Overview
Email lists are the foundation of your email marketing in GritCMS. A list is a named group of subscribers who have opted in to receive your emails. You can create multiple lists for different purposes -- for example, a general newsletter list, a product launch list, or a VIP customers list. Manage your lists from the Email > Lists section in the admin dashboard.
Creating a New List
- Navigate to Email > Lists in the admin sidebar.
- Click the New List button.
- Fill in the list details and save.
List Settings
Each list has the following settings:
| Setting | Description |
|---|---|
| Name | A descriptive name for the list (e.g., "Weekly Newsletter"). |
| Description | An optional note about the list's purpose, visible only to admins. |
| Welcome Email | An optional email template sent automatically when someone subscribes. Select from your existing templates. |
| Double Opt-In | When enabled, new subscribers must confirm their email address before being added to the list. |
Double Opt-In
When double opt-in is enabled on a list, the subscription flow works as follows:
- A visitor submits their email address through a form or API call.
- Their subscription status is set to Pending and a confirmation email is sent.
- The subscriber clicks the confirmation link in the email.
- Their status changes to Active and they begin receiving emails from the list.
Double opt-in helps ensure that subscribers genuinely want to receive your emails, reduces spam complaints, and improves deliverability. It is recommended for public-facing lists.
Managing Subscribers
Adding Subscribers Manually
From a list's detail page, you can add individual subscribers by clicking Add Subscriber and entering their email address. The subscriber is linked to a contact in your CRM -- if no matching contact exists, one is created automatically.
Importing Subscribers
To add subscribers in bulk, use the import feature. Prepare a CSV file with at least an email column. Optional columns include first_name, last_name, and any other contact fields. Upload the CSV from the list detail page and GritCMS will create contacts and subscriptions for each row.
Removing Subscribers
You can remove a subscriber from a list by changing their status to Unsubscribed or by deleting the subscription entirely. Unsubscribed contacts remain in your CRM but will no longer receive emails sent to that list.
Subscription Statuses
Each subscriber on a list has one of the following statuses:
| Status | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Active | The subscriber is confirmed and will receive emails. |
| Pending | Awaiting double opt-in confirmation. |
| Unsubscribed | The subscriber opted out of the list. |
| Bounced | The subscriber's email address returned a bounce. |
| Complained | The subscriber marked an email as spam. |
Subscription Sources
GritCMS tracks how each subscriber was added to a list. Possible sources include:
- form -- Subscribed through a public form on your website.
- manual -- Added by an admin from the dashboard.
- import -- Added via CSV import.
- api -- Added through the API.
Public Subscription Forms
You can embed subscription forms on your website to let visitors join your lists. When a visitor submits the form, they are added to the selected list with the source recorded as form. If the list has double opt-in enabled, the visitor will receive a confirmation email before their subscription becomes active.
Subscription forms can be placed on any page, blog post, or funnel step using the website builder.
Tips for Organizing Your Lists
- Keep lists focused. Create separate lists for different topics or audiences rather than putting everyone on one giant list.
- Use descriptive names. "Product Launch -- Spring 2025" is more useful than "List 3."
- Enable double opt-in for public lists. This protects your sender reputation and ensures engaged subscribers.
- Clean your lists periodically. Review bounced and complained subscribers and remove contacts that are no longer valid.
- Set a welcome email. A welcome message sets expectations and confirms the subscription, improving engagement from the start.