> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.allgoodhq.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# What an email template is

> An email template is a reusable design plus a copy schema. Here is what that means and how it differs from a component and an email.

An **email template** is your email's design, set up once, plus a list of the words each new email needs to fill in. The design is the layout, built from approved components so it looks right in every inbox. The list is the **copy schema**: the named fields the writer supplies, such as a headline, body, button label, and link.

Once a template exists, making an email stops being a design decision. You fill in a short list of fields, and the design takes care of itself.

![An email template's Summary: the rendered design, and below it the copy schema.](https://mintcdn.com/allgoodtechnologyinc/LW4p5NqCb6SZm7Lp/images/mk/content/email/templates/template-detail.png?fit=max\&auto=format\&n=LW4p5NqCb6SZm7Lp\&q=85\&s=eb7bc58efcdb29b556df031869f80c8e)

An email template's Summary: the rendered design, and below it the copy schema.

## How a template relates to its neighbors

| | Component | Email template | Email |
| - | - | - | - |
| **What it is** | One approved piece, such as a hero or footer | Components arranged into a design, plus a copy schema | A finished, sendable message |
| **Contains words?** | Placeholder copy, edited in place | Points at fields in the copy schema, and can show default copy for clarity | Yes, its own copy document |
| **Contains personalization?** | Only values that must resolve at send, like the unsubscribe link | Yes, recipient fields like `{{ person.firstName }}` can be built in | Yes, the same fields, filled in per recipient |
| **Can it be sent?** | No | No | Yes |

A template is a building block, not something you send. An email is built from it and keeps a record of which template it came from.

## How it works

Wherever the email needs a headline or a button label, the design points at a **copy field**: a field in the copy schema, by name. The words themselves live in a separate **copy document** that each email gets for itself. See [Copy and variants](https://docs.allgoodhq.com/mk/content/copy-and-variants.md). Because the words and the design are separate, a writer can change the message without touching the design, and the design only needs reviewing once.

### Personalization can be built in

A template can also carry **merge fields**, so the standard behavior is in place before anyone writes a word. A greeting such as `Hi {{ person.firstName | default: 'there' }},` can sit in the design, and every email built from the template inherits it. See [Personalizing an email](https://docs.allgoodhq.com/mk/content/email/emails/personalizing-an-email.md) for the fields you can use.

### Show the defaults in the template

Copy fields are the minimum. You can also leave realistic example copy next to each one, so anyone who opens the template sees what a good headline or button label looks like and where it goes. A template that shows its intended content is easier to fill in correctly than one that shows only empty field names.

The design itself is written in MJML, the email-building language allGood uses, and allGood turns it into email-safe HTML ahead of time. You don't need to know MJML to use a template. If you're curious, see [What MJML is](https://docs.allgoodhq.com/mk/content/email/components/what-mjml-is.md).

## What is rebuilt and what is shared

When someone makes an email from a template, some parts are copied fresh for that email and some are shared.

* **Copy document:** copied fresh. The words are what changes, so two emails never share one.
* **Form:** copied fresh, so two assets from one template never collect into the same place.
* **Images and hosted files:** shared. The files are identical, so copying them adds nothing.

You don't set this up. Each type behaves this way on its own. See [Templates](https://docs.allgoodhq.com/mk/content/templates.md) for the full table.

## Coming from Marketo

In Marketo, an "email template" is the HTML layout an email is built on. That is closer to allGood's [components](https://docs.allgoodhq.com/mk/content/email/components/index.md) than to an allGood email template.

An allGood email template is closer to the **pre-baked email inside a program template**: the layout, the standard personalization, and sensible default content already in place, ready to be cloned and edited for each campaign. See [Coming from Marketo or HubSpot](https://docs.allgoodhq.com/mk/content/email/coming-from-marketo-hubspot.md).

## Why it matters

A template is where brand control meets speed. Every template is built from your approved components and checked against your [brand guidelines](https://docs.allgoodhq.com/mk/content/brand-guidelines.md), so an email made from it stays on-brand without anyone re-checking the layout.

> [!NOTE]
>
> A template pays off by the third email, not the first. Make a couple of emails by hand first, so you can see what really changes from send to send.

## Related articles

* [Creating an email template](https://docs.allgoodhq.com/mk/content/email/templates/creating-an-email-template.md)
* [Decide what writers fill in](https://docs.allgoodhq.com/mk/content/email/templates/writing-the-copy-schema.md)
* [Email components](https://docs.allgoodhq.com/mk/content/email/components/index.md)
* [What an email is](https://docs.allgoodhq.com/mk/content/email/emails/what-an-email-is.md)


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