Autoresponder Subscription Moderation
When you need to moderate who signs up for an autoresponder
series, this article shows you how to do it.
For example, the autoresponder might be a series you charge
for. Or, like our Master Series Valued Customer Club*, only
certain people may subscribe (customers, in our case).
It can be an easy one-click approval process.
Set it up like this:
-
Set up an autoresponder. But don't publish the
subscription method.
-
Set up a subscription form, a form to be submitted
to a separate form processing program. Set it up so
the program sends you an email with a subscribe link
for the autoresponder, with the form user's email
addresses embedded in the link.
Now, whenever a subscriber submits the form, you get an
email with a link to click if you approve the subscription.
(If you don't approve the subscription, delete the email.)
It's all automated except for the one click approval.
The method can be implemented with most autoresponders.
And I'm sure there are several if not many form processing
programs that can embed the form user's email address in
various places in the email it sends to you.
The following specific instructions are for using Master
E-responder V2* and Master Form V3*.
Step 1 —
Use the Master E-responder V2 control panel and set up an
autoresponder.
After the autoresponder is created and you return to the
first page of the control panel, you'll see the name of
your autoresponder in a dropdown list.
Next to the name in the dropdown list is an ID. Make a
note of the ID; you'll need it when you set up the form.
Step 2 —
Set up the form.
The form you create must ask for an email address. It can
ask for any information you wish, so long as an email
address is included. The form is submitted to Master
Form V3.
Here is an example form:
<form
method="POST"
action="/cgi-bin/MasterFormV3.cgi">
<input
type="hidden"
name="redirect"
value="http://example.com/thankyou.html">
<input
type="hidden"
name="requiredfields"
value="firstname,email">
<input
type="hidden"
name="emailfields"
value="email">
<input
type="hidden"
name="mailtemplate"
value="mailtemplate.txt">
First Name:
<input type="text" name="firstname">
<br>
Email Address:
<input type="text" name="email">
<br>
<input
type="submit"
value="Subscribe">
</form>
The HTML above produces this:
One of the hidden fields in the above form specifies
mailtemplate.txt as being the email template file.
An email template file named mailtemplate.txt needs to be
created and uploaded to the server. Put it into the same
directory where the Master Form V3 program is installed.
The email template file is a plain text file. Here is an
example:
To: you@example.com
Subject: A subscription request
The subscriber's first name is: [[firstname]]
The subscriber's email is: [[email]]
Click this link to approve:
{link goes here, see below}
The link to click is a long URL, which doesn't fit into
the column width of this article. It's below, in the text
form field. Copy and paste it into the email template.
Will Bontrager
©2004 Bontrager Connection, LLC
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