OT - bulk mailer software (for club)
 

Posting here because all the usual suspects seem to frequent this group.

I need to distribute some details to all registered members of a club.
Only around 60 at the moment, but it should be scalable.

Two obvious options:

(1) Send a single email with all the addresses in the BCC field. Offloads
the processing to the mail network. However there is the risk of a mis-op
(as regularly seen in the press) where CC instead of BCC is used.

(2) Send one email to each recipient. This puts more load on the mail
originator and need to be throttled to avoid SPAM black listing but this
removes (hopefully) the risk of revealing email addresses.

I could hand craft this (memories of building utilities using Perl and Blat
in my mis-spent youth) but if possible I would like a generic solution for
any Windows user and using a Gmail account so that it can be handed over
to the less computer literate in the longer term.

My first hits on Google seem to resolve around Outlook and Office, which
not everyone has.

I suppose a web based solution would be best, because you do get the
occasional Apple user and support of Apple tablets would be a bonus.

Asking the question whilst I research in case anyone has already solved
this.

Failing memory suggests that Mailchimp has been mentioned before.
Looking at it I see that it is free for less than 2,000 subscribers and
12,000 emails per month. This seems to fit nicely. Anyone using it?

Cheers


Dave R

--
Windows 8.1 on PCSpecialist box

OT - bulk mailer software (for club)
 

On 04/03/2016 12:27, Jonno wrote:

Will your mail provider allow you to send bulk mail ?

We have friends who regularly send round-robin emails (informing us of
their family news) to 30 or 40 recipients. I know how many, because as
likely as not they forget to use the bcc field. They are on gmail, IIRC.
I am not sure what the upper limit is on gmail, but it's at least 30 and
it would be easy to split the email list up and send two or three emails
if necessary.

OT - bulk mailer software (for club)
 

On 04/03/2016 12:36, GB wrote:
On 04/03/2016 12:27, Jonno wrote:

Will your mail provider allow you to send bulk mail ?

We have friends who regularly send round-robin emails (informing us of
their family news) to 30 or 40 recipients. I know how many, because as
likely as not they forget to use the bcc field. They are on gmail, IIRC.
I am not sure what the upper limit is on gmail, but it's at least 30 and
it would be easy to split the email list up and send two or three emails
if necessary.



Found the limits on gmail. https://support.google.com/a/answer/166852?hl=en

Turns out to be 500 in one email and 10,000 per day.

OT - bulk mailer software (for club)
 

On 04/03/2016 12:00, David wrote:
Posting here because all the usual suspects seem to frequent this group.

I need to distribute some details to all registered members of a club.
Only around 60 at the moment, but it should be scalable.

Two obvious options:

(1) Send a single email with all the addresses in the BCC field. Offloads
the processing to the mail network. However there is the risk of a mis-op
(as regularly seen in the press) where CC instead of BCC is used.

(2) Send one email to each recipient. This puts more load on the mail
originator and need to be throttled to avoid SPAM black listing but this
removes (hopefully) the risk of revealing email addresses.

I could hand craft this (memories of building utilities using Perl and Blat
in my mis-spent youth) but if possible I would like a generic solution for
any Windows user and using a Gmail account so that it can be handed over
to the less computer literate in the longer term.

My first hits on Google seem to resolve around Outlook and Office, which
not everyone has.

I suppose a web based solution would be best, because you do get the
occasional Apple user and support of Apple tablets would be a bonus.

Asking the question whilst I research in case anyone has already solved
this.

Failing memory suggests that Mailchimp has been mentioned before.
Looking at it I see that it is free for less than 2,000 subscribers and
12,000 emails per month. This seems to fit nicely. Anyone using it?

Cheers


Dave R

Hi Dave
I'd recommend Mailchimp. You can send plain text or html emails, they
handle all of the sending, unsubscribing, and (if you want) signing up
to the list from your website.

I've done it 'the other way' with scripts etc - but it's a heap of
hassle, and I'd use Mailchimp in future.

You also get to see who's opened their emails - which can be handy when
folks say 'I never saw that'.... grin
Adrian

OT - bulk mailer software (for club)
 

On 04/03/16 12:00, David wrote:
Posting here because all the usual suspects seem to frequent this group.

I need to distribute some details to all registered members of a club.
Only around 60 at the moment, but it should be scalable.

Two obvious options:

(1) Send a single email with all the addresses in the BCC field. Offloads
the processing to the mail network. However there is the risk of a mis-op
(as regularly seen in the press) where CC instead of BCC is used.

(2) Send one email to each recipient. This puts more load on the mail
originator and need to be throttled to avoid SPAM black listing but this
removes (hopefully) the risk of revealing email addresses.

I could hand craft this (memories of building utilities using Perl and Blat
in my mis-spent youth) but if possible I would like a generic solution for
any Windows user and using a Gmail account so that it can be handed over
to the less computer literate in the longer term.

My first hits on Google seem to resolve around Outlook and Office, which
not everyone has.

Christ dear god no. Totally the worst option in the universe!!!

I am surprised you didn't a link to GG (below) or mailman.

mailman is the traditional way - it's a bit "old" but it is competent.
However, IMHO GG is better VVV

I suppose a web based solution would be best, because you do get the
occasional Apple user and support of Apple tablets would be a bonus.

For your needs, I would suggest Google Groups.

https://groups.google.com

It gets a bad press because the NNTP2GG is ****e - but as a mailing list
it is extremely powerful and friendly. You can have public lists and
private lists (only members can see the archives). Easy to moderate if
desired and the SPAM filtering is excellent (not that that's a problem
for you as you'll probably have "posting by members or select few" only.

Anyone with a google account can set one up - the recipients do not
*need* accounts to receive or send mail, but they will to access the
archive.

OT - bulk mailer software (for club)
 

On 04/03/2016 12:00, David wrote:


I suppose a web based solution would be best, because you do get the
occasional Apple user and support of Apple tablets would be a bonus.

Asking the question whilst I research in case anyone has already solved
this.

Failing memory suggests that Mailchimp has been mentioned before.
Looking at it I see that it is free for less than 2,000 subscribers and
12,000 emails per month. This seems to fit nicely. Anyone using it?

We use it at work, with a subscription. It is much simpler than trying
to do it anywhere else, especially with mail clients that are not
designed for bulk email. If In were you I would consider it very strongly.


Cheers


Dave R

OT - bulk mailer software (for club)
 

David wrote:
Posting here because all the usual suspects seem to frequent this group.

I need to distribute some details to all registered members of a club.
Only around 60 at the moment, but it should be scalable.

Two obvious options:

(1) Send a single email with all the addresses in the BCC field. Offloads
the processing to the mail network. However there is the risk of a mis-op
(as regularly seen in the press) where CC instead of BCC is used.

(2) Send one email to each recipient. This puts more load on the mail
originator and need to be throttled to avoid SPAM black listing but this
removes (hopefully) the risk of revealing email addresses.

I could hand craft this (memories of building utilities using Perl and Blat
in my mis-spent youth) but if possible I would like a generic solution for
any Windows user and using a Gmail account so that it can be handed over
to the less computer literate in the longer term.

My first hits on Google seem to resolve around Outlook and Office, which
not everyone has.

I suppose a web based solution would be best, because you do get the
occasional Apple user and support of Apple tablets would be a bonus.

Asking the question whilst I research in case anyone has already solved
this.

Failing memory suggests that Mailchimp has been mentioned before.
Looking at it I see that it is free for less than 2,000 subscribers and
12,000 emails per month. This seems to fit nicely. Anyone using it?

I used MailChimp for a similar purpose for some years (over 1000
recipients, though). It's designed for mailing lists for people to
subscribe and unsubscribe themselves, and that's not the same as having
a list that you maintain yourself. That seemingly innocent difference
brings up a whole load of gotchas. Also it's pretty buggy and has a
truly cringeworthy user interface.

You might look at TinyLetter instead.

--
Mike Barnes
Cheshire, England

OT - bulk mailer software (for club)
 

David wrote:
Posting here because all the usual suspects seem to frequent this group.

I need to distribute some details to all registered members of a club.
Only around 60 at the moment, but it should be scalable.

Two obvious options:

(1) Send a single email with all the addresses in the BCC field. Offloads
the processing to the mail network. However there is the risk of a mis-op
(as regularly seen in the press) where CC instead of BCC is used.

(2) Send one email to each recipient. This puts more load on the mail
originator and need to be throttled to avoid SPAM black listing but this
removes (hopefully) the risk of revealing email addresses.

I could hand craft this (memories of building utilities using Perl and Blat
in my mis-spent youth) but if possible I would like a generic solution for
any Windows user and using a Gmail account so that it can be handed over
to the less computer literate in the longer term.

My first hits on Google seem to resolve around Outlook and Office, which
not everyone has.

I suppose a web based solution would be best, because you do get the
occasional Apple user and support of Apple tablets would be a bonus.

Asking the question whilst I research in case anyone has already solved
this.

Failing memory suggests that Mailchimp has been mentioned before.
Looking at it I see that it is free for less than 2,000 subscribers and
12,000 emails per month. This seems to fit nicely. Anyone using it?

Cheers


Dave R


If you've done scripting, and you use a recent enough Windows version,
you might try something in PowerShell, which can send an email easily
enough.

Something like this (which has the variable $ExchangeServer, but should
work with any SMTP server you can relay through).

http://www.cgoosen.com/2015/04/user-...il-your-users/

OT - bulk mailer software (for club)
 

Adrian Brentnall wrote:

You also get to see who's opened their emails - which can be handy when
folks say 'I never saw that'.... grin

How? My E-Mail program certainly doesn't sand any sort of response
unless I tell it to. Even HTML E-mail I view in text mode via a text
mode browser which also doesn't send anything unless I tell it to.

--
Chris Green
·

OT - bulk mailer software (for club)
 

On 04/03/2016 14:01, wrote:
Adrian Brentnall wrote:

You also get to see who's opened their emails - which can be handy when
folks say 'I never saw that'.... grin

How? My E-Mail program certainly doesn't sand any sort of response
unless I tell it to. Even HTML E-mail I view in text mode via a text
mode browser which also doesn't send anything unless I tell it to.


Don't know how it's done...
but I do know that you get a report on each mailing run that tells you
about opens, clicks, bounces and unsubscribes.
It also knows about 'successful deliveries'..

Ah - here's how it knows (from the Mailchimp help pages)
"The open rate is a percentage that tells you how many successfully
delivered campaigns were opened by subscribers. To find this out,
MailChimp loads a tiny, transparent image into each campaign, and counts
how often the image is loaded among the delivered campaigns. The image
is invisible to your subscribers.

The click rate is a percentage that tells you how many successfully
delivered campaigns registered at least one click. Your click rate
reveals general trends, but isn't particularly detailed. Additional
information about your subscribers, click-throughs and timing is
available on your Reports page.

Because open rate tracking relies on images, it isn't 100% accurate. If
a subscriber's email client has images turned off, the tracking image
won't load, and their campaign won't register as opened. MailChimp
reduces this margin of error by factoring in click-throughs with open rates.

Since subscribers have to open a campaign to click a link inside it,
we'll consider those clicks as opens even if the tracking image didn't
load."

So there you go! grin

A

OT - bulk mailer software (for club)
 

On Fri, 04 Mar 2016 13:28:50 +0000, Dan S. MacAbre wrote:

David wrote:
Posting here because all the usual suspects seem to frequent this
group.

I need to distribute some details to all registered members of a club.
Only around 60 at the moment, but it should be scalable.

Two obvious options:

(1) Send a single email with all the addresses in the BCC field.
Offloads the processing to the mail network. However there is the risk
of a mis-op (as regularly seen in the press) where CC instead of BCC is
used.

(2) Send one email to each recipient. This puts more load on the mail
originator and need to be throttled to avoid SPAM black listing but
this removes (hopefully) the risk of revealing email addresses.

I could hand craft this (memories of building utilities using Perl and
Blat in my mis-spent youth) but if possible I would like a generic
solution for any Windows user and using a Gmail account so that it can
be handed over to the less computer literate in the longer term.

My first hits on Google seem to resolve around Outlook and Office,
which not everyone has.

I suppose a web based solution would be best, because you do get the
occasional Apple user and support of Apple tablets would be a bonus.

Asking the question whilst I research in case anyone has already solved
this.

Failing memory suggests that Mailchimp has been mentioned before.
Looking at it I see that it is free for less than 2,000 subscribers and
12,000 emails per month. This seems to fit nicely. Anyone using it?

Cheers


Dave R


If you've done scripting, and you use a recent enough Windows version,
you might try something in PowerShell, which can send an email easily
enough.

Something like this (which has the variable $ExchangeServer, but should
work with any SMTP server you can relay through).

http://www.cgoosen.com/2015/04/user-...il-your-users/

Thanks.

After a couple of beers I can write fairly workable scripts, and I have a
Powershell manual gathering dust somewhere.

However I am currently bereft of even the vaguest sign of anyone else who
might be able to understand (yet alone maintain) such a script.

Strongly tempted to have a play once my Tuit is sufficiently round, though.

Cheers

Dave R



--
Windows 8.1 on PCSpecialist box

OT - bulk mailer software (for club)
 

Adrian Brentnall wrote:

Ah - here's how it knows (from the Mailchimp help pages)
"The open rate is a percentage that tells you how many successfully
delivered campaigns were opened by subscribers. To find this out,
MailChimp loads a tiny, transparent image into each campaign, and counts
how often the image is loaded among the delivered campaigns. The image
is invisible to your subscribers.

Since I read in text mode it won't happen when I read one of these.
Also lots of people have blockers that explicitly stop the tiny images
used to do this.

--
Chris Green
·

OT - bulk mailer software (for club)
 

On Fri, 04 Mar 2016 13:13:02 +0000, Mike Barnes wrote:

David wrote:
Posting here because all the usual suspects seem to frequent this
group.

I need to distribute some details to all registered members of a club.
Only around 60 at the moment, but it should be scalable.

Two obvious options:

(1) Send a single email with all the addresses in the BCC field.
Offloads the processing to the mail network. However there is the risk
of a mis-op (as regularly seen in the press) where CC instead of BCC is
used.

(2) Send one email to each recipient. This puts more load on the mail
originator and need to be throttled to avoid SPAM black listing but
this removes (hopefully) the risk of revealing email addresses.

I could hand craft this (memories of building utilities using Perl and
Blat in my mis-spent youth) but if possible I would like a generic
solution for any Windows user and using a Gmail account so that it can
be handed over to the less computer literate in the longer term.

My first hits on Google seem to resolve around Outlook and Office,
which not everyone has.

I suppose a web based solution would be best, because you do get the
occasional Apple user and support of Apple tablets would be a bonus.

Asking the question whilst I research in case anyone has already solved
this.

Failing memory suggests that Mailchimp has been mentioned before.
Looking at it I see that it is free for less than 2,000 subscribers and
12,000 emails per month. This seems to fit nicely. Anyone using it?

I used MailChimp for a similar purpose for some years (over 1000
recipients, though). It's designed for mailing lists for people to
subscribe and unsubscribe themselves, and that's not the same as having
a list that you maintain yourself. That seemingly innocent difference
brings up a whole load of gotchas. Also it's pretty buggy and has a
truly cringeworthy user interface.

You might look at TinyLetter instead.

Subscribe/unsubscribe is a big plus - everyone is welcome to join or leave
the list.

Will look at Tinyletter once my initial test of Mailchimp has taken place.

Cheers

Dave R



--
Windows 8.1 on PCSpecialist box

OT - bulk mailer software (for club)
 

On Fri, 04 Mar 2016 12:27:53 +0000, Jonno wrote:

David scribbled


Posting here because all the usual suspects seem to frequent this
group.

I need to distribute some details to all registered members of a club.
Only around 60 at the moment, but it should be scalable.

Two obvious options:

(1) Send a single email with all the addresses in the BCC field.
Offloads the processing to the mail network. However there is the risk
of a mis-op (as regularly seen in the press) where CC instead of BCC is
used.

(2) Send one email to each recipient. This puts more load on the mail
originator and need to be throttled to avoid SPAM black listing but
this removes (hopefully) the risk of revealing email addresses.

I could hand craft this (memories of building utilities using Perl and
Blat in my mis-spent youth) but if possible I would like a generic
solution for any Windows user and using a Gmail account so that it can
be handed over to the less computer literate in the longer term.

My first hits on Google seem to resolve around Outlook and Office,
which not everyone has.

I suppose a web based solution would be best, because you do get the
occasional Apple user and support of Apple tablets would be a bonus.

Asking the question whilst I research in case anyone has already solved
this.

Failing memory suggests that Mailchimp has been mentioned before.
Looking at it I see that it is free for less than 2,000 subscribers and
12,000 emails per month. This seems to fit nicely. Anyone using it?

Cheers



Will your mail provider allow you to send bulk mail ?

If I use Mailchimp it won't go through my ISP as far as I can see.

Cheers

Dave R

--
Windows 8.1 on PCSpecialist box

OT - bulk mailer software (for club)
 

On Fri, 04 Mar 2016 16:14:47 +0000, cl wrote:

Adrian Brentnall wrote:

Ah - here's how it knows (from the Mailchimp help pages)
"The open rate is a percentage that tells you how many successfully
delivered campaigns were opened by subscribers. To find this out,
MailChimp loads a tiny, transparent image into each campaign, and
counts how often the image is loaded among the delivered campaigns. The
image is invisible to your subscribers.

Since I read in text mode it won't happen when I read one of these. Also
lots of people have blockers that explicitly stop the tiny images used
to do this.

My intention would be to use plain text email initially anyway.

Once (if) I get it working then I can work on signature, branding, and all
the other cobblers.

Cheers


Dave R

--
Windows 8.1 on PCSpecialist box

OT - bulk mailer software (for club)
 

On 4 Mar 2016 12:00:50 GMT, David wrote:

I need to distribute some details to all registered members of a club.
Only around 60 at the moment, but it should be scalable.

About 15 years ago I found a method in Eudora 6. The programme was adware or
something but a stray number fixed that.
Basically, it allowed multiple e-mails, with an attachment, to be sent
addressed to each recipient by name but without other addresses showing.
Another plus was that it was only one upload (~250k) on a v. slow
connection.
Someone commented that the server had to do all the work - with 40-odd
separate e-mails it would be just as much.
I haven't used it for about 8 years now and it was once a year, so I can't
remember how I did it, sorry.
So, it is (was) possible without using web mail.
--
Peter.
The gods will stay away
whilst religions hold sway

OT - bulk mailer software (for club)
 

On Fri, 04 Mar 2016 12:00:50 +0000, David wrote:

Posting here because all the usual suspects seem to frequent this group.

I need to distribute some details to all registered members of a club.
Only around 60 at the moment, but it should be scalable.

Two obvious options:

(1) Send a single email with all the addresses in the BCC field.
Offloads the processing to the mail network. However there is the risk
of a mis-op (as regularly seen in the press) where CC instead of BCC is
used.

(2) Send one email to each recipient. This puts more load on the mail
originator and need to be throttled to avoid SPAM black listing but this
removes (hopefully) the risk of revealing email addresses.

I could hand craft this (memories of building utilities using Perl and
Blat in my mis-spent youth) but if possible I would like a generic
solution for any Windows user and using a Gmail account so that it can
be handed over to the less computer literate in the longer term.

My first hits on Google seem to resolve around Outlook and Office, which
not everyone has.

I suppose a web based solution would be best, because you do get the
occasional Apple user and support of Apple tablets would be a bonus.

Asking the question whilst I research in case anyone has already solved
this.

Failing memory suggests that Mailchimp has been mentioned before.
Looking at it I see that it is free for less than 2,000 subscribers and
12,000 emails per month. This seems to fit nicely. Anyone using it?

Thanks for all the responses so far.

Interesting split on Mailchimp between "Hell, Yes!!" and "****, No!!"

My initial trial will be with Mailchimp because the ability for users to
subscribe and unsubscribe is a big plus.

If I understand how it works, I can populate the mailing list with our
current list, and then in future people can subscribe or unsubscribe
without any further action by the team.

This seems to make it meet the anti-SPAM requirements without the hassle
of a committee member having to constantly monitor for subscribe or
unsubscribe requests.

Also gives the chance to schedule reminders of upcoming meetings/events in
one pass instead of having to remember to do it each month.

There will be downsides (including writing clear non-technical
instructions) but it looks to be promising.

I will try and investigate the other suggestion - Google Groups sounds a
possibility.

Cheers

Dave R



--
Windows 8.1 on PCSpecialist box

OT - bulk mailer software (for club)
 

On 04/03/16 16:32, David wrote:

I will try and investigate the other suggestion - Google Groups sounds a
possibility.


It is one less thing to look after - and if you have to pass emailing
list duties to another person (short or long term) they don't inherit a
bespoke system :)

OT - bulk mailer software (for club)
 

David wrote:
On Fri, 04 Mar 2016 13:28:50 +0000, Dan S. MacAbre wrote:

David wrote:
Posting here because all the usual suspects seem to frequent this
group.

I need to distribute some details to all registered members of a club.
Only around 60 at the moment, but it should be scalable.

Two obvious options:

(1) Send a single email with all the addresses in the BCC field.
Offloads the processing to the mail network. However there is the risk
of a mis-op (as regularly seen in the press) where CC instead of BCC is
used.

(2) Send one email to each recipient. This puts more load on the mail
originator and need to be throttled to avoid SPAM black listing but
this removes (hopefully) the risk of revealing email addresses.

I could hand craft this (memories of building utilities using Perl and
Blat in my mis-spent youth) but if possible I would like a generic
solution for any Windows user and using a Gmail account so that it can
be handed over to the less computer literate in the longer term.

My first hits on Google seem to resolve around Outlook and Office,
which not everyone has.

I suppose a web based solution would be best, because you do get the
occasional Apple user and support of Apple tablets would be a bonus.

Asking the question whilst I research in case anyone has already solved
this.

Failing memory suggests that Mailchimp has been mentioned before.
Looking at it I see that it is free for less than 2,000 subscribers and
12,000 emails per month. This seems to fit nicely. Anyone using it?

Cheers


Dave R


If you've done scripting, and you use a recent enough Windows version,
you might try something in PowerShell, which can send an email easily
enough.

Something like this (which has the variable $ExchangeServer, but should
work with any SMTP server you can relay through).

http://www.cgoosen.com/2015/04/user-...il-your-users/

Thanks.

After a couple of beers I can write fairly workable scripts, and I have a
Powershell manual gathering dust somewhere.

However I am currently bereft of even the vaguest sign of anyone else who
might be able to understand (yet alone maintain) such a script.

Strongly tempted to have a play once my Tuit is sufficiently round, though.

Cheers

Dave R


Once written, they're easy enough to run. But yes, maintenance of the
code is a different thing. But note that in this case, the addresses
are in a text file, not in the script, if that's what you were worried
about.

I can certainly recommend playing with PowerShell. For very high level
scripting, it is simply awesome. I use it for everything now - it can
even create a GUI, although each control has to be created, sized, and
positioned in code.

OT - bulk mailer software (for club)
 

Tim Watts wrote:
On 04/03/16 16:32, David wrote:

I will try and investigate the other suggestion - Google Groups sounds a
possibility.


It is one less thing to look after - and if you have to pass emailing
list duties to another person (short or long term) they don't inherit a
bespoke system :)

Yes, a Google Group as a mailing list is quite effective, I'm on
several and am the administrator for one (or is it two?).

--
Chris Green
·

OT - bulk mailer software (for club)
 

On Fri, 04 Mar 2016 16:32:45 +0000, David wrote:

On Fri, 04 Mar 2016 12:00:50 +0000, David wrote:

Posting here because all the usual suspects seem to frequent this
group.

I need to distribute some details to all registered members of a club.
Only around 60 at the moment, but it should be scalable.

Two obvious options:

(1) Send a single email with all the addresses in the BCC field.
Offloads the processing to the mail network. However there is the risk
of a mis-op (as regularly seen in the press) where CC instead of BCC is
used.

(2) Send one email to each recipient. This puts more load on the mail
originator and need to be throttled to avoid SPAM black listing but
this removes (hopefully) the risk of revealing email addresses.

I could hand craft this (memories of building utilities using Perl and
Blat in my mis-spent youth) but if possible I would like a generic
solution for any Windows user and using a Gmail account so that it can
be handed over to the less computer literate in the longer term.

My first hits on Google seem to resolve around Outlook and Office,
which not everyone has.

I suppose a web based solution would be best, because you do get the
occasional Apple user and support of Apple tablets would be a bonus.

Asking the question whilst I research in case anyone has already solved
this.

Failing memory suggests that Mailchimp has been mentioned before.
Looking at it I see that it is free for less than 2,000 subscribers and
12,000 emails per month. This seems to fit nicely. Anyone using it?

Thanks for all the responses so far.

Interesting split on Mailchimp between "Hell, Yes!!" and "****, No!!"

My initial trial will be with Mailchimp because the ability for users to
subscribe and unsubscribe is a big plus.

If I understand how it works, I can populate the mailing list with our
current list, and then in future people can subscribe or unsubscribe
without any further action by the team.

This seems to make it meet the anti-SPAM requirements without the hassle
of a committee member having to constantly monitor for subscribe or
unsubscribe requests.

Also gives the chance to schedule reminders of upcoming meetings/events
in one pass instead of having to remember to do it each month.

There will be downsides (including writing clear non-technical
instructions) but it looks to be promising.

I will try and investigate the other suggestion - Google Groups sounds a
possibility.

Mail Chimp seems to be doing the business so far.

I can set up a mailing list, send out emails, and also put a link to the
list on a web site.

However I do understand the negative comments about the User Interface.

I managed to work my way through it because I am IT literate (as long as
there are pictures) and I know what I expect the system to do.

So when things aren't immediately obvious I have a poke around until I
find the bit I need.

Those with significantly less experience might struggle.

Comprehensive documentation required {sigh}.

Cheers

Dave R



--
Windows 8.1 on PCSpecialist box

OT - bulk mailer software (for club)
 

On 04/03/2016 16:14, wrote:
Adrian Brentnall wrote:

Ah - here's how it knows (from the Mailchimp help pages)
"The open rate is a percentage that tells you how many successfully
delivered campaigns were opened by subscribers. To find this out,
MailChimp loads a tiny, transparent image into each campaign, and counts
how often the image is loaded among the delivered campaigns. The image
is invisible to your subscribers.

Since I read in text mode it won't happen when I read one of these.
Also lots of people have blockers that explicitly stop the tiny images
used to do this.


OK - understood...
The ability to track opens was just a tiny part of the overall
'positives'.....

As I say - I've used it for a while (the web interface used to be a bit
difficult to navigate but they've improved that considerably). I find it
much easier than the old php-script setup I used for a while - and some
of my clients have adopted it & like it.

Plus it's free (for smaller lists).

Sadly - I'm on on commission g

A

OT - bulk mailer software (for club)
 

On 04/03/2016 14:01, wrote:
Adrian Brentnall wrote:

You also get to see who's opened their emails - which can be handy when
folks say 'I never saw that'.... grin

How? My E-Mail program certainly doesn't sand any sort of response
unless I tell it to. Even HTML E-mail I view in text mode via a text
mode browser which also doesn't send anything unless I tell it to.


Even if a mail is delivered it may have been sorted automatically into
the spam folder and never have been seen.

--
mailto: news {at} admac {dot] myzen {dot} co {dot} uk

OT - bulk mailer software (for club)
 

David

I'm in a similar position in that I'm helping to run a small club. At
present I do mass emails via a shell script and blat, but it isn't easy
to manage, so have considered MailChimp but, as you say, reactions vary
widely so I haven't not taken the plunge yet.

When you've tried it yourself could you post a follow-up (or email me
privately, the address at the top works though it may look as if it is
dummy).

Regards


On 04/03/2016 16:32, David wrote:
On Fri, 04 Mar 2016 12:00:50 +0000, David wrote:

Posting here because all the usual suspects seem to frequent this group.

I need to distribute some details to all registered members of a club.
Only around 60 at the moment, but it should be scalable.

Two obvious options:

(1) Send a single email with all the addresses in the BCC field.
Offloads the processing to the mail network. However there is the risk
of a mis-op (as regularly seen in the press) where CC instead of BCC is
used.

(2) Send one email to each recipient. This puts more load on the mail
originator and need to be throttled to avoid SPAM black listing but this
removes (hopefully) the risk of revealing email addresses.

I could hand craft this (memories of building utilities using Perl and
Blat in my mis-spent youth) but if possible I would like a generic
solution for any Windows user and using a Gmail account so that it can
be handed over to the less computer literate in the longer term.

My first hits on Google seem to resolve around Outlook and Office, which
not everyone has.

I suppose a web based solution would be best, because you do get the
occasional Apple user and support of Apple tablets would be a bonus.

Asking the question whilst I research in case anyone has already solved
this.

Failing memory suggests that Mailchimp has been mentioned before.
Looking at it I see that it is free for less than 2,000 subscribers and
12,000 emails per month. This seems to fit nicely. Anyone using it?

Thanks for all the responses so far.

Interesting split on Mailchimp between "Hell, Yes!!" and "****, No!!"

My initial trial will be with Mailchimp because the ability for users to
subscribe and unsubscribe is a big plus.

If I understand how it works, I can populate the mailing list with our
current list, and then in future people can subscribe or unsubscribe
without any further action by the team.

This seems to make it meet the anti-SPAM requirements without the hassle
of a committee member having to constantly monitor for subscribe or
unsubscribe requests.

Also gives the chance to schedule reminders of upcoming meetings/events in
one pass instead of having to remember to do it each month.

There will be downsides (including writing clear non-technical
instructions) but it looks to be promising.

I will try and investigate the other suggestion - Google Groups sounds a
possibility.

Cheers

Dave R




--
Clive Page

OT - bulk mailer software (for club)
 

Just a suggestion. Create a freelists mail list with all the recipients as
subscribers but posting only allowed by you, then send the post to the list.
Brian

--
----- -
This newsgroup posting comes to you directly from...
The Sofa of Brian Gaff...

Blind user, so no pictures please!
"David" wrote in message
...
Posting here because all the usual suspects seem to frequent this group.

I need to distribute some details to all registered members of a club.
Only around 60 at the moment, but it should be scalable.

Two obvious options:

(1) Send a single email with all the addresses in the BCC field. Offloads
the processing to the mail network. However there is the risk of a mis-op
(as regularly seen in the press) where CC instead of BCC is used.

(2) Send one email to each recipient. This puts more load on the mail
originator and need to be throttled to avoid SPAM black listing but this
removes (hopefully) the risk of revealing email addresses.

I could hand craft this (memories of building utilities using Perl and
Blat
in my mis-spent youth) but if possible I would like a generic solution for
any Windows user and using a Gmail account so that it can be handed over
to the less computer literate in the longer term.

My first hits on Google seem to resolve around Outlook and Office, which
not everyone has.

I suppose a web based solution would be best, because you do get the
occasional Apple user and support of Apple tablets would be a bonus.

Asking the question whilst I research in case anyone has already solved
this.

Failing memory suggests that Mailchimp has been mentioned before.
Looking at it I see that it is free for less than 2,000 subscribers and
12,000 emails per month. This seems to fit nicely. Anyone using it?

Cheers


Dave R

--
Windows 8.1 on PCSpecialist box

OT - bulk mailer software (for club)
 

On 04/03/2016 18:54, alan_m wrote:
On 04/03/2016 14:01, wrote:
Adrian Brentnall wrote:

You also get to see who's opened their emails - which can be handy when
folks say 'I never saw that'.... grin

How? My E-Mail program certainly doesn't sand any sort of response
unless I tell it to. Even HTML E-mail I view in text mode via a text
mode browser which also doesn't send anything unless I tell it to.


Even if a mail is delivered it may have been sorted automatically into
the spam folder and never have been seen.



Then it wouldn't look to the mailer like it had been read.

OT - bulk mailer software (for club)
 

On Sat, 05 Mar 2016 10:54:26 +0000, Clive Page wrote:

David

I'm in a similar position in that I'm helping to run a small club. At
present I do mass emails via a shell script and blat, but it isn't easy
to manage, so have considered MailChimp but, as you say, reactions vary
widely so I haven't not taken the plunge yet.

When you've tried it yourself could you post a follow-up (or email me
privately, the address at the top works though it may look as if it is
dummy).

Regards


snip

So far so good.

I have set up a test list and am sending messages.

Subscription via a web link also works.

I am fighting with some tracking stuff - if I add a link to the message
then it gets wrapped in a tracker so the site can report back when the
link is clicked.
This is fine for marketing statistics, but might be a little disconcerting
for simple mail list recipients.

I am using text only email at the moment because the delivery tracking is
via an invisible call back picture in the email.
Again this might arouse concerns if the web browser or email client
reports this and asks if pictures should be allowed.

The interface is a little obscure in places but not too bad.

Certainly worth signing up for and setting up a test mailing list.

Cheers

Dave R


--
Windows 8.1 on PCSpecialist box

OT - bulk mailer software (for club)
 

On Sat, 05 Mar 2016 12:33:27 +0000, GB wrote:

On 04/03/2016 18:54, alan_m wrote:
On 04/03/2016 14:01, wrote:
Adrian Brentnall wrote:

You also get to see who's opened their emails - which can be handy
when folks say 'I never saw that'.... grin

How? My E-Mail program certainly doesn't sand any sort of response
unless I tell it to. Even HTML E-mail I view in text mode via a text
mode browser which also doesn't send anything unless I tell it to.


Even if a mail is delivered it may have been sorted automatically into
the spam folder and never have been seen.



Then it wouldn't look to the mailer like it had been read.

Read and delivery receipts used to be a black art.

MTAs would often report delivery when they accepted responsibility for the
email, then leave it up to the client to choose to send/not send a read
receipt.

Clients also variable in how they handled receipts - in theory they should
ask.

So no 100% guarantee that a delivery and read receipts will be sent.

A delivery receipt may well just mean it has got as far as the local ISP.

In general, a read receipt does strongly indicate that the email has been
opened in an email client. No eyeball tracking to prove it has been read.
Not at all sure what happens (should happen) if you select a number of
messages and "mark as read".

Cheers

Dave R

--
Windows 8.1 on PCSpecialist box

OT - bulk mailer software (for club)
 

On 04/03/16 12:00, David wrote:
Posting here because all the usual suspects seem to frequent this group.

I need to distribute some details to all registered members of a club.
Only around 60 at the moment, but it should be scalable.

.....

Here's another option:
A webpage for your group with some kind of blog - really any blog, say
blogger.com or a simple self hosted php system. Blog posts are converted
to RSS and RSS to email, so making a blog post automatically generates
an email to your list. Members can subscribe and unsubscribe themselves
on your site. It should run itself.

There are a lot of ways to do rss to email: feedburner, mailchimp,
nourish...

TW

OT - bulk mailer software (for club)
 

On Sat, 05 Mar 2016 14:32:32 +0000, TimW wrote:

On 04/03/16 12:00, David wrote:
Posting here because all the usual suspects seem to frequent this
group.

I need to distribute some details to all registered members of a club.
Only around 60 at the moment, but it should be scalable.

....

Here's another option:
A webpage for your group with some kind of blog - really any blog, say
blogger.com or a simple self hosted php system. Blog posts are converted
to RSS and RSS to email, so making a blog post automatically generates
an email to your list. Members can subscribe and unsubscribe themselves
on your site. It should run itself.

There are a lot of ways to do rss to email: feedburner, mailchimp,
nourish...

TW

Not sure of the benefits over just using Mail Chimp.

Once the list is set up then (un)subscribe is handled by the users.

All that is needed is to create a new "Campaign" and send it out each time
you have something to share.

If you could send an email to Mail Chimp and have it automagically sent
out to the list that would be good, but I haven't found that feature yet.

Cheers


Dave R


--
Windows 8.1 on PCSpecialist box

OT - bulk mailer software (for club)
 

David wrote:

If you could send an email to Mail Chimp and have it automagically sent
out to the list that would be good, but I haven't found that feature yet.

Eh? I thought that was the whole point.

--
Chris Green
·

OT - bulk mailer software (for club)
 

On Sat, 05 Mar 2016 17:22:33 +0000, cl wrote:

David wrote:

If you could send an email to Mail Chimp and have it automagically sent
out to the list that would be good, but I haven't found that feature
yet.

Eh? I thought that was the whole point.

So far I have been crafting a "Campaign" or mail shot on the site.

This is a tool for sending out targeted emails to a distribution list
(also known as SPAM).

As far as I know it is not intended to be used as an old style Mailing
List which is the traditional alternative to a Usenet news group or IRC
chat. That is, anyone can mail into the list server and the email is
distributed to all list members. There are special subject lines and body
parts for subscribing and unsubscribing.

This is just (as far as I know) a web site where you can prepare the
monthly news letter and then send it out to everybody on your list.

Cheers

Dave R

--
Windows 8.1 on PCSpecialist box

OT - bulk mailer software (for club)
 

On 04/03/2016 12:00, David wrote:

[snip]

Failing memory suggests that Mailchimp has been mentioned before.
Looking at it I see that it is free for less than 2,000 subscribers and
12,000 emails per month. This seems to fit nicely. Anyone using it?

Mailchimp: +1

I use it to run several lists (internal and external) for the local
Museum. The ability to tailor the address lists (add fields like phone
number) helps admin. The tracking is useful (to see who's read it), the
unsubscribe function keeps people happy, and the survey/poll function is
great (arranging a meeting for 60 people, click on a link to select your
chosen day, and collate the responses, and show who has picked which
day: magnificent saving on how we used to do it and gets a much beter
response than 'plase e-mail back with your choice').

OT - bulk mailer software (for club)
 

On Sun, 06 Mar 2016 11:28:32 +0000, Allan wrote:

On 04/03/2016 12:00, David wrote:

[snip]

Failing memory suggests that Mailchimp has been mentioned before.
Looking at it I see that it is free for less than 2,000 subscribers and
12,000 emails per month. This seems to fit nicely. Anyone using it?

Mailchimp: +1

I use it to run several lists (internal and external) for the local
Museum. The ability to tailor the address lists (add fields like phone
number) helps admin. The tracking is useful (to see who's read it), the
unsubscribe function keeps people happy, and the survey/poll function is
great (arranging a meeting for 60 people, click on a link to select your
chosen day, and collate the responses, and show who has picked which
day: magnificent saving on how we used to do it and gets a much beter
response than 'plase e-mail back with your choice').

Thanks!

Hadn't even realised it had a poll function.

One of my tasks is to try and organise a poll over topics for the meetings.

Cheers

Dave R

--
Windows 8.1 on PCSpecialist box

OT - bulk mailer software (for club)
 

On 06/03/2016 12:56, David wrote:
On Sun, 06 Mar 2016 11:28:32 +0000, Allan wrote:

On 04/03/2016 12:00, David wrote:

[snip]

Failing memory suggests that Mailchimp has been mentioned before.
Looking at it I see that it is free for less than 2,000 subscribers and
12,000 emails per month. This seems to fit nicely. Anyone using it?

Mailchimp: +1

I use it to run several lists (internal and external) for the local
Museum. The ability to tailor the address lists (add fields like phone
number) helps admin. The tracking is useful (to see who's read it), the
unsubscribe function keeps people happy, and the survey/poll function is
great (arranging a meeting for 60 people, click on a link to select your
chosen day, and collate the responses, and show who has picked which
day: magnificent saving on how we used to do it and gets a much beter
response than 'plase e-mail back with your choice').

Thanks!

Hadn't even realised it had a poll function.

One of my tasks is to try and organise a poll over topics for the meetings.

Cheers

Dave R


See
http://kb.mailchimp.com/campaigns/de...to-subscribers
I use the coffee example and edit it. Didn't take too much to get it to
work. The response rate is much better than e-mailing replies: people
seem to be better at clicking on a link to give an answer than e-mailing
back, and it's useful that Mailchimp collate/tabulates the responses!