1. Register

You can sign up for ConvertKit here. This is my affiliate link, but rest assured, I'm not trying to trick you. It's free for up to 1,000 subscribers, and while the free version has some limitations, it remains highly effective.

(If you choose to upgrade to a paid plan, I’ll earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.)

2. Set Up Your Account

Complete the required information—it's straightforward.

Indicate whether you are starting fresh or migrating from another tool. Most likely, you’ll select “No, I’m just starting out.”

Specify your audience size across all social media platforms.

If you're starting with zero followers, that’s completely normal. Remember, everyone begins somewhere.

Provide the name of your newsletter or brand.

You'll be assigned a custom domain, which is essential for promoting your landing page (more on that in the next section). If it looks satisfactory, click “Continue.”

Select up to three goals for your newsletter.

Next, enter your website details (if applicable) and/or social media profiles. This can expedite your approval process.

You should receive a prompt approval for your account from here. Answering any questions that arise can help.

3. Create a Landing Page to Gather Email Addresses

To build your email list, you need a landing page.

My landing page resides on my website:

If you’re unsure how to set one up, just let me know in the comments.

No website? No worries! You can effortlessly create a landing page through ConvertKit.

Click the “Create your landing page” button.

There’s a brief video tutorial that outlines the setup process:

In under 8 minutes, it guides you through each step, including how to implement an incentive, such as a free workbook.

4. Craft a New Broadcast

As you’re just beginning, you likely don’t have any subscribers yet. You have two choices:

1. Send emails for practice, even without subscribers, to build a routine.
2. Wait until you have subscribers before you start sending emails.

The decision is yours!

I’ll explain how to send an email when you're ready.

When logged in, you should see your dashboard. From here, either click “Send” in the top menu or “Create a new…” followed by “broadcast” from the dropdown.

Select “Broadcasts” from the pop-up options.

Some features might be limited for free accounts, but you can access Broadcasts, which is sufficient for now.

Click the “New Broadcasts” button.

Then, compose your email newsletter.

From here, you can:

1. Click “Preview email” to receive a copy for testing links and formatting. I highly recommend this step.
2. Click “Continue.”

(You can also perform an A/B test on your subject line, but that can wait until you have more subscribers.)

Let’s assume I sent this email to myself, tested it, and it looks great. I'll click “Continue.”

5. Schedule Your Broadcast

You can choose which subscribers will receive your email. Eventually, you can tag and segment your subscribers, but for now, let’s keep it simple and send it to everyone.

If you have no subscribers yet and wish to practice, you can sign up using your own email address on your landing page.

In fact, I encourage you to do this to ensure everything functions correctly.

Decide whether to send your newsletter immediately or schedule it for a future date and time.

# Part II — Promoting Your Newsletter

Now that you have your landing page and know how to schedule a broadcast, how do you attract people to your list?

How can others discover your landing page to sign up?

There are numerous methods, both paid and free. I won’t delve into paid options, as that’s not my experience; I prefer free methods. Free is always the way to go!

1. Social Media

If you have social media profiles, this is an ideal spot to share the link to your landing page.

As mentioned earlier, when you create your account, you’ll also generate a custom link, which is what you’ll use to promote your landing page.

Here’s how I do it on my Twitter/X account (just a reminder, I'm using my website link, but you'll use your custom ConvertKit link).

There are additional ways to promote your newsletter on X, but I want to keep this guide straightforward.

The easiest approach is to include it in your profile.

You can apply this strategy to any social media platform, including Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Pinterest, and LinkedIn.

2. Medium

Medium can be a great source for new subscribers. There are three main areas to include your sign-up link:

1. In your profile. Similar to X/Twitter and other social media accounts.
2. Within your articles. If relevant, you can link to your newsletter in your main content, as shown above:

Additionally, you can include it at the end of your articles:

3. On your About page. This is a good opportunity to inform readers about your work and direct them to your newsletter landing page.

While there are various programs available to help you grow your newsletter, I wish to keep things simple to avoid overwhelming you with choices.

Start with these methods and expand from there.

# Final Thoughts

This guide may appear intimidating, but I assure you that if you follow through, you’ll find it’s not too difficult. Once your account and landing page are established, the rest is a breeze!

Setting up a Mini Newsletter doesn't take long; I spend about 5 minutes each day on it. (You can streamline this process further by using this guide to create a template; it’s super easy!)

The hardest part is starting something new, so I hope this guide empowers you to take the leap.

If you follow these steps and find any aspect confusing or lacking, please let me know, and I’ll make updates to this guide.

In the meantime, grab your free ConvertKit account and inform me when you’re all set up. I’d be thrilled to check out your newsletter!

# About the Author

Hello! I’m Christina, an introverted book lover on the outside and a passionate metalhead on the inside. I’m a married mother of two teenagers (along with three cats and a dog). I adore Vegas, the band Chevelle, and murder mysteries.

I also enjoy creating short, daily lists of resources and ideas to help you enhance your online income. Click that surprisingly long link to sign up for free.