Add ability to view source code for an email content in Drag and Drop (beta)

Brianna Sheck

I was just told by the Chat support person that in order to view/edit source code for an email built using the Drag and Drop (beta) editor you need to manually enter a different URL for the content.

 

The original content link:
https://app.maropost.com/accounts/693/contents/drag_and_drop_beta/6243615

Then in order to view the source code for the above email, you must use this URL format here: https://app.maropost.com/accounts/693/contents/6243615/edit

And then click the "Source" button in the toolbar menu.

(So this is basically a rendering of your content viewed in an older version of the content builder.)

 

So for any content built using Drag and Drop (beta) editor, you need to, apparently, bookmark that second URL in your browser (which seems ridiculous) and swap out the content ID in it for the actual email that you want source code for.

Can't a "view source code" button/option just be added to the Drag and Drop (beta) UI?

Deactivated Member

David Horvath (Marketing) Aug 31, 2020
Hi Brianna, thank you for your suggestion.

would you be able to help us understand your need to "view" the source code?
what are you hoping to gather or do with that information?

thank you in advance.

Brianna Sheck Aug 31, 2020
@David, sometimes I need access to the HTML code for an email. One specific use is when I am submitting an email to perform an Inbox Preview Test in Return Path, I need to copy the HTML of the email and paste it into the form in my Return Path account to initiate the Inbox Test.

The old WYSIWYG had a simple "View Source" button and it would be convenient to have that added back into the newer DND (beta) toolbar. It's just faster and a lot less cumbersome than the current multi-step method required to get to the HTML source code. Thanks.

David Horvath (Marketing) Sep 8, 2020
Brianna, Maropost offers Spam scoring and editing recommendations, as well as email testing features. Is there other reasons you're using Return Path?

Also, would you be able to share other use cases for needing the Source code for the email content?

Brianna Sheck Sep 16, 2020
Hi, David:

Is this particular request substantially difficult to implement or something? Why so much push-back on a request for a feature that previously existed in Maropost? I've had to spend an inordinate amount of my time defending it. This Source Code "button" was easily and readily available in an older version of the WYSIWYG and it was taken away. Can't we just get it back? I understand that some time ago, Maropost made the decision to use a third-party plug-in for the DND beta, resulting in Maropost having little to no control over it, but the consequences of that should have been considered at the time. When features are removed, it causes problems for us customers. Perhaps the removal of features should be of stronger consideration next time.

To further address your additional questions...


On the contrary, Maropost does not have an Inbox Preview Test tool. You can send a "test email" from Maropost, but that is 100% not what I am referring to in Return Path.

Do you have experience in Return Path? Have you yourself used their Inbox Preview Test/spam tool? If so, I am surprised to read that you feel Maropost's spam score is on par with that of Return Path. The spam score produced in Maropost is very basic and often provides extremely cryptic diagnostics, so much so that when I've asked MP Support for guidance or explanation, numerous times they have come back and said that they don't know what it means or how to mitigate it, but so long as my spam score is under 5, it doesn't matter what it means. So, even your own team can't decipher the diagnostics and corresponding action items in Maropost's spam score tool.

I'm not here to sell you on the differences between Maropost and Return Path, but as with any business who uses Return Path, we find it gives substantially more detailed and granular information regarding spam score, mailbox deliverability, etc. than Maropost does. In fact, Maropost is more or less a "partner" with Return Path, as our account with Return Path is actually through Maropost, so it would behoove Maropost to have better integration and support when it comes to Return Path. You know, as far as partnerships and customer experience goes, but I voiced those concerns long ago and got nowhere.

I think all Maropost users who were used to the old UI (prior to Feb 2020) would agree that when a UI "upgrade" seemingly arbitrarily removes features and tools that we regularly relied on in the old UI, it causes issues, not the least of which is product dissatisfaction. This is just one of dozens of now missing features in the new UI that we've collectively had to spend time requesting (and defending) to have brought back.

As far as other use cases for requesting that Source Code is brought back to the Drag and Drop (beta) UI/toolbar...

We have a number of email contents that were built in a legacy WYSIWYG and wouldn't it be nice to be able to copy the HTML for those and simply paste them into the Source Code for a new content using Drag and Drop (beta)? I don't want to use the HTML Code interface because all of our emails are created using DND beta now and I don't want people having to use/learn different types of email builders in Maropost (nor do I want to train people on it). And unless you are a programmer or are comfortable with code, building an email in the HTML Code builder is not as easy as using a WYSIWYG like DND beta.


I hope these additional responses are to your satisfaction. I apologize if some of them come across as blunt. Please understand I'm just getting weary of spending so much time trying to improve Maropost after the new UI changed everything, broke a bunch of features, and removed a ton of things. I realize improvements come with time, but I don't have the bandwidth to provide a dissertation that defends my ideas/requests every time I submit in this portal. Maropost communications promote this portal as though you WANT to hear our ideas for new features/improvements, but then we must also be prepared to aggressively defend our submissions?

In the past 7 months, between Innovations Portal, participation in advisory forums and related meetings, and submitting issues and bugs to MP Support, I've spent A LOT of time on Maropost issues rather than on my actual job tasks. I want to improve MP as much as the next customer, but I'm also not the one who broke it to begin with. Please just bring this feature back to DND beta.

Brianna Sheck Sep 23, 2020
Another use case for bringing back direct Source Code access to the DND beta UI/toolbar:
If I want to add any kind of code to a line of copy in the body of my email, because the toolbar does not offer a particular formatting style, how do I access the code to add it myself (aside from using the URL "trick" I noted in my original post)?

Like, if I wanted to add a block quote or some other kind of formatting treatment to a specific line of copy within the body of my email? Aside from breaking up my one text block into multiple text blocks, cutting and pasting, adding a new row for a new text block, cutting and pasting, and then adding a new row to add HTML Code, just to format a single line of copy... how else could this be accomplished in DND beta? That seems like an inefficient and clunky workaround when allowing access to the source code would allow me to paste in the HTML code I need in mere seconds.

David Horvath (Marketing) Sep 30, 2020
Hi Brianna, I would love to continue this conversation on an actual call. I'll be reaching out to schedule a time that's convenient.

look forward to chatting.

Aaron Westendorf Aug 17, 2021
I am also interested in a source code / download as .html file for DND feature. This would help with archiving all of our emails, as well as distributing the email to our team rather than setting up the campaign in order to send test emails.