For example, if your HTML email looks like this:

and one of the subscribers on your list had the “mobile” preference selected when they signed up for your list:

the email they receive would be automatically formatted for their mobile device, like this:

Generally, images are smaller, and content is stacked into a single column.

If you’d like this enabled for your MailChimp campaigns, make sure that your signup forms have this option checked under your list “defaults” setting:

If your signup forms already had this option on, then the feature is retroactively automatic. If you’re using your own code for your signup form (advanced mode) then you’ll need to add a “mobile” option to your code for this to work.

And speaking of mobile email marketing:

• Check how your email campaigns render on some mobile devices with our Inbox Inspector
• MailChimp campaign archives auto-detect mobile browsers
• MailChimp for iPhone
• MailChimp for Android
• MailChimp Yahoo Mobile Widget
• Pre-headers and mobile devices
• Mobile Email Design Tip: The 250px Magic Box

Each and every email campaign sent out with MailChimp is given a permanent, unique address in our Campaign Archive.  This is the location we link to from the campaign header text: Email not displaying correctly? View it in your browser. (click to view the example shown at left)

In MailChimp v3.4, we’ve added an elegant new feature that will automatically translate your campaigns into a mobile friendly version when viewed in a mobile browser.  It’s automatic and the feature just works! There is no need to change your opt-in form to provide a mobile option under “preferred format” because we’ve built this functionality into the system for you.

At left, you’ll see an email campaign sent from Soup Studios just as it appeared in my iPhone mail.  All I have to do to view the mobile device optimized version is click on the “View it in your browser” link in the email header.  This automatically opens the link in my iPhone’s Safari browser– which MailChimp can detect– and displays a mobile version of the campaign.  Pretty cool stuff, huh? (see screen shot below)

Automatically Optimized for Mobile Devices

One more point worth mentioning is that if you’re on the go and want to view a campaign, you can easily check out the mobile version on your hand-held device.  Unlike when you opt-in to a list and select “mobile device” as your preferred email format, with MailChimp you will still have the original email available for viewing when you get back to your computer.

This works for all mobile devices with a web browser, so it’s not just for iPhone users.  It comes as no surprise that four out of five doctors recommend taking advantage of mobile versions of email campaigns in conjunction with MailChimp for iPhone, Android, or Yahoo Blueprint enabled devices.

You’re welcome.

Anyway, when the event began, the moderator asked the audience what kind of questions we wanted the panelists to address. People shouted out about UPC codes, coupons, and geo-location and such. I so badly wanted to ask them to address the dreaded “s-p-a-m” issue, but decided not to spoil the party (I’m glad I didn’t, because it was such a positive event).

But my concerns have always been about mobile spam…

Yes, I know mobile spam is inevitable. More specifically, I wanted insight into whether or not the infrastructure is in place to deal with spam. It took a while for ISPs to refine their process and get feedback loops in place. How far along are the wireless providers? What are the laws? I’ve received lots of calls from mobile marketing vendors who want to partner with us. But none of them can give me a straight answer about the spam issue.

Laura Atkins has some interesting insight into mobile email marketing that I had never considered before. We all know the FTC has got their CAN-SPAM rules to govern email marketing over the inter-tubes. But did you know the FCC has their own rules for marketing wirelessly? Find out what that means for ESPs and marketers…

http://blog.wordtothewise.com/2008/06/email-to-mobile-devices/

Back to the event. The moderators had some great case studies about mobile marketing. My takeaways were that UPC codes sent to mobile devices are cool, but most of the laser scanner thingies inside stores can’t scan through your glossy cell phone screen. It was either Google or Yahoo that recommended you take a simple text-only approach like, “Mention the word MOTHER at the cash register for a 25% mother’s day discount.”

Someone else mentioned a promo from a whiskey company that put an ad on the bottom of their drink coasters at a bar. You’d text them a message, and they’d send you back a dirty joke, or pickup line or something. Can’t remember the specifics, but it was creative.

Most recommendations were along the lines of “keep it simple” and “keep the download size small” and “try plain-text” and “keep it targeted and relevant.” Reminds me of the early email marketing days, and the even earlier banner ad days. Mobile marketing is history repeating itself. It’s an exciting time, but it seems like it’ll take some time to iron out all the wrinkles.

If you’re toying with mobile marketing campaigns now, and you’re wondering how they look, you can preview them in MailChimp’s Inbox Inspector. We just added Blackberry, Windows Mobile 5, and Windows Mobile 6 previews to our screenshot service.