Flodesk is the email tool behind the signup form on this site, the lead magnet opt-in on Marie Glow Studio's site, and the Marie Gems list that I check for engagement before big sends. If you want to know what a small shop can realistically run on one email tool, that is my real answer.
Disclosure: the Flodesk link in this post is a referral link and the Benable link is an affiliate link, so I may earn a commission if you sign up or buy through them, at no extra cost to you.
What do I actually run on Flodesk?
Three things run on Flodesk, and none of them is complicated. The email signup on my homepage is a Flodesk form that feeds a list called Random Thoughts. Marie Glow Studio's "5 Pinterest SEO Mistakes Costing You Traffic" lead magnet is a Flodesk opt-in embedded on its own page. And Marie Gems' list lives in the same Flodesk account as Marie Glow Studio's, which is why I watch its health so closely.
What is an Unengaged subscribers segment?
It is a group of people on your list who have stopped opening your emails. Flodesk builds an "Unengaged subscribers" segment for you, so the count is a click away. When I need a stand-in count, I use active subscribers with no opens in the last 90 days. The number matters because a list full of people who never open drags down how your emails perform for the people who do.
How do I decide a list is safe to send to?
I look at two things: whether the Unengaged count is flat or shrinking, and whether it sits under roughly 15 percent of the whole list. If both are true, the list is safe to send to. If the count is growing, or it is over that line, the report flags it for me to review before the big send goes out, and when the count is growing it also drafts a win-back email for me to paste into Flodesk. A rule with a real number in it beats a vague feeling that the list is probably fine.
When do I run that check?
On a recurring schedule, and always once in early November before a Black Friday send is drafted. A holiday send is the most expensive place to discover your list has gone stale, since it is the email you most want people to open. Checking ahead of time is cheap, and it means the send goes to a list I have looked at.
What is a win-back email?
It is a short message, or a short sequence of one or two, aimed only at the Unengaged segment. Each email has a subject line, a line of preview text, and one clear button, and its job is to find out who still wants to hear from you. People who open and click stay on the list. People who do not can be removed later, which keeps your future sends going to people who actually read them. I keep a win-back short on purpose, since someone who stopped opening is not going to read a long message.
Does anything send email without me?
No. The connection I use for those health checks has no send tool at all, so the most it can do is write me a report or draft a win-back email that I paste into Flodesk myself. I wrote about why that limit is deliberate in what I let AI handle in my businesses.
What would I set up first on a new email list?
One signup form with one clear reason to join. Mine is a lead magnet on the Marie Glow Studio side and a Random Thoughts list on this site, and each one tells a visitor exactly what they will get. Everything else, including segments and win-back emails, can wait until there are subscribers to segment. Marie Glow Studio exists because a website and its traffic are two different problems, and an email list is one of the ways to keep the traffic you earn.
The bottom line on Flodesk for a small shop
One tool can hold a signup form, a lead magnet, and a real list you look after, as long as you decide ahead of time what makes the list safe to send to. If you want to try it, the Flodesk link above is my referral link. Flodesk is also on my Web Designer's Must Haves list on Benable, along with 20 other web design tools, office essentials, and planners.