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How we'd send the newsletter straight from champions-network.com — no logging into a separate email app — plus how we'd hold the contact list and what it costs as we grow.
Build the issue on the site, hit one button, it goes out. We looked at EmailOctopus first — but its API can't create or send a broadcast (it only manages contacts and fires pre-built automations). Resend's API can.
The piece we already built (build & approve an issue on the site) feeds a small Netlify function that talks to Resend. Mark still blesses every send.
The Send button always opens a test send to ourselves first and a confirm step before the real blast — so no issue goes out by accident.
A few hours of setup, most of it DNS that propagates on its own. Roughly in order:
One account for the Champions Network / LCRL. Free to start (see Costs).
Add Resend's DNS records (SPF, DKIM, DMARC, and a return-path) to a subdomain like news.champions-network.com. Using a subdomain protects the main domain's reputation. This is the single most important step for landing in inboxes, not spam.
Resend's term for a contact list. This becomes the one home for Advocate subscribers.
A send-only key, stored in Netlify as RESEND_API_KEY — exactly like CLOCKIFY_API_KEY. Never committed to the site code.
A send-advocate Netlify function plus a "Send this issue" button on the composer. One-time build on our side.
Point the site's "Subscribe" form at a small function that adds the person to the Audience (double opt-in — see next section).
One source of truth, kept clean and compliant. This also resolves the current split between MailChimp and the larger "Abba Dabba" account.
None of this changes the review posture — curated/quoted news still needs no review; only our own added words do. Resend is just the delivery pipe.
The newsletter uses Resend's Marketing / Broadcasts product, which is priced by number of contacts — with unlimited sends. That's the headline.
Because you pay per contact, sending weekly, twice a week, or daily costs exactly the same. The only thing that moves the price is how many people are on the list.
| Contacts | Resend plan | Monthly | Sends included |
|---|---|---|---|
| Up to 1,000 | Free | $0 | Unlimited |
| Up to 5,000 | Pro (Marketing) | $40 | Unlimited |
| 5,000 → 150,000 | Scale tiers | $40 → $650 | Unlimited |
Pricing scales with contacts between the $40 and $650 anchors; exact intermediate tiers are on Resend's pricing page. Today's ~70 and even a 1,000-person list cost $0.
| Scenario | List size | Frequency | Resend | vs MailChimp |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Today | ~70 | Weekly | $0 | $20/mo |
| Old MailChimp cap | 500 | Weekly or daily | $0 | $20/mo |
| Healthy growth | 1,000 | Weekly or daily | $0 | ~$26/mo |
| Network scales up | 2,500 | Any | $40/mo | ~$45/mo |
| Big | 5,000 | Any | $40/mo | ~$75/mo |
Double-opt-in confirmation emails use Resend's Transactional side, which is free up to 3,000 emails/month (100/day). We'd send a handful a week — comfortably free. Only matters if we ever do a huge one-time import.
Yes — Resend tracks opens and click-throughs on every broadcast. This directly answers Shelly's question from the June 12 call about reader behavior.
news.champions-network.com) keeps the tracking links on our domain, which also helps deliverability.Because each story now lands on our site first, we get true on-site analytics too — which stories get read, how long, and onward clicks to the source. That's the real engagement signal the old "link straight out" emails could never measure. We'd see both the email numbers and what people actually do.
Apple Mail (Privacy Protection) pre-loads images, which inflates open rates across every email tool — so treat opens as directional, not exact. Clicks and on-site visits are the trustworthy numbers.
Build the send-advocate function + button; send test issues only to ourselves and a small internal group.
Set DNS on news.champions-network.com; send a few real issues to the current ~70 to establish reputation.
Once deliverability looks good, retire the $20/mo MailChimp and move signups to the site form.
1. Subdomain to send from (news. vs email.). 2. Double opt-in: yes/no. 3. Resolve the "Abba Dabba" account merge before importing the master list. 4. Who owns list upkeep day-to-day (Carly / Shelly).