Welcome! Below this message are the basic steps to create your own paid email newsletter.
You may have heard of Substack or some of the other companies that host paid newsletters, but you can actually set up your own operation, on your own website and have the money go directly into your own account without having to pay any commissions.
And here is a fun fact: I wrote and sold a program touting paid email newsletters over 8 years ago! I was one of the first and as you might expect fielded a lot of criticism. Who would ever pay for an email newsletter!
Hahaha. I was right. I sold a bunch of copies of that program and then the rest of the world caught up to me.
My point is to encourage you. If you have an idea that you want to sell to the market, follow through on your inspiration. If it is a paid email newsletter use the simple steps below. If it is something else that may be a little ahead of the curve as long as it is legal and constructive go right ahead.
Please note – there are 2 different methods described below. Make sure to read to the end to decide which method is best for you!
I also encourage you to sign up for our paid daily email. Every single day you will get the ideas you need to turn your million-dollar idea into a bona fide million-dollar business!
By clicking on the button below you are going to see the paid email newsletter “machine” in business. A Stripe pop-up will appear, you will put in your payment information, your email will be added to our list and you will start receiving our exclusive paid daily email newsletter!
It takes less than a minute for the magic to work. And I hope it inspires you to follow the steps below and create your very own paid email newsletter!
Basic Principles of How to Create Paid Email Newsletters!
METHOD 1
To run our paid daily email product, we use 4 components on the website. There are likely other ways to achieve the same results using different tools, but you can use this as a guide to understand how to set up your machine.
1. Email provider account
- This is to collect email address and set up an automated campaign
- I currently use AWeber but have used MailChimp in the past.
2. WordPress website
- Make sure you have an SSL certificate
3. Payment account
- Stripe or PayPal
3. Easy Digital Downloads (EDD)
- This software provider is one of the pioneers in selling digital products online. I have been a customer for about 10 years.
- To create a paid email product you need the following core components:
- Easy Digital Downloads (EDD) main plugin
- Email extension plugin – AWeber, MailChimp, or any of the others the company provides
- Recurring payments plugin
- Stripe Pro or Paypal Pro plugin
- I believe you can purchase these ala carte but I buy the Extended Pass. Current list price is $399 annually.
Basic instructions for creating a paid email newsletter using EDD
In your email provider do the following:
- Create a new list
- Create an automated campaign for that list
- It should be triggered by new subscriber
From your WordPress dashboard do the following:
- Install the 4 Easy Digital Download plugins
- Connect your email provider account to EDD
- Test and verify your payment provider connection to EDD
- Create a new EDD download in your WordPress installation.
- When setting up pricing, make sure to use the “recurring” function.
- Using the email provider widget on the right-hand side of the screen, select the paid email list you are selling to your customer.
- Once you save the EDD download you are able to use the product shortcode anywhere you are advertising your paid email product.
That’s really it. Do these simple steps and you have created your own personal Substack-style newsletter. Good luck!
Method 2
We also use this down and dirty, no-software method. It allows you to save the cost for the EDD software and features a link you can put anywhere on the web.
This method has 3 components:
- A Stripe payment account
- An AWeber email service account
- A Zapier account (free for 5 “Zaps”)
Basic instructions for creating a paid email newsletter using Zapier
- Have your Stripe account setup
- Create a monthly subscription product for your email service
- Create a payment link for your product
- Have your AWeber or other service setup – with a list from which you are going to send your premium emails
- Go to Zapier:
- Create a “Zap”
- Chooser Stripe and authorize Zapier to login to your account
- Then choose AWeber and then authorize it to connect to your list
- Test the “Zap.” If you have set it up correctly there should be a Zapier email on your list.
- When a customer clicks on your Stripe payment link, their email address will be added to your list!
Here is an example link for subscribing to our daily email product. Click to join the daily paid list if you haven’t already!
https://buy.stripe.com/bIYcQCarM3JBdO07sv