Links opening in the same window as campaign

[RunCoachDeb]

It is a best practice when linking to any site other than your own, to make it open in  a new window so as not to lose the reader. Since this is an email cms, that seems like it would have automatically have been the design.

I avoid inserting any links that aren't absolutely necessary because I don't want to lose email readers.

[RunCoachDeb]

We've identified a specific issue with clickable buttons in the permalink and View As Webpage link. When viewing these pages, clicking a button will cause the new page to open in the same tab instead of in a different tab which is the behavior of emails accessed through an email client. Text links are not affected by this issue. We submitted a request to our development team to have the URLs behave uniformly or to have a choice between links opening in a new tab or window. There are no immediate developments happening but we will continue to keep this thread updated with any movement.

If you are seeing buttons or text links acting differently outside of the behaviors listed above, please collect the following information: 

• campaign name
• email client
• browser
• if the link was inserted as a button or text
• which button or text link is acting this way

You can then email us communitysupport(at)constantcontact(dot)com for further assistance.

[AvondalePresinCLT]

PLEASE make this an option. We want people to still have our landing page open to refer back to when they click on a link. 

[Caitlin_M]

Hi all. I wanted to chime in here in hopes of finding a better understanding of how you'd expect the new window to appear and how this would be a benefit to your contacts. Currently, clicking on a link when viewing an email in an email client will open a new tab and the email still exists in another tab. However, this is not the case for the webpage version of emails or the permanent URL, like those you would share on a social media platform. Clicking on a link from the webpage version will not open a new tab. So here is the information I'm looking for:

• Are you accessing the link through an email client or the webpage version?
• In an email client, does opening the link in a new tab suffice since the email is still accessible in the browser?
• What would be the reasoning for a new window to open? A new browser window would cover up the email, requiring the contact to close the window in order to go back to the email.

As a note, we cannot insert iFrames into the editor so it is not possible for the window to appear in a smaller pop-up.

[Marisa_M]

Hi @Caitlin_M and thank you for looking into this further. 

We FREQUENTLY use the permalink to embed the email via an iFrame into a Message of the Day pop-up within a secure website, and that is where we are having the problem. See the above thread, I (unknowingly) posted two responses but my first contains a screenshot of the behavior.
A new tab would be fine, probably better than a new window. But I'll take anything over the current behavior which opens it within the pop-up message.  

Thank you!

[RunCoachDeb]

To be clear, here is what happens in my case:  When I click to close a link that I had clicked on from my email, it takes me back to my browser, and there is no tab open for the email. I use Chrome and Outlook for email.

Then, to get back to my email, I have to open up my email again to see it. When I called your customer service, they wanted to tell me how I could change a setting that would help. That's not the point. I can't get thousands of people, my subscribers, to change any settings.

Other platforms don't require that. For example, I have two Squarespace websites. When I create a link, the pop-upbox asks if I want to "open in new window," which I always click. Easy peasy. 

I have several ads in my newsletters. Before I send, of course, I send a test to myself and go through and click each add to be sure it's link correctly. This takes forever because I can't click 'open in new window' like most other platforms do.

[RunCoachDeb]

Caitlin,

I just reread your comments and realize I should expand my response.
You say what would be the reason. The reason is to avoid losing people/readers. It is a best practice to never post a link that does not open in a new window because if it does not open in a new window, the reader has to go back and find the email and that's too much trouble for some people. A business wants to do everything possible to keep people on the page and reading.

Re the following: "What would be the reasoning for a new window to open? A new browser window would cover up the email, requiring the contact to close the window in order to go back to the email." 

This is never  a problem. It is just one click to close the window, and the reader is right where the left off. This is the way other platforms have been set up for years. I used Vertical Response for a dozen years. It works that way, Square Space works that way. Thinkific works that way. All the other platforms I use work that way.

[mohorrigan]

I am a CC partner. Please, PLEASE, just let us decide if we want our links to open in the same or a new window. Every other application allows for that. It is a real problem for my clients. I've created a landing page for one of my clients. There are several links to specific pages on their website, or to videos. They should open in a separate window when clicked on. That way the person does not have to refind the landing page.

PLEASE HELP! I don't want to lose my client and I just convinced them to switch from one of your competitors. This hurts my credibility. You keep adding bells and whistles, but having a choice to open in the same or a new window is standard operating practice. 

[CamillaCala]

I just joined CC (after being away for many years) and now I am sorry I have spent so much time preparing a campaign when the links won't open a new window. It is a disaster. Please add this option to open a new window! Will I have to go back to your competitor. What a waste of time!

[RunCoachDeb]

It's been over a year since I started asking for the "open link in new window" feature. Well, we shouldn't call it a feature. It should be automatic since it's been considered a 'best practice' for TEN years.

Anyway, it's not just me. Since I posted, here, about it, originally, many people have also had the same comment. I'd just like an explanation of why CC rolls out new features but refuses to give its clients what we've been asking for. 

I'm making a new post about this to bring it to the top of your attention.

[Frankie_P]

Hi everyone, at this time we do not have a time estimate of when this feature will be available. We are however still interested in collecting further details on this request as previously mentioned in this thread. These details include:

• Are you accessing the link through an email client or the webpage version?
• In an email client, does opening the link in a new tab suffice since the email is still accessible in the browser?
• What would be the reasoning for a new window to open? A new browser window would cover up the email, requiring the contact to close the window in order to go back to the email.

We can't guarantee a commitment to deliver on the idea but want to indicate some awareness that we have heard your feedback and are continuing to collect both requests along with use case examples.

[mohorrigan]

Hello Frankie,

Some people open the email as a web page which is a CC choice. I also have created landing pages for my clients. The feature is missing there too. The whole purpose of a landing page is to guide the reader to more information, usually to another website. Please. Everyone will benefit if you just add the best-practices feature that both designers and users expect: open links in a new window. It will make your products more valuable.