What RSS to Email Does
RSS to email takes the feed your blog, podcast or YouTube channel already publishes and turns new items into emails. When you publish, AWeber picks up the new item and sends it to your subscribers, so your list hears about every post without you writing a separate email.
In AWeber, this lives inside workflows. The Check Feed action looks at your RSS feed and sends your latest content to subscribers. AWeber describes it as working for blogs, YouTube, podcasts or any other channel with an RSS feed.
Long-time AWeber users may know this feature by its older name, Blog Broadcast. The idea is the same; it's now part of the workflow builder.
If you blog, podcast or post videos at least weekly, an RSS-driven email keeps your list warm with almost no extra work. We'd pair it with a short welcome sequence and an occasional personal email so your newsletter never feels automated.
Who Should Use It
RSS-driven emails work best when you publish on a steady rhythm and each new piece is worth telling people about.
New posts reach subscribers who'd never remember to check your site. This is the classic use.
Each new episode lands in the inbox with a short summary and a listen link. See email marketing for podcasters.
Video alerts by email reach fans the platform's algorithm might not show your upload to.
A daily or weekly digest of new articles keeps readers coming back.
It's less useful if you publish rarely or irregularly. A feed that goes quiet for two months means your list hears nothing, so add a regular manual newsletter in that case.
How to Set It Up
The exact clicks change as AWeber updates its interface, so treat these as the stages rather than a click-by-click script. AWeber's help center has the current walkthrough.
- Find your RSS feed URL. Most blogs publish one automatically; WordPress feeds usually live at your site address followed by /feed. Podcast hosts and YouTube also provide feed URLs.
- Create a new workflow. Choose a starter, then add the Check Feed action.
- Paste your feed URL. AWeber reads the feed and shows your latest item.
- Design the email. Choose how the post appears: title, summary or full content, an image and a "read more" button.
- Set the timing. Decide when and how often the workflow checks for new content.
- Test it. Send a test to yourself and check that the title, image and link come through correctly.
- Turn the workflow on. From now on, new items flow out to subscribers automatically.
If you're new to workflows, read AWeber automation first; it explains starters, waits and tags.
Summary or Full Post?
This is the most important design decision. Sending a summary with a "read more" link brings people to your site, which helps if you earn from ads, affiliate links or on-site products. It also keeps emails short and scannable.
Sending the full post in the email suits readers who prefer to stay in their inbox, and can work well for short posts. The downside is fewer site visits.
Our default recommendation is a summary of two or three sentences, one image and a clear button. It respects your reader's time and gives you click data that shows which topics resonate.
Make Automated Emails Feel Personal
An automated email doesn't have to read like one. A few touches keep your RSS emails from feeling like notifications:
- Write a short intro block. A line or two in your voice above the post, such as why you wrote it, makes a big difference.
- Use a recognizable sender name. Your name, or your name plus your publication.
- Write a strong subject line pattern. Using the post title works, but test adding a short prefix your readers recognize.
- Mix in manual emails. Every few weeks, send a personal email with a story, a question or a roundup. It keeps the relationship human.
Frequency: Every Post or a Digest?
If you publish once or twice a week, sending each post as it goes live works well. If you publish daily, a weekly digest of the week's posts usually serves readers better than seven emails.
Think about your send allowance too. AWeber's free account includes 3,000 sends a month, so daily emails to a list of 200 would use most of it. On paid plans, sends are capped at 10 times your subscriber tier on Lite and 12 times on Plus. See how often to send emails for more on finding your rhythm.
Troubleshooting Common Problems
Only the title shows up. Your feed may publish only excerpts. Check your blog's feed settings; in WordPress, there's an option to show full text or a summary in feeds.
Images are missing or oversized. Feeds don't always include a featured image. Set a default image in the email template, or adjust how your site's feed includes images.
Old posts went out. When you first connect a feed, check which items AWeber treats as new before switching the workflow on.
Nothing is sending. Confirm the workflow status is On and that your feed URL still works. If you changed site platforms, your feed address may have changed.
Connect your RSS feed to an AWeber workflow and let every new post, episode or video reach your subscribers automatically.
AWeber RSS to Email FAQs
Does AWeber still have Blog Broadcast?
The RSS feature now lives inside AWeber workflows as the Check Feed action, which sends your latest content from any RSS feed.
Can AWeber send YouTube videos or podcast episodes by email?
Yes. Any channel with an RSS feed, including YouTube channels and podcasts, can feed an AWeber workflow.
Is RSS to email available on the free plan?
It runs through workflows, so on the free account it would use your single automation. Paid plans give you more room.
Should I send the full post or a summary?
A short summary with a link is usually best: it keeps emails short and brings readers to your site.