Email Marketing Made Easy with Constant Contact

One of the most important things about blogging, is keeping your followers engaged. Whether that be with blog posts, social media shares, or emails- it is the #1 way to keep your blog growing and going in the right directing. A lot of bloggers tend to focus on social media and leave out email marketing all together. That means that they are missing out on tons of followers who either don’t check social media daily, or simply don’t have social media at all. Growing an email list is absolutely crucial to keeping your blog going in the right direction. By sending out emails regularly, fans will continue to view your page instead of stopping by every once in a blue moon. Let’s say that you collect 25,000 email addresses and only 20% of those people actually open and navigate through your email. That is still 5,000 MORE people viewing your content than before! If someone signs up for your email list chances are that they are already fans of your work. That means that they are looking forward to reading more about what you have to say! 

When I first set up my email list, I had absolutely no idea what I was doing. How do I even start to gather information, and what content/how often should I send marketing emails out? Constant Contact is a great way to get your information in front of your readers. The website offers powerful email marketing in a simple, yet effective way that all bloggers can understand.  Constant Contact offers users a limited-time free-trial so that bloggers can get a feel of exactly how easy the platform is to use. There are no credit cards required to test out the website program. Once you verify your information, you will be directed to the Constant Contact dashboard where you can customize template, manage contacts, read reports, and access forms/welcome emails. There is also a link that allows you to get coaching and support as you get used to the platform. So, if you’re an email newbie like me, the Constant Contact team is there every step of the way to help you out! I even got a phone call after signing up asking me if I had any questions about the platform!  If you already have an email list, you can import all of your current contacts to the Constant Contact platform. If not, setting up a prompt on your website (such as wordpress) would be a great start to collecting your visitors information. Easily create a “sign up” form offering followers good incentives and latest updates. I place my sign-up form at the very front of my webpage so it is easy to locate.

 After exploring your options and importing your email list, you can go straight to creating your first email. Constant Contact offers an easy drag-and-drop style design to personalize your email and content 100%. I began creating my 2018 Holiday Gift Guide email which will be going out at the end of the month. As you can see in the image below, the template was pre-typed and I simply need to edit and insert my personal details. From there I will send myself a test email, check for errors, view how the email will look on all devices (mobile and desktop), and schedule the email to go live. There are even features that allow you to track your open rate, and links that are clicked. One of my favorite Constant Contact features, is being able to send out two versions of the same email to compare which style did better. This helps me collect more information when I am designing future emails!

Starting an email list is not nearly as complicated as some bloggers make it out to be, and since Constant Contact offers a 60 day free trial you can test your hand at it before commiting to an actual plan. Depending on how many email contacts you have, Constant Contact prices currently range from $20/month (1-500 contacts) to $225/month (15K-25K contacts).  They also offer Email and Email plus packages depending on exactly what you need. Whether you are just starting out or have been blogging for years, start building your email list as soon as possible! The earlier you start growing your fanbase, the better your chances are of succeeding with Email marketing!

So, are you thinking of trying your luck with email marketing? Head over to ConstantContact.com and start your free trial today.