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Email Signature Glossary

Plain-English definitions for every email signature term, from HTML basics to deliverability standards.

BIMIBIMI (Brand Indicators for Message Identification) is an email standard that lets a domain publish a verified brand logo via DNS, which supporting inboxes then display next to authenticated messages.
Dark Mode Email SignatureA dark mode email signature is one designed to stay legible when an email client inverts colors for dark themes, which can turn dark text light, wash out logos, or leave dark graphics invisible on dark backgrounds.
DKIMDKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail) is an email authentication method in which the sending server cryptographically signs each message, and receivers verify the signature against a public key published in the sender's DNS.
DMARCDMARC (Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting and Conformance) is a DNS-published policy that tells receiving servers how to handle mail that fails SPF or DKIM alignment, and where to send reports about it.
Email Signature BannerAn email signature banner is a wide, clickable image placed below the contact details in a signature, typically used to promote an event, offer, or piece of content.
Email Signature ColorEmail signature color refers to the palette used in a signature, usually dark grey body text, one brand accent for the name or dividers, and a link color, all set as inline hex values.
Email Signature CTAA CTA (call to action) in an email signature is a link, button, or banner below your contact details that invites the recipient to take a specific step, such as booking a call or reading a case study.
Email Signature DisclaimerAn email signature disclaimer is a block of legal text appended below the signature, typically covering confidentiality, liability limits, or industry-specific compliance notices.
Email Signature FontAn email signature font is the typeface used in a signature, which must come from the small set of system fonts preinstalled on recipients' devices because email clients do not reliably load web fonts.
Email Signature GeneratorAn email signature generator is a tool that takes your contact details and design choices through a form and outputs email-safe HTML you can paste into Gmail, Outlook, or Apple Mail.
Email Signature Image FormatEmail signature image format refers to the file type used for signature images, in practice PNG for logos and icons, JPG for photos, and GIF only when animation is needed, since SVG and WebP are not reliably supported.
Email Signature LogoAn email signature logo is a company logo image embedded in the signature block, typically a hosted PNG around 100 to 150 pixels wide that links back to the company website.
Email Signature PhotoAn email signature photo is a small headshot, typically 60 to 100 pixels across and often cropped to a circle, placed beside the contact details to put a face to the sender's name.
Email Signature PronounsPronouns in an email signature are a short note of how the sender should be referred to (such as she/her, he/him, or they/them), usually placed next to or under the name.
Email Signature Social IconsSocial icons in an email signature are small clickable images, usually 20 to 32 pixels square, that link to the sender's or company's profiles on networks like LinkedIn, X, Instagram, or YouTube.
Email Signature TemplateAn email signature template is a predefined signature layout with placeholder fields (name, title, phone) that gets filled with each person's details, so everyone on a team shares one consistent design.
HTML Email SignatureAn HTML email signature is a signature block written in HTML markup, which allows formatted text, images, hyperlinks, and brand colors instead of plain text.
Inline CSSInline CSS is styling written directly in an element's style attribute (for example, style="color:#333") rather than in a stylesheet or a style block in the document head.
MIMEMIME (Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions) is the internet standard that extends email beyond plain ASCII text, enabling HTML bodies, attachments, images, and international character sets.
Mobile Email SignatureA mobile email signature is the signature attached to messages sent from a phone's mail app, configured separately from desktop and often defaulting to "Sent from my iPhone" until changed.
Professional Email ClosingA professional email closing is the short sign-off phrase that ends a message body, such as "Best regards" or "Thanks", written above the signature block and matched to the formality of the exchange.
Responsive Email SignatureA responsive email signature is one that stays readable across screen sizes, achieved in email mostly by keeping the layout narrow and simple rather than by relying on media queries, which many clients ignore.
SPFSPF (Sender Policy Framework) is a DNS TXT record in which a domain lists the mail servers and IP addresses authorized to send email on its behalf.
Table-Based HTMLTable-based HTML is a layout technique that positions content using nested table, tr, and td elements instead of divs, flexbox, or CSS grid, used today mainly because email clients render tables reliably.
vCardA vCard is a standardized electronic business card format (file extension .vcf) that stores contact details such as name, phone, email, and company in a file any address book can import.