Got Questions?
We want to make sure you get every answer you need. Check out the Frequently Asked Questions below. If you don’t see your question here, head on over to our forum to ask the community!
General Questions
How can you send emails for less than everyone else?
Author.Email takes advantage of inexpensive cloud email server architecture provided by cloud-based delivery servers like Amazon SES. This allows us to keep costs extremely low without sacrificing quality, stability, or security. It means that deliverability of your emails is as good — maybe even better — than other services you have encountered, including industry-leading email service providers (ESPs).
Will my mailing list belong to you?
Your mailing list is your mailing list. We make no claims on it, and we have no desire to. We’re here to help you manage it, and that’s it!
Will you help me grow my list?
No. Or at least, not at the moment.
Currently we do not offer any marketing on your behalf, and we function only as an email service provider. But part of our mission is to provide authors with better email marketing tools, so list growth is definitely on our drawing board. When we’ve worked out the best way to do that, we’ll be in touch!
Are you compliant with CAN-SPAM and GDPR?
Yes! We’re as safe as any email provider can be, and compliant with all current laws and rules, including GDPR and the CAN-SPAM act. We stay up to speed on what’s important in the industry, and your privacy and data are our top priority.
Are there any costs beyond the monthly rate?
Only if you want to send us more of your money 😉
Otherwise, we have no hidden or surprise fees. If you are on the Publisher Pro tier, any additional fees will be outlined for you in your contract (if one is required).
Can I import my existing mailing list?
You can! Most email services will allow you to export a CSV (comma-separate values) file, which you can upload to our system. You can also enter email addresses manually by typing them in or copy/pasting from a text file, if need be. And if you want readers to re-subscribe, we provide easy registration forms that you can link to or include on websites, in emails, or anywhere else you can think of.
How do I get started?
Glad you asked! Create an account here.
Do I have to sign a contract?
No! Contracts complicate everything, and we’re building something that’s as uncomplicated as it gets. We want authors to feel free to come and go as they need to, and our hope is that we’ve built something that makes you want to stay. But if you run into problems (or even just get mad at us), we want you to be able to take your business wherever it needs to go.
The only exception to “no contracts” would be special circumstances, largely with the Publisher tier. If you are a publisher, or have a list larger than 20,000 subscribers, feel free to contact us for a quote. Chances are you won’t have to sign a contract there, either.
Will you share my mailing list with anyone?
Never! Your list is yours to own and manage, and it’s safe within our secure system.
Will my emails be marked as spam?
Sometimes. It happens. Subscribers forget that they’ve subscribed, or they hit “mark as spam” thinking they’re unsubscribing from your list. It’s best not to get upset about these things and accept them as inevitable.
However, you won’t have to worry so much about your emails being flagged as spam by email service providers. Author.Email has sent millions of emails to subscribers, for years prior to launch, and this has allowed us to become a trusted email service, reducing instances of blacklisting or other issues.
Is Author.Email secure?
Yes. When you log in, your information is sent through encrypted, 128-bit SSL tunnels, and we don’t keep any of your data on our web servers (any sensitive data is stored in secure databases).
Our website and email servers undergo multiple, redundant daily backups and we have a constant data review.
Can I do autoresponders/onboarding sequences/automated emails?
Yes, absolutely! Our robust features include automated emails that you can customize any way you wish. Control when a sequence is triggered, and give subscribers the ability to opt out, if desired.
How can I get more help?
We’re a small company, and we are trying as hard as possible to keep your costs down, so we offer support through our support forum, and if you’re on a higher tier paid plan, via a ticket system.
Technical Questions
How are you sending my emails?
We use cloud-based servers to save on overhead and engineering costs. That means sending emails is scalable, simple, and extremely efficient. An added bonus is that your emails will delivered by servers that have been building a reputation with ISPs over the course of millions of emails.
What sort of integrations do you offer?
Author.Email is working with other author services to provide unique and useful integrations that help you succeed. In addition, we are the only email marketing service that offers a fully integrated RESTful API, which means you can build custom integrations with just about any useful service.
What happens if my emails bounce?
Hard and soft bounces are part of life — if you’re an email. When your emails bounce, Author.Email reports them on your campaign dashboard, and the subscriber who bounced is immediately unsubscribed.
If your total bounce rate is too high, we’ll let you know — it’s important to keep that number as low as possible so your sending email address isn’t blocked by ISPs.
Are you compliant with CAN-SPAM and GDPR?
Yes! We’re as safe as any email provider can be, and compliant with all current laws and rules, including GDPR and the CAN-SPAM act. We stay up to speed on what’s important in the industry, and your privacy and data are our top priority.
What happens if someone marks my email as spam?
Sometimes people click “mark as spam” because they think it’s a fast way to unsubscribe from your mailing list. It is, but it’s also a fast way to let the delivery server know you’re a spammer.
We know you’re not, but it’s still important to keep your “complaints” numbers down by reminding your subscribers when and where they signed up for your list. And if your total complaint rate is too high, we’ll let you know — it’s important to keep that number as low as possible so your sending email address isn’t blocked by ISPs.
Can I use custom fields?
Absolutely. In fact, when you import your list from another provider (because you will want to switch to Author.Email!), don’t even worry about reformatting your .csv file — every column will upload, and we’ll automatically figure out which column is for email addresses and which is for name.
All the other columns will become custom fields (“GDPR,” “Opt-In Time,” “Subscribed Date,” etc.).
Even better, we’ll create custom field tags for each of your custom fields that you can use in your campaigns.
How can I get more help?
We’re a small company, and we are trying as hard as possible to keep your costs down, so we offer support through our support forum, and if you’re on a higher tier paid plan, via a ticket system.
Do you have a templating system?
We have two, actually. There’s a standard, HTML-based drag-and-drop editor that’s very similar to what you’ve probably used in the past, but we also offer the first-ever email template creator.
That’s pretty big, because it means you can design a template that’s guaranteed to look great and adhere to email standards across thousands of email servers, ISPs, and inboxes.
If you want to do it yourself, you can also import your own HTML-based template.
Is Author.Email secure?
Yes. When you log in, your information is sent through encrypted, 128-bit SSL tunnels, and we don’t keep any of your data on our web servers (any sensitive data is stored in secure databases).
Our website and email servers undergo multiple, redundant daily backups and we have a constant data review.
What kind of reporting do you offer?
The best kind. It’s easy, intuitive, and shows you everything you need to know about how your campaigns and autoresponders are performing. We’ll show you the important stuff, like open rates and bounces, as well as data on where your readers are opening their emails (and even show it to you on a fancy map).
Can I segment my lists?
Yes. In one click you can send your campaign to only those who didn’t open (or did open) your previous campaign, or you can split your list into equal segments for A/B testing. Or create segments based on tags. Or custom fields. Or…
How many lists can I have?
As many as you want. We charge you based on the total number of unique subscribers, meaning the same email address can be on multiple lists, and it only counts as a single unique subscriber.
What are tags?
In Author.Email, tags are dynamic content. They are used as placeholders in emails that you send out, and those placeholders are replaced by the content stored in your list.
A better explanation is an example: The tag [FNAME], when put into an email you want to send, will be dynamically updated with the actual First Name of the subscriber.
What custom tags are available to use in my emails?
Click here for a full list of tags, whether or not they are required, and what they mean.