Constant Tips: Review the functionalities of the Library

[Nick_S]

 Every Tuesday we'll share tips, tricks, and insights on using Constant Contact and online marketing

The Library tab in Constant Contact is like your own little command center for all things media. Need to jazz up your emails with some cool images? Or maybe you need to upload and tweak a PDF for your next newsletter? How about hooking up with Canva for some slick graphics or Vimeo for top-notch videos? The Library has got it all.

At its most basic, it is the place where you can store images and documents. Before we get to uploading, I wanted to cover some of the basic features that will make managing your files easier in the future as they begin to grow.

Library Basics

You’ll want to review which file types the library will accept, so you don’t waste time trying to upload files that don’t work. For example, you can upload JPG, GIF, and PNG files for images or PDF, Word, PowerPoint, and Excel files for documents.

Additionally, the Library limits the size of files or will compress them if the resolution is too high, so make sure to read up on how to prepare your image files so you are able to utilize the most optimal version in your campaigns. For example, the Library won’t allow any file sizes over 5MB.

You might want to organize your image files in a certain way before you even get started, so consider creating folders in the library you can manage as the number of files increase. You can create folders and then add sub-folders beneath them if you need to organize your files in a more granular fashion.

Of course, if you’re managing a lot of files and you’re having trouble finding a specific file, consider using the Advanced Search Tool feature. With this tool, you can change the criteria to include the file source, file type, which folder it’s in, and the orientation of the image.

You can also upload directly from the Cross-Device Editor while making your campaigns!

Images

Now that you’re familiar with the basics of how to navigate and manage the Library, you’ll feel more confident with uploading your images.

Even after you upload them, you can still make edits to the images from the Library. You can crop, rotate, or flip the image; as well as use different filters, and add text, stickers, and frames.

If you need to remove or permanently delete an image from the Library, you can do that. Or, maybe you lost the original file on your computer and need a fresh copy, in which case you can export the image file, as well.

Documents

Likewise, you can upload your documents to the Library. A neat extra feature is you can convert the first page of a PDF file into an image while uploading to the Library.

You might find a time comes when you’ve sent out an email campaign with a linked document that has outdated or incorrect information. Instead of resending the email with a fresh link, you can replace the document in your Library so it shares the same URL as the previous version.

Speaking of URLs, you’ll want to know where to find the URL for a document after it’s been uploaded to your Library. This’ll be helpful if you’re creating a hyperlink in an email or need to share it out in some other fashion.

And of course, you can export a document file, if needed.

Integrations

Last, but not least, it’s good to know that if you are leveraging platforms like Canva or Vimeo, you can integrate your accounts for a more seamless transfer and creation of assets.

If you have any quick tips on how you’ve used and managed your Library on Constant Contact, feel free to drop a line in the comments!

[MelanieDiehl]

One of my clients uses the editing feature extensively for inserting compelling images into her Constant Contact email campaigns. Once I taught her how to do it, she really embraced it! She crops, adds text overlays, rotates her images and more.

Integrating images from your Canva account into your Constant Contact library is a great feature! Check out this article for some ideas and best practices.