So what are list providers?
- Import and host a mailing list and capture data onto it using sign-up forms
- Create e-newsletters (both HTML and plain text) which can be sent to your subscribers
- Automate your email responses to subscribers via the use of ‘autoresponders’ (e-newsletters that are sent to your mailing list subscribers at pre-defined intervals).
- Review statistics related to your email marketing campaigns – open rate, click through, forwards etc.
Pricing and Subscriber Limits
AWeber has a Free 30 Day Trial option, and once that trial runs out, here are the prices of their plans:
- Hosting and emailing a list containing up to 500 subscribers: $19 per month
- 501 to 2,500 subscribers: $29 per month
- 2,501 to 5,000 subscribers: $49 per month
- 5,001 to 10,000 subscribers: $69 per month
- 10,001 to 25,000 subscribers: $149 per month
If your list contains over 25,000 subscribers, you will need to call Aweber for a quotation.
Mailchimp goes one step further than “free trial” with their “forever free” Starting Up plan. Basically, as long as your subscriber count is under 2,000 subscribers and 12,000 emails per month, there’s no cost to you. The downside is, to use MailChimp’s autoresponder feature and to integrate to other programs like PayPal, you need to be a paying customer. So the free contract does have its drawbacks. But as your business grows, your subscriber list will as well. When that happens, here are some of their advanced options:
- Growing Business: $25.00 per month for 1,501 – 2,000 subscribers unlimited emails sent per month. For 2001-2600 email subscribers, your rate will climb to $35/mo.
- Pro Marketer: this plan is considerably more expensive than anything Aweber (and indeed competing products like GetResponse, Campaign Monitor and Mad Mimi) have to offer: this plan $199 per month with extensive reporting and split testing, plus top priority for pro advice and assistance.
Things to Keep in Mind with Any List Provider:
The Pros of Mailchimp
- For those who are just dipping their toes into the email list creation process, MailChimp’s Starting Up plan is a great way to get a handle on the process without shelling out any cash.
- MailChimp has an easy to use drag and drop features, images are easily resized, have the capability of adding borders and space between the image and the text.
- Automated emails or drip campaigns as they are sometimes referred to are easy to set up for lists.
- You won’t be paying for duplicate contacts on any list like you would in other email programs.
- Users of MailChimp also agree that it’s easier to use and navigate than Aweber.
- Blog emails – you can create a template, choose the options you want and send these out specific to your needs. You can choose to send only when there is a post, or weekly making your blog email more of a blog summary email and pull any blog posts since the last email.
- Landing Pages – Mailchimp just rolled out Landing Pages for paid plans so you don’t have to have a website to have a Landing Page to direct people to for a product or service.
The Cons of Mailchimp

Becky Flansburg is the CCO (Cheif of Creative Operations) at AudreyPress.com and also the Project Manager for Multicultural Children’s Book Day. She is also an avid freelance writer, blogger, influencer and reviewer of children’s and YA Books.
Connect with Becky at Becky (at) AudreyPress (dot) com or on Twitter or Instagram.

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