Self-Hosted Email Marketing

What it does

This skill runs a complete email marketing program on a self-hosted instance you own (for example, Listmonk), instead of depending on a third-party SaaS. It writes campaign copy, injects it into a branded HTML template, runs rendering tests, prepares the send, and generates reports, while keeping compliance (CAN-SPAM-style) and deliverability best practices.

When to use it

• When you want full control of subscriber data without depending on an external SaaS
• When you want to reduce long-term email marketing costs with your own infrastructure
• When you need a campaign with branded copy and HTML ready to test before sending

Steps

1. Confirm the self-hosted instance is running and connected
2. Write campaign copy per the defined goal
3. Inject the copy into the existing branded HTML template
4. Run rendering tests across different email clients
5. Check compliance (required headers, unsubscribe link, physical address if applicable) before enabling send
6. Prepare a test send and wait for explicit approval before sending to the full list; then generate the results report

The skill

---
name: self-hosted-email-marketing
description: Runs an email marketing program on your own self-hosted platform: copy, branded HTML, testing, sending, and reporting, watching compliance and deliverability.
---

# Self-Hosted Email Marketing

## 1. Purpose
Run email marketing campaigns with full control of subscriber data, on a self-hosted instance instead of a third-party SaaS.

## 2. Infrastructure check
Confirm the self-hosted instance is running, connected, and has the necessary credentials configured outside of chat.

## 3. Campaign copy
Write the copy according to the goal (newsletter, promotion, announcement), in the business's brand voice.

## 4. Template injection
Insert the copy into the existing branded HTML template, respecting the approved design.

## 5. Rendering tests
Verify the email renders correctly across major email clients before considering the campaign ready.

## 6. Compliance and deliverability
Check required headers, a working unsubscribe link, and physical address if applicable, following CAN-SPAM-style best practices, and avoid practices that damage sending domain reputation.

## 7. Sending and safety rules
- Only a test email is sent first; sending to the full list requires explicit user approval.
- Subscriber, open, or click numbers are never invented; the report uses only real platform data.
- No self-hosted instance credential is ever exposed in chat.

For Claude Code, save it as ~/.claude/skills/self-hosted-email-marketing/SKILL.md. In Cursor, ChatGPT or another assistant, paste it as project instructions.