Create an opt-in campaign
An opt-in campaign is different than the regular email campaign in that the recipient will be asked to agree to receive or continue receiving messages from you.
To create an opt-in campaign, click on Campaigns > Manage campaigns. Here you will be able to see all the campaigns you have created so far, ordered by category.
Click on the Create new campaign button and select Create new opt-in campaign from the drop-down menu.
On the first page, you will need to fill in the name of your campaign, the subject line, the sender data and the message you want to send. You will need to use an opt-in message. An opt-in message needs to be provided with a link where the contacts can click on, to give their approval. In order to create an opt-in message, you should add the #opt-in# placeholder in that message. This placeholder will take care of the necessary link. Note that you have to use a validated email sender address. You can use a previously validated email address or you can add a new one by clicking the Add a new sender button.
As a sender address, you can also use a placeholder instead of an email address. Flexmail will check if there is a validated email address linked to the placeholder you've selected and the message will be sent with the email address corresponding to that field. This is very useful if you need your campaign to be sent with a specific sender email address for different contacts.
Before continuing to the next step, we recommend that you check the box Update this campaign with the latest version of my message. This option is very important if you plan or save a campaign and you subsequently change your message or if you make changes to your message while creating a campaign. By checking this box you will make sure that your contacts will receive the most recent version of your message. Otherwise the old version of your message will be forwarded. After you have filled in all the necessary information click on Next.
Next, you will have to choose which segments receive your campaign. You also have the option to exclude certain segments by clicking the on Exclude button. Your campaign will not be sent to the contacts you have chosen to exclude. Click on Next to continue.
Attention While sending an opt-in campaign all the recipients are being deactivated in the database (their status is considered to be inactive). When contacts click on the opt-in link and give their approval to start or continue receiving your messages, these contacts are being activated in the database (their status changes to active). Contacts who don't specifically give their approval will remain inactive and will no longer receive your messages in the future. This is the opt-in process.
On the next page, you will find an overview of your campaign. Make sure to verify that all data is correct. Except the overview of your campaign, here you can choose to set up an AB test by clicking on the AB testing button. An AB test can help you choose the best features for your campaign. If you do not wish to set up an AB test, click on Next.
- In the final step of creating your campaign you can choose to:
- Save the campaign
- Send campaign now
- Send campaign at a specified time
You can also insert one or several email addresses to automatically receive a confirmation email when the campaign has been sent.
Warning Your campaign must contain an unsubscribe link in order to be sent.