Autoresponders are instant messages sent to individuals who have requested more information on your product or service. They are commonly used to reply to people who have filled out a form on a capture page or when you go on vacation so you can let people know that you won't be responding to their message for awhile.

Internet marketing and online business people agree that email autoresponders are the greatest marketing tool ever invented because they give people instant access to information. Marketers like "smart" autoresponders because when prospects subscribe and request information, their inquiry gives them permission to follow up with the prospect.

"Smart" or "intelligent" autoresponders go further than just a one-time reply because they allow you to correspond with personalized follow-up messages after the initial reply. You write a series of autoresponder letters that include information on your product or services and pre-program the series of letters to go out at set intervals. Remember in advertising, it takes repetition in order for people to absorb the message, understand it and then take action. A series of well written informative letters on your product will keep your message in front of your prospects.

Autoresponders can be set up and used in the following ways for your business:

1. They can be set up on your technical support email address to let your users know that you have received their message and will be contacting them later. This reassures your users that their message has indeed been received and you will act on it as soon as possible.

2. You can use autoresponders to send your prospects information on your prices, frequently asked questions about your business or special business promotions. When individuals subscribe to a specific email address that you've established with your autoresponder message, they will start to receive information about that particular aspect of your business.

3. Autoresponders can be used to send out training material or general information about your business. For example, I trade in the Forex market, so I've established a series of autoresponders that provide basic information on Forex trading when a prospect subscribes on one of my capture pages, as well as information on my business.

If you are only planning on sending out a single message then usually the autoresponder feature that comes with your hosting package will be sufficient.If you want your autoresponder to send out a series of messages at different intervals, then you will need to look around for a more robust autoresponder system.