We’ve tried just about every email marketing platform out there—four or five, to be exact. Some were clunky. Others required hours of tweaking just to get a simple email to look decent. One even made us use code just to align text properly! It was exhausting. And definitely unmotivating to ever send an email.

Then we found Flodesk, and everything changed.

Flodesk is built with design first, meaning you don’t have to jump through hoops or wrestle with complicated settings to create stunning, professional looking emails. The platform makes it effortless to design stunning, on-brand emails while focusing on connecting with your audience and growing your business using email marketing.

We migrated our list of 100,000+ subscribers to Flodesk during its beta phase and haven’t looked back. With over 36 million emails sent, we’ve tested every feature, and we’re here to help you set up your Flodesk account the right way from day one. Read our honest review.

By the time you’re finished reading this guide, you’ll have a Flodesk account that’s set up, visually stunning, and 100% on-brand.

How do I start setting up Flodesk for email marketing?

Start with the Tech Basics

Branding Essentials

You’ll need these elements BEFORE setting up your brand kit in Flodesk.

Logo with Transparent Background (PNG format)
Choose Your Brand Fonts (Heading, Subheading, Body, Accent)
Choose Your Brand Colors (up to 10 hex color codes)

Need help creating a brand kit? Check out this Boho Brand Kit.

Set Up Your Branding in Flodesk

Add your Branding elements to Flodesk (we’ll walk you through this in the guide below)
Set up a compliant mailing address to be listed on your emails. We recommend a PO Box (check with your local post office to set this up).
Decide on what social media accounts you want to link. Flodesk populates the social icons for over two dozen social media accounts, including Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, Youtube, LinkedIn, TikTok, Apple Podcast and more.

Create a Branded Newsletter Template

Use these pre-made Flodesk templates for a quick start.

Choose global style settings, button designs, and save your preferred font styles
Create a basic opt-in full page form or embed form
Start adding subscribers to an appropriate segment
Set up a Welcome Workflow to deliver a short introductory email to new subscribers

How to Add Your Logo, Brand Colors & Fonts to Flodesk

Your brand’s visual identity is just as important as the words you use in your emails. A cohesive, well-designed email experience builds trust, strengthens recognition, and makes your content instantly recognizable.

In Flodesk, you have the ability to customize your logo, fonts, and colors to create a branded email template that reflects your business. This ensures that every email you send feels polished, professional, and uniquely you.

In this section, I’ll walk you through exactly how to:
✔️ Upload your logo and adjust placement for a sleek, on-brand look
✔️ Choose and set your brand fonts for headings, body text, and buttons
✔️ Define a color palette that enhances readability and reinforces your brand
✔️ Save and apply your branding settings for a seamless email experience

Let’s dive in and make sure your emails look as good as the content inside them!

Watch This First: Step-by-Step Video Walkthrough

Branding your emails shouldn’t be an afterthought. It should be simple. Flodesk gives you full control over your email design, so every send feels polished and professional (without wrestling with clunky settings).

📌 In this video, you’ll discover:
✔️ How to set up your logo, brand colors, and fonts for a cohesive look
✔️ Tips to ensure your emails stay compliant with your email service provider
✔️ The key design choices that make your emails instantly recognizable
✔️ How to customize newsletter templates so every email feels polished and uniquely you

Branding isn’t just about looking good. It’s about building trust and recognition with every email you send. Hit play to get your Flodesk account set up the right way!

Creating Your Logo & Brand Identity in Flodesk

Your brand’s visual identity is just as important as the words you use in your emails. A cohesive, well-designed email experience builds trust, strengthens recognition, and makes your content instantly recognizable. In Flodesk, you have the ability to customize your logo, fonts, and colors to create an on-brand email template that reflects your business.

Creating Your Logo

Your logo is your unique mark. It will want to be on almost every single email so subscribers can connect your brand mark with your sending email. A recommended logo size is a minimum of 600 pixels wide by 200 pixels tall.

Make sure your logo has a transparent background and is in PNG format. This will ensure your logo looks good on any email background.

Brand Fonts: Choosing the Right Typography for Your Emails

Your font choices set the tone for your brand and impact how easily people can read and engage with your emails. Here’s how to select the perfect combination for a polished, professional look:

Heading Font (Bold & Attention-Grabbing)

Your heading font should be strong, clear, and easy to read at a glance. It sets the tone for your emails and draws readers in.
Best picks: A bold serif like Lucida Bright or Didot for a classic, authoritative feel. Or a sans serif like Optima.

Subheading Font (Smooth Transition & Emphasis)

Subheadings help break up content and create hierarchy, so they should complement your heading while being slightly less bold.
Best picks: A clean sans serif like Futura or Consolas for a modern look or a serif like Garamond for a refined touch.
Pro Tip: Try different variations—ALL CAPS vs. lowercase—to see what aligns with your brand style.

Body Font (Highly Readable & Simple)

Your body text needs to be easy on the eyes, especially for longer emails. Stick to a clean, sans serif font for the best readability.
Best picks: Calibri, Helvetica, or Open Sans—these are crisp, professional, and work well on all devices.
Color Tip: Opt for black or dark gray for maximum contrast and legibility.

Accent Fonts (For Personality & Emphasis)

Accent fonts, like script or handwritten styles, can be used sparingly for extra flair in headings or callouts.

WARNING: Flodesk renders these fonts as images, meaning they won’t be readable by screen readers or search engines. Use them for style, not substance.

Keep your fonts consistent across emails for a cohesive brand look. Choose one heading, one subheading, and one body font, then stick with them. This helps create recognition, professionalism, and effortless readability in every email you send.

Brand Colors

Choose your brand colors. You can add up to 10-hex codes to Flodesk. We recommend choosing a mix of colors to use.

Primary Colors – Your main brand colors (logo, buttons, headers).
Neutral Colors – Backgrounds, text, and accent areas.
Accent Colors – Call-to-action buttons and essential highlights.

Customize Global Styles

When you start setting up your email template, you will be able to choose global styles for the following elements. These global styles apply to every email in your account.

Backdrop color - This is the space outside the email canvas. It is the area where menus and settings will be displayed. For simplicity, set the backdrop color the same as the canvas color.
Canvas Color - This is the color of the background 600 pixels wide for the email.
Font Color - This is your standard font color when you start a new text box.
Link Color - This is the color that text will automatically change when you add a hyperlink. Make this color a brighter brand color.

Create a Branded Email Template

A branded email template ensures consistency across all your email campaigns and saves you time. Instead of starting from scratch with every email, you can design a base template using Flodesk’s drag-and-drop editor and customize it with your brand elements.

Logo block - Add your logo at the top of your email for instant brand recognition.
Text Block - Choose your heading, subheading, and body fonts to match your brand identity. Set the padding on your text blocks. Typically text block padding is 20-40 pixels on each left and right margin.
Layout Block - Use a structured layout to organize text and images. Layout blocks are a great way to emphasize new content like blog posts or downloads.
Button Block - Customize buttons with your brand colors for a strong call-to-action. Consider adding a primary and secondary button that matches your brand.
Link Bar or Social Links - Include links to your website, social media, or featured content.

As you customize different elements with the drag-and-drop editor, be sure to save your styles for future email customizations. You can save font styles and button styles to use throughout many design blocks or layouts.

Haven’t Switched to Flodesk Yet? Here’s Why You Should!

Most email platforms make design an afterthought. They’re clunky, overly complicated, or require a ridiculous amount of tweaking just to make a basic email look decent. Some even force you to use code to design them at all..

Flodesk is different. It’s built with design-first simplicity, so you can create stunning, on-brand emails in minutes, without fighting the tech. No coding. No endless formatting struggles. Just polished, high-converting emails that feel uniquely you.

We made the switch during Flodesk’s beta phase, migrating a list of 100,000+ subscribers, and we’ve never looked back. After sending 36 million+ emails, we can confidently say this is the easiest and most visually powerful email platform out there.

If you’re still using an outdated, clunky platform, or worse, putting off email marketing entirely because it feels overwhelming—now’s the time to change that.

Read our full Flodesk review & see why we’re obsessed →
Try Flodesk for Free + Unlock Savings →

Need Help Designing Your Emails?

You don’t have to start with a blank template. Get copy-and-paste email templates from the Creative Template Shop and launch your emails in an afternoon.

✅ Cold Audience Nurture Email Templates
✅ Content Creator Nurture Email Templates
✅ Digital Product Launch Email Templates

Whether you're nurturing leads, launching a product, or selling your services, these plug-and-play email templates make it easy to look professional, connect with your audience, and drive results.

Quick Recap: Setting Up Your Branded Emails in Flodesk

A well-branded email experience builds trust, enhances recognition, and increases engagement. Here’s what we covered:

✔️ Set Up Your Flodesk Account – Create a strong foundation for email marketing success.
✔️ Upload Your Logo – Use a high-quality PNG with a transparent background for seamless branding.
✔️ Choose Your Brand Fonts – Select heading, subheading, body, and accent fonts that reflect your brand identity.
✔️ Define Your Brand Colors – Establish a cohesive color palette for buttons, text, and backgrounds.
✔️ Customize Global Styles – Set default fonts, colors, and layouts for consistency across all emails.
✔️ Create a Branded Email Template – Design a reusable email format to save time and maintain brand consistency.

What’s Next? Grow Your Email List!

Now that your branding is locked in, it’s time to attract and convert subscribers.

Try Flodesk for Free

Need plug and play email templates? The Creative Template Shop Co-Op gives you access to Flodesk email templates designed to save you time.

👉 Explore Email Templates like the Ultimate Email Subject Line Toolkit

Ready to hit your first (or next) 1,000 subscribers? Grab our 1,000 Subscriber Roadmap for a step-by-step strategy to build an engaged email list, without complicated tech or paid ads.