When it comes to promoting your email list, there is no such thing as overexposure. I truly believe you should promote your email list at every opportunity.
This was something I kept in mind when I changed the design of this blog earlier this month. In addition to the sign up form I added to the header, I added a large email optin box underneath blog posts (screenshot below).
The sign up form is beautiful. You would expect the plugin that powers it to cost around $30, but it is actually available free from WordPress.org. Optin Forms, as it is called, was developed by Codeleon.
I was initially just testing the plugin out for a few days and was not sure whether I was going to use it long term. After adding a sign up form to my posts, I noticed that there was no way to disable the name field, therefore I asked the developer via WordPress.org how this could be achieved.
The developer of the plugin, Boris Beo, responded to my query quickly with an explanation of how to remove the name field using CSS. I am always impressed when developers of free plugins offer great support. I was even more impressed when he updated the plugin a few days later with an option to remove the name field directly through the settings area.
Optin Forms has native support for six email marketing services. Connecting the plugin to your list is straight forward. The steps are different for each service. For GetResponse I had to add the ID of the form I had created.
There are five forms in total. I am using the first design, however the other four designs look great too.
Below is a screenshot that shows designs two to five.
Every single element of the forms can be modified. You can change colours, fonts, field names, and the form of the width. The disclaimer text can also be modified.
The options area allows you to hide the form title, subtitle, name field, and disclaimer. Custom CSS can also be added if you want to style the form further.
I added my form after posts, however the plugin also lets you insert your sign up form after the first or second paragraph of any post or page. Forms can also be inserted into custom post types. As it stands, the setting for this is the same for posts. Hopefully a future version of the plugin will keep the option for posts and custom post types separate.
Forms can be excluded from specific posts and pages. You can also disable the form in posts or pages and insert the form using a shortcode.
Optin Forms is a great way of automatically inserting stylish newsletter forms directly into your posts and pages. I recommend you try it out if you are looking for a way to increase subscribers to your email list.
Hopefully Boris can continue development of the plugin and add more features such as the ability to add forms via widgets and PHP. I would love to see more styles and the option to import and export forms too.
Let me know your thoughts on the plugin in the comment area below :)
Kevin
