Blocks » Mailchimp Block
On WordPress.com, we offer a whole suite of tools to grow your audience.
One of these tools is the Mailchimp block for your visitors to subscribe to your Mailchimp audience (i.e., your email list) and receive updates via email. This guide will show you how to use it on your site.
Add the Mailchimp Block
To add the Mailchimp block, click on the + Block Inserter icon and search for “mailchimp.” Then, click on the Mailchimp block to add it to the post or page.
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Using your keyboard, you can also type /mailchimp on a new line and press enter to quickly add a new Mailchimp block.
For more, visit our detailed instructions on adding blocks.
Unlike our Mailchimp Subscriber pop-up, with the Mailchimp block, you can collect emails right inside a post or page.
You can position it in your content at the exact moment that your readers will be most inclined to sign up. For example, you can build up excitement and then capture signups when you have explained why visitors should receive your updates.
Once you add the block, you can click on the button in the block to change the button text. You can also update the default disclaimer text.
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It’s a good practice to include a disclaimer in your sign-up form, so that your subscribers are less likely to mark your emails as spam.
Connect to Mailchimp
The first time you add a new Mailchimp block, you may need to set up your connection to Mailchimp. Click the Set up Mailchimp form button to get started. This will take you to the Marketing section of your account to connect to Mailchimp.
You might need to click the Re-check Connection button on the Mailchimp block if you added the block before connecting in the Marketing settings.
Editing and sending emails are managed through your Mailchimp account. To use Mailchimp on WordPress.com, you need:
- a Mailchimp account. You can sign up here for free if you don’t have one.
- at least one “audience” created on this account (“audiences” are what Mailchimp calls mailing lists where your subscriber email addresses will be collected.)
- Mailchimp has a good resource for creating audiences.
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For the Mailchimp integration to work properly, the merge tags option on your Mailchimp audience should be set as non-required as shown in the image below:
Once you’ve created your Mailchimp account and at least one audience, you can connect Mailchimp to your WordPress.com account by going to Tools → Connections → Manage connections, then click the Connect button.
You will be prompted for the username and password to your Mailchimp account. Upon successful login, you will be returned to WordPress.com.
Once connected to Mailchimp, choose the audience you want visitors to subscribe to from the dropdown option.
Multiple Sites
If you have more than one site on your WordPress.com account, you only need to set up the Mailchimp connection once and it will work across all sites. You can connect only one Mailchimp account to your WordPress.com account.
You can create a different audience in Mailchimp for each site, and then choose the specific audience in Tools → Connections → Manage Connections for a specific site. You can have a different audience for each site, but all of the audiences need to be in one Mailchimp account.
Disconnecting will turn off Mailchimp for all sites in your account.
Block Toolbar
When you click on the block, a toolbar of options will appear above it:
The Mailchimp block has the following options in its toolbar:
- Change block type.
- Drag the block.
- Move the block up or down.
- Change alignment.
- More options.
Block Settings
You will find additional block settings in the right sidebar when you click on the block. You may need to click on the ⚙️ (gear/ cog) icon in the top right corner to bring up the settings if you do not see the sidebar.
The Mailchimp block has multiple settings you can adjust in the Block Settings sidebar. To expand each section, click the down arrow or plus icon next to the section’s header.
Text Elements
The Email Placeholder changes the text shown inside the email field. It disappears once the field is typed in.
Notifications
There are three messages related to the function of the form that you can modify.
- The Processing text message shows while an email is being added to the audience.
- The Success text is displayed when an email is successfully submitted.
- The Error text is shown when the email address was not submitted successfully.
Mailchimp Connection
This section has a link to the Marketing settings if you need to connect, disconnect, or change the audience you are using.
Color
The color tab allows you to change the text color on the block and the background color of the whole block. You can click the + icon in the Colors tab and select the Text and Background color palettes.
The color of the signup button can be changed through the Buttons block color settings.
Dimensions
In the dimensions tab, you can set the padding and margin for the Mailchimp block.
Padding is the space between the Mailchimp block’s content and its border.
Margin is the space outside the border of the Mailchimp block.
Advanced
The advanced tab lets you add a CSS class to your block, allowing you to write custom CSS to style the block. Learn more about adding additional CSS classes to blocks.
Tips for Running an Email List
Remember that your visitors signed up for the updates you promised them. They expect specific messages, and they can unsubscribe at any point. For your email list to be successful, it’s best to:
- Send updates about something your audience may be interested in. For example, share articles you find valuable or updates you do not share elsewhere.
- Engaging with your audience directly once in a while is a good idea. For example, ask questions in your emails that encourage them to respond or interact with the email.
- If you promote your product, mix it up with other content, so your audience members find value in staying subscribed.
For more tips, check out the Mailchimp 101 page.
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