If you’ve ever bought something from a business, or you’ve signed up to receive a newsletter, you’ll find emails pinging into your inbox on a daily basis.
Large businesses will have thousands, if not millions, of people on their email list.
The interesting thing is that every single one of those businesses has had to build their email list from nothing.
The strategies used by them can also work for you. Here’s how you can grow an email list from scratch.
What is an email list?
There’s no science behind it.
An email list is simply a collection of email addresses that a business has collected.
Customers have chosen to submit their information and have opted-in to receiving email communications about the company.
What is email marketing?
When businesses have an email list, they can send subscribers marketing communications.
This can be a variation of things such as a newsletter, abandoned cart notifications, and discount codes or offers.
It’s a form of marketing that’s done by email.
Businesses love email marketing because it has such a high ROI.
In fact, it has consistently ranked number 1 as the marketing method that has the highest return on investment.
Email marketers are often skilled copywriters that understand how to write content that converts readers into customers.
It’s a sought-after skill by businesses as email marketers can help to explode their revenue.
15 Ways to grow your email marketing list
- Have Sign-Up Forms On Different Pages Of Your Website
The first place you should have a sign-up page is on the homepage of your website.
This is where people will expect to see it and is often the first (or last) page visitors to your website will see.
If a visitor has come to you via another page, such as through your blog or your about page, you should also be sure to have sign-up forms on these pages, too.
The best thing to do is take a look at your website and place the forms on pages where you think they make sense. - End every blog post with a call-to-action to sign up
If you have a blog on your business’s website, you can use this to encourage people to sign up to your email list as well.
As a rule, every blog post should usually contain a call-to-action. You should tell the reader what you want them to do when they have finished reading your content.
Where your CTA is encouraging people to sign up to your email list, include a link to a page on your website (such as the home page) where there is a sign-up form. - Offer a discount for signing up
People are much more likely to sign up to your email list if you offer them an incentive to do so.
For example, offering a 10% discount before a big shopping event like Christmas or Black Friday will encourage more people to add themselves to your list.
For many businesses, holidays like these are their most profitable period. Offering a discount, therefore, can also increase the revenue you generate.
It’s a win-win situation. - Include a link in your Instagram bio
If you have an Instagram account for your business you can add a link to your website in the bio section of your account.
You don’t have to link your homepage.
Instead, try linking to a landing page that contains your lead magnet and a sign-up form.
This offers visitors more of an incentive to buy from you and also join your email list.
Use your account to regularly promote these pages on your website. You can use your Stories to link to your landing pages as well. This makes it as easy as possible for people to click over from social media to your website. - Hold a contest
Using your social media account, again you can run a contest. People enjoy these, especially if you’re giving away something for free and making it fun.
It has the dual benefit of boosting engagement levels on your social media platform as well as growing your email list.
What you can do is limited by your own imagination.
You could make a post and ask people to comment to win or ask someone to write a caption on a photo for you.
Remember that the prize needs to be valuable enough for people to want to enter. Encourage those who do enter your contest to sign up to your list. - Use a physical sign-up sheet
Do you have a bricks-and-mortar store?
If you do, don’t miss out on the easy opportunity to have a sign-up sheet on the counter.
You can use it to collect email addresses by asking customers to sign up as they check out. You can even offer a discount code as na incentive.
As well as leaving them on the counter, you can place them in different spots around the store. This is effective as people feel less pressure to sign up when in front of a cashier at the checkout. - Collect email addresses at events
Another in-person way of gathering email addresses is at live events.
If you have the opportunity to attend a trade show or networking event, you can have a sign-up sheet on your stall in the same way you can at the store.
Many email marketing tools now allow people to sign up using an app. You can have an iPad for people to use in signing up instead of a pen and paper.
This will also encourage more people to sign up as they feel their details are more secure when other people cannot see them. - Make sure your email content is unique and captivating
Once you get people on to your email list, you then need to keep them there.
The best way to do this is through designing emails that are entertaining and informative.
What your content will look like depends on the niche you’re in, but it should always be valuable, and people should look forward to hearing from you.
Not only does this mean that your current subscribers will enjoy being on your list, but there’s also an increased chance that they will share it with others. This helps you to grow your email list without any additional work for you. - Make shareable content and encourage people to do just that
Building on the point above, you should ask your current email subscribers to share any emails of yours that they enjoyed.
In your emails, you can include a call-to-action where you ask your subscribers to send it on to a friend.
Email marketing tools that are available can also help you by allowing you to include an “email to a friend” button or social sharing buttons in your emails.
All of this helps to grow your list. What better than loyal subscribers bringing in more loyal subscribers? - Create a free tool or resource that you get through signing up
People love getting things for free.
If by signing up they can get a tool that is going to make their life easier, and it doesn’t cost them a thing, they’re going to run all the way over to your website. - Add an email button to your Facebook page
If you have a Facebook page for your business you can add an email button.
This is a more direct way of getting someone’s email address.
There is a point of caution here, however.
This tool is usually used by customers where they have a query and are looking for information from you. They’re not just signing up to your list like in the other examples above.
What you can do is give that person an opportunity to opt-in to receiving emails from you at some point throughout the interaction. If they say yes, they will be automatically added to your list. - Personalise your content
When it comes to email marketing, personalisation is key.
Figures show that more people will open an email if it is addressed to them by name and if the subject line is compelling.
Most of us receive dozens of emails a day from different companies. The only way to get someone’s attention is to stand out from the crowd.
Using personalisation helps the recipient of the email to feel special and they are more likely to open your emails in the future, and even buy something from you as a result.
Personalisation doesn’t just end at calling someone by their name.
Different ways you can do this include asking people whether they enjoyed their last purchase and offering someone a discount on their birthday. - Make it as easy as possible for people to subscribe
If someone has to click through 5 pages before they get to your sign-up page, the chances are they’re going to get fed up before they can get there.
That is why most people choose to have their opt-in page on a home page.
This is great if that’s where most people enter your website.
If they come in via your blog or contact-us page, they may not take the time to visit your home page if they can get what they needed from just one page. Consider how a visitor to your website might navigate around it and think about how you can make it as easy as possible for people to find your sign-up form. - If you already have a list that’s not performing, shake things up!
If you have had your website for a while, you may have managed to build up an email list.
If you haven’t work on nurturing this list, however, it won’t make you any sales.
People will probably have forgotten they were even on it.
If you’re looking to re-ignite your subscriber list that you can send out an email re-introducing yourself and asking people to opt-in again to receiving emails from you.
You may have some people unsubscribe at this point at this point and that’s okay.
If a subscriber is not engaged with you or your business then there’s not much value to either of you in continuing to email them. - Take an email marketing course
As a business owner, you may not be an email marketing expert.
One of the ways you can learn more about email marketing and how to do it successfully is to take a course that teaches you the skills you ned.
We have plenty of courses to offer, and this one on email marketing is exactly what you need.
Can email marketing help you get more sales?
The short answer is, yes!
Especially if you have an e-commerce business or you sell digital products, tools, or courses.
You can advertise new products and offer discounts and other incentives to encourage your subscribers to buy from you.
More than that, however, is that you can build a relationship with your customers.
When you have a good relationship and people trust you, they will introduce you to their friends.
You can grow your network simply by putting out great content.
Conclusion
If you’re the owner of an online business and you have not yet built an email list, you’re missing out on so much opportunity.
It’s an opportunity to have hundreds, or thousands, of customers at your fingertips.
Are you ready to start growing an email list?
If you want to learn more about the principles of email marketing before you begin or are looking for some new tips and tricks to try, our courses can help you.
Get in touch and tell us how you’re looking to grow your business. We can give you some advice on the best options we have available for you.
