Signup forms

Let people join an audience from your website, with a confirmation email so only real, willing subscribers end up on your list.

1. Create a form

On an audience, press New form in the dashboard, or create one with the API. Choose who the confirmation email comes from (an address on a domain you have verified), and where to send people afterwards if you do not want our thank-you page.

2. Put it on your site

Every form has three ways to use it:

• The hosted page, at https://api.sendsend.email/f/<form id>. Link to it, or put it in an iframe.
• A plain HTML form on your own page that posts to that address. No JavaScript is needed.
• JSON from your own code, posted to /public/forms/<form id>/subscribe with { "email": "…" }. It accepts requests from any site.

<form action="https://api.sendsend.email/f/frm_..." method="post">
  <input type="email" name="email" placeholder="you@example.com" required>
  <input type="text" name="website" tabindex="-1" autocomplete="off" style="position:absolute;left:-9999px" aria-hidden="true">
  <button type="submit">Subscribe</button>
</form>

The hidden website field catches bots: people never see it, so anything in it is thrown away. Leave it in.

Double opt-in

With double opt-in (the default) a new signup is held as pending. We email them a link, and they are only subscribed when they press the button in it. Opening the link alone does nothing, so mail scanners cannot subscribe anyone. Pending contacts are never sent a broadcast, and you can see them in the audience.

• Anyone who unsubscribed before must confirm again, even on a form with double opt-in turned off. That way nobody can be put back on your list by someone else typing their address.
• The page never says whether an address is already on your list, so it cannot be used to find out who your subscribers are.
• We send at most one confirmation to an address every ten minutes, and limit signups per visitor and per form, so a form cannot be used to flood a stranger’s inbox. Confirmation emails count toward your plan like any other.

Topics and preferences

A form can subscribe people to topics when they join. In a broadcast, put {{{PREFERENCES_URL}}} in a link and each person gets a page where they pick the topics they want, or stop all email.