The 2 Best Ways to Launch Email Marketing Campaigns on WordPress

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Do you have a WordPress website that you’ve been thinking of including email marketing into?

If you did, then you’re about to use one of the best marketing strategies for any online business.

It’s a little different on WordPress though, but don’t worry we’ll explain everything you need to know.

Let’s begin!

1. Why should you do email marketing with WordPress?

WordPress logo

Nowadays, you can find many platforms that offer email marketing services, allowing you to set up and automate email campaigns in an instant.

This is something that you can also do in WordPress, but only if you are using an email marketing plugin or platform.

It’s not complicated to get started and will differentiate your website from the competition.

The benefits of WordPress email marketing include:

It’s easy to start with — You only need to install the plugins in your WordPress dashboard
Saves you money — Email plugins cost less than an email platform
You own the data — Your contact list belongs to you, not to a third-party
Has native integration — Most WordPress plugins can be automatically integrated with other plugins for free
Work in one place — You don’t need to switch between different platforms

If you believe an email marketing platform is a better option, you should consider the following:

Integrating an email marketing platform to WordPress requires some technical skill, unless it has a plugin
The fees can depend on variables like the number of contacts, emails sent, and additional features that you might need
Some email platforms that offer WordPress plugins charge a second fee for using it
If something happens to your account and it gets deleted you’ll lose all your data

This doesn’t mean that email platforms are bad, but depending on what you’re looking for, it’s worth considering both options.

2. How to send marketing emails from your WordPress website

Before we go into how you can get started, first you need to know that email marketing revolves around a few things:

Building an email list
Segmenting contacts
Personalizing emails
Launching email campaigns and broadcasts
Automating email marketing strategies

The method you pick has to allow you to do the above-mentioned actions or you won’t see the same results as someone who does.

Also, to do email marketing with WordPress you’ll need a third-party email marketing tool.

It can be a WordPress plugin or an email platform, more about that below:

2.1. Method 1 — Install a WordPress email marketing plugin

You can integrate a WordPress email marketing plugin into your WordPress dashboard.

For this, you’ll need to install 2 types of plugins:

1. One to manage your contacts and send your emails

2. One to use an external email provider specialized in mass emailing

Follow these steps to install the plugins:

1. Log into your WordPress dashboard as Admin

2. Head to “Plugins” in the sidebar menu, select “Add new”

3. Search for “email marketing” or “newsletter”

4. Pick one, click “Install Now”, then “Activate”

If the plugin is free that’s all you have to do. If not, enter your payment details and then click “Install Now”.

Keep in mind that some plugins don’t have statistics included, so you’ll have to integrate Google Analytics into your campaigns.

Most plugins are either free or have a free plan, so you can test different plugins and then choose which one to use.

2.2. Method 2 — Use another email marketing platform

Probably the most common choice because these platforms have perfected their tools for launching, running, and automating email campaigns.

Their servers are also made to send mass emails, unlike regular email providers.

For that reason, they’re still preferred among marketers, bloggers, and businesses, and they also know how to keep your emails away from the spam folder.

To use emailing platforms, follow these 4 steps:

1. Choose an email marketing platform with a WordPress plugin

2. Make your account on the platform

3. Install the plugin

4. Build your list and launch your campaigns

It’s that simple, but only if the email marketing platform has a WordPress plugin.

To install the plugins from these platforms, follow the same steps as in Method 1 but with a slight difference:

1. Make an account in the email marketing platform you chose

2. Log into your WordPress dashboard as Admin

3. Head to “Plugins” in the sidebar menu, select “Add new”

4. Search the plugin of the email marketing platform you chose

5. Click “Install Now”, then “Activate”

Before getting into the best email marketing plugins we need to mention the worst email marketing methods that you must avoid.

2.3. WordPress emailing methods to avoid

2 other methods can be used for email marketing, but you must never implement them.

If you do, your emails will be flagged as spam and your WordPress website will lose credibility.

The 2 methods you must never use are:

1. Your host’s SMTP server or WP mail SMTP

2. Regular email providers (Gmail, Outlook, Yahoo, etc.)

You must never use your host’s SMTP for email marketing, for 3 reasons:

1. Spammers use them — They don’t require authentication, so most email providers regard emails from those sources as spam

2. Shared hosting — On shared hosting, other people will have the same IP address as you, so if one of them is sending spam emails, then your emails will be seen as spam as well

3. Specialization — Web hosts aren’t specialized in email marketing, so you won’t get any of the main features

You won’t get features like:

Statistics
Contact management
Automation
Segmentation

These are some of the most beneficial features email marketing has, and not having them will limit what you can do.

On the other hand, using an email provider like Gmail, Outlook or Yahoo might be tempting for its familiarity, but it’s not recommended, because they were made for personal use, not marketing.

Sending bulk emails from these providers could be seen as suspicious activity by the recipient (since it’s sent from a personal and not a business email) and be flagged as spam.

A business email domain name would look like this:

Source: FitSmallBusinesses

Besides, there are some serious limitations in using these email providers for email marketing.

For example:

You can only send a limited amount of emails per day
There’s a limit on how many contacts you can have
You can’t automate or personalize your emails
There are no statistics or A/B Testing
Poor management and segmentation
No unsubscribe feature

Sending emails from one of these providers is often seen as unprofessional, so even if the recipients receive the email they might not trust the source.

That’s why we recommend using either an email marketing plugin or an email marketing platform like the ones we’ll mention in a moment.

3. The best email marketing plugins for your WordPress site

WordPress’ email marketing plugins

For you to do email marketing in your WordPress blog or website you need a third-party email marketing service, like a plugin or email platform.

However, there are a vast number of WordPress email marketing plugins.

We made a list of plugins that we consider to deliver the best email marketing services that will grow your WordPress site:

3.1. Mailster

Mailster logo

Mailster is one of the most beloved WordPress email marketing plugins.

It’s a premium plugin used to deliver newsletters as well as launch email marketing campaigns.

With the Mailster plugin, you can:

Drag and drop email campaigns
Use mobile compatible designs
Easily integrate it with other WordPress plugins
Use advanced analytics to improve your campaigns
Automate your campaigns

Because Mailster can easily integrate with popular WordPress plugins, like WooCommerce or MemberPress, it can work on different types of websites.

The analytics feature will show you:

Open rates
Click-through rates
Unsubscribes
Bounces

The best part of Mailster is that it has a one-time fee of $89.00, while most email marketing services have a monthly fee.

3.2. Sumo List Builder

Sumo List Builder logo

Sumo List Builder is probably one of the best email marketing plugins with the most advanced drag-and-drop builder.

However, you should know that it’s a little different from other WordPress email plugins.

Because after installing this plugin, you can choose the apps you want to use for your WordPress website.

This means that Sumo List Builder is a collection of marketing apps from which you pick the ones that suit your needs.

With Sumo List Builder, you get:

An easy-to-use drag-and-drop builder
Several templates to choose from
Mobile-responsive templates
Simple integration with other email marketing services
A friendly user interface

Sumo List Builder has a Free version ready for you, but to use their advanced features, you’ll have to upgrade to the Premium version for $49/month.

With the Premium version you can:

Do A/B testing
Remove Sumo List Builder branding
Use the advanced email integrations
Work with their ecommerce templates
See advanced analytics

3.3. HubSpot

HubSpot logo

HubSpot’s one of the most popular WordPress email marketing services that’s also one of the best CRM tools on the market.

Combining this email marketing solution with your WordPress blog will help generate and manage your leads.

HubSpot’s WordPress plugin allows you to:

View information from your HubSpot CRM without leaving your WordPress dashboard
Use a drag-and-drop editor to create sign-up forms
Design pop-up opt-in forms
Launch email campaigns directly to your contact lists from your WordPress dashboard
Set up a live chat to interact with your visitors
Connect analytics to your CRM
Automate your newsletter and marketing campaigns

This plugin is recommended for WordPress users that want to use a free plugin that’s also a powerful CRM tool with automation and other key features for email marketing.

3.4. Sendinblue

Sendinblue logo

Sendinblue is a popular email marketing service that also has an official WordPress plugin offering every email marketing feature you’ll need for your site.

However, installing Sendinblue’s WordPress plugin will only help to synchronize users between both platforms.

This means that you’ll still have to create your email on Sendinblue.

You can manage everything from WordPress if you also install the plugin AcyMailing.

This free plugin will allow you to send emails and launch campaigns from WordPress using Sendinblue.

With Sendinblue’s plugin you get:

Subscription forms — Integrate custom subscription forms in your posts, pages, and sidebar
Contact list management — Segment and manage subscribers to your email list
Mobile friendly drag-and-drop builder — Make emails and newsletters for all devices
Real-time reports — Use advanced tracking to collect data and improve campaigns
Marketing automation — Automate and launch campaigns

Currently, the plugin supports 2 languages — English and French.

3.5. Mailchimp

Mailchimp logo

Mailchimp is one of the most popular email marketing services to build a contact list and launch campaigns.

The platform is beginner-friendly and so is its WordPress plugin — it’s a good choice if you already have a Mailchimp account.

Mailchimp has features for:

Segmenting customers based on purchase history
Automating emails to remind customers about items they left in their cart, engage with clients, and send post-purchase emails
Integrating with WooCommerce and adding discount codes
Collecting and viewing customer data on your Mailchimp dashboard
Embedding a subscription form to get leads
Creating landing pages that’ll highlight your products

If you have an ecommerce business built with WordPress and WooCommerce that wants to use email marketing to grow then Mailchimp is a great option.

The free version of their plan is great to get started on, but you’ll have to upgrade once your subscriber count grows past 2,000 users.

4. Systeme.io as the best all-in-one alternative

systeme.io logo

Systeme.io is not a WordPress email plugin, but rather a complete email marketing solution where you can build and monitor your website.

With us, you won’t need any plugins or third-party services because it’s an all-in-one platform that has everything you need.

Systeme.io is an affordable solution for blogs, ecommerce stores, and online businesses alike — and has advanced email marketing features like:

Launching email campaigns — Set up all kinds of email campaigns ready to promote, grow and maintain your website
Autoresponders — Lifting some work from your shoulders and launching email marketing campaigns
Lead segmentation — For dividing your email list into groups with common interests to send engaging content to each one
Detailed analytics — Track all the necessary metrics in real-time and measure the success of your campaigns

Systeme.io also has tools to capture leads, build sales funnels, edit websites, gather affiliates, create webinars, and more.

systeme.io’s features

The best part is that our Free and paid plans have unlimited emails, so no matter what you pick, you’ll be able to send as many emails as you need to your email list.

systeme.io’s pricing plans

Migration to systeme.io is possible with an annual subscription, but if you’re not sure, try our Free plan and see for yourself!

5. Conclusion

If you want to use email marketing for your WordPress site, you’ll need to install one of the WordPress email marketing plugins available.

These plugins will allow you to monitor everything from your WordPress site as you launch and automate email campaigns that will grow your website.

Some plugins are from email marketing platforms that perfected their tools to cover everything you need to launch a successful email campaign.

On the other hand, systeme.io is an all-in-one solution that has every tool needed to build and launch your website.

Whether it’s a blog, ecommerce store, or online business, you can build it and launch automated email campaigns to capture leads.

You won’t need to pay for different plugins, instead, you can have it all at an affordable price.

Are you ready?

Then sign up with us and see your website skyrocket!