Thinking of launching a course? Consider creating a course waitlist on Squarespace ahead of launch. This lets you start building anticipation for your course, keeping potential students engaged by offering sneak peeks or early access to some course components. It can also serve to validate your idea; if enough people are interested to sign up for the waitlist, it’s probably worth your time to build the course. Starting early means that you’ll have a ready customer base for your launch and will hopefully generate revenue as soon as you publish your course.

Follow the steps below, or ↓ scroll to the video walkthrough below.

Disclosure: Some links in this post are affiliate links. If you click through and pay for a product, I’ll be compensated at no cost to you.

How to Create a Course Waitlist on Squarespace

Here are two methods for creating a course waitlist on Squarespace, depending on whether you use Squarespace Campaigns or an alternate email marketing system like ConvertKit (what I’m currently using) or Flodesk (another fave, get 50% off your first year).

Method 1: Using Squarespace Campaigns

Create a Waitlist Mailing List:

Go to the Marketing section in Squarespace.
Click on Email Campaigns and then Mailing Lists.
→ (Can’t find it? Squarespace is notorious for rearranging its menus! Use the “/” key on your keyboard to search for Email Campaigns.)
Create a new mailing list and name it something like Course Waitlist.

Create a Waitlist Signup Page:

Create a new page or duplicate an existing page on your Squarespace site.
Name the new page (e.g., "Course Waitlist") and update the URL slug to "waitlist."
Add a Newsletter Block:
- Add a Newsletter block to your waitlist page.
- Customize the form name, description, and appearance.
- Ensure the form is connected to your waitlist mailing list created earlier by updating the storage settings.
Update Course Sales Page Links:
- Edit the buttons on your course sales page.
- Link these buttons to your new waitlist page.

Method 2: Using a Third-Party Email Marketing System

Set Up Your Email Marketing System:

Create a waitlist form within your chosen system
Copy the waitlist form link provided by the service.

Update Your Course Sales Page:

Go to your course sales page in Squarespace.
Add "Get on the Waitlist" buttons (these will later be “Enroll Now” buttons).
Link these buttons to the waitlist form link from your email marketing system.

This method is great if you're already comfortable with an email marketing service and prefer to manage your waitlist there.

Managing Your Waitlist

Collect Email Addresses

As visitors sign up, their email addresses are saved in your Squarespace mailing list or your third-party email marketing system.

Exporting Your Waitlist

To export your email addresses from Squarespace, go to the mailing list, click the three dots, and select "Export List."
Import these email addresses into any email marketing system you prefer.

By following these steps, you can set up and manage a waitlist for your course on Squarespace, whether you are using an external email marketing service or Squarespace’s built-in Campaigns feature. And good luck with your launch! 🚀