Module 14 - Creating HTML Newsletters

Do you want to make HTML or graphic emails? How about create a professional newsletter that you can email to your work colleagues? All for free? Is it asking for too much?




Not with an amazing online programme called Mailchimp! Mailchimp is a powerful 'freemium' marketing tool—which means that Mailchimp is free for some users and it charges more for others.

Basically, if you have under 1000 subscribers and don't plan to send more than 6000 emails per month, you can use Mailchimp for free.

It's a great tool for beginning digital activists, but it's very powerful and has a lot of features! Don't get nervous though—if you play around with it, you can make some really cool emails.

Let's get started!

1. Open an account
You can't do much with Mailchimp unless you sign up for an account!

Step 1: Go to www.mailchimp.com.
Step 2: Click the 'Sign up for free' icon, in the upper right corner or in the middle of the page.
Step 3: Fill in your details and click 'Create my account!'
Step 4: Check your email and click the 'Click to activate your account' button in the email from Mailchimp.
Step 4: Log into www.mailchimp.com with your new account!

2. Create a list (of people to send emails to!)

Now you need to put your email list on Mailchimp.

Step 1: After you're logged in, click 'Create a list' (by the number 1!) or 'Lists' on the top menu (between 'campaigns' and 'reports')

Step 2: Fill in a name for your list under 'list name' (e.g. newsletter subscribers; email contacts, master list, etc)

Step 3: Fill out a 'default from name' like the name of your organisation or your name and a default 'reply to' email (like yours or another email!)

Step 4: Write a short reminder how people got on your list (remember list etiquette!)

Step 5: Click 'add people' in the grey box and fill out  their information. Click 'subscribe' to add them to your list.

3. Create a campaign (or a mass email)
Mailchimp calls any email you send a 'campaign'. This could be a newsletter, invitation to an event, or just a friendly update on your organisation. Let's send your first campaign!

Step 1: Click the orange 'Create a Campaign' button on the homepage, or click 'campaigns' on the top menu (between 'dashboard' and 'lists'). Select 'regular ol' campaign'.

Step 2: Pick a list who you want to send your email to and click 'next' (in black, on the top or bottom of the screen).

Step 3: Fill out the campaign info, like message subject and email address. Click 'next' (in black on the top or bottom of the screen).

Step 4: Click  a template you like or go for 'design genius', which will create a template based on an image you upload, like your organisation logo. Try 'newsletter' if you don't know where to start!

Step 5: Customise your template by uploading a logo to the header or changing the colours. You can also add text to your newsletter/email now. Click 'next' (in black at the top or bottom of the screen) when you're happy with it.

Step 6: Look at the plain text version of your email. This is for people who can't get HTML emails. Check for typos and spelling mistakes! Click 'next' (in black at the top or bottom of the screen) when you're happy with it.

Step 7: You can send yourself a test email by click 'send test' (the second grey button), but remember, this also counts towards your 6000 emails per month, so don't go too crazy.

Step 8: When you're happy with your test email, click the orange 'send now' button at the bottom of the screen!

*NOTE: I recommend writing and saving your entire newsletter or email on Microsoft Word first so all you need to do is copy and paste it into Mailchimp. That way you don't risk losing anything if the Internet crashes.

Congratulations! You've sent your first campaign! You are well on your way to being a Mailchimp Star!

But don't worry if that was confusing! Mailchimp offers a lot of videos to explain its features. And even if you can never figure out how to use the website, there are still great, free online resources by Mailchimp you can download to help with your emailing needs.

Optional Task

1. Create a Mailchimp account.
2. Make a Digital Activists Spring 2011 list with all the emails of your coursemates.
3. Create your first campaign about your organisation. It's okay if it's not official, but make it professional so you can practice and try new skills.
4. Send a test email of your campaign to yourself.
5. Send your campaign to the Digital Activists Spring 2011 list.
6. Wait for feedback from your lovely coursemates on how great your work looks!