Step 3 – Setup Email Marketing For Your Blog
Don't skip this important step. (Video Below)
Please set up your email marketing from the very beginning as it's one of the pillars for a successful blog.
- Signup for an email marketing account. (FREE trial) (Remember to use this link so you can get help setting it up from our technical team)
- Setup your first list in the email marketing account
- Setup subscription form on your blog.
- (Optional) Hide the disclosure that shows your address in your form.
Login to your WordPress dashboard and navigate to Appearance->Customize->Additional CSS.
You can enter custom css code regardless of what theme you will be using. Copy the code below and hit publish. This will hide the disclosure that displays your address.
/* ## CTCT Disclosure
——————————————— */
.ctct-disclosure
{
display:none;
}
Now, we will guide you through the process of setting up your email marketing account and creating an opt-in form for your blog so you can grow your mailing list.
Why Constant Contact? It is one of the best tools in the market, has a drag and drop builder feature, which makes it super simple and easy to use and has no cost to you.
Let’s get started!
3.1. Click here to be directed to Constant Contact on a separate tab.
This is what your screen should look like:
Click the “Sign Up Free” button on the top right corner.
3.2. Now, let’s fill in our details to create an account.
Make sure you use a password you will remember. Save it somewhere with all the other passwords you use for your blog.
Whenever you are ready, scroll down to the bottom of the page and click “Get Started”.
Now that our account is all set, you will be directed to the dashboard.
3.3. Now, let’s add a contact to your list. Contacts are the most important part of your email marketing campaign since they are your target audience and the people who actually engage with your content and propel your blog to grow.
Whenever you start the challenge, you get into a Constant Contact list with all the other 30 Day Blog Challengers which means all of the challengers will soon get your emails.
For now, let’s show you how to add a single contact on Constant Contact. Click “Contacts” from the menu bar on the top of the page.
Click “Contacts” from the menu bar on the top of the page.
3.4. You will be directed to the Contacts page, as shown below. Click “Add Contacts”.
3.5. On this list you can find all the different methods to add contacts, all of them super easy and intuitive. For now, let’s click “Create a new contact”.
3.6. Insert Matt’s email address: matt@30dayblogchallenge.com. Whenever you are ready, click “Continue”.
3.7. Now, fill in the Basic Details gaps as shown above. You don’t need to add any other details for now. Under the permission section, click “Express Permission”.
Select “General Interest” on the lists on the right hand side and click “Create”.
3.8. Now that the details have been saved, click the exit icon on the top right corner.
3.9. This is your contacts dashboard, where you can find your active contacts, their details and your list growth.
Now that you added a contact, let’s create our first email campaign! Click the “Create” button as below.
3.10. This list shows all the options you can create using Constant Contact. Let’s start by creating an email.
3.11. You will be redirected to a template list. There’s a lot of great templates that you can explore. Scroll down and choose “Blank Template” so we can start with a clean slate and explore all of Constant Contact’s drag and drop building options.
3.12. This is what your screen should look like. This is a drag and drop builder so you can click and drag any of the items on the left side menu and drop them on the workspace.
3.12.1. There’s an image already there, so let’s add some text. Drag the text icon and drop it below the image, whenever you get a pink line on the bottom of the workspace
3.12.2. The text looks good! Now, let’s drag the space icon and drop it below the text.
3.12.3. Now that we have some space, let’s add an action button. An action button propels the user to take whatever action you want them to take.
3.12.4. This button says “Visit our website” but you can click on it to change the text. You can also change the font, size, color, add a link, the options are endless! Click any of the other elements to explore their options.
3.12.5. If you scroll down on the left side menu, you can find different layouts that already have different elements together.
3.12.6. Let’s try and see what they look like. Drag one of the layouts and drop in the workspace. How cool is that?
3.12.7. Now, let’s change the name. Click the name section and name it “Sample Email”.
3.12.8. Let’s save our email and click “Continue”.
3.13. Now, let’s make sure all info in the campaign is correct. Whenever you are ready, scroll down.
3.14. If you haven’t verified your email, you will have to do so to be able to send your first campaign. Open your email on a separate tab, check Constant Contact’s verification email and click the link.
You can then come back to this page, refresh it and your email will be verified.
3.15. Continue scrolling down and fill in your address details. Whenever you are ready, click “Send Now”.
3.16. Once again, click “Send Now”.
3.17. This is the process to send out your email campaigns whenever you start the challenge. The more readers join your mailing list, the more results you will be able to achieve and you can track it all on your dashboard.
Now, let’s head to WordPress and connect your Constant Contact account with your blog.
3.18. Hover over Plugins and click Add New.
3.19. Write “Constant Contact” on the search bar and click “Install Now” on the Constant Contact Forms plugin. Then, click “Activate”.
Now that the Constant Contact plugin is installed, you can find it on the menu on the left bar.
3.20. Now, let’s connect your account to the plugin. Click the “Connect Your Account” button.
You will be redirected to the Constant Contact page.
3.21. Fill in with your details and click “Log In”.
3.22. Now that your account is connected, let’s add an opt-in form to your blog so you can grow your mailing list. Under the “Constant Contact” menu on the left bar, click “Add Form”.
3.23. Let’s fill in the gaps. Let’s name the form “Opt-In” and let’s write “Join my mailing list to get all my latest posts”.
3.24. Scroll down, change the text in the button for “Sign up” to “Join Me”. Next, let’s enable the Opt-in checkbox.
3.25. Keep scrolling down. In the “Form Fields” section, let’s click “Add Another Field” so we can add a field for the name.
3.26. On the new field, select “First Name” and check the required box. Afterwards, press the “Move Up” button.
3.27. Whenever you are finished, scroll up and click “Publish”.
3.28. Now, let’s add the form to your blog.
Under Appearance, click “Customize”.
3.29. Select “Theme Settings” from the menu.
3.30. Select “Site Layout”.
3.31. From the layouts, choose the Content, Primary Sidebar one and click “Publish”.
Now, click the arrow on the left hand side.
3.32. Back on the menu, select “Widgets”.
3.33. Select “Primary Sidebar”.
3.34. Click the “Add a Widget” button and select “Constant Contact Form”.
3.35. Select your Opt-In form, click “Done” and “Publish”.
Yey! As you can see, your blog is already updated with it on the right side column. You now have your Opt-In form ready for people to join you!
Why Email Marketing?
You are only one blog post away. Well that is what happened to me… we were getting under 50 hits a day until we wrote one piece that went viral.
Actually, so much so that our blog crashed (a great problem to have).This was the turning point.Traffic steadily rose as time went on, but we were n’t making much money at all. A few affiliate sales here and there.
People in our network began asking us for advice on starting a blog.
So, we decided to put together a little virtual coaching program. We mapped it out and was really excited about it. And that is when it hit us… Looking at my stats, we realized over a quarter of a million people had visited our site.
But, wait … how would we contact them?
we had no way to contact them.250,000 people and not one email address captured to announce that we were launching a coaching program. How did we miss this?
A million dollars later and thirty thousand plus people on our email list today, it’s easy to tell you the power of an email list. We see bloggers making BIG money with tiny 100 and 1,000 person lists.
Now, we wouldn’t say that all that work was a waste. But, we will say it felt like starting over because all it would have taken is having a simple little opt-in form on my site for people to enter their email in.
You can make money from affiliate programs which we will show you how later in this challenge. But if you want to amplify that, you need to build an email list. End of story.
Imagine being able to write an email and have it go out to your most loyal followers.
How many people to you envision on your list? 100? 1,000? 10,000? 100,000? Where they take your suggestions. Where they buy your products. Where they support your causes. Your own community.
This is the long game. You may not want to monetize right now nor even know how. And that is actually a good thing. If your blog looks like a big billboard for ads, people might not want to come back.
But, you don’t want to be in a position to where you are months down the road and starting over like I was when you have something you want to offer to your audience.
To wrap up, please set up your email marketing from the very beginning as it's one of the pillars of a successful blog.
- Signup for an email marketing account. (FREE trial) (Remember to use this link so you can get help setting it up from our technical team)
- Setup your first list in the email marketing account
- Setup subscription form on your blog.
- (Optional) Hide the disclosure that shows your address in your form.
Login to your WordPress dashboard and navigate to Appearance->Customize->Additional CSS.
You can enter custom css code regardless of what theme you will be using. Copy the code below and hit publish. This will hide the disclosure that displays your address.
/* ## CTCT Disclosure
——————————————— */
.ctct-disclosure
{
display:none;
}