Options

Mailing lists have a number of moving parts. As a result, we've separated each tab for creating/managing a mailing list into its own page:

• Options - The configuration options for an individual mailing list.
• Subscribers and Digest Subscribers - Add subscribers who will receive the standard mailing list postings or digest emails.
• Allowed Posters - Allow specific email addresses to post to the mailing list.
• Banned Posters - Prevent specific email addresses from posting to the mailing list.
• Messages - Configure the header and footer for postings as well as the replies sent to listserv commands.
• Custom Fields - Customize list postings with subscriber custom fields.

Creating a New Mailing List

New mailing lists are created by domain administrators in the Accounts area. When creating a mailing list, a modal window opens with the following fields:

• Name - This is the name that will be used when sending to the list. A list name is similar to an email address: it simply needs to be whatever will be appended to the left of the domain name. For example, "MarketingNewsletter". Posters, then, send messages to "MarketingNewsletter@domain.com". Therefore, just as with accounts, list names should not include spaces, special characters, etc.
• List Moderator - This is the existing account that will act as the administrator of the list. Start typing to select a user from the domain. The moderator must be an actual user on the domain (not a domain alias) and always has permission to post to the list.

Once the new list is created, or if a list is being edited, the first tab you see is the Options tab.

Options

• Name - This is the name that will be used when sending to the list. (See above for naming rules. List Moderators cannot rename a list.)
• Status - New mailing lists default to a status of Enabled. To temporarily prevent postings to this list, change the status to Disabled.
• List Moderator - The "owner" of the mailing list. This person will actively manage the mailing list, posts to the list and any replies. The moderator must be an active email user for the domain.
• Show in Global Address List - There are times when you may want a mailing list to show up in the Global Address List so that everyone on the domain can easily find and send to it. If that's the case, enable this setting.
• Description - A brief summary of the mailing list.

Message Options

• List To Address - The email address that will display in the To field when a subscriber receives a mailing list message. Setting this to List Address means that the email address associated with the list will display as the To: address when recipients receive the message. The other option is to use the Subscriber Address, which means each subscriber will see their own email address in the To: field.
• List From Address - The email address that will display in the From field when a subscriber receives a mailing list message. By default, this is set to List Address. However, the Poster Address (the email address of the person who posts to the list) can be used, or each message to list subscribers can come from a Specific User you select.
  Note: When setting this to "Poster Address", the poster's email address will be used. However, in order to bypass potential conflicts when performing DKIM and ARC signing (as the poster can be someone outside of the domain the list belongs to), SmarterMail will send messages "on behalf of" the List Moderator. That means that the "on behalf of" text may appear under the From address in some mail clients. In these cases, the Sender will be the actual person sending a message to the list but it will appear "on behalf of" the list moderator.
• List Reply To Address - The email address that will display in the Reply To field when a subscriber receives a mailing list message. When a subscriber hits 'Reply' to the message, this address will receive the reply. The options are Do Not Set, List Address, Poster Address, or a Specific User. Choose carefully for discussion lists: setting this to List Address means a subscriber's simple "Reply" goes back to the ENTIRE list, while Poster Address keeps replies between the subscriber and the original poster.
• Text to show in unsubscribe link - The text entered here will be hyperlinked when using the #UnsubscribeLink# variable in the list's system messages. For example, entering "Click here to unsubscribe" displays that phrase as the link. If this field is left blank, the unsubscribe link will hyperlink the full URL.
• Webmail URL - The URL for the SmarterMail login page. This setting can be used to override the server's configured hostname for mailing list communications — useful when your organization accesses webmail via its own branded hostname.
Note: URLs should include the https:// prefix. For example: https://mail.example.com/
• Send Subscribe Email - Select this option to automatically send an email to new subscribers confirming their subscription to the list. This email is only sent when subscribe is initiated by the listserv command. If an administrator manually adds a subscriber to a list via the web interface, via the API or by importing via CSV, this email is not sent to the subscriber(s).
Note: This is not an opt-in message, only a confirmation email.
• Send Unsubscribe Email - Select this option to automatically send an email response to unsubscribe requests. This email is only sent when unsubscribe is initiated by the listserv command. If an administrator manually removes a subscriber from a list via the web interface, via the API or by importing via CSV, this email is not sent to the subscriber(s).
• Enable double opt-in - Select this option to automatically send an email to new subscribers that requires them to confirm that they are subscribing to the list by clicking on an activation link. Using double opt-in is a good way to confirm subscriptions to the list and to help reduce abuse complaints. This email is only sent when the subscription is initiated by the listserv command. If an administrator manually adds or removes a subscriber from a list via the web interface, via the API or by importing via CSV, this email is not sent to the subscriber(s). When double opt-in is enabled, the Subscribers tab displays a Verified column so you can see who has confirmed.
Note: If double opt-in is disabled for a list, any unverified subscribers will be removed from the list. A warning appears noting this prior to making the change.
• Disable list error replies - Select this option to prevent the system from automatically replying to incorrect listserv commands.

Posting

The Posting card controls who can send messages to the list. Regardless of the options chosen, the List Moderator always has permission to post — a note on the card reminds you of this.

• Password - To restrict people from sending emails to a mailing list, type a password in this field.
Note: To send emails to a mailing list that is password protected, you must add the password to the beginning of the subject line of the email, enclosed by brackets and colons. For example, if "password" is entered into this field, the subject line of the email would need to begin with [:password:].
• Subject Prefix - The optional text that will appear in the subject line. SmarterTools recommends using a subject prefix for discussion lists to help subscribers easily filter through posts. For example, add a "List - " or "Discussion - " prefix so that users know that the message is posted to an email list. Recipients can then create filters to move those messages to a specific folder or manage them in some other way.
• Allow anyone to post - When enabled, anyone can email the list, regardless of whether they are subscribed to the list or not. In turn, this sends an email to all members.
Note: This setting can cause abuse if it is not closely monitored. Therefore, it is recommended to restrict the allowed posters to just subscribers, at the very least.
• Allow subscribers to post - When enabled, allows the list subscribers, and only the list subscribers, to send and receive posts. This can cause abuse issues as well if you have an active list, so this should only be used for smaller lists or for digest mode only.

When both options are disabled, only the List Moderator (plus anyone on the Allowed Posters list) can post. For particularly large lists, or for one-way announcement lists like newsletters, this is the recommended configuration, as it ensures only relevant information is passed along and there is less chance of abuse.

Commands

• Mailing List Command Address - This is the email address that is used when sending a listserv command, such as a SUBSCRIBE or UNSUBSCRIBE request. For more information, refer to Listserv Commands.
• Enable SUBSCRIBE command - Select this option to allow people to subscribe to the mailing list by emailing a listserv command to the command address. This is how a list grows on its own — for example, a "Subscribe to our newsletter" link on your website can simply generate an email to the command address.
Note: If this option is disabled, only list moderators and administrators can add new subscribers to the mailing list.

Throttling

Throttling limits the number of messages sent per hour and/or the amount of bandwidth used per hour to send messages. Domain administrators can use this feature to ensure a mailing list does not send out massive amounts of email throughout the day, thereby possibly getting the domain blacklisted.

• Outbound Messages per Hour - The number of messages sent by the mailing list per hour. By default, the number of outgoing messages is 500.
• Message Throttling Action - When using either message or bandwidth throttling, administrators can select an action for SmarterMail to take once the particular throttling level is reached: None (do nothing), Delay, or Reject messages until the amount of mail being sent falls beneath the throttling limit that is set. By default, mailing lists are set to Delay messages once the threshold has been reached.
• Outbound Bandwidth MB per Hour - The total number of MBs sent by the mailing list per hour. By default, the outgoing bandwidth is 50MB.
• Bandwidth Throttling Action - This is the action to take if the throttling limit is reached: None, Delay, or Reject.

Digest Settings

To reduce the number of emails mailing list subscribers receive, subscribers can be signed up for digest mode instead of normal mode. Essentially, digest mode condenses all the messages sent to the list into a single email that is sent to digest subscribers on a set schedule. This is especially useful for very active discussion lists: instead of thirty separate emails a day, a digest subscriber gets one daily summary.

• Enable Digest - Enable this setting to view and modify the remaining digest settings.
• Subject - The subject line for the digest email.
• Trigger Type - The frequency of the digest emails: Daily, Weekly, Biweekly, Monthly or Manual. If Manual is selected, digest emails will only be sent when using the Send Digest button.
• Digest Format - The format in which digest emails are sent: Text and HTML, HTML, or Text.
• Disable non-text attachments in digest - Select this option to remove non-text attachments from the digest email, keeping digests small.
• Send Digest - Sends the digest immediately, regardless of the trigger schedule. You'll be asked to confirm before it goes out.