Why use an Autoresponder? At first glance it's easy to recommend using it to have your email answered when you advertise a product or service. It saves you from having to answer every email personally when all you want at this point is to get the visitor's name and email. The autoresponder takes care of this, sends back a confirmation email and continues with whatever is needed.

But of course there are many more opportunities to fully take advantage of the unique features of an autoresponder. Here are some but I am sure that you can find many more by using your creativity.

Publish a newsletter. Your names and emails will be captured, the confirming email sent back and the newsletter mailing will start. Not only will the emails go out at whatever schedule you set up and you should be able also to send a one time broadcast whenever you want.

Publish a newsletter just for your affiliates. You would be able to keep them up to date with tips, advice and promotional materials. This will help you make more money.

Create a mailing list so you can let subscribers know when you have something new to offer them in a particular area. It might be a list where you send information on new products, or recommendations you have for new sites, or reviews on various sites or programs: whatever interest those subscribers may have. You wouldn't be sending out follow-ups regularly but just when you want to keep them up to date.

Offer an internet marketing course in an area with which you are especially familiar. Write good content and don't emphasize advertising as you want the subscriber to come to value you as an expert, where he can come to you for advice. Writing articles is an option too.

To gauge opinion on your mailings, send out a survey or a contest. Get the subscriber involved. He will become a more valued partner. Add a link page where you should include one or two of your ads.

I'm sure you can come up with many more ideas. This is just to get you started. The more you use them the easier it will be to find new uses.

Let me briefly mention that choosing an autoresponder should not be too difficult at first. Possibly your hosting website may have one. I say that because it's not really until later that you will want to compare all the features of various ones so you can fully take advantage of the different features.

Free ones could be a good start until you become more experienced, but there are disadvantages to those because many put other people's ads on your emails or they may not allow you very many leads. But if money is short it's an option and you can research paid ones as you go along. You will then be better prepared to choose. But that is a subject for another time.