Setting up a Shopify newsletter signup form in 3 easy steps

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You’ve poured your heart and soul into your Shopify store, but customers aren’t flocking in like you’d hoped?

If you relate to this, chances are you need a new way to connect with your customers directly, nurture brand loyalty, and drive sales. 

Building a thriving email list is a good way to directly reach customers, promote new products, and bring back more qualified traffic to your Shopify store. Being one of the most cost-effective and reliable marketing strategies, email marketing for Shopify can deliver an impressive ROI of up to $36 per $1 spent.

By incorporating a well-designed Shopify newsletter signup form on your website, you can capture leads and build a community around your brand. 

In this article, we’ll walk you through setting up a high-converting Shopify newsletter signup form in just three easy steps. This will help you capture those valuable email addresses with ease.

Here’s what we’ll talk about: 

• Why send a Shopify newsletter campaign?
• How to add a newsletter signup to Shopify
• Adding Omnisend newsletter signup forms
• How to target your signup forms for Shopify
• Shopify newsletter best practices
• 5 best Shopify newsletter signup form examples

Why send a Shopify newsletter campaign?

A Shopify newsletter campaign lets you connect directly with your customers via email. Adding a newsletter signup form to your online store allows you to collect email addresses and build your mailing list. 

You can then use this list to send email campaigns that promote new products, special offers, and informative content. 

What other reasons could there be to include newsletters in your Shopify marketing strategy? 

Here’s a breakdown of the key benefits:

• Cost-effectiveness: Shopify email newsletter campaigns are a relatively cost-effective way to reach a large audience. With Shopify, you can send up to 10,000 emails for free each month. 
• Boost brand awareness and recognition: Regularly reaching your audience through Shopify newsletters can keep your brand at the forefront of their minds. This fosters familiarity among potential customers.
• Targeted communication: With Shopify newsletters, you can segment your contact list based on their preferences, purchase history, and behavior. This helps to personalize your content to increase the relevance and engagement of your newsletters. 
• Drive sales and conversions: Newsletters provide a direct channel to promote new arrivals, upcoming sales, and special offers. By including eye-catching product visuals and clear CTAs, you can attract subscribers to visit your store and make a purchase.
• Gather customer insights: Surveys or polls can help you understand customer preferences and buying habits. The valuable data you gain will allow you to tailor future offerings and promotions for maximum impact.

How to add a newsletter signup to Shopify

Start by going to Shopify newsletter settings and adding a Shopify subscribe form to the footer of your online store. This form is designed to connect to your email provider.

Shopify itself allows you to add a newsletter signup form to the footer of your website. Let’s walk through the process of creating a new form and adding it to your Shopify store.

Step 1: From the initial page, navigate to the “Online Store” menu and select “Themes.” Browse the theme store for free or paid Shopify themes that best suit your brand.

Step 2: Click on the “Customize theme” button in the top-right corner. Scroll down to “Show newsletter signup” in the “Footer” submenu. Check the box and save your changes. Please note that the form will not function unless it’s connected to your email service provider. 

Of course, you can also connect your signup form to another email marketing app. Omnisend offers a wide range of profit-oriented features for Shopify stores. Find out why Omnisend is a good alternative to Mailchimp.

Step 3: Go to the Shopify store and download the free Omnisend app. Our newsletter signup form works out of the box — no additional activation or configuration is needed. By default, emails received from this form will be added to the “All subscribers” list in your Omnisend account.

Please note: It will function automatically if you haven’t changed a code in the footer before. If you use a custom solution, you may also be interested in the opportunity to customize the signup form.

Adding Omnisend newsletter signup forms

Shopify apps such as Omnisend allow you to collect customer contact information more dynamically. Omnisend currently provides five types of Shopify newsletter signup forms: popup, teaser, multi-step forms, Wheel of Fortune, and landing page.

Custom newsletter signup forms offer a number of advantages over Shopify newsletter signup page defaults. A well-designed Shopify signup form will be more relevant and tailored to each customer’s behavior, and since Omnisend is fully integrated with Shopify, it makes it easy to add custom forms to your Shopify store.

Your multi-step form’s text, color, and positioning can be customized to match your brand and your store’s design. No coding skills are required — a single click is all it takes to enable this Shopify newsletter signup form. Omnisend will automatically add the multi-step form to your Shopify store.

Other signup form options include:

• Popups: These appear on the customer’s screen in response to particular triggers. For example, you might want to display a popup when their cursor moves off the page or when they’ve been on your site for a certain amount of time. Consider offering a special discount code in your popups as additional motivation. Popups are more dynamic and, with a 3% conversion rate, are more effective than standard static Shopify subscribe to newsletter forms. 

• Gamified newsletter forms on Shopify: Gamification brings a higher level of customer engagement while offering the opportunity to offer incentives. Examples like the Wheel of Fortune are particularly effective, allowing users to spin the wheel for rewards like discounts and free shipping in return for a signup. This Shopify signup form option results in a 10% conversion rate.

• Landing pages: These allow you to share Shopify newsletter signup links on your website, social media profiles, and ad campaigns. Once a person clicks on that link, he or she will be redirected to a Shopify newsletter signup page. Landing pages are focused, distraction-free, and allow you to run signup campaigns focused on particular incentives such as free shipping. This is reflected in their high conversion rates of 23%.

How to target your signup forms for Shopify

You can increase lead capture and conversion rates by tailoring your forms to specific audiences. Here’s how to optimize your Shopify newsletter signup forms for better results:  

• Match the offer to the user: Personalizing your signup forms could be as simple as changing the popup image to match the product a user is looking at. 
  
  You can tailor the popup message and visuals based on browsing behavior to ensure the right signup form is displayed for each unique audience group. 
  
  If they’re looking at your shipping and returns policies, for example, it may make more sense to offer free shipping instead of a 10% discount.

• Consider the frequency: While popups can be effective, displaying more than a single popup per visit can be counterproductive. 
  
  Users need the opportunity to browse through your site on their own without being bothered by too many popups. 
  
  Omnisend provides the option to limit signup forms and popups to avoid distracting your visitors.

• Test and refine: Once you’ve created targeted forms, it’s crucial to test what works best. 
  
  The possibilities are limitless with Omnisend. Simply create new signup forms as needed, assign them to the right audience segment, and adjust any other settings as desired. 
  
  A/B testing is the best way to determine whether these adjustments positively impact your subscription or sales numbers. 

For more details, use our email pricing calculator below to quickly compare costs and features with other top platforms. Input your desired number of contacts, choose up to two other email marketing providers from the list, and see how Omnisend stacks up against them.

Shopify newsletter best practices

While these best practices are geared towards Shopify newsletters, they can be effectively applied to any email marketing campaign to boost conversions:

• Segmentation: Effectively segmenting your list before sending your newsletter makes personalization possible. Think about it, your audience is made up of individual people with their own needs and interests. Segmenting your list by attributes, such as age, gender, and shopping behavior, breaks your audience into smaller, more manageable categories. That way, you can reach out to each segment with more targeted content.
• Attractive subject line: All of your efforts are in vain if your newsletter is never opened in the first place. Create a series of attention-grabbing subject lines using positive language that conveys a sense of urgency. You can also include emojis where appropriate as well as a discount announcement. A/B test different variations to determine which one will be most successful.   
• Clear CTA: Every Shopify email newsletter should have a purpose that can be encapsulated in one easy-to-find Call To Action (CTA). This is usually a prominent button or link that directs the user toward a page on your website or social media account. Bold colors and short, simple text, such as “Learn more,” “Shop now,” or “Sign up,” work best as seen in the image below.

• Consistent branding: Keep your brand’s visual identity consistent across all communications. This includes your newsletters. Include your social links in the footer, as well as links leading to your website. 
• Exclusivity: Your subscribers are your most valuable asset, so make them feel special with exclusive “subscriber-only” content and incentives. This keeps your followers happy and engaged with your brand, while encouraging them to make repeat purchases and become loyal customers. 

5 best Shopify newsletter signup form examples

A well-designed newsletter signup form can be the key to growing a quality list. 

We’ll explore five inspiring Shopify newsletter signup form examples to showcase different approaches to capture leads and grow your subscriber base.

1. Taylor Stitch

This form by Taylor Stitch is a standout example of a well-designed Shopify newsletter signup form. 

It’s straightforward, asking only for the user’s email address. This minimizes friction and increases the likelihood of users completing the signup process.

It displays a concise CTA urging visitors to ‘Join the Club,’ creating a sense of exclusivity, being a part of a group with access to valuable information and offers. Moreover, the tangible benefit of a 20% discount on the first purchase provides additional incentive for users to sign up.

2. Sunday Somewhere

Sunday Somewhere’s Shopify newsletter signup form entices potential subscribers by providing a 10% discount. 

The form’s copy is concise and compelling, promising “the latest on new releases, promotions, and more”. This creates a sense of privilege and emphasizes that subscribers get important updates before the general public does.

The form has a visually appealing design, with a white background, black text, and a vibrant red call-to-action button that creates a strong contrast and catches the user’s attention. 

3. Snowe

Snowe’s signup form excels in its minimalistic design, focusing on the essential elements without overwhelming the visitor. 

The newsletter signup form simply requires visitors to provide an email address for signup. This streamlines the process and makes it easy for visitors to engage. 

Additionally, the 10% discount offer on the first order attracts more visitors to sign up.

4. WP Standard

Nothing excites customers more than a discount on their favorite product. That’s why, in this form, WP Standard offers a 10% discount on the customers’ first order. 

In addition to this discount, customers are promised ongoing benefits, such as updates on product releases and sales.

Plus, the signup process is simple as it just requires an email address.

5. Jungalow

This signup form by Jungalow takes a conversational approach. It prioritizes the user’s needs by focusing on what they’re looking for. 

The message on the form speaks directly to the user’s desire for a discount while subtly hinting at the diverse product range the brand offers.

Moreover, by requiring minimal information, which is just an email address, Jungalow lowers the hurdle for signup. This helps with capturing leads who might be hesitant to provide elaborate details.

Wrap up

As a marketer, it can be tempting to focus on areas of the sales funnel that offer more obvious and immediate results. However, optimizing your subscription process is critical for long-term growth in ecommerce. 

Actively growing your subscriber database will help you grow your outreach through email automation and lift your business up to the next level. And as it was built for ecommerce, Omnisend is the obvious choice.