Email marketing is all about how to build your email list and it can be profitable for any business, no matter what kind of product or service you offer. It is significantly cheaper than other advertising methods and, if done right, helps build loyalty and trust with customers. As a result, you generate more sales and more profits!
The foundation for successful email marketing is a targeted, permission-based email list. Marketers call contact lists their ‘goldmine' because it can generate much of their sales revenue. If you've built up a list of opt-in subscribers that are qualified and interested in what you have to offer, then you've completed the first step and are on your way. Now it's time to ‘mine' for gold! You have probably heard the saying below when it comes to email marketing that “The Money Is In The List”
Below you'll find several list-building and retention ideas that will help you get the best results from all your email marketing activities:
Tip #1: Relevant Content
Provide useful, relevant content. Your visitors will not give you their email addresses just because they can subscribe to your newsletter free of charge. You have to provide unique and valuable information that will be of interest or use to them. Don't try to provide information about too many topics. Try to keep your focus narrow and focused so customers can understand what you are all about.
Tip #2: Signup Forms
Add a subscription form to every page on your website. Make sure it stands out so it is easy to find. If it doesn't look cluttered, you may want to include more than one on some pages. For instance, if your opt-in form always appears in the top-left corner of your site, you may want to add one at the end of your most popular articles. If people are not signing up to your optin form then it's probably because your ebook stinks or is not related to your main topic.
Tip #3: Social Media
Add subscription forms to your social media pages. Make sure that you don't waste this valuable source of revenue opportunities. Integrate your sign-up forms with Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, and much much more. Social media is also a great way to drive traffic to your squeeze pages.
Tip #4: Make It Easy to Signup
Make it easy for readers to sign up. The more information you request, the fewer people will opt-in. In most cases, a name and an email address should suffice. If it's not necessary, don't include it there. I would suggest asking only for Name and Email for when people sign up to your list. I have read that just asking for email addresses and not names can boost conversions but I believe it's better to personalize your emails so that you can build a better connection with the recipient. Also people are more likely to open your emails if you know their name. We do recommend that you provide a link to your Privacy Policy however.
Tip #5: Your Site's 404 Page
Anyone someone tries to go to a dead link on your site then they will hit your website's 404 page which is just a basic error page. Now you probably think this doesn't happen that often but it actually happens more than you would think. So what you should do is put your lead magnet on your site's 404 page and let people signup to your list. I got the idea from LeadPages so I can't take credit for this but it's a good trick to get people on your list.
Tip #6: Provide Samples
Provide samples of your product or service to potential customers. This lets potential subscribers review your materials before they sign up to determine if it's something they'd be interested in but you got their email address in exchange for a free sample. This my friends is a lead goldmine because you know that your prospect is interested in the service and you know their email address now so you can sell them on your service easily.
Tip #7: Archive Content
Archive past newsletters and articles. An online library of past newsletters and articles is both appealing and useful to visitors and builds your credibility as an authority. In addition, if your articles are written with good SEO techniques in mind, they can increase traffic to your website through enhanced search engine positioning.
Tip #8: Give Valuable Gifts
Give gifts subscribers can actually use. Offer an opt-in bonus for joining your subscriber list! Write an ebook or provide a PDF business report, or even hire a programmer to create downloadable or web-based software. But don't limit yourself to offering gifts to opt-ins. Give them out when your readers fill out a survey, provide a testimonial, success story, or a great product idea. Let them know when they can expect the next gift offer. Everyone likes to get something for free! And if you pass out ‘goodies' throughout the year, your subscribers will feel truly appreciated − and that's good for business!
Tip #9: Ask For Shares
Ask your subscribers to pass on the love and they will! Word of mouth is a powerful viral technique that works great with email marketing. If your subscribers find your content interesting, amusing or informative, they'll probably share it with their friends. This can be a great source of new customers, so make sure to remind them to ‘pass it on'.
Tip #10: Let Them Reprint
Let others reprint your newsletter as long as the content is not modified. If you're happy to share your content with the universe, then why not! Many webmasters and newsletter publishers are actively looking for high-quality content and, if they reprint your newsletter, you'll get new subscribers, and more traffic and links pointing to your site.
Tip #11: Sign Up Buttons
Include a ‘Sign Up' button in your newsletter. If you're using plain text instead of HTML, be sure to provide a text link to your subscription page. You may feel that this is not required because the subscriber is already on your list, but remember that readers will forward your newsletters to others, or reprint them online. Make it easy for them to subscribe!
Tip #12: Squeeze Pages
Add a squeeze page. A squeeze page has one goal − to acquire opt-ins and build your list. Think of it as a mini-sales letter to go along with your subscription or opt-in gift. It should feature a strong headline and a couple of powerful benefits that should make subscribers salivate to sign up! Once created, use a service such as WordTracker to find hundreds of targeted keywords, and promote your offer using pay-per-click advertising from Google, MSN and Yahoo. Now that should make a splash!
Tip #13: Include Testimonials
Include testimonials on your squeeze page. This is crucial. Put one or two strong testimonials from satisfied customers on your squeeze page. This can be in any format, but you may find that multimedia (audio or video) is more ‘believable' and inspires more people to action. To further enhance believability, get permission to use actual customer names, locations and/or urls (Don't use ‘Bob K, FL'). Add a note inviting others to participate. After all, it's free publicity!
Tip #14: Blog Religiously
Blog religiously to gain some search engine love which sends more traffic to your website thus more signups via your optin forms. Blogging is a great way to communicate with prospects and potential customers, and creates a nice synergy with your email marketing. Be sure to include your newsletter sign-up form on each page of your blog. You can start a free blog at Blogger or WordPress.
Tip #15: Guest Posting
Post on other blogs. Post thoughtful comments and information on similar blogs with a link to your squeeze or opt-in pages. Also comment on others' blogs through trackbacks. In most cases, your comments will be posted on their blogs with a link back to your site. This is an easy way to generate new traffic and subscribers, and get your brand out there!
