsubscribed – a Publisher who has opted out of receiving your Emails.
• Invalid – a Publisher who has been flagged as having an invalid external Email address associated with their account. Internal Emails will still be sent to such accounts.

For more information on how to create effective newsletters for your program as well as helpful HTML templates, please visit the Merchant Resource Center Insider Email Tips.