Setting Up An Autoresponder

Introduction
If you haven't read the previous article "Internet Advertising - A System That Works" then I suggest that you do this before you read this article on setting up an autoresponder. If you have read the article then today's missive describes the first step towards getting your own system - which is setting up the autoresponder. Don't worry, this isn't a lengthy process - the email messages are already written so it should take an hour or two at most. If you don't like the messages then you can always edit them later - it's still better than starting from scratch!

An autoresponder is simply a piece of software which sends out prewritten emails at specified intervals to correspondents who have given you their email addresses. If you go to Google and type in "autoresponder" or "free autoresponder" you will find a large number of hits - there are plenty to choose from.

For the purposes of this exercise we will be looking at the free version of GetResponse, which is generally acknowledged to be one of the two best autoresponders available on the web. The other good one is AWeber and I think you will do well using either of these. If you want to change to another reponder later, or upgrade to a pro version that's fine - it'll be very easy once you have loaded the messages.

But in the first instance try this, especially if you haven't used an autoresponder before. It's free, the messages are preloaded for you and there are some good tutorials available to get you into the swing of things. Definitely sign up for the seven day email course on autoresponders, it will teach you most of what you need to know.

On with the show:


Step-by-Step Instructions

1. Go to www.getresponse.com.
2. Click on the "Sign Up For Free" tab (second from the left at the top).
3. Input your name, your email address, your country and your GetResponse "name". Your autoresponder address will then be name@getresponse.com - so if you select tplus for example, your autoresponder address will be tplus@getresponse.com.
4. In the "OPTIONAL" field enter jameela. This will load prewritten messages relating to Telecom plus into your autoresponder.
5. Check that everything is okay and click "submit" at the bottom of the page. Do this only once.
6. You will then be asked "Are you sure you want to sign up for Smart Responder FREE?". Scroll down and click on the lower of the two buttons "Click for Smartresponder FREE".
7. You should now be looking at a page entitled "Congratulations". Check your email to pick up your account information. You should have a message with the title "Welcome to GetResponse.com".
8. Open the email and check your login information. Click on the Member Site link and login using your name and password as supplied.
9. OPTIONAL - Position the mouse pointer over the "Account" tab and click on "Edit Settings". Then click on "Change your password" and change the 5 digit autogenerated password to something more memorable for you.
10. Position the mouse pointer over the "Messages" tab and then click on "Edit Messages". You should see a total of 9 messages numbered from 0 to 8.
11. For each message in turn click on "Edit" and amend the message to suit. Click "Save" when you're finished editing. For most messages all you will need to do is change the signature at the bottom to include your name, your email address and your freephone number. You should also check the delivery interval is suitable. However, pay close attention to the following two necessary changes:
12. Message 1 - Insert your six digit ID ref at the end of the storeplus web address http://www.storeplus.co.uk?exref=XXXXXX - replace XXXXXX with your ID number.
13. Message 8 - Insert your email address into the second paragraph.
14. Your autoresponder is now set up. Place the cursor over the "Messages" tab and click on "Test Messages". Type in the email address where you want the test messages sent to. Select "All messages" in the "choose message" field if this is not already selected and click on "Send Test Message".
15. Check your email and make sure that all the messages have been delivered. This may take a few minutes. Don't worry if they're not in strict numerical order. Make sure that you're happy with the look and content of all messages. If there are any errors, or if you just want to change any of the content, go back to step 10 and amend.
16. That's all folks!

Coming soon: Step-by-step instructions on how to set up a gateway page in order to load leads into your autoresponder.