MailerLite setup

Status: done for the site-wide footer signup. Account created (info@secureroots.io), form “Lead Magnet signup” built and branded (purple heading, gold button, matching the site exactly), universal script wired into every page via _layouts/default.html, footer embed live (ml-embedded div, form 16Q0dN). Double opt-in is on but MailerLite is currently blocking it from actually taking effect until the account is approved, check Account settings for what that requires.

Still open: the four vertical landing pages (/hipaa/, /law-firms/, /cmmc/, /nonprofits/) still run on FormSubmit, not MailerLite, because only one generic MailerLite form exists so far. Steps below are for that expansion, optional.

1. Create the account (5 min)

  1. Go to https://www.mailerlite.com and sign up with info@secureroots.io.
  2. Free plan covers 1,000 subscribers / 12,000 emails per month, which is well past where we are today.
  3. Verify your email when prompted.

2. Connect secureroots.io as a verified sending domain (15 min)

  1. In MailerLite: Settings > Domains > Add domain > secureroots.io.
  2. MailerLite will give you 3-4 DNS records (SPF, DKIM, sometimes a tracking CNAME).
  3. Add those records at wherever secureroots.io’s DNS is managed (likely the same place CNAME for GitHub Pages is set). If you’re not sure where that is, check the domain registrar you used to buy secureroots.io.
  4. DNS propagation takes 15 min to a few hours. MailerLite will show “Verified” once it’s done.

Do this even if you plan to keep sending cold outreach from Gmail. This step is only for the opt-in list, it doesn’t touch your Gmail sending at all.

3. Create one group and one form (10 min)

  1. Subscribers > Groups > New group. Name it “Website Leads.”
  2. Forms > Embedded forms > Create a new embedded form.
    • Name: “Lead Magnet Signup”
    • Fields: Email (required). Optionally add a hidden field or custom field called source if you want MailerLite itself to store which page they came from (the current form already POSTs source to me via FormSubmit, so this is optional polish, not required to launch).
    • Assign to the “Website Leads” group.
    • Enable double opt-in (this is the default and the correct setting, do not turn it off).
  3. Click Embed > copy the HTML/JS embed code.

4. Give me the embed code

Paste the embed snippet back to me (or drop it in a file at secure-roots-website/_includes/mailerlite-embed.html) and I’ll swap it into _includes/lead-magnet-form.html in place of the current FormSubmit fallback, across all four landing pages and the footer, in one pass.

5. Set up the welcome automation (10 min, once the form is connected)

  1. Automations > New automation > Trigger: “Subscriber joins a group” > Website Leads.
  2. Step 1: Send the matching lead magnet PDF immediately (attach a link to the PDF, hosted at secureroots.io/downloads/ once I convert the checklists, or a Google Drive link in the meantime).
  3. Step 2 (Day 3): short value-add email.
  4. Step 3 (Day 7): case study or social proof.
  5. Step 4 (Day 14): soft CTA to book the free 30-minute risk review.

Copy for all four steps, per vertical, is in WELCOME_SEQUENCES.md in this same folder. Paste directly into MailerLite’s automation editor.

What’s already done and doesn’t need you

Current state (works today, before you touch MailerLite)

The forms currently submit via FormSubmit to info@secureroots.io, so nothing is broken while you set up MailerLite. You’ll get an email per signup with the source tag until the MailerLite embed replaces it.