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MailerLite Overview
IxDF's email marketing platform for newsletters and campaigns. This doc is a bridge between the dev team and the campaigns team — it explains what data is available, how segments work, and what changes automatically.
For code details, see mailerlite-technical.mdFor v5 list separation spec, see docs/specs/2026-02-mailerlite.md
In a Nutshell
Early 2026 data (pre-v5):
v5 changes (Feb 2026): IxDF now uses two separate MailerLite accounts to give subscribers granular unsubscribe control:
- IxDF News & Legacy — "Important News" (campaign emails)
- IxDF Power — "1 Powerful Email Each Week" (automated weekly chain)
Subscribing on ixdf.org auto-subscribes to both lists. Each list can be unsubscribed independently.
Purpose
MailerLite handles newsletter marketing:
- Automated weekly email chains for new subscribers
- Targeted campaigns based on membership status
- Masterclass, course, and promotion announcements
What MailerLite does NOT handle:
- Transactional emails (password resets, receipts) → Mailgun
- In-app notifications → Internal notification system
MailerLite Concepts
Groups vs Segments
| Concept | What it is | How it works |
|---|---|---|
| Group | Static subscriber list | Subscribers are explicitly added/removed |
| Segment | Dynamic filtered view | Auto-updates based on custom field values |
Account Structure (v5)
IxDF uses two MailerLite accounts with separate sender domains.
Accounts and Groups
| Account | Group | Sender Domain |
|---|---|---|
| IxDF Power | 1 Powerful Email Each Week | power.ixdf.org / power-for-members.ixdf.org |
| IxDF News | Important Updates | news.ixdf.org / news-for-members.ixdf.org |
| IxDF News | Newsletter (Legacy) | interaction-design.org |
IxDF Power Segments (2)
| Segment | Sender Domain |
|---|---|
| Active Members | power-for-members.ixdf.org |
| Non-Members | power.ixdf.org |
IxDF News Segments (5)
| Segment | Sender Domain |
|---|---|
| Active Members (Legacy) | interaction-design.org |
| Non-Members (Legacy) | interaction-design.org |
| Active Members | news-for-members.ixdf.org |
| Non-Members | news.ixdf.org |
| Cancelled Members | interaction-design.org |
Legacy segments receive the same campaigns as non-legacy, but from the old sender domain (during the warm-up period for new domains).
Automated Email Chains (v5)
Each account uses two separate workflows — one for Members, one for Non-members. The content is completely different with zero overlap, so a subscriber who becomes a member starts the member chain from email #1 without seeing duplicate content.
The legacy Newsletter chain has been stopped. Legacy subscribers only receive campaign ("Important News") emails. Almanac newsletters have been discontinued.
Subscriber Journey
Key behavior: When a member cancels, they move to the Cancelled Members segment — they are NOT re-added to non-members.
Subscribing and Unsubscribing
Subscribing
Subscription forms on ixdf.org auto-subscribe to both lists (Power + Updates). Non-members receive an email confirmation; members do not need one.
Unsubscribing
Every email contains 3 unsubscribe links:
- List-Unsubscribe header — controlled by MailerLite (the Gmail/Outlook top link)
- IxDF link in the email footer — links to ixdf.org where subscribers manage preferences per list
- Built-in MailerLite footer link — visually hidden
Members can also manage subscriptions from the Notification Settings panel.
Custom Fields (what the IxDF app syncs to MailerLite)
These custom fields are automatically kept in sync. Use them when building segments or personalizing campaigns.
Fields Available for Segments and Personalization
| Field | Example Values | Use For |
|---|---|---|
name | John Doe | Personalization |
country | Denmark, United States | Geo-targeting |
membership_lifecycle_state | active / expired / canceled / empty | Segment assignment |
token | (unique per subscriber) | Unsubscribe link variable |
membership_lifecycle_state — the main segmentation field
This field reflects the subscriber's current membership status on IxDF. It updates automatically when their membership changes.
| Value | Who is in this state | What happens next |
|---|---|---|
active | Paying member with a valid subscription | Stays active, or expires/cancels |
expired | Membership ran out, in a grace period (14–50 days), may still renew | Renews → active, or times out → canceled |
canceled | Membership ended (didn't renew or manually canceled) | Can reactivate → active |
| (empty) | Never been a member — free subscriber | Purchases membership → active |
Typical lifecycle:
Free subscriber →
active(purchases) →expired(runs out) →canceled(doesn't renew)Or:
active→canceled(manual cancel)Reactivation is always possible:
canceled→active
Deprecated Fields (still present, avoid using for new segments)
These older fields are still synced but have been replaced by membership_lifecycle_state:
| Field | Possible Values | Why Deprecated |
|---|---|---|
member_status | non-member / canceled / active-or-expired | Lumps active and expired together — use membership_lifecycle_state instead |
membership_expire_at | Date like 2025-03-15 | Expiry date; replaced by lifecycle state which is more actionable |
membership_plan_category | non-member / individual / team | No longer needed for segmentation |
Deprecated field values reference
membership_plan_category (deprecated):
| Value | Meaning |
|---|---|
individual | Subscriber has an individual membership plan |
team | Subscriber is on a company/team plan |
non-member | Subscriber has never been a member |
member_status (deprecated):
| Value | Meaning |
|---|---|
non-member | Never been a member |
canceled | Membership canceled |
active-or-expired | Active or expired (no way to distinguish) |
When Do Fields Update?
The IxDF app updates MailerLite custom fields when:
- Someone subscribes to the newsletter
- A membership is purchased, renewed, or canceled
- A membership expires
- A subscriber changes their email preferences on ixdf.org
Two-Way Sync Between IxDF and MailerLite
| Direction | What triggers it |
|---|---|
| IxDF → MailerLite | New subscriber, membership change, preference change on ixdf.org |
| MailerLite → IxDF | Subscriber unsubscribes, bounces, or reports spam in MailerLite |
Important: Never delete subscribers directly in MailerLite — the IxDF app does not detect deletions, only unsubscribes/bounces/spam reports.
Known Trade-offs
- No cross-account spam protection — MailerLite's "don't email twice in a week" does not work across the two accounts. A subscriber could receive emails from both accounts on the same day.
- Loss of historical statistics — Engagement data from the legacy account does not carry over to new accounts.
- Loss of chain progress — Legacy chain progress is not transferable; new chains start from email #1.
- Hardcoded subscriber counter — The displayed count on ixdf.org adds 300,000 to prevent drops after cleanup.
Open Questions
- Move existing members from Legacy to new lists? Requires warming up
power-for-members.ixdf.organdnews-for-members.ixdf.orgfirst. - Legacy list end-of-life — When and how does the Legacy Newsletter list get decommissioned?
- Reply-to address — What should reply-to be for campaign emails from the new domains?
Access
- Dashboard: dashboard.mailerlite.com
- Help Center: mailerlite.com/help
- API Docs: developers.mailerlite.com
Related Documentation
- Technical Integration — Code implementation details (for developers)
- v5 List Separation Spec — Full specification for the two-account setup