How many times have you signed up for a newsletter, or membership site, and began receiving regular, quality information? Did you ever think, "How can someone keep coming up with this stuff on a regular basis?" The chances are, there was not someone creating and sending out the messages on a daily basis. The messages were probably created a while ago, and just sent to you on a schedule based on your membership date or the day of the year. These are what we call, "Smart Autoresponders".

Smart, or scheduled autoresponders are perhaps a marketer's favorite tool. It is way to ensure that each member gets all the information the marketer wants to give them, on the schedule the marketer wants to give it to the member. Best of all, it is all automated!

Features and Benefits

• Create and send unlimited autoresponders for one monthly fee
• Send messages in plain text or HTML
• Use the online editor to compose your HTML messages -- without needing to know HTML
• Enter a custom "from" address for each responder
• Choose to include full access members, limited access members, and/or newsletter subscribers in each message
• Use the optional "offset days" feature to hold off sending automated messages to members/subscribers until they have been registered for a set number of days
• Newsletter subscribers can opt out of messages at any time.
• Full or Limited access members can opt out of mailings without cancelling membership
• "Important message" option will send your message to members even if they opted out of non urgent messages
• A complete delivery report can be sent on a per autoresponder basis
• Set up autoresponders to be sent based on the number of days subscribed, number of weeks, number of months, a given calendar date, and even on a member's birthday
• Choose what time of day you want your autoresponders to be sent out
• Advanced sorting options for easy autoresponder management
• Insert messages into any series and send immediately to members/subscribers who should get it
• Use Smart Autoresponders to send membership expiration notices to members based on their expiration date!

Some Examples of The Smart Autoresponders

Think of the smart autoresponders as an extension of your communication system. You can use these ONLY to send messages to your full or limited group members, and/or your newsletter subscribers. They cannot be used to send to any other lists. There are many circumstances where these would be very useful. Here are some examples:

Example #1: You want to send regular mailings to your newsletter subscribers. You do not want to have to keep writing messages every few days, and you want to make sure that each subscriber get all your message -- you may even want them to get the messages in order. This is where smart autoresponders come in. You create and upload your autoresponders in advance, associate each responder with a membership day. So for example, Bill who signed up today (day 1) will get the responder associated with day 1. Phil, who signed up last week, is on day 7 and will get day 7's message -- even though Bill got day 1's message. And you can sit back and let automation sell for you!

When messages are being sent to your newsletter subscribers, the custom and standard footers are appended to the messages being sent. This will always give the subscribers the opportunity to unsubscribe and give you the opportunity to up sell with your custom footer!

Example #2: You want to send regular mailings to your members. Let's say you run a group where you want your members to receive the same messages all at the same time, no matter when they joined. You can use the communication system and manually send your members a new message each day, or you can use the smart autoresponders and create all 365 messages in advance, and schedule them to go out one day at a time throughout the year, while you sit back and focus on other parts of your business!

Example #3: You want to let your members know before their membership expires.  You want to send them a persuasive sales letter giving them many reasons to renew their membership.  You create a series of autoresponders based on 30,15,7,3, and 1 day from the member's expiration.  You can even create a set for limited members, and a set for full members with different messages.  Now you can sit back and not worry about members not being given plenty of notice.

Only members that have signed up for YEARLY membership have memberships that expire.  Other members, monthly members, have an ongoing subscription that only "expires" when the member cancels.  So these monthly members are never sent expiration notices.

Example #4:  You want to create an agressive marketing campaign for those with yearly memberships that let their membership expire.  You create a series of autoresponders based on -1, -30, -60 and -90 days from the member's expiration. You can even create a set for limited members, and a set for full members with different messages.

The possibilities are endless. Smart autoresponders keep your name and website in the eyes and minds of your subscribers/members.

Activating the Smart Autoresponder Module

As mentioned, this is available for pro iGrOOp users only and is not part of the standard pro package. It can be ordered when the group is ordered, or it can be added at any time by clicking the "Add Services and Modules" link in the header of your iGrOOp.

Only the administrator can see this link and only the administrator of the group is authorized to add modules or services to an account. This module can also be added by calling the iGrOOps office directly during business hours at 978-461-5917.

Setting Up the Smart Autoresponders

Once you have activated the module by ordering it, it will immediately be available for you to use in your iGrOOp. Like any new application, visit your "administration settings" and jump to "applications / permissions". Look for the "Smart Autoresponders" and check the checkbox associated with the application. Hit the next and save button at the bottom of the page button and you are ready to go! To get to the application, select the application link and you will see the application listed.

This is an admin only application, that means that it is hidden to non-administrators and will not appear in feature lists to members.

Working with Autoresponders

Like all other iGrOOps applications, the tool is designed to be easy to use and intuitive. If you need help, the directions on the right hand side of the application should answer your questions. Also, check the FAQ and other documentation linked at the top of this page for details.