Every blogger should have an e-mail list. It helps you to stay connected with your readers, and it gives you an automatic list of leads whenever you have new products or services to sell (including affiliate products and advertising). Unfortunately, you can’t just ask for e-mail addresses and then add them to a contact list in your mail client like outlook or gmail. Not only is this horribly inefficient, but your e-mails are also likely to get blocked or banned as spam.

Using a mail client can help you manage your e-mail list, create professional messages, and ensure that your messages are delivered and read. There are many ways that you can add an e-mail list to your blog, but these are among the top 5 most popular providers:

Aweber

Probably the most popular autoresponder available, Aweber allows you to create e-mail newsletters, blog broadcasts, and more. You can also track your statistics to help you tailor your marketing efforts. Plans start at $19 a month for up to 500 subscribers.

Mail Chimp

Those who don’t use Aweber typically use Mail Chimp. The two services are very similar, and Mail Chimp offers all the same features as Aweber. You can get a forever free account for up to 2,000 subscribers, or you can choose a monthly plan that includes all the site’s features for $10 for up to 500 subscribers.

Constant Contact

Constant Contact offers you tools to build your e-mail list and to promote your events and your social media. You can use all of these tools in conjunction with one another, or you can just use the e-mail service.  E-mail campaigns start as low as $15 per month for up to 500 subscribers.

Campaign Monitor

Choose from dozens of beautiful templates to create your e-mail newsletters, set up autoresponders, and monitor your e-mail analytics with all the tools provided by Campaign Monitor. You can integrate your campaign with your social media and other sites, as well. Prices start at $9 for up to 2,500 messages for 500 subscribers, or $29 for unlimited messages.

Campaigner

Beginners to professionals will find the tools they need here, including templates for e-mail newsletters, options for managing subscribers, analytics to track your click-through rate, and much more. Pricing starts at $10 for up to 1,000 subscribers.
Each of these e-mail marketing clients offers you the tools to create custom opt-in forms to attract new subscribers. There are guides and videos showing you how to create these forms and add them to your blogging client. Installing your list is easy, so you can focus your efforts on growing your list for more efficient marketing of your blogs and products.
Do you use any of these mail clients? Do you use another client? Give us your feedback in the comments!
Lisa Shoreland is currently a resident blogger at Go college, where recently she’s been researching graduate degree grants and adhd scholarships. In her spare time, she enjoys creative writing and hogging her boyfriend’s PlayStation 3. To keep her sanity she enjoys practicing martial arts and bringing home abandon animals.