How to add an Newsletter sign-up form to your Squarespace site

What Does an Newsletter Subscription Form Entail and How is it Employed?

We aim to collect the email addresses of potential customers because a staggering 96% of website visitors are not yet prepared to make a purchase. Most of them leave the website, possibly forgetting about your business and products. However, by capturing their email addresses before they exit, you open the door to marketing opportunities through email campaigns.

Email marketing is exceptionally direct, personalized, and boasts high effectiveness. Statistics reveal that it remains one of the most potent marketing channels, delivering an average return of $42 for every $1 spent. This surpasses many social media engagement metrics in today's landscape.

If you're still uncertain about the power of email marketing, feel free to explore my article on why I believe having an email list is essential.

Establishing Email Marketing and Sign-Up Forms in Squarespace: A Step-by-Step Guide

Chose an Email Marketing Provider:

Before diving into email marketing, the initial step is to create an account with a reliable email marketing provider.

We strongly suggest opting for a dedicated email marketing provider for efficient email address collection, simplifying the marketing process. While keeping email addresses in a spreadsheet is feasible for beginners, it becomes challenging to manage as the list grows.

Choosing the right email marketing provider can be daunting due to the plethora of options. Although only Mailchimp and Squarespace Campaigns seamlessly integrate with Squarespace, it's essential to explore beyond this criterion. Integrating other providers may require a bit more effort, but it's often worthwhile. Some noteworthy alternatives include:

ConvertKit

Mailerlite

While Mailchimp and Squarespace Campaigns are excellent choices, it's crucial to assess your specific needs and preferences. If you're new to this, check out our guide where I breakdown my favorite email marketing providers for beginners.

Create your email sign up form and offer 

1.Creating a Compelling Freebie or Offer:

Encouraging sign-ups requires offering something valuable in return for an email address. Consider these enticing options:

News and Updates: A basic option, but may yield fewer sign-ups.

Newsletter: A more consistent option, ideal for regular communication.

Discount (e.g., 10% off): Particularly effective for e-commerce products.

Freebie (e.g., course, guide, download): Perfect for showcasing educational offerings.

What will be your offering? Explore how to create an irresistible opt-in freebie or offer tailored to attract the right audience. Remember, it doesn't have to be overly complex, but it should resonate with the audience you want on your email list!

Establish the Sequence and Form for Delivering your Freebie or Offer:

After determining the most suitable offer for your business and audience, the next step is configuring the backend of your email marketing.

Here's the breakdown:

Create a Form: Craft a form within your email marketing platform (unless you're using MailChimp or Squarespace Campaigns).

Embed the Form on Your Website: We'll tackle this shortly.

Visitor Interaction: Users enter their details into the form.

Sequence Setup: Define a sequence of events in your email marketing platform that either delivers the freebie automatically or places them in the appropriate list.

Creating the form and establishing this sequence (steps 1 and 4) varies depending on your email marketing provider. I know it can be a bit frustrating—each provider has its unique approach. The providers mentioned earlier simplify this process, and you'll find guidelines or support personnel to assist you. Don't hesitate to reach out for help; setting up the backend of your email marketing can be perplexing initially. Once you become familiar with your platform, it typically becomes more intuitive, so stay persistent.

Alright, if you've successfully reached this point, it indicates that you have:

• Enlisted with an email marketing provider.

• Chosen an opt-in freebie or offer.

• Crafted the designated opt-in freebie or offer.

• Develop a form within your email marketing platform (unless you're utilizing Mailchimp or Squarespace Campaigns).

• Configure a sequence for delivering your freebie or linking to an offer within your email marketing platform.

• With all these tasks completed, the only remaining step is to seamlessly integrate the form into your Squarespace site. Simple, right?

Embedding Your Email Subscription Form Through the Newsletter Block

The Squarespace Newsletter Block offers seamless integration with specific platforms:

• Mailchimp

• Squarespace Campaigns

• Zapier

• Google Drive

For Mailchimp and Squarespace Campaigns users, the connection process is straightforward.

If you opt for the Google Drive connection, it's suitable for saving email addresses to a basic spreadsheet, though not recommended for extensive email marketing.

Zapier acts as a bridge between platforms that may not have native integration. It's a versatile service, and you can use it to connect the Newsletter Block with various email providers.

However, if you're using an email marketing provider other than Mailchimp or Squarespace Campaigns (such as ConvertKit, Flodesk, Mailerlite, etc.), there's another common method to connect. Hold off on connecting the Newsletter Block with Zapier for now; we'll explore an alternative method later in this guide.

So, if you're with Mailchimp, Squarespace Campaigns, or specifically want to connect with Zapier, proceed to the next section for details on setting up and customizing the Newsletter Block.

If you're using a different provider and are interested in embedding your email sign-up form into Squarespace, skip this section and head to the "Embedding your email sign-up form into Squarespace" section towards the end of this post.

Include the Newsletter Block in Your Squarespace Website

• Navigate to Edit and hover over the desired section on your Squarespace page, identifying an insert point. Click it to open the menu.

• Select the Newsletter block from the menu, triggering a pop-up panel for customization.

• Under the DISPLAY tab, fill in details such as Form Name (for personal reference), Title (headline), and Description (additional enticing information).

• Explore various Display options to configure the appearance according to your preferences.

• Move to the STORAGE tab to connect with Squarespace Campaigns, MailChimp, Google Drive, or Zapier.

• If using Zapier, apply and save the newsletter settings, then proceed to Zapier.com to create a new ZAP from Squarespace to your email marketing provider.

• Choose the desired newsletter form from the list and complete the connection steps, ensuring the Zap is turned ON and tested.

• Check options under VERIFICATIONS and POST-SUBMIT for additional customizations, such as post-submit messages and redirects.

• Click APPLY and SAVE to finalize the email sign-up form connection to your email list.

Drag and drop the block as needed, testing the newsletter block and email marketing connection by signing up as a regular customer.

Designing the Newsletter Block on Squarespace

Customizing your Newsletter block to align with your brand and look fantastic. Follow This Steps For designing your Newsletter block.

• Navigate to the Design section in the Home Menu and select Fonts.

• Locate Global Site Styles and choose Assign Styles.

• Scroll down to Newsletter Block, where you can customize font settings to your preference. Remember to save your changes.

• Return to the Home Menu, click on Design, then go to Colors and choose Section Themes.

• Select the pencil icon for the theme your Newsletter Block is using.

• Locate the Newsletter Block and modify the color settings according to your preferences. Don't forget to save your changes.

Adding an Email Sign-Up Form via Embedding in Squarespace

If your email marketing provider, such as MailChimp or Squarespace Campaigns, doesn't have a direct integration with Squarespace, you can still connect it by embedding the form into your website. Here's a general process:

Create Your Form:

• Develop the form in your email marketing software.

• Obtain the embed code provided by your email marketing platform.

Embedding the Form:

• Copy the form code and paste it into a Code Block anywhere on your Squarespace site.

• You can move the Code Block around as needed.

Header/Footer Code:

Some providers may also offer a header/footer code for advanced customization.

Insert this code into the Advanced Header or Footer section on Squarespace.

Assistance and Design:

If unsure, refer to your provider's help files or contact support for guidance on embedding the form.

Design customization can be limited; if the form looks unattractive, consider the following options:

• Code design changes using CSS if you're familiar.

• Revert to the Newsletter Form + Zapier option for better styling and design control.

Using embedded forms is often preferable as it eliminates the need for an additional platform like Zapier. However, styling may vary depending on your email marketing provider, and in some cases, design adjustments might be necessary.