Marketing Monday #7: Email Lists – 3 Methods to Building One
Email lists are practically a necessity for any business with an online presence. It seems as though email lists are either completely overlooked or misunderstood. Let’s take this time to understand, the importance of an email list and some tips on how to build one.
An email list is exactly what it sounds like. It is a list of email addresses compiled for the purpose of marketing to. Think about the last site you submitted your email address to. We’ll call them Business A. Now think about Business A, why you signed up on their site and how you feel when you receive an email from them. Now think about the random marketing email you received from Business B. What is the key difference between these marketing methods? The difference is that with Business A, you have interests in what they do or what their product is; not because they found you, but because you went searching for it. This is the key to an email list. It is compiled of people’s email addresses that are already interested in your market/business/product. This allows for a communication with people who are already seeking what you’re offering and in turn, poses the potential for a high rate of business.
Building an email list can be done in many ways. The methods chosen may depend on the speed in which you desire to build a list. Of course, fast is usually the most desired, however the amount of time dedicated to building a list also factors into which method to use. Let’s look at a few methods below to understand some of the paths to building a list.
Traditional method. – This method is probably the slowest, though effective. Build your content, focus on effective SEO writing and optimize your site for SEO and guest post to increase your online visibility. As more people find out about your site and are interested in what you offer they’ll subscribe.
Barter with other businesses that have established email lists. – Trade a skill of yours, for them to mention your site/business several times in their marketing emails within a set time frame. You all will have to agree on the terms of the deal but this will build your visibility, while also increasing your subscribers. This method isn’t the most time consuming, however, it also is not the quickest method out there.
Put on a webinar. – While this method takes quite a bit of time for preplanning and creating a presentation, amongst other things, it is a very effective method. People love to get valuable content for free and will sign up to get it. Additionally, a webinar enforces a time limit, which causes people to feel that they will “miss out” on something if they don’t sign up and so they sign up!
Chose one or two methods that you think would be best for your business and give it a try. Let us know how it works out for you. Contact us for help or to get started with your email list.
