ConvertKit is one of the most coach-friendly email platforms available. Here's how to set it up correctly from the start, including lead magnets, welcome sequences, and your first broadcast.
TL;DR
- ConvertKit (now called Kit) is free up to 1,000 subscribers and includes unlimited landing pages and forms.
- The tag-based system is one of its biggest advantages for coaches who want to segment subscribers by interest or behavior.
- Set up your lead magnet delivery, welcome sequence automation, and subscriber tags before you start promoting your list.
- The free plan allows one automation. That's enough to run a full welcome sequence.
- ConvertKit's text-focused email style works in your favor: personal emails outperform designed newsletters for coaches.
ConvertKit, rebranded as Kit in 2024, has become the default recommendation for coaches building their first email list. The reasons are practical: the free tier is genuinely generous, the automation is powerful, and the tag-based subscriber system handles the kind of segmentation coaching businesses eventually need.
This guide is a step-by-step setup walkthrough. By the end, you'll have your account configured, a lead magnet delivering automatically, a welcome sequence running, and your first broadcast scheduled. That's everything you need to start building a list that books clients.
Step 1: Create Your Account
Go to kit.com and create a free account. You'll be asked for your name, email, and a description of what you do. Use simple language: "I'm a [type] coach helping [who] with [what]." This affects how ConvertKit categorizes your account for deliverability purposes, so be accurate.
Once inside, you'll see the main dashboard. The primary sections you'll use: Subscribers (your list), Automations (your sequences), Broadcasts (your newsletter), and Forms (your opt-in forms and landing pages).
Before doing anything else, go to Settings > Email and set up your sending address. Use a custom domain email if you have one ([email protected] rather than @gmail.com). Custom domain emails land in inboxes more reliably and look more professional.
Also complete your email footer in Settings. This is legally required in most countries: your name, your business name or address, and an unsubscribe link (ConvertKit adds this automatically, but you can customize the text).
Step 2: Create Your Lead Magnet Delivery System
Your lead magnet is the resource you offer in exchange for an email address. In ConvertKit, you'll create a Form to capture subscribers and an Automation to deliver the lead magnet.
Create the Form:
Go to Grow > Landing Pages & Forms > Create New Form. Choose "Inline" for a form you'll embed on your website, or "Landing Page" if you want ConvertKit to host the opt-in page.
The form builder is drag-and-drop. For a lead magnet opt-in, you typically want: - A headline that names the lead magnet - A one-sentence description of the benefit - A first name field and email field - A button with clear copy ("Send me the [resource]" beats "Submit")
Under Incentive, enable the "Send incentive email" option. This is how ConvertKit delivers your lead magnet. Paste in the download link to your lead magnet (hosted on Google Drive, Dropbox, or your website) and write a short delivery email. Keep this email simple: two or three sentences, then the link.
Add a Tag:
In the Form settings, add a tag that fires when someone subscribes through this form. Name it something like "lead-magnet-[name]" or the topic they signed up for. This tag will let you segment subscribers later by where they came from.
Step 3: Build Your Welcome Sequence Automation
This is the most important setup step. Your welcome sequence runs automatically for every new subscriber, warming them toward your coaching before you ever have a conversation.
Go to Automate > Automations > Create an Automation. Start with a blank automation.
The trigger: "Subscribes to a Form." Select the lead magnet form you just created. This automation fires every time someone opts in.
The sequence structure:
For a five-email welcome sequence, set up the following:
- Email 1 fires immediately (or you can set it to 1 hour delay if you want the incentive email to land first)
- Add a "Wait" step: 2 days
- Email 2 fires
- Add a "Wait" step: 2 days
- Email 3 fires
- Add a "Wait" step: 2 days
- Email 4 fires
- Add a "Wait" step: 3 days
- Email 5 fires
For each email, write the subject line and body directly in the automation editor. ConvertKit's email editor is minimal: plain text by default, with optional bold, links, and images. For coaching newsletters, plain text is actually ideal. It feels personal, not corporate.
The content framework for each email is in the welcome email sequence for coaches guide. Use that as your template.
Add a completion tag: At the end of the automation, add a "Add Tag" step: "welcome-sequence-complete." This lets you identify subscribers who've been through your full welcome process.
Step 4: Set Up Your Subscriber Tags
ConvertKit's tag system is what separates it from basic email tools. Tags let you know exactly who your subscribers are and what they're interested in, without maintaining separate lists.