Imagine outsourcing your email marketing to a group that has the infrastructure and technology required to make it simple. Their solutions interact with your platform to give you the resources you need to specifically target audiences with your email marketing. Sounds too good to be true right? Well, it’s actually too good NOT to be true. Introducing: Mailchimp, one of the most well-known ESPs.

Businesses that offer email marketing and distribution services to your company are known as email service providers (ESPs). ESP integration might provide your company an edge over the competition and allow you to tailor your campaigns to your target market. You can construct subscriber lists to create more targeted emails or do analytic evaluations to evaluate the success of your email campaigns, depending on the service provider you select. There are tons of ESPs out there, including Mailchimp.

Why Mailchimp?

With the help of Mailchimp’s all-in-one platform, you can manage and communicate with your clients, customers, and other interested parties. Their marketing strategy emphasizes sound contact management procedures, gorgeously designed campaigns, and effective data analysis. Mailchimp offers a robust lineup of features within the scope of CRM and marketing automation, but there are many third-party apps that Mailchimp connects with in order to offer users connectivity to their CRM, social media apps, ecommerce stores, and a lot more!

This article will go over the foundational ins and outs of Mailchimp, like setting up your account, integrating your apps, and how to effectively get started. Let’s dive in!

Please note Marketerhire is not receiving paid compensation for this article by Mailchimp or others.  We have written this due to questions we have received from marketers.

Set up your Mailchimp account

Before you start this process, you should be aware of the following.

• Since Mailchimp is a web-based application, you don't need to download or install any software, but your web browser must be compatible with their criteria.‍
• Google Chrome.

• Mozilla Firefox.
• Safari (11 and above).
• Microsoft Edge.

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• An email address that will be connected to the account must be provided. It should be an email address you have access to because they will use it to contact you.
• Your Mailchimp username cannot be used more than once.
• All emails must contain a physical mailing address. This could be a P.O. box or any other address where you can receive mail. (Reference)
• You may sign up without a credit card because every account starts out on our Free plan. They'll require your credit card details if you decide to upgrade to a paid plan or buy add-ons. They are unable to accept checks, e-checks, or bank transfers from users outside of the United States.

 As stated above, your name and email address are required when creating a Mailchimp account, and Mailchimp will send you an activation email after that. Click the link in the activation email you get to start the account activation process.

Set up your audience

A clear, up-to-date list of your contacts, also known as your audience, is the cornerstone of excellent marketing. Mailchimp will use the setup information you provide when you create a Mailchimp account to automatically construct your audience for you. If necessary, you can change the audience's default information, or you can start adding contacts right away.

Because of how Mailchimp was built, you should only require one audience. They offer several useful audience management tools that can help you categorize and separate contacts. Remember that contacts who are in multiple audiences will count individually toward your subscriber limit, and that data is not shared between audiences if you do decide to add another one.

Prepare for import

The file import process has two parts: First, you'll prepare your spreadsheet of contacts outside of Mailchimp and save it as a CSV file. Next, you'll use Mailchimp’s import tool to upload your file and add your contacts to your Mailchimp audience.
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To prepare your file for import, follow these steps.

1. In a spreadsheet program like Microsoft Excel or Google Sheets, open your blank worksheet.
2. Create and label a column for Email Address. This is the only field they require.
3. Next to your Email Address column, create and label additional columns for First Name, Last Name, and any other information you want to import to Mailchimp.
4. Paste your contacts' information into the relevant fields in the spreadsheet.
5. Save the file in CSV format. This option can usually be accessed from the File menu in your spreadsheet program, labeled as "Export as .CSV" or "Download as .CSV". Different spreadsheet programs may vary.

(Direct steps taken from Mailchimp here)

Import your file into Mailchimp

Here’s how to import your contacts using Mailchimp’s platform:

1. Click Audience.
2. Click Audience dashboard.
3. If you have more than one audience, click the Current audience drop-down and choose the one you want to work with.
4. Click the Manage Audience drop-down and choose Import contacts.
5. Choose Upload a file.
6. Click Continue to Upload.
7. Click Browse and choose the CSV file from your computer.
8. Click Continue to Organize.
9. Use the Select an audience drop-down to confirm the audience you want to import to.
10. Use the Select a status drop-down to choose the status of the contacts you're about to import.

1. The available statuses for contacts are:

1. Subscribed.
2. Unsubscribed.
3. Non-subscribed.
4. Cleaned.

(Direct steps taken from Mailchimp here)

If you import subscribed contacts, be sure that you have permission to send them marketing.
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1. If your audience has groups, you can import your contacts directly into the group of your choice. Navigate to the Select groups section and check the box next to each group that applies.

1. You'll only see this option if you have groups in your audience.

1. If you want to update contacts that are already in your audience, check the box next to Update any existing contacts.
2. Click Continue to Tag.
3. If you want to assign tags to all of the contacts in your import, click the drop-down menu and choose or create tags as needed. You can also choose from popular tags.
4. When you're ready, click Continue To Match.
5. Match the columns in your import file to the fields in your Mailchimp audience. Mailchimp will automatically match some columns for you. For example, the column that contains email addresses will match the required Email Address field.
6. Click the column header to choose a different field type for the column or to create a new field. Repeat for all unmatched columns that you want to import. Any unmatched columns will not be imported.
7. Click Finalize Import to review your import settings.
8. If everything looks good, click Complete Import.

(Direct steps taken from Mailchimp here)

All done! The email address linked to your username will receive a message from Mailchimp once the import is complete.

Customize your signup form

No contacts yet? No problem! You can publish the signup form, and Mailchimp will automatically create it for your audience on your website or Facebook page to begin gathering contacts right now. Additionally, Mailchimp will provide you a ton of options for tailoring the look of your signup form to match your brand.

Here’s how to customize your signup form using Mailchimp’s Platform:

1. Click Audience.
2. Click Audience Dashboard.
3. If you have more than one audience, click the Current audience drop-down and choose the one you want to work with.
4. Click the Manage Audience drop-down and choose Signup forms.
5. Select Form builder.
6. Click the Forms and response emails drop-down menu, and choose which form you want to edit.
7. Click the Design it tab.
8. Click through the Page, Body, Forms, or Referral tabs to review the customization options. Use the fields and drop-down menus to make any changes you want to the styles, colors, and fields. We'll save your changes automatically.
9. When you're done, click Save & Close.

(Direct steps taken from Mailchimp here)

Create a campaign

Now it’s time to kick off your email marketing initiatives and create your first campaign.

Here’s how to create a campaign using Mailchimp’s platform: 

1. Click the Create icon.
2. Click Email.
3. Click Regular.
4. Enter a campaign name and click Begin.

(Direct steps taken from Mailchimp here)

Like with any marketing initiatives, you should always plan your campaigns before you start designing them, and give yourself some time to become familiar with the controls. With that said, you'll be an ESP guru in no time.

View your campaign reports

Campaign reporting is the most crucial part of marketing! Monitoring audience engagement is a crucial part of effective marketing since it allows you to deliver more of what your contacts want and less of what they don't.

After launching an email campaign, you'll be able to view on your Dashboard how many contacts have opened, clicked, or unsubscribed from your most recent campaigns. For more information and to download, distribute, or print your campaign reports, you’ll need to select Reports.

You can find out how many people looked at your campaign, which links they clicked, and other details like their geolocation using Mailchimp's open and click-tracking data. For more comprehensive reporting, link your Mailchimp account with your Google Analytics account.

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Sync up with your favorite apps and web services

Now, let’s take a quick look at some of the popular integrations within your Mailchimp account that will allow you to easily connect to social media platforms and ecommerce services.

Facebook integration

Mailchimp integrates with Facebook to allow you to auto-post your campaigns to your business’s  Profile or Page. You can also place a signup form on your Page so new contacts can join directly on Facebook. All of this is done through a simple Facebook integration that is installed with a few clicks.  The integration will allow you to add icons and merge tags into your campaign. Additionally, the integration can connect your Facebook account information and status messages into the campaign.These merge tags can pull your profile into a campaign, or add a Like button for sharing the campaign.
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Twitter integration

Mailchimp’s Twitter integration is similar to the Facebook integration, in that it will allow you to connect your Twitter account to Mailchimp for pulling content and posting campaigns. Since Twitter does not include a page in the same way that Facebook does, there isn’t a way to post a signup form to Twitter outside of placing it into a tweet.
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Instagram integration

With simple-to-add content blocks, you can promote and share your Instagram posts in email campaigns. Include a recent post, your bio, or a collection of posts by installing the Instagram integration tool provided by Mailchimp.
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Ecommerce integrations

Ecommerce users make up a large segment of Mailchimp customers, and you’ll find that most users utilizing the Integration page are ecommerce users.

Examples include:

• Big Cartel.
• Square.
• Adobe Commerce.
• BigCommerce.
• Shopify.
• Lightspeed.

To connect an ecommerce platform from inside a Mailchimp account, navigate to the Integrations page. The installation usually requires authorizing Mailchimp to access the store's data. In other situations, an API key must be created and input into the integration's settings. However, the Integrations page is a great place to start.
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Common onboarding steps

Most ecommerce platforms will follow a similar workflow to connect:

1. Installing an app/integration/add-on to the store.

2. Logging in by providing a Mailchimp username and password.

3. Choosing an audience to receive customer data.

4. Mapping audience fields.

5. Installing a script code.

Most ecommerce platforms will walk users through these steps one by one. In the second step, users need to authorize the connection between Mailchimp and the store, which is sometimes referred to as “OAUTH.” Next, the integration will ask for which audience it can sync with their store’s data. Finally, users will need to map audience fields, which matches up customer information with columns in a Mailchimp audience.
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Important Note: Not all integrations follow these steps. Some will require additional setup based on their installation requirements.

The data that Mailchimp receives

The data that Mailchimp receives through these integrations is pretty consistent across all platforms. In general, all ecommerce integrations are capable of sending the following data to Mailchimp:

• Products.
• Product images.
• Products purchased.
• Purchase activity.
• Contacts (subscribed, unsubscribed, non-subscribed).
• Total purchases.
• Number of orders.
• Product categories.
• Revenue.
• Spent.

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What are the benefits of connecting my store with Mailchimp? 

After connecting a store, you can use customer activity to inform what marketing content you send out. One of the many benefits of connecting an online store to Mailchimp is that you can track your contacts’ purchase data through Mailchimp. Connecting a store to Mailchimp also allows a more centralized way to manage contacts. Mailchimp offers CRM tools so that you can categorize customers based on activities, or where they are in their customer lifecycle.

In general, ESPs offer many benefits to ecommerce stores. Here’s more about why Mailchimp would be a good ESP option:

• Audience building

• One of the keys to your online marketing strategy will be building a strong, healthy audience full of engaged contacts and customers. A connected ecommerce store will allow you to ask permission to a customer during their purchase and automatically add them to your growing audience!

• Product recommendations

• Send targeted email campaigns to customers based on their purchase history. Historical data from your store allows you to create customized product rec. emails for customers according to items they have purchased or based on trends in similar customers.
• Create Facebook, Instagram, and Google Remarketing Ads directly from your Mailchimp account, featuring items from your online store.

• Automated emails

• Automatically reach out to customers with new product information or when they abandon their shopping cart. These types of automated emails can generate a bunch of additional revenue!

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The final word on ESPs and Mailchimp

With only one click, you may send emails to prospective leads using an ESP. ESPs are full of possibilities because of their accessibility, especially for companies trying to broaden their reach and foster enduring relationships with clients. When thinking about an ESP, consider Mailchimp as the all-encompassing platform for every marketer’s needs, no matter the size or type. With vast amounts of integrations available, you’ll be able to enhance your marketing forte your own way.

References

• Mailchimp: https://mailchimp.com/ 
• Getting Started with Mailchimp: https://eepurl.com/dyilNT 
• Minimum System Requirements: https://eepurl.com/dyimfT
• About Email Campaign Footers: https://eepurl.com/dyijZr 
• Getting Started with Your Audience: https://eepurl.com/dyilNr
• Import Contacts to Mailchimp: https://eepurl.com/dyil4z
• About Your Contacts: https://eepurl.com/dyikqz
• The Importance of Permission: https://eepurl.com/dyimQb
• Getting Started with Groups: https://eepurl.com/dyilML
• Getting Started with Tags: https://eepurl.com/dBYjo9
• About Email Campaign Reports: https://eepurl.com/dyij5L
• Facebook <> Mailchimp Integration: https://mailchimp.com/integrations/facebook/ 
• Facebook <> Twitter Integration: https://mailchimp.com/integrations/twitter/
• About Integrations: https://eepurl.com/dyij11
• E-Commerce Documentation: https://mailchimp.com/developer/marketing/docs/e-commerce/ 
• Connect Your Online Store to Mailchimp: https://eepurl.com/dyik8H
• How Mailchimp Can Help Your Online Store: https://eepurl.com/dyilTk