Choosing an Email List Provider
If you don’t already have a mailing list start one. Currently I use Mailchimp as they offer a forever free plan. (no longer available) You are limited to 2000 subscribers and 12,000 emails per month. They allow image and file hosting free of charge.
I also use aWeber as I do affiliate partnerships and although you can use Mailchimp for this many ‘bad marketers’ abuse their service so Mailchimp frowns on it. They are pretty open to selling your own product or an occasional recommendation but not spam especially of the ‘get rich quick‘ type. Yes, there is a difference.
However, an important note to keep in mind is MailChimp does not allow emails to be sent by the following:
- Work from home, Internet Lead-gen, Make money on online opportunities, etc aka spam
- Multi-level marketing
- Affiliate marketers
- Marketing or sending commercial email without proper permission
Basically if you are part of a group that is well known for it’s bulk email campaigns, MailChimp is not for you. You’ll have to choose another email server which can support large and frequent emails.
If you are using affiliate marketing to promote products and services on your blog just don’t use the affiliate links in your email. You can legitimately write about a product and post the link to your blog post in your email.
You are a Crochet Blogger so Mailchimp is definitely a service you can use. It is also very easily integrated for Etsy shop owners. My list is currently about 200 and I mail to those who subscribed via my websites or blogs. I also use the RSS to Email feature to send updates to my blog.
What do You need to Start an Email List?
- Service provider
- Set up CANSPAM information which is your name, email address, your mailing address and your phone number
- Disclosure Policy
- Schedule your campaigns
- Email form on your blog
- Set up a confirmation and thank you emails
Today’s Assignment:
Find an email service to use, set up your list, and add the sign up box to your blog.
Download:
Setting up an Email List Checklist
Resources:
- Mailchimp – free online training on how to set up a mailing list. Choose either the 45 minute pre-recorded webinar or sign up for a live webinar with 15 minutes of Q and A. I recommend this service.
- Aweber – free online training, workbooks, and live chat help. I recommend this service too.
See you tomorrow for lesson 9,
Are You Just Joining Us? Here is What You Missed:
- Lesson 1: Choosing Your Money Maker & Setting Your Goals
- Lesson 2: Find Your Identity and Spruce Up Your About Me page
- Lesson 3: Choose a Form and Add it to Your Blog
- Lesson 4: Choose One Money Maker
- Lesson 5: Burn Your RSS Feed with Feedburner
- Lesson 6: Setup Google Analytics for Your Crochet Blog
- Lesson 7: Setup Google Alerts using Amy’s Tutorial
- Lesson 8: Setup an eMail list either on Mailchimp or aWeber (You Are Here)
About Sara Duggan
I am jumping back and forth between the lessons I haven’t done yet. Now I am focusing my energies on getting a mailing list set up. Do you have an example of a Disclosure Policy? And how do I set up CANSPAM? Thanks.
Rebeckah, I emailed you about this but you can make a quick disclosure statement with the generator from http://disclosurepolicy.org. As far as the CANSPAM is concerned, what email service are you using?
It basically means to add your real address and phone number, real name, and an unsubscribe link in each and every email you send out.