Why Use an Email Discussion List?

Posted on Sep 15, 2023

A man viewing emails on a laptop

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.

Screenshot of creating a 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.

Screenshot of adding a contact

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.

Screenshot of changing list settings

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.
  • Website integration - it’s quick and easy to integrate the sign-up form with your existing website. Learn more at our blog about adding a subscription form to your website.
  • 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.

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