The Complete Guide to Connecting AWeber and WordPress

As a webmaster with over 15 years of experience, I‘ve seen all the ins and outs of email marketing. Trust me when I say that email is still by far one of the most powerful ways to reach your audience.

And if you want to tap into its potential, you need to use a serious email marketing service like AWeber with your WordPress site.

In this comprehensive guide, I‘ll walk you step-by-step through everything you need to know to connect your AWeber and WordPress accounts.

Along the way, I‘ll share tips, statistics, and examples from my own experience to help you become an email marketing pro!

Why Email Marketing Is Critical for Your Business

Don‘t make the mistake of underestimating email.

• Email generates $44 for every $1 spent – HubSpot
• Email has a median ROI of 122%, the highest of any marketing channel – Ascend2
• 269 billion emails sent and received daily globally – Lifewire

Let‘s compare email to social media:

Channel	Open Rate	Click Rate
Email	20-30%	2-5%
Facebook	0.09%	0.03%
Twitter	1-2%	0.02%
Instagram	2-3%	0.5-1%

As you can see, email blows the other channels out of the water when it comes to engagement.

Here are some of the key benefits you get:

• High open and click-through rates: Email is pushed directly to someone‘s inbox, rather than getting lost in a busy newsfeed.

• Powerful segmentation: Target different groups with tailored messages based on interests, location, purchase history, and more.

• Ability to automate: Set up workflows to onboard customers, promote products, share content, and more.

• More conversions and sales: Email converts up to 30 times better than social media.

• Long-term loyalty: Build relationships with subscribers over months and years through valuable content.

Clearly, you need to be using email if you want to grow your business. Let‘s look at AWeber and how it can help.

What is AWeber?

Founded in 1998, AWeber is one of the most established email service providers out there.

I‘ve used them for over 10 years now and have been extremely satisfied.

Here are some of AWeber‘s key features:

• Easy-to-use drag and drop editor: Quickly create campaigns with a user-friendly builder.

• Signup forms: Embed forms on your site to grow your list fast.

• Broadcasts: Send regular emails like newsletters and promotions.

• Segmentation: Target groups based on behavior, demographics, and more.

• Split testing: Test email content and elements to improve performance.

• Detailed analytics: See opens, clicks, unsubscribes, shares, and more.

And my favorite feature…

• Automations: Set up sequences when users join your list, purchase a product, or trigger other actions. This saves me tons of time!

AWeber‘s pricing starts at $19 per month for up to 500 subscribers. I‘d say it‘s 100% worth it for the value you get.

You can also try it free for 30 days, no credit card required.

Next, let‘s get into actually setting up your AWeber account.

How to Create Your AWeber Account

Signing up for AWeber only takes a few minutes. Here‘s what to do:

1. Go to AWeber.com and click "Get Started Today"

2. Enter your name, email, and create a password

3. Provide some basic business details like your company name, address, and website

4. Choose the sender name and email address you want to use for campaigns. I‘d recommend using your name and a professional domain email address.

5. Give your first subscriber list a name and description. For example, I named my main one "Design Newsletter".

6. Pick a subject line for the confirmation email subscribers receive when they sign up. AWeber provides pre-approved templates you can use.

7. Review everything and click "Create My Account"

That‘s all it takes! Your AWeber account is ready to go.

Now let‘s look at how to integrate it with WordPress.

Adding AWeber Signup Forms to Your WordPress Site

A signup form on your site lets visitors join your email list with just a few clicks.

There are a few different ways to add AWeber forms to WordPress:

Option 1: Use the Default AWeber Web Forms

AWeber provides embed code you can use to add basic signup forms:

1. In your AWeber account, go to Messages → Signup Forms

2. Click "Create Web Form" and choose one of their pre-made templates

3. Customize the form using the visual editor if desired

4. Once you‘re happy with it, click "Get the Code"

5. Copy the Raw HTML code (not the JavaScript)

6. Paste the form code into a text widget or WordPress page

This is the quickest way to embed a form. But the major downside is you have limited customization options.

That‘s where plugins come in handy…

Option 2: Use OptinMonster for High Conversions

If you want beautiful, stylish forms that convert visitors better, OptinMonster is my #1 recommendation.

It‘s the most popular lead generation plugin on WordPress for a reason.

With OptinMonster, you can quickly build custom popups, floating bars, slide-ins, and more.

And it works perfectly with AWeber too.

Some of the key features include:

• Gorgeous templates
• Easy drag and drop builder
• Exit intent and scroll triggered forms
• A/B testing and analytics
• List integrations and CRM syncing

I‘ve used OptinMonster on several client sites and it easily doubles, triples, or quadruples conversion rates compared to basic forms.

It‘s a must-have plugin if you‘re serious about growing your email list.

Option 3: WPForms + AWeber Addon

Another excellent choice is WPForms. This is my favorite drag and drop form builder for WordPress.

With the WPForms + AWeber Addon, you can:

• Create custom, stylish signup forms
• Connect forms to your AWeber lists
• Embed forms anywhere using shortcodes
• Add forms to sidebars with the widget

To set it up:

1. Install and activate WPForms + the AWeber Addon

2. Connect your AWeber account in the WPForms settings

3. Create a new signup form and customize it

4. Link the form fields to your AWeber list

5. Embed the form using a shortcode or widget

This gives you 100% control over your form design and placement on your site.

So those are your top 3 options for adding AWeber signup forms. Now let‘s go over how to send blog posts into your AWeber emails.

Sending New WordPress Posts to Your AWeber List

One of the most powerful things you can do is send your new blog content straight into your subscribers‘ inboxes automatically.

AWeber makes this easy with RSS to Email campaigns.

Here‘s how to set it up:

1. In your AWeber account, go to Messages → Blog Broadcasts

2. Click "Create Broadcast"

3. Enter your WordPress site‘s RSS feed URL from the admin dashboard

4. Pick a subject line for the emails

5. Select a template or customize your own

6. Configure your settings:

   • Send each post immediately or in a daily/weekly digest

   • Include excerpt or full content

   • Send as HTML, plaintext, or multipart

7. Once set up, click "Save Broadcast"

Now AWeber will automatically take your new posts and send them to subscribers. It keeps your list engaged with your latest content!

Final Thoughts

Connecting AWeber and WordPress is simple when you follow the steps in this guide.

The most important thing is providing value through your email campaigns. Avoid aggressive sales pitches or over-emailing.

Nurture your list by:

• Only emailing 2-4 times per week

• Personalizing messages with merge tags

• Segmenting based on interests and behaviors

• Sending valuable content like tutorials, insider tips, or discounts

• Regularly asking for subscriber feedback

If you keep your list happy with great content, you‘ll earn engagement and loyalty over the long-term.

I hope this guide gave you a good AWeber and WordPress foundation! Let me know if you have any other questions.