How to Set Up Your Hotmail Signature in Outlook.com

In early 2016, Microsoft phased out Windows Live Hotmail, and the customer base moved to Outlook.com, the free web interface, where users were allowed to keep their Hotmail email addresses if they so desired. Outlook.com email users with Hotmail addresses can set up and format an email signature. 

No email is complete without a signature — a few lines of contact information, maybe a witty quote or some self-marketing at the end. You can set up a signature easily in Outlook.com, and it is appended to all the emails you write automatically. Here's how to do it.

To create a signature for use with your Hotmail email address, sign in at Outlook.com.

• Click the settings gear icon at the top of the screen.
• Click on Options in the drop-down menu.
• In the Options pane at the left of the screen, expand the Layout section if it is collapsed and click Email signature. 
• Click to place check marks in the two boxes to indicate that you want your email signature automatically applied to the new messages you compose and to messages you forward or reply to.
• Type the content of your email signature in the box provided. 
• Format the email signature using the options at the top of the box. In addition to formatting the text, you can insert an image and hyperlinks in your signature. If you send an email to a recipient who prefers to receive text-only emails, the signature reverts to plain text.
• Click Save at the top of the screen.

Outlook.com includes your signature automatically when you compose a message. If you don't want it in a particular message, delete it as you would delete regular text.

You probably send several emails a day, and each one is an opportunity to market yourself or your business. Don't squander these opportunities with a nonexistent or limited email signature:

• Limit your email signature to five line of text.
• Include all your contact information.
• Use dividers to minimize lines. For example Address | City | Phone.
• Keep the use of color simple.
• Insert live links to your website or business.
• Include social icons linking to your social profiles.
• Format the signature so it is mobile friendly. Space out icons that recipients may want to tap and use a font size that is readable on small screens. More than half of all emails are opened on mobile devices.

Don't treat email signatures as an afterthought. They make it easy for people to reach you and give people a place to go find out more about you or your business.