Email marketing is nothing new. It has been around since the widespread adoption of digital communications. That’s almost three decades, give or take a few years. Yet even today, in 2023 leveraging a strong discussion list as part of your email marketing is still one of the most effective ways for businesses to reach and influence new and existing audiences.
Members who sign-up will reap the benefits of being engaged with and participating in a broad community, having a voice to share ideas and reach and influence subscribers in a way that resonates with them.
And that’s just the start.
What is an email discussion list?
An email discussion list is cultivated from a group of people with similar interests who wish to hear about and share conversations. It could be a newsletter, information about a product or service, events happening in your local area, and more.
A company email list is merely a collection of email addresses gathered from people of all walks of life, each of which has signed up to receive emails from you, usually through an online opt-in form. There’s no collaboration or discussion.
Email discussion lists often have moderators or editors review all incoming messages and decide which can be sent to subscribers and which can’t. They also tend to have guidelines, for instance, asking everyone in the group to be respectful of others and only post relevant content. Permission to share content has to be granted and clear email list management, including organization lists stipulations are followed.
The whole process is operated through an automated server which receives the email of one recipient before forwarding it on to subscribers. As subscribers respond, a conversation unfolds. And there you have it, an email discussion.
Common uses for a discussion list
As you’ve probably guessed, discussion lists are great for email marketing, for a few different reasons. From personal targeting by segmenting your audience into specific lists and sales and lead generation to generating and nurturing new and existing leads to engaging existing customers to make them feel valued and running an email campaign in tandem with special offers or trends, discussion lists will get the right people engaged - at the right time.
Just have a look below at all the ways you can use a discussion list to engage and start conversations with prospects and customers.
Products and promotions
Using a mailing list to get the word out about any products and promotions is a fine idea. But who’s to say that a standard mailing list has the right contacts? A discussion list, especially one that has been segmented, has a much better chance of reaching customers more likely to put their hands in their pockets.
Discussion lists are much more effective to inform prospects and customers of any upcoming products and promotions. Information and ideas can be easily shared between every member of the list with ease. Educating a broad range of members about a new product or service is also simple and easy, with discussions inevitably following.
Company news and updates
If you want to share company news and updates with people who’ll want to hear about it, a discussion list can be ideal. Sending newsletters with company news, such as an announcement of a lucrative partnership, or even informing readers of a new member of the leadership team, can be easily achieved.
You can also take the opportunity to inform or affirm your mission and values to your subscribers or get the word out about an upcoming contest or giveaway.
Collaborate with departments
Another vital use of the humble discussion email list is collaboration with other departments. Although it’s not the operational aim, sometimes - in large businesses, especially - interdepartmental communication can be a bit lacking. It’s almost to be expected in a company with 500, 1000, and 25,000 employees globally.
A great way to collaborate with other departments is through a hub with a central flow of information - like discussion lists. Here you can share best practices and insights, highlight a project or initiative you’re working on, and more.
Upcoming meetings and events
Want to make sure that everyone’s up to speed and engaged with company happenings? You can use a discussion list. Highlight a company event or conference, promote events or social media campaigns, and even deliver meeting minutes. It couldn’t be easier.
Open forums
The last common use for discussion lists is that they promote an open forum where colleagues can share their opinions on any new products and services and subscribers can share ideas, opinions, and experiences. This alone can help you to make better decisions in the future.
Benefits of using an email discussion list
Choose Simplelists to build your discussion list and you’ll find that it is not only a great way to collaborate and communicate with teams, small and large, local and wide, but there are several other key benefits that you can’t afford to miss. These are:
Collaboration and communication
Simplelists make it easy for remote teams to connect with colleagues easily and share ideas and information. This enhanced communication improves workflows, customer service, and brand reputation, ultimately leading to better client retention.
Increased engagement and participation
When you choose to leverage Simplelists’ discussion lists, you’ll see an increase in community engagement and participation by giving members access to a resource that’s easy to use, accessible, and engaging.
Build a strong community
With Simplelists, it’s straightforward and easy to build a strong community. Administrator or owner values can be embodied by all members, creating an interesting and engaging place for discourse. Trust can be boosted and relationships strengthened.
Targeted communication
Use Simplelists and you’ll be able to segment and distribute your discussion list so that it reaches those members who it’ll interest the most. Segment your campaigns by behavior or audience, focusing on the correct messaging and you’ll stand a good chance of maximizing influence.
Cost-effective
Reach a broad audience for a low cost. Optimize your ROI and track and measure performance. Use data to evaluate campaign success and make improvements in the future.
How to Create an Email Discussion List
Simplelists makes it easy to create email discussion lists. You don’t need to integrate any complicated email list software or undertake training, it’s easy!
Simply send an email to your list address and we’ll automatically forward it directly to the group. You can add people directly to your mailing list or they can sign-up online. Transfer from another list without member confirmation. Simplelists even provide a full hosting service and management, so you don’t need to worry about the technical details.
Our email management service has been designed to promote simplicity and ease of use. Creating email management groups and discussion lists has never been easier.
The first thing users need to do is to sign-up and choose the plan best suited to their needs. Once you’ve set up an account, you can begin creating discussion lists.
Creating an email discussion group
Creating an email discussion list is easy. Go to the “manage lists” menu, click the “Add” button, then select the discussion list.
Managing email list subscriptions
Once the list is created, Simplelists allows users to add members by either uploading a CSV file or adding them individually.
Posting messages and replies
To send an email to their list, members simply write an email and send it to the email address that has been specifically created for that list. Simplelists will then send it to all members of that list. All replies will be sent to that same list-specific email address.
Setting up email list rules and guidelines
List owners are able to set posting restrictions, including what members can and cannot view, and assign administrators and moderators to ensure that guidelines are followed.
What can an Email Discussion List Platform Like Simplelists Do for Your Business?
Features and Benefits of Simplelists
Below are a handful of the key features and benefits of Simplelists’ email list software.
Easy set-up - you don’t need to be a tech wizard or someone with years of experience building business email lists, anyone can start using Simplelists product range today.
Import contacts easily - add subscribers from CSV files, previous lists or manually with ease.
Auto bounce handling - manage spam reporting settings. Find out more by reading our blog about spam folders.
Set permissions - restrict posting to specific members only. Enable an approval process for each message. Learn more on our blog about posting restrictions.
Make it personal - subscribers can choose how to interact with the list by opting for plain text or HTML emails. Get a daily digest summary or individual posts. The choice is yours.
For a little more in-depth information, take a look at this short 3 minute video.
Overview of pricing plans
Below is an overview of our pricing plans, comparing the cost of the “single email discussion list” and “multiple email discussion lists.”
Pay as You Go price plan
The Pay As You Go price plan means you just pay for the data that you use. The more list members you have, the larger your list emails, and the more recipients all increase the data that’s used. There is a maximum data purchase requirement.
The Unlimited price plan
The Unlimited price plan means you just pay for the total number of unique members in your account. The number and size of emails (and the number of lists for a Multiple List account) are all unlimited.
Get started with your discussion list today
As you can see, the benefits of using Simplelists to optimize a discussion list are clear. From enhanced collaboration and communication, not only internally but with your customers to build a strong community of like-minded people all of which share valuable, insightful, and targeted information, and reaching and influencing a broad audience for a relatively affordable cost, an email discussion list can really help your business to prosper.
Listserv management is a crucial part of every business.
It can help you build a strong subscriber base, increase sales, and engage with your customers.
But how do you get started?
In this article, you’ll learn the benefits of using email list management software and how Simplelists will help you manage your listservs effectively from one interface.
What is a Listserv used for?
Listservs are used for a variety of purposes, such as
keeping your customers informed of new products or services,
sending out newsletters or updates from your organization,
sharing information with other businesses in your field,
and more
This makes listserv software a great tool for email marketing because it allows you to send out one message to your subscribers and reach them all at once.
This can be much more efficient than sending out separate emails to each recipient individually.
You can segment and grow an active and engaged list of subscribers using a listserv management system.
In the next section, we’ll cover some of the things you must take into consideration when using email list management to ensure you get maximum benefits from your investment.
3 Benefits of a Mailing List Manager
An invaluable tool for your business, a mailing list manager organizes your mailing list into a database so that you can easily send out emails to your subscribers at any time.
With the correct mailing list manager you’ll want to be able to:
Increase Traffic and Sales
Lessen Your Email Marketing Costs
Increase Customer Retention
Available features in selected listserv software allow you to track your emails for performance, customize sent emails, automate your communication and avoid spam complaints.
But what does that mean for you?
We know they’re a great way to engage with customers, but they can also be a source of frustration for email marketers who don’t have the right tools.
Listserv management offers many benefits for businesses of all sizes. Here are three ways it can help:
Keeping your email list clean
The internet is full of spam, and it’s hard to imagine a time when it wasn’t.
As a result, many people have become understandably wary of unsolicited emails and may even consider them to be the work of evil spammers.
To be successful, you need a clean list of subscribers who are actually interested in your products or services.
A clean email list is one that has no duplicates, no invalid addresses, and no non-responsive subscribers.
Email lists are like a garden — if you don’t keep them maintained, they’ll become overgrown and unruly. But if you take care of them and nurture them, they’ll be beautiful and bountiful.
An email list manager helps ensure your emails reach their intended recipients and don’t end up in the junk folder.
It also helps you avoid ending up with a large number of unclaimed or dead email addresses on your list that can cause issues for both your reputation and deliverability rates.
Creating an engaged list
Creating an engaged email list is a goal for any business and the holy grail of boosting your ROI!
But it’s not always easy to achieve.
So, having the right listserv software is important to help you gain a number of engaged subscribers.
This means you can build relationships, send targeted messages, and create stronger brand awareness.
A better understanding of your audience will help you unlock valuable insights into what they want and how they like being communicated with.
To keep your email list engaged and growing, we suggest your email campaigns or updates are:
In short, your email bounce rate is when an email doesn’t reach your intended recipient, also known as email delivery failure.
An email bouncing doesn’t sound too bad, right?
Unfortunately, email delivery failures can have a negative effect on your campaigns, ROI, plus domain and IP reputation.
This is why it’s important to choose a valuable listserv software that has:
Virus protection
Domain authentication
Spam filters and checkers
Email delivery reports
Auto bounce handling
This allows you to maintain good email list hygiene and preserve your sender reputation, whilst having insights into what is successfully delivered, not delivered and what content is engaged with.
So what email list management software can give you all this and more?
Simplelists as a Powerful Mailing List Manager: How it Works
As we’ve mentioned, Simplelists is a listserv management tool that allows you to manage your mailing lists with ease.
Offering a simple interface and a wide range of features, you’ll be sure to find a solution that meets all of your needs. Easy list creation with Simplelists can be from scratch or from an existing CSV file. Allowing you to effortlessly create, edit, manage and delete email lists.
But that’s not all!
Here is an overview of some of Simplelists key features:
Quick and easy interface
Some listserv software interfaces can be complicated, requiring special knowledge or skill and leaving even experienced users lost!
The interface needs to be as simple as possible!
Simplelists interface is extremely user-friendly. Designed to be clear, easy to navigate very easy to use.
You can create and manage your email lists with just a few clicks of your mouse.
And the best bit is, you don’t need any software downloads. All operations are performed within our mailing list manager online platform.
This also makes it possible for you to securely access Simplelists from any computer, as long as you have an internet connection.
Manage and review your subscribers’ list
Simplelists products can help you manage and review your subscribers list so that you don’t waste time sending emails to invalid addresses, or worse — spamming people who don’t want to receive any mail from you!
Simplelists’ robust email list management tools allow you to view statistics on each subscriber’s engagement with your emails; filter out inactive users or remove duplicate entries; remove spam addresses; and more.
You can set post permissions for different levels of access: from those who can post and edit posts to those who can only read them.
You can also restrict access by category or topic — for example, if you have multiple lists for different products or services, you can give each one its own categories and topics to prevent mixing up posts.
You can also use it to merge multiple lists into one unique list of contacts that are eligible to receive your emails (or newsletters).
In addition, all Simplelists products come with an advanced duplicate checker that will find any duplicates in your mailing lists and remove them automatically. This helps ensure that your recipients receive only one copy of any given message.
Moderate listserv emails
List moderation is a useful tool for having instant and automatic control over your email lists and discussion groups.
Simplelists email list manager allows you to set subscription parameters, plus posting restrictions to ensure that you’re aware of what is being sent.
You can choose to hold messages for approval by your recipient before sending them for delivery.
This allows you to review each message before sending it out into the world so that you can make sure it meets your personal standards as well as any requirements from your company or organization.
Under Simplelists list settings you can do the following:
No moderation - all messages will be distributed to your list regardless of who sent them.
Moderate all messages - all messages will be held for approval regardless.
Allow specific members - in a Single List select either the whole list or detail specific email addresses. In a Multiple List, you also have the option to define lists whose members can post.
Max message size - this value defines the maximum message size in kilobytes before a message is held for approval.
Emails will be held for review by your selected administrators before being sent out. If you choose anything to be held for moderation, then Simplelists will send an email notification to let you know when a new message has been created so that it can be reviewed in a timely manner.
Archive your email list to a website
Whether you’re a small business or a large corporation, you need to keep your email marketing efforts organized and up-to-date.
It’s best to do this by archiving all of your messages in one place so that you know exactly what is being sent out at any given time.
The main benefit of archiving email is it helps you view the history of your business over time and gives you the ability to search.
Simplelists provides searchable web archives at no extra cost. Making it easier for you to find information and giving a more complete picture of what’s going on with your audience.
Archive pages can be password protected, with the ability to hide email addresses, and archive web pages can be customised.
Notify bounce emails
Bounced emails can affect your sender reputation and deliverability, which ultimately leads to poor performance of your email campaign.
Using Simplelists email list manager, bounced emails are processed automatically and email deliverability gains higher performance.
Simplelists automatically handles bounced emails and ensures that non-responsive email addresses are removed from your list. Listing them in the "Bounces" menu once you’re logged into your account.
To maintain a high delivery rate to ISPs and make it easier for you to manage your list, we delete any members from your list if either of the following occurs in any given month:
Have a bounce rate higher than 75%
Have more than a total of 30 bounces
The List Manager will be notified of any members that have been deleted and will receive a warning towards the end of each month if any accounts are over their bounce rate threshold (75%).
The same Bounces page can also be used to configure accounts to send daily messages detailing all bounces: it is then possible to use this information to create strategies for reducing email bounce rates in future campaigns.
Email list management is a key aspect of any business that interacts with customers online.
A well-managed email list can help you provide better services, improve your reputation, increase customer satisfaction and of course improve your ROI!
Simplelists here to help you grow your business and achieve these goals.
By providing powerful and easy-to-use email list management software, you can create and track email lists, newsletters and campaigns with ease.
Two of the most popular reasons that our customers use Simplelists are as a listserve and for email marketing. However, these are not the only things you can use it for. We have designed Simplelists to be flexible so that you can complete a range of tasks. Here are some of the key ones.
Managing your email list
You can upload your email list members to Simplelists in bulk, directly from a file. If you have a lot of list members, this saves you time as you can export the list details to a file and upload it in seconds.
You can also download your list. We recognise that your email list is your property and we make it really easy for you to generate a copy of your email list. You can download your whole list of members into a file that can be opened in a spreadsheet.
Setting permissions
It is very easy to set posting permissions in Simplelists. This means that you can select who can send emails to your list. You might choose to enable this for all members, select some members, or make yourself the sole person with the permission to post to the list.
You can also moderate messages that are due to be sent to your list. You have several options: no moderation required (messages are sent straight to the members of your list), hold all messages for approval, or allow specific members to post without needing your approval first.
You might want to manage replies as well - you can select whether email replies are sent to everyone on the list or only to the person who sent the original email.
Setting posting restrictions can be useful if you permit other members to send emails to your list. This would ensure they don’t send very large emails, for example. You can set a maximum email size (in kB), remove attachments, strip HTML formatting and/or truncate messages to a specified maximum number of characters.
Finally, you may or may not want to allow your list members to see who else is on the list. Again, you have options - you can allow members to view all names and emails, allow them to see names only, or remove the ability to see names or emails.
Customise your emails
With Simplelists, it is very easy to customise your emails by including a personalised footer and a subject prefix. You can include HTML in the footer so your members can see graphics or logos. Or, you can use HTML throughout the email for complete customisation. You can also personalise your emails by inserting each recipient’s name at the start.
You can archive all your emails. When you activate this feature, all emails will be stored on a custom website so that you can access them in the future. You can set a password for the archive, if you wish.
Simplelists offers you a range of options for managing your group email. It’s important to note that we offer free trials for single and multiple list accounts so you may want to use these to carry out a one-off email campaign or have a go at setting up a group list. In this post, we explain the types of accounts in more detail so you can make the right choice to suit your needs.
Single list or multiple list?
Have a think about the number of email lists that you want to manage. If you manage more than one list, you’ll need a multiple list account but if you only have one, opting for a single list account makes the most sense.
If you opt for the single list account, it’s worth being aware that there are some features that only users with multiple list accounts have access to. These features include the ability to use your own domain when sending your emails so that they come from an email address ending in your domain name, rather than 'simplelists.com’. You can also use your own domain name for your landing pages, which allows you to brand the whole email system as your own. Even though you only have one list, these features may appeal to you.
Pay as you go vs. Unlimited
If you are only planning to send one email or have a short-term project that needs some group email management, our 'Pay as you go’ option is probably best for you. However, if you plan to send a large amount of data (e.g. large attachments), subscribing for an unlimited account for the duration of your project is likely to be the more cost-effective option.
If you have longer-term email management needs, or you’ll be sending emails indefinitely, an unlimited subscription will be most appropriate. This type of payment option allows you to send as much data as you want. However, if you think that you will use only a small amount of data over a longer period of time, a 10GB Pay as you go data bundle may be more cost-effective.
Pay as you go: the detail
The Pay as you go price plans allow up to 20,000 list members. What’s important is the amount of data you wish to send. For short-term projects and/or email campaigns of up to a month in duration, the 1GB and 3GB bundles are a good choice. With this option you can send approximately 48,000 plain text emails (1GB bundle) or 144,000 plain text emails (3GB bundle).
For longer projects and/or email campaigns that last up to 12 months, the 10GB bundle is good value. This bundle allows you to send approximately 40,000 plain text emails per month, each month.
If you have a seriously large email list and plan to send lots of data, the 30GB data bundle will be of interest.
You can estimate the data allowance you are likely to need for your list by using our Pay as you go calculator on our products page.
Unlimited
Unlimited price plans keep on rolling. You pay a monthly or annual fee to receive an unlimited data allowance. How much you pay depends on the number of list members you have. There are options for 1,000, 5,000, 10,000 and 20,000 members. For these price plans, the yearly subscriptions offer the best value.
Simplelists is designed to be quick, easy and simple to use. It also has a selection of powerful features for users who want more from their email management software. People who sign up to Simplelists do so for many reasons. They may want a way to manage group email discussions, use email for marketing purposes, or send regular updates and other information to list members. We are often asked what Simplelists can do, so this short post is a reminder of our features.
Manage members
Add members to your list You can add members to your list in bulk from a spreadsheet or .csv file. You can also easily download your list members’ email addresses to a spreadsheet.
Set posting permissions You can select who can send emails to your list. This can be: all members, selected members or just yourself.
Manage replies You can decide whether replies are sent to the whole list or just to the person who sent the original email.
Set restrictions
Moderate messages You can choose to hold messages for approval before they are sent to your list
Restrict email size You can limit the size of emails, strip attachments from emails, and more.
Control list viewing You can keep members’ names and email addresses hidden or let them be seen by other members.
Customise your emails
Add a personalised footer You can do this to personalise your email and include information about you or your company/group.
Include HTML You can include HTML in your emails, enabling you to customise your emails.
Include members’ names You can personalise your emails by automatically adding members’ names at the start of an email.
Archive emails You can archive all emails - they can be accessed from a custom website at any time.
Daily digest summaries These can be useful for busy lists. Instead of receiving emails when they are posted, members receive one email every 24 hours.
Control subscriptions
Set subscribe and unsubscribe options You can choose whether new members can join your list, and whether this requires approval.
Add a subscription form You can add a subscribe form to your website. It is fully customisable, so you can change it to match your website perfectly.
Integrate with websites
Brand your landing pages On all landing pages you can replace the Simplelists heading with your own logo or branding.
Synchronise your account with websites An API is available, which allows you to synchronise your Simplelists account with other websites.
Integrate emails with your domain A multiple list account can be integrated with your domain so that users receive emails from your domain, rather than Simplelists.
Automated list management
Notification of bounced emails When an email to one of your members bounces, you will receive a message to let you know.
Automatic processing of bounced email addresses List members with emails addresses that bounce emails repeatedly are automatically removed from your list, saving you time.
Automatic spam management If a list member marks your email as spam, they will automatically be removed from the list. This ensures that repeated emails are not marked as spam, which keeps delivery rates high.
HTML emails are formatted like a web page and can include colours, graphics, tables and links. Most emails that you receive from a shop/business that you subscribe to are likely to use this kind of email. Plain text emails are more like what you might expect to receive from a friend or in a typical work email. Before sending an HTML email to your list, it is worth considering the pros and cons of HTML and plain text emails.
HTML or plain text?
HTML emails are colourful and eye-catching. You can include your company logo and make your email look professional. HTML emails can include images and make it possible to break the email into sections that are easy to read or scan. They can also include social media buttons. HTML emails are more likely to be blocked by some spam blockers, especially if they contain a lot of HTML.
Plain text emails are small and light, which means they use less memory and open more quickly. Plain text messages look less commercial and more similar to personal emails. It has also been found that a plain text email is more likely to be opened and clicked through, which is important if you are sending emails as part of a marketing campaign.
Creating an HTML email
First, you need to create your email as a single web page. There are a few special points to note when creating HTML for email:
Use tables to create the layout. Avoid using margins and padding and give the table’s elements fixed widths. This prevents the email looking different in different email clients.
All CSS styles should be inline styles. Any CSS in the head or on external style sheets will be ignored.
Any images should have an absolute URL - they’ll need to be on the server so they can be sourced.
Once complete, view your web page in a browser. First, check that the page looks perfect. Right click and select all and then copy. Note that you should not copy the HTML code. Copy the content of the web page.
Send the email
Open your email client and compose a new message to your list. Simply paste the email and hit send. Your HTML email will be sent to your whole list. Simple.
You can watch these instructions in a short video here.
Simplelists is designed to be quick, easy and simple to use. It also has a collection of powerful features for users who want more from their email management software. In this short post, we remind our customers of the power of Simplelists and let those who are thinking of joining us know about the range of features available.
Fast setup
With Simplelists, you can set up your list in just a few minutes. You simply log into your
account and then add people to your list. All you need is their name and email address - you can add people manually or in bulk from a spreadsheet or CSV file. Once a person is added, they will appear as a list member. You can also download your list members’ details to a spreadsheet with a click of a button.
Set restrictions
You have the option to choose who can send messages to your list. For example, you can allow all members to send emails, select members who can send messages, or make sure it is just yourself that can send messages. You can also choose whether replies are sent to the whole list or just to the person who sent the original email. To ensure quality emails are circulated, you can opt to approve and moderate emails before they are sent to the list. The size of emails can also be limited, and attachments can be stripped if required.
Customise your emails
You can let list members’ email addresses be seen, or keep them hidden from other members. Other features include: the ability to add a personalised footer; send your emails in HTML rather than plain text; and personalise your emails by automatically adding details such as the recipient’s name in the email. Once sent, you can archive your emails and access them from a custom website at any time. If you have a busy list, daily digest summaries are a useful feature - instead of receiving emails when they are posted, members receive one email every 24 hours.
Customise subscriptions and integrate with websites
You can choose whether new members can join your list when they wish, or whether this requires approval. Similarly, you can set unsubscribe options, allowing members to leave your list when they choose. To allow members to join your list easily, you can add a subscribe form to your website (this form is fully customisable so you can match it perfectly to the design of your website) and you can easily replace the Simplelists branding with your own logo or branding on all landing pages (where members go when clicking on email/form links). An API is available to enable you to synchronise your Simplelists account with other websites and a multiple list account can be integrated with your domain so that users receive emails from your domain rather than Simplelists.
Automated list management
When an email to one of your list members bounces, you will receive a message to let you know. To save you time, list members with email addresses that bounce messages repeatedly can be removed automatically from your list. If a list member marks your email as spam, they will automatically be removed from the list. This ensures that emails are not repeatedly marked as spam, keeping delivery rates high.
Once your list is set up, you can email everyone on your list from your normal email address. Just send them message to [yourlist]@simplelists.com. It really is that simple. If you would like to try out Simplelists, you can sign up for a free single list account today.
Some of our customers have requested a feature where members can take a break from receiving list emails rather than completely unsubscribe. We could see that this feature would be useful in a lot of situations...
For example, it’s fairly common for clubs or societies have an email list for their members - but membership of clubs and societies is rarely static - members come and go it’s not uncommon for some members sometimes leave a club and then rejoin at a later date. Rather than unsubscribe the member completely - it is possible to pause the delivery of their emails. If they rejoin at a later date you can resume the delivery of their emails in one click, rather than going through the subscription process again.
With this in mind we’ve listened to our customers and implemented a 'take a break’ feature for list members. We’ve made it very easy to activate for both list managers and list members...
List Managers
Login to your Simplelists account, navigate to 'list members’, select a member from the address book and tick the 'pause delivery’ check-box. To restart delivery simply uncheck the box.
List Members
Visit http://archives.simplelists.com/ and if you aren’t logged in already enter your email address and you’ll be sent a confirmation email to your email address. Click on the link in the email which will take you to archives of your email lists. Simply select 'pause delivery’ for the list that you want to take a break from. When you want to receive emails again you just click 'resume delivery’ - simple!
We’ve just completed a series of short videos on subscribe forms. These videos take you through everything that you need to know to place a subscribe or unsubscribe form on your website: adding a the form to your site, customising the form to suit your needs and styling the form to match your website perfectly...
Adding A Form To Your Website
This is very simple - just login to your simplelists account, navigate to 'general settings’, select 'subscriptions’ and you’ll see the code which you can copy and paste to your website.
The first short video takes you through this process step by step:
If you have a multiple list account you have a choice of different forms to use - the next video takes you through the options so that you can choose the most appropriate form for your specific needs:
Customising A Web Form
The simplelists web forms are written completely in standard HTML. This means that they are totally flexible and gives you the ability to customise the forms to suit your needs exactly. You can delete fields that aren’t needed, add new inputs and change the form from subscribe to unsubscribe - you can even write your own form entirely from scratch!
The third video shows you how to customise your form by editing the form itself:
Styling Your Form
Having a form that matches your website’s design is important when creating the image that you want. Because simplelists forms are standard HTML they can be styled using CSS which means that you have the ability to style your form any way you want. You have complete freedom to create beautiful as well as useful web forms. The final video of the series shows you how:
You have a range of choices when deciding which account to use to manage your group email. In this post we’ll take you through your options but... before we start it’s worth noting that we offer free trials for both single and multiple list accounts so if you have a one-off email campaign or short-term project that requires group email management then why not use the free trial - it won’t cost you a thing!
’Single List’ verses 'Multiple List’ accounts
This choice will usually be dictated by the number of lists that you want to manage - if you manage several different email lists then you’ll need a multiple list account but if you manage one email list then a single list account is usually best. Simple stuff!
However, it’s worth noting that there are some extra features that are only available to multiple list accounts that could mean that you want to choose a multiple list account even if you only manage a single email list. One such feature is the ability to use your own domain to replace simplelists.com in your emails and for your landing pages - this enables you to brand the entire system as your own.
’Pay As You Go’ verses 'Unlimited Subscription’
If you are planning a one-off mailshot or have a short-term project that needs group email management then a Pay As You Go account is normally the best option.The exception is when you expect to send a huge amount of data through your account (for example, if your emails will contain large attachments). Under these circumstances, subscribing to an unlimited account for the duration of your project would be the most cost effective option.
If your email management needs are long-term or ongoing then an unlimited subscription is normally best. This is hassle free and enables you to send as much data as you want. However, if you use a small amount of data then a 10GB Pay As You Go data bundle should be more cost effective.
Pay As You Go Price Plans
All Pay As You Go price plans allow up to 20,000 list members - enough even for the biggest lists! You choose a plan based on the amount of data that you wish to send.
For short term projects or email campaigns of less than a month the 1GB and 3GB bundles are a good option - you can send approximately 48,000 plain text emails with a 1GB bundle and 144,000 with a 3GB bundle!
For long-term projects or email campaigns that last up to a year the 10GB bundle offers great value - at only $64 (£40 or €52) for the bundle that lasts an entire year this works out at just $5.33 (£3.33 or €4.33) for each month. This bundle enables you to send approximately 40,000 plain text emails per month, every month for a year!
For very large projects and campaigns the 30GB bundles offer enough data for some serious emailing with large lists.
To make things really simple we have a PAYG yearly data calculator which enables you to estimate the data required for your list - you can see it on our products page.
Unlimited Price Plans
Unlimited price plans are ongoing - you pay a monthly or yearly subscription and receive an unlimited data allowance. The subscription fee depends on the number of list members that you have - there are options for 1000, 5000, 10000 and 20000 members. The yearly subscriptions offer the best value and start at as little as $10 (£6 or €8) per month.
