Overview

With our email feature, it is now possible to send marketing emails to the lists you've put together from your ShortStack campaigns. If you're wanting to send emails only to folks who have chosen to subscribe to your emails, you'll have to use the double opt-in feature; this allows people to choose to subscribe (or not) to your future communications. There are two ways to achieve this: To add an opt-in to an existing autoresponder, and to create an opt-in email from scratch.

Note: "Double Opt-In" refers to the fact that to be subscribed to your list, an entrant has to opt in twice. The first time is when they submit their information to their form, and the second time is when they click on the subscribe link in your email.

Contents

Step-by-Step Video
Adding an Opt-In to an Autoresponder
Creating an Opt-In Email From Scratch
Require Double Opt-In Checkbox

Video

Adding an Opt-In to an Autoresponder

Adding an opt-in (also known as a "subscribe link") to your autoresponder couldn't be easier; we've simply made it a merge field. If you don't already have an autoresponder set up, you'll want to start in the Campaign Builder. Click on the email icon (the envelope) at the top, then click New Email - this will automatically be connected to the Form Widget on your campaign.



Next, click the Autoresponder button.



Verify that the company profile is the one you want to use, then click Continue. If you want to select a different profile, just click the Choose Another button to select a different one.



Now you'll be asked if you'd like to use a template. If you'd rather not, you can just click Continue. Otherwise, hover over the template you'd like to use and then click Use This Template.



You'll then be looking at your email editor. Write and format your email, then leave a space where you'd like to insert your opt-in. To insert it, click on the Email Subscribe URL merge field on the left. You should see it insert the merge field into your campaign like so:

{{subscribe}}

Now, if you just add that merge field, your email recipients will see a big gnarly URL in their email. To make things a bit more presentable, we recommend you add the merge field to some linked text. Type out the text you want to use, highlight it, then click the chain link icon in the rich text editor to link it to a URL. You can then use the merge field in the URL field - you'll have to type it manually, since the merge fields won't be clickable with this pop-up showing. Once you've set it all up, click the Ok button.



When you're done editing your email, click on the blue Continue button.

Now you'll want to add the information for the Email Name, Email Subject, From Name and From Email Address (what will appear when the recipient receives the email). Click Continue when you're finished.



With that, you should be ready to send! Verify all of the information on the screen before you send anything out - you can always go back and edit it if you need to. A best practice is to send a test email before sending the autoresponder live. To do this, click the Send Test Email button.



Enter your email in the field provided, then click Send Email. You'll get a little confirmation that the email was sent, and from there you can click the blue Back to Summary button.



Within a few seconds, you should receive your test email - double-check it to make sure everything looks the way you want it to, as this is how the email will look when you send it out to your list.

Note: If you choose to send just the subscribe URL in your test email, the URL will not appear. It will appear for you when people submit the form in your live campaign.

Now you'll be back at your email summary. Click the Save & Activate button to activate the autoresponder and have it start sending your email to each person who submits the form on your campaign.



With that - you're done! Click the I'm Done button to go back to your Campaign Builder. 



When folks receive your autoresponder, they'll be able to opt in to your emails using the subscribe link. When you send out new emails to that specific list, you'll only be sending them to people who have subscribed. With that in place, you won't be upsetting people by sending them emails they never asked for - always a good practice. 

Creating an Opt-In Email From Scratch

Creating one of these emails from scratch is just as easy as setting up an autoresponder. In fact, most of the process is the exact same - you just start it in a different way.

Begin at your Dashboard, and click on the Emails link at the top.



This will bring you to your emails page. Click the blue New Email button to get started.



Here, you're select what kind of email you'd like to send - you can create an autoresponder, a follow-up email, or a scheduled email. Click the corresponding button for the type of email you want to create.



Verify that the company profile is the one you want to use, then click Continue. If you want to select a different profile, just click the Choose Another button to select a different one.



Now you'll want to select the list(s) to which you want to send your new email. Click Continue when you're finished.



After this is done, it'll lead you to the template gallery - you'll follow the exact same instructions as listed above from the template step onward. Click here to go directly to that step and follow along until completion.

Require Double Opt-In Checkbox

You may notice that when setting up a company profile, there is a checkbox at the bottom labeled Require Double Opt In?. If you check this box, it will ensure that your account sends emails only to subscribed entries when that company profile is selected.