• Outlook Template (.oft): This format is for saving a message that you want to use repeatedly in Outlook. It saves the message’s formatting as well as any attachments. Outlook Message Format (.msg): This format keeps all of the message’s formatting and attachments, but it can only be read by Outlook.
• Outlook 2013: Email Template with Attachment Do you need to send an email that has an attachment over and over again? The tutorial below gives you the details and steps to make an email template with an attachment. Also included is adding the Choose Form command to the Quick Access Toolbar.

How To Create An Oft

E-mail template used by Microsoft Outlook, a popular e-mail client for Mac; contains a pre-formatted layout that can be used for creating custom messages with a similar look and feel; may also be saved as an Outlook 'form,' which includes a script that runs when the file is opened. To create an OFT file, first open and edit a new message.

1. Create the calendar item
2. Choose File | Save as | iCalendar format (*.ics)
3. Click Save.
4. Create a new email message and attach the file.
OR
1. Create the calendar item
2. Select the down arrow next to Forward
3. Select Forward as iCalendar
4. Address the message and click Send

1. Create the calendar event and click Save and Close
2. Go to the File menu and create a new email.
3. Click and drag the event from the calendar into a grayed-out area in the message header and it will appear as an .ics attachment.
OR
1. Create the calendar event and click Save and Close
2. Drag the event to your desktop and it will create a .ics file
3. Create a new email message and attach the file.

OFT files are Outlook Templates, also sometimes called Outlook File Templates. You can make email templates from them, but as with most Microsoft products the quality can be quite flaky if you are not careful. I have had to create many OFT files for clients and if you go back in time and code to 1996 web standards you can get them to look pretty decent.

UPDATE:Using Outlook 2010? Check out my updated article.

There’s too ways to create OFT files. One is to save the email from the Save As menu and select OFT under the Save as type: drop down. This means you already have the email in your inbox, which means mailing the html with a 3rd party program.

There’s an easier way to do this which will allow you to skip the step of sending yourself the email. The OFT process could even be handed off to the business people that need the OFT.

Top menu go to,

View / Toolbars / Web.

Create Outlook Template Oft

You should now have an input field at the top that says something like outlook:Inbox

Here you can type / paste any web address and it will load the page in Outlook. Once this is done, in the menu go to,

Actions / Send Web Page by E-mail

Now you will see the page in a new mail window. If the webpage was not to complex and created using tables, it should look okay. Pure css and more complex designs will not work at all and really shouldn’t even be considered for any email deployments. I’m a strong supporter of web standards, unfortunately some major email platforms are not.

The next step is to save the email as an OFT. Go to,

Giant windows bubble (AKA Office Button) / Save As

Oft Outlook 365

Select OFT, name the file and save.

You should now have an OFT file. You can test this by double clicking it which will open Outlook. You can now edit the text and send to other people. OFT files can be a cheap internal alternative to full blown email deployments. I would only recommend OFT files for small internal newsletters. OFT’s may not work properly on other email clients and are proprietary.

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Outlook Oft Template