How to Add Email Subscriptions to Your WordPress Blog (2024 Guide)
Email marketing remains one of the most effective ways to connect with your blog audience, drive repeat traffic, and boost your business. By allowing readers to subscribe to receive updates from you via email, you can forge a direct line of communication that isn‘t dependent on fickle social media algorithms or walled garden platforms. Your email subscribers are yours.
But many bloggers and businesses fail to take advantage of the power of email. In this in-depth guide, we‘ll walk you step-by-step through how to easily add an email subscription option to your WordPress blog and start reaping the rewards of email marketing in 2024. Let‘s dive in!
Why Your WordPress Blog Needs an Email Subscription Option
There are many compelling reasons to prioritize building an email list from your WordPress blog:
Direct Connection to Readers – Unlike social media followings, no one can take away or limit your access to your email subscribers. It enables a direct, one-to-one channel of communication.
Repeat Traffic Driver – By emailing your list about new blog posts and content, you can drive repeat traffic to your site on command. No need to hope fans see your social post.
Relationship Building – Email is a much more personal medium vs social. It allows you to build a genuine relationship with your audience.
Sales Generator – Email converts better than other channels, with a 2022 eMarketer report showing an average return of $36 per $1 spent. As you make offers to your list, you can generate substantial sales.
Owned Audience – You own your email list as an asset. It‘s portable between email services and no one can revoke your access to it, unlike a rented social following.
With these benefits in mind, let‘s look at exactly how to add email subscriptions to your WordPress blog!
How to Add Email Subscriptions to Your WordPress Blog
The process of adding an email subscription option to your WordPress blog involves a few key steps:
Step 1: Choose an Email Marketing Service
The first thing you need is an email marketing service to manage your email list and send broadcasts. There are numerous options available, with some of the top choices for WordPress being:
- Constant Contact
- Sendinblue
- ConvertKit
- Mailchimp
- MailerLite
- Drip
- AWeber
For this guide, we‘ll demonstrate using Constant Contact, but the same general principles will apply to whichever email service you choose.
Constant Contact is one of the largest email marketing services in the world. It offers a great set of features for bloggers and small businesses:
- No-code drag and drop email designer
- Mobile-responsive templates
- Marketing automation
- Native integrations with WordPress and WooCommerce
- Landing pages
- Ecommerce marketing tools
- Signup form builder
- Analytics and reporting
Once you‘ve signed up for an account with Constant Contact, the next step is to create your first email list within the service.
Step 2: Create Your Email List
An email list is simply the database within your email marketing service that contains the email addresses and other info of people who have subscribed to receive your emails.
In Constant Contact, you create a new list by:
Click on the "Contacts" tab in the main navigation.
Select "Lists" from the sub-menu that appears.
Click the "Create List" button.
Enter a name and description for your list.
Click "Save" to create your new list.
Your list is where all your email signups will be funneled into from the WordPress subscription form we set up next.
Step 3: Create an Email Signup Form
The easiest way to create a subscription form for your WordPress blog is using a plugin like WPForms. While you can create a form using Constant Contact‘s built-in builder, a WordPress form plugin will offer more customization options and flexibility.
We‘ll use the premium version of WPForms for this example, which includes more advanced features and integrations, but there is also a free version available.
To create your email signup form with WPForms:
From your WordPress dashboard, go to WPForms » Add New.
Give your form a name and select the "Newsletter Signup Form" template.
Customize the pre-loaded form fields as desired, such as name, email, etc. You can drag and drop to rearrange or add fields.
Under "Settings » Confirmation", edit the default confirmation message users will see after submitting the form, if desired. You can also direct them to a thank you page.
Go to "Marketing » Constant Contact" and click "Add New Connection".
Give your connection a nickname and click "OK".
Click the link to connect your Constant Contact account and give WPForms permission.
Copy the authorization code and paste it into WPForms.
Under "List", select the email list you created in step 2 above.
Map the form fields to Constant Contact fields.
Save your form.
Your email subscription form is now ready to add to your WordPress blog!
Step 4: Embed Your Form in WordPress
The final step is to place the WPForms email signup form you created somewhere on your WordPress site where visitors can easily find it and subscribe.
Some common placements are:
Sidebar – Use a widget in your sidebar area.
Footer – Place a signup form in your blog footer.
Sticky Header/Footer Bar – Use a popup plugin to place a floating bar at the top or bottom of your site as users scroll.
Inline – Embed the form directly within certain blog posts or pages.
Lightbox Popup – Have an email optin popup appear on key pages.
To demonstrate, we‘ll place our WPForms email signup in the sidebar of our blog.
From your WordPress dashboard, go to Appearance » Widgets. Find the WPForms widget and drag it to your desired sidebar.
Within the WPForms widget settings, select the email signup form you created. You can also customize the title and description.
Finally, click "Update" or "Publish" and your email subscription form will appear in the WordPress sidebar!
Be sure to test submitting the form to ensure that signups are successfully being added to your Constant Contact email list.
Advanced Email List Building Strategies
While adding a simple signup form to your site is a good starting point, to really accelerate the growth of your email list, you‘ll want to implement more advanced tactics.
Some proven email list building techniques include:
Popup Optins – Use an exit-intent popup to capture signups from visitors as they are about to leave your site. Tools like OptinMonster make it simple to create high-converting popup campaigns without code.
Content Upgrades – Create bonus pieces of content that are highly relevant to specific blog posts and require an email signup to access. This increases conversions by offering a targeted lead magnet.
Gamification – Run giveaways, contests, and other interactive promotions that require an email signup to enter. This can generate a large number of new subscribers quickly when executed well.
Email Courses – Drip out an educational email course over several days or weeks to new subscribers, automatically. This is a great way to onboard new signups and build relationships.
Paid Subscription – Offer part or all of your email newsletter content as an exclusive paid subscription. Platforms like Substack make it easy to integrate paid email newsletters into WordPress.
The key with any list building tactic is to make sure you are attracting quality subscribers who are likely to engage with your emails and convert into customers down the line.
Also be mindful of global email regulations like GDPR, which require explicit consent from EU subscribers. Make sure you are following email compliance best practices.
Crafting High-Performing Email Newsletters
Having a large email list is only half the battle – you also need to make sure you are sending subscribers engaging newsletters that drive results for your business.
Some tips for creating effective email newsletters for your blog:
Send Consistently – Pick a regular schedule for your emails, such as every Wednesday, and stick to it. Consistency builds trust and enables your emails to become a anticipated part of subscribers‘ routines.
Use a Recognizable Sender Name – Make sure your "From Name" is easily recognizable as your brand, so subscribers aren‘t confused about who the email is coming from.
Write Engaging Subject Lines – The subject line is the most important part of your email, as it determines whether people will open and read it. Aim for 6-12 word subject lines that create curiosity and clearly convey a benefit to opening.
Craft Scannable Content – Most people quickly scan emails. Use short paragraphs, subheadings, bullet lists, and plenty of white space to make your newsletter content easily digestible.
Optimize for Mobile – Over 50% of email opens occur on mobile devices. Make sure your email template is mobile responsive and looks great on smaller screens. Send test emails and check across different devices.
Focus on Benefits – Don‘t just inform, but aim to deliver actionable insights, advice, and value that actually helps your subscribers achieve a goal or improve their lives in some way. Focus on benefits vs just features.
Include Strong CTAs – Every email should have a clear primary call-to-action, whether that‘s to click through to a new blog post, register for a webinar, or make a purchase. Put your main CTA in the first third of the email for maximum visibility.
Segment Your List – Not all subscribers are alike. Use tags and segments to group subscribers by interest, behavior, or other criteria. This allows you to send more personalized, relevant emails vs blasting the same message to everyone.
Clean Your List Regularly – Conduct periodic list hygiene to remove inactive and unengaged subscribers. This helps maintain good deliverability and sender reputation. Most email services have ways to easily identify and prune cold subscribers.
By following these email marketing best practices, you can ensure your WordPress blog‘s email newsletter becomes an indispensable resource for your audience, while also driving traffic and revenue for your business.
Get Started with Email Subscriptions Today
Building an email list is one of the most important things you can do to grow your WordPress blog sustainably for the long-term.
Rather than being at the mercy of Google search algorithm changes or social media fads, your email list becomes an owned audience that you can leverage in numerous ways. It gives you a direct line to your most loyal fans.
By following this guide, you now know exactly what you need to start offering email subscriptions on your WordPress blog.
Simply choose an email marketing service, create your list, integrate it with your WordPress site using a form plugin like WPForms, and start promoting your newsletter to grow your subscriber base.
Then focus on consistently delivering an amazing newsletter that subscribers can‘t wait to open and use more advanced list building strategies to scale your list more quickly.
Before long, email will become one of your most valuable marketing channels, and biggest drivers of traffic and revenue for your WordPress blog!
