How to choose your author newsletter platform
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Ready to start an author newsletter? Great: you’re about to gather an email list of interested people and maybe even keen fans. This gives you permission to send news, book releases, and special offers directly to their inbox. It’s an important and worthwhile part of getting your book - and future books - to the right readers.
Even though setting up your email provider might feel like just one more thing on your to-do list, you’ll save time and effort in the long run if you give your choice of newsletter platform some serious thought. You can certainly move your email list later, if you need to, but it’s better to avoid the headache of migrating by choosing wisely at the beginning.
Why does your author newsletter need an email list service?
If you’re new to email marketing, you might wonder: can you simply build your author platform by sending messages from your regular email program, such as Gmail, Microsoft Outlook, or Apple Mail?
No: this is a big mistake. Here’s why:
It’s simply not cool to bombard your friends and extended family with writing news. Even if they’re excited for your book and generally supportive, you mustn’t assume they’re going to want every communication you send out. Your book is a business activity and it’s not only rude, but possibly illegal to misuse your contacts like this.
You need an easy, automated way for new subscribers to join your author email list. Equally, when someone decides they don’t want this type of message, the law requires an easy, single-click way to unsubscribe. Using a proper email list service lets you do this without making individual updates yourself.
You can integrate the email signup process into your website, so that a web visitor has an easy, obvious way to choose to hear from you. This is a great Call to Action before they leave your site.
Depending on the plan you choose, your email platform allows you to send an automated welcome sequence of messages to new subscribers. When done well, this is a highly effective and friendly way to introduce someone to your work.
It costs much less than you might think. When you’re just getting started, there are reasonable options available for free.
Even though we’re using the word “newsletter” here, I passionately believe you shouldn’t simply put join my newsletter on your website. Here’s why not and what to do instead!
How to choose the best newsletter software for you
When deciding on a newsletter platform, many authors only look at the price and number of subscribers allowed. But there are other important factors in making your choice, not least because your needs will change as your author business grows.
I encourage you to take into account:
How easy is it to set up your mailing list and integrate the sign up form into your website?
> Unless you’re comfortable with technology, you’ll want this to be as simple as possible. Most email providers will show you the code to add to your website, but you’ll need to know where and how to add it. And the signup form might not be designed to your liking. I strongly encourage you to decide on your website platform either before, or at the same time as choosing an email provider.
Related: How to choose between WordPress, Squarespace, and Carrd.How easy is it to actually send an email to your subscribers?
> I’m coming to believe that this is the most important aspect of making your choice. The best email service for you is the one you’ll actually use. It’s well worth investing in some basic training if you’re not sure what to do, once your author email list is set up.Are you allowed to send from an email address such as authorname@gmail.com, or does the provider insist that you send from a domain name such as me@authorname.com ?
> Sending from a verified domain name tends to improve delivery rates. See the next point.What level of deliverability does the provider achieve?
> Deliverability, in basic terms, is the likelihood that your message will land in the subscriber’s inbox, instead of being routed to their spam folder. When you use an email list service for your author newsletter, your messages will be sent from that company’s servers. And if other people using your provider keep getting flagged as spam, it hurts your chances for getting emails delivered. You want your communications to land in your subscriber’s inbox instead of their junk folder. so, there’s no point in signing up for a cheap or free email service, if hardly any of your emails actually make it through.If you don’t yet have a website, does the email provider allow you to create a landing page where you can begin to gather sign ups?
> I warmly encourage you to establish at least a basic website to serve as the home base for all of your marketing, but if you don’t yet have that, look for an email service that gives you a simple page for that purpose. Caution: don’t go putting this link into all of your books, as you’ll soon want to replace it with your own web address. And don’t create a short link that you can’t later change, for the same reason.
Related: see my website design packages here, including a one-page starter website.What’s the monthly cost for the entry level plan? How sharply does the price rise, if you exceed that?
> Most authors pay far too much attention to this price and the number of subscribers you can have before paying more. In honesty, if your email list grows past this limit, it’s usually a great problem to have! Nonetheless, costs and value do vary, so keep an eye on what happens next.If you want to send an automatic welcome message (or sequence) to subscribers, does this need a higher plan?
> As a minimum, it’s a great idea to send an initial welcome message when someone joins your author email list. Not only do you (probably) want to deliver their freebie or lead magnet, but it’s a great way to set the scene, link to your book(s), and let the reader know what to expect. This email needs to go out automatically, without you lifting a finger. Even better, many authors choose to send a short welcome sequence consisting of a series of messages.Can you add someone else to your account, for example a Virtual Assistant or your web designer?
> If you’re working with a website professional like me, or a VA, it’s wonderful for them to create their own account with the access they need to your email list. If your provider doesn’t offer this, you might be forced to share your password, which is far from ideal.What reporting and analytics can you access, to understand your subscribers better and/or segment them?
> Most new authors overlook this, but as your reader list grows, it can be enormously helpful to see who is most engaged, who is a “cold” subscriber, and whether your new subscribers stick around or not. You might want to segment your VIP readers, to contact subscribers in certain locations if you have an event there, and so on.What other integrations do you need? For example, if you use BookFunnel, check how easy it is to team this with your email list. I recently explored and ruled out MailerLite for my own list, because the integration that I need with MemberVault was too clunky. Many tools these days can talk to each other using third party wizardry (Zapier is best known), but this is one more thing to get your head around, and one more monthly fee. It’s better to find a pairing that integrates easily, in a few easy clicks.
A comparison of popular newsletter platforms
Researched in spring 2022
So, what’s the best email list service? I have used all 4 of these newsletter tools and offer the following summary of important considerations:
2023 update: Substack
Some authors are now talking about Substack as their “email list”. Substack is a very simple form of email marketing, but it might appeal if you’re a beginner and craving ease of use. Read more about the Pros and Cons of Substack.
My conclusions on the best newsletter software for authors:
If your website is on Squarespace and you want to keep things easy and intuitive, you’ll save time and stress by using it for your email list too. However, it’s not free: I recommend you budget $10 per month.
ConvertKit is the easiest service to use but the free plan is only a good fit if you definitely don’t want automations or analytics. If you do, I feel the paid plans are rather expensive for what you get. I use ConvertKit for my own email list: my email automation needs are a little more complex and it integrates well with MemberVault, which I love for my products and courses. But for most authors: I think you can do better elsewhere.
Mailchimp is very popular but not easy to use. If you’d like a welcome sequence or need a consistent, intuitive interface, look elsewhere.
MailerLite offers the most impressive free plan and it’s reasonably easy to use. Note that if your website is on Squarespace, you’ll need the Squarespace Business Plan for seamless integration.
Substack might be OK if you are willing to sacrifice long-term business features for an easy life now. Related: Pros and cons of Substack, and how to embed your Substack sign up form on a Squarespace page
My top picks if you’re just getting started with an author email list:
Best free newsletter service: MailerLite. With up to 1000 subscribers on the free plan and free automations, this is an attractive option. I am not a MailerLite affiliate.
Best for ease, if you have a Squarespace website: Squarespace. I am a Squarespace affiliate.
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