Collecting emails, and email management

[CarolF]

Hi - I'm new.

I've just created a template site using Actinic V.8.4 to sell organic chocolate. I'm completely html illiterate, but nonetheless it only took me two weeks. So far so good! OK it's rather basic, but it works! Now I'm wanting to get on with the internet marketing.

Can anyone point me in the right direction to do the following:-

1. Easiest set-up for collecting registrants on the site and storing their email addresses
2. Easiest way to manage bulk emailings - de-dupe lists, record registrants and buyers and those who don't want to be mailed, suppress one list against the other, mail people so that they don't all get everyone elses email address, etc. None of this seems to be possible from within Actinic, so presumably involves exporting out to some other software. What do other people do?

Thanks

CarolF
http://www.chocolateorganic.co.uk

[leehack]

Upgrade your site to 8.5 is your first step as this is a much better platform and the newest version - it's free to do so.

1 - In the advanced guide it shows you how to add a newsletter option.

2 - The marketing tab within actinic will be your friend for this one.

[jont]

Welcome to the forum.

There are many posts on email campaigns and well worth a quick search on the forum. v8 allows you to harvest names and email addresses to be used in a 3rd party application such as GroupMail or a hosted mailing as offered by Pinbrook ... these provide plenty of management facilities for opting in, out, duplicates etc.

I personally use GroupMail (about £100.00) and it is a great tool and quickly pays for itself.

[CarolF]

Thanks - Groupmail is great

Thanks for your help on this. I've now spent a few happy days playing around with Groupmail and it works a treat.

CarolF

[ghepburn]

Ref message posted by leehack on 23 March 2007 - I have upgraded to V8.5 , can he give a bit more detail on the newsletter function and where I find the advanced guide.
Thanks

Gary H
http://www.KnickersRus.com

[pinbrook]

advanced guide

go to the download area of the actinic website

[jxm28788]

I'm just about to buy groupmail but need to understand how the opt-in process works first.

Bizarely the opt-in option is not available in the free version, and the paid version has no trial period or refund policy - so it's basically a case of buy it and if it doesn't work how you expect then tough...

So maybe someone can tell me before I part with any cash...

If I want a double optin (ie. the user fills in a form on my website, presses 'subscribe', and an automated email is sent to them asking them to confirm that they did indeed just add themselves), how is that handled by groupmail?

If that automated response needs to be sent imediately then do I have to keep my PC on 24/7 so that the email goes to groupmail on my PC? Or does it use the autoresponder features on many hosting packages? or does it use it's own servers to handle that part of the process? or some other method?