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Mailchimp lets you collect email subscribers, send newsletters, and run automated email campaigns. If you want to build and nurture a mailing list from your Macaly site, Mailchimp is one of the most popular ways to do it.
Do you actually need Mailchimp? Macaly has a built-in database and email notifications. If you just need a contact form or waitlist, you don’t need an external tool. Mailchimp is worth it when you need newsletters, drip campaigns, or audience segmentation.

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Why use Mailchimp

  • Grow your list from your site. Collect subscribers and manage them in one place. Segment by interests, signup source, or behavior.
  • Send newsletters without touching code. Design and send email campaigns to your audience. Schedule them or send instantly.
  • Automate your follow-ups. Set up welcome emails, drip sequences, and abandoned cart reminders that run on their own.
  • See what actually works. Track open rates, click rates, and which links get the most engagement.

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What you need

Before you start, make sure you have:
  • A Mailchimp account. Create one for free at mailchimp.com
  • A Mailchimp audience (mailing list) to collect subscribers into
There are two ways to connect Mailchimp to your site:
  • Embedded signup form. Paste Mailchimp’s generated form code into your site. Best for simple email collection.
  • Mailchimp API. Connect your forms to Mailchimp’s API for full control over what data you send. Best when you want custom forms that match your design.

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Option 1: Embedded signup form

The simplest approach. Mailchimp generates a form you can drop into your site.
1

Get your form embed code

In Mailchimp, go to Audience then Signup forms then Embedded forms. Customize the fields you want, then copy the generated HTML code.
2

Ask the agent to add it

Open the chat in your Macaly project and ask:
Add this Mailchimp signup form to my site. Here's the embed code:

[paste your Mailchimp embed code here]
3

The agent places the form

The agent adds the form to your project. You can tell it exactly where you want it, like the footer, a dedicated page, or a popup.
If you want the form to match your site’s design, tell the agent: “Style the Mailchimp form to match the rest of my site.”

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Option 2: Custom form with Mailchimp API

For more control, the agent can build a custom form that sends subscribers to Mailchimp through their API.
1

Add your Mailchimp credentials to Secrets

Go to Settings then Secrets in your Macaly project. Add two secrets:
  • MAILCHIMP_API_KEY — your Mailchimp API key
  • MAILCHIMP_AUDIENCE_ID — the audience you want subscribers added to
API key:
  1. In Mailchimp, click your profile icon, then Account & billing
  2. Go to Extras then API keys
  3. Click Create a key and copy it
Audience ID:
  1. Go to Audience then All contacts
  2. Click Settings then Audience name and defaults
  3. Your Audience ID is listed on this page
2

Ask the agent to build the form

Open the chat and ask:
Create a newsletter signup form in the footer. When someone subscribes,
add them to my Mailchimp audience using the API.
I've added my API key and audience ID to Secrets.
Never paste API keys directly into the chat. Always use Settings then Secrets to store sensitive credentials. The agent can read them from there securely.

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Verify it’s working

1

Submit a test signup

Visit your site and enter a test email address in the signup form.
2

Check your Mailchimp audience

Go to Audience then All contacts in Mailchimp. Your test email should appear as a new subscriber.

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Good to know

  • If you only need to collect emails, Macaly’s built-in database is simpler and doesn’t require an external account
  • For GDPR compliance, enable double opt-in in your Mailchimp audience settings. This sends a confirmation email before adding someone to your list
  • The agent can also set up pop-up forms and slide-in forms if you want something more prominent than an inline signup