Should I attach a PDF directly to my marketing email?

No, it is strongly recommended to link to PDFs rather than attach them directly. Attachments can negatively impact email deliverability, increasing the likelihood of your emails being flagged as spam or blocked by email security filters due to file size or security concerns. Linking ensures better inbox placement and user experience.

Where should I host my PDF files for email marketing?

The best practice is to host your PDF on a dedicated landing page on your website. This allows for better branding, controlled user experience, and robust tracking of engagement metrics. Cloud storage services can work but offer less control and branding consistency.

What kind of link text should I use for a PDF in an email?

Use clear, descriptive anchor text for your PDF links, such as “Download the Annual Report” or “Read Our Whitepaper.” Avoid generic phrases like “Click here.” Make the link visually prominent, perhaps as a button, and pair it with a strong call-to-action to motivate clicks.

How does linking to a PDF improve tracking compared to attaching it?

Linking to a PDF provides superior tracking capabilities. You can use web analytics tools on your landing page to monitor clicks, downloads, time spent viewing the PDF, and subsequent user behavior, offering comprehensive insights into how your content performs.

Are there any deliverability risks when linking to a PDF?

While linking is generally safer, ensure the PDF file is clean and hosted on a secure server. Regularly monitor your email deliverability metrics and sender reputation to catch any issues early. Overly aggressive linking or issues with the landing page could still impact deliverability.

What are the best practices for linking to PDFs in email marketing? - Content - Email deliverability - Knowledge base

Sharing content like whitepapers, brochures, or reports with your email subscribers often leads to a common question: should you attach a PDF directly to your email, or is it better to link to it? While attaching might seem like the simpler option, it comes with significant drawbacks that can impact your email deliverability, tracking, and even security.

Many email marketers face challenges when attempting to send emails with PDF attachments, often experiencing issues like emails landing in spam folders or being blocked entirely. This is why understanding the best practices for linking to PDFs is crucial for ensuring your valuable content reaches its intended audience and performs effectively.

The pitfalls of attachments and the power of linking

Direct PDF attachments, while seemingly convenient, pose several problems for email marketing campaigns. One major issue is email deliverability. Internet Service Providers (ISPs) and email clients often flag emails with attachments, especially large ones, as suspicious or potential spam. This can lead to your emails being quarantined, rejected, or sent directly to the spam folder, never reaching the inbox. This issue is so prevalent that there's specific guidance on whether attaching a PDF to an email hurts deliverability.

Another significant concern is tracking. When you send a PDF as an attachment, you lose the ability to track how recipients interact with your content after they download it. You can't tell if they opened it, how long they viewed it, or which parts they found most engaging. This lack of data makes it challenging to measure the effectiveness of your content and optimize future campaigns.

Furthermore, PDFs can be a major conduit for malware and viruses. Email filters are increasingly wary of PDF attachments because of this security risk. Linking to a PDF hosted on a secure server, rather than attaching it, significantly reduces the likelihood of your email being blocked or blacklisted (or blocklisted) due to security concerns. This strategy is widely recommended as an alternative to adding PDF files directly to emails.

Attachment issues

Deliverability risk: High chance of triggering spam filters, leading to emails being rejected or sent to spam.
Tracking limitations: No insight into how recipients interact with the content after downloading.
Security concerns: PDFs can carry malware, making email clients wary and increasing blockage risk.
Storage limitations: Large attachments can quickly fill up recipient mailboxes, leading to bounces.

Linking benefits

Improved deliverability: Links are less likely to trigger spam filters, increasing inbox placement.
Better tracking: Enables detailed analytics on clicks, views, and engagement on the hosted PDF page.
Enhanced security: Reduces malware risk by directing users to a secure, scanned file.
Greater control: You can update or withdraw the PDF anytime without resending the email.

Hosting your PDFs effectively

The most effective way to share PDFs in email marketing is by hosting them on your own website or a dedicated landing page. This approach gives you full control over the user experience, branding, and most importantly, the analytics. When a recipient clicks a link to a PDF hosted on your site, they remain within your ecosystem, allowing you to track their journey and potentially encourage further engagement with your brand.

A dedicated landing page for your PDF content is often the ideal solution. Instead of a direct download link, consider a page that hosts the PDF within a viewer or offers a prominent download button. This allows you to add context, related content, or even a lead capture form. As highlighted by some marketing experts, directly linking to PDF files can mean missing out on valuable engagement opportunities.

While cloud storage services like

Google Drive or

Dropbox can host PDFs, they typically offer less control over branding and a less seamless user experience compared to your own website. For marketing purposes, self-hosting is almost always the preferred option for its ability to maintain brand consistency and facilitate comprehensive analytics.

PDF hosting best practices

When preparing your PDFs for web hosting, ensure they are optimized for quick loading and accessibility. This means compressing file sizes without sacrificing quality. Furthermore, naming your PDF files descriptively and including keywords can help with search engine optimization, making your content more discoverable beyond your email campaigns. This also helps with managing the risks of large PDF files.

File naming: Use descriptive, keyword-rich names (e.g., '2024-annual-report.pdf') for SEO.
Compression: Optimize file size for faster loading without compromising readability.
Accessibility: Ensure your PDF is accessible to all users, including those with disabilities.

Designing effective PDF links within your emails

Once your PDF is hosted, the next step is to create effective links within your emails. The key here is clarity and expectation setting. Use clear, descriptive anchor text that tells the recipient exactly what they will get when they click. Avoid generic phrases like "click here" or "download." Instead, use phrases like "Download our Annual Report" or "Read the full Case Study." This transparency not only improves user experience but can also significantly improve email click rates.

Link placement and visibility are also crucial. Ensure your PDF link is easy to find and stands out within your email design. Buttons are generally more effective than inline text links for drawing attention and encouraging clicks. You can also use distinct colors and ample whitespace around your links to make them more prominent. According to Marketo's best practices, identifiable and clearly labeled links are key.

Always pair your PDF link with a clear and concise call-to-action (CTA). This might be part of the button text itself, or a short sentence preceding the link. The CTA should reinforce the value of the PDF content and motivate the recipient to take action. This combination of clear anchor text, visual prominence, and a strong CTA will maximize engagement with your PDF content.

Link type	Example text	Why it works
Good	Download the Q3 Sales Report	Clearly indicates content and action, sets expectations.
Good	Access our Email Deliverability Guide	Specific and benefit-oriented, encourages engagement.
Bad	Click here	Vague, doesn't inform user, less trustworthy.
Bad	www.yourdomain.com/downloads/report.pdf	Unfriendly, unclickable, looks like spam.

Monitoring performance and ensuring deliverability

One of the most compelling reasons to link to PDFs rather than attach them is the enhanced tracking capabilities. By hosting your PDF on a landing page, you can implement robust analytics to monitor clicks, downloads, time spent on the page, and even user flow after the PDF is viewed. This level of detail provides invaluable insights into subscriber engagement and content performance that are simply not available with direct attachments. Effective email link cloaking and click tracking practices are essential here.

Beyond click rates, continuous monitoring of your overall email deliverability is vital. Keep an eye on your bounce rates, open rates, and inbox placement across different email clients. Changes in these metrics after implementing a PDF linking strategy can indicate underlying issues. While linking to PDFs is generally better than attaching, poor link hygiene or issues with the hosted page can still impact your sender reputation. For instance, linking directly to PDFs from emails can negatively affect deliverability if not handled correctly.

Proactive blocklist monitoring is also a key component of a robust deliverability strategy. If your domain or IP address ends up on a blacklist (or blocklist), your emails will face severe delivery challenges. Regular monitoring helps you identify and address any issues promptly. Leveraging tools for blocklist monitoring can provide early warnings, allowing you to take corrective action before deliverability is significantly impacted.

Example of a tracked PDF link

https://www.yourdomain.com/downloads/report.pdf?utm_source=email&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_campaign=q3_report

Views from the trenches

Best practices

Always link to a dedicated landing page for your PDF content, rather than directly attaching it.

Host your PDFs on your own website for better branding, analytics, and control over the user experience.

Optimize PDF file sizes for quick loading times and ensure they are accessible for all users.

Use clear, descriptive anchor text for your links that tells recipients exactly what they will get.

Make PDF links visually prominent in your emails, utilizing buttons or distinct formatting.

Common pitfalls

Directly attaching PDFs to emails, leading to deliverability issues and increased spam flagging.

Using generic link text like 'click here' that provides no context for the recipient.

Failing to track PDF engagement after the click, missing valuable insights into content performance.

Ignoring the potential security risks associated with directly attaching or linking to unverified PDFs.

Not optimizing PDF file sizes, resulting in slow loading times or 'mailbox full' bounces for recipients.

Expert tips

Consider embedding the PDF within a browser frame on a landing page, offering both online viewing and a download option.

Implement robust analytics on your PDF landing pages to track user behavior beyond initial clicks.

Proactively monitor your domain and IP address on blocklists (blacklists) to catch and address deliverability issues early.

Ensure your email service provider (ESP) does not surcharge for attachments, as this can add hidden costs.

Utilize unique, trackable links for your PDFs to monitor engagement and attribute clicks effectively.

Expert view

Expert from Email Geeks says to always link to a download page, as direct downloads often have quirks, especially with transactional senders. Interactive PDFs or those containing PII can be problematic with B2B filters even as attachments.

2021-10-07 - Email Geeks

Marketer view

Marketer from Email Geeks says that PDF files are a significant conduit for malware, leading email filters to be very cautious of them.

2021-10-07 - Email Geeks

When it comes to email marketing, the decision between attaching a PDF and linking to it has a significant impact on your campaign's success. While direct attachments might seem simpler, they introduce substantial risks to deliverability, limit your ability to track engagement, and can raise security red flags with email providers. Opting for a linking strategy mitigates these issues, ensuring your valuable content reaches its audience effectively and allows for robust performance measurement.

By hosting your PDFs on a dedicated landing page, designing clear and compelling links, and consistently monitoring your email performance, you can create a seamless and secure experience for your subscribers. This strategic approach not only improves deliverability and engagement but also provides the data insights needed to refine your email marketing efforts and achieve better results.