20 Awesome Tips to Get More Subscribers
there's no sense in learning to write better emails if you aren't growing your list
You may or may not have a lead funnel in place…
A lead generation funnel is the top of your sales funnel where you attract potential customers by offering an enticing piece of content or access to something they want and they willingly give you their contact info.
Once you have their contact information, they become a lead. Your job then is to get them to become a customer.
That’s why you’re sending them emails, right? To nurture them until they buy.
Because once they’re a customer, you send emails to sell them more and to keep in touch so they know you have the products or services they want or need.
For now, let’s look at your lead funnel. More specifically, how you’re growing your email list.
There are a lot of different things you can do to grow your email list. They range from gathering contact info at a trade show to offering a free piece of content. What works depends on you, the industry you’re in, and most important: what the people in your target market want.
Below is a list of 20 tips that could help you in your effort to grow a quality email list. There are more, of course. I just want to offer up some ideas you may not have considered.
Try one or more of these tips. Stop doing what doesn’t work. Keep doing what does work. Try a few different ways at one time. Keep trying until you find the combination that works for you.
My assumption is that you know how to create a the landing page and connect it to your email service provider/autoresponder software. If you don’t know how to do these things, leave a comment. I’ll respond with suggestions.
Your 20 awesome tips:
Ask people to subscribe for updates.
It’s so simple that a lot of people forget to just ask. If someone reads all of your blog post or watches all of your video, they’re interested in your content.
The end of the blog post or the video is the perfect place to ask people to sign up for updates. Give them a link to the opt-in or subscription page.
Provide valuable content.
If people think your content is valuable to them, they will want more. If you give them the opportunity to sign up for more, they will.
Make sure your content solves a problem, offers a tip or trick that makes their life a bit easier, or provides a new way of doing something that will make them money. What benefit do they get from your content? Remember: it’s all about them. Not you.
Offer a great lead magnet
People love to get things for free. They love it even more if your freebie is useful to them. What makes a lead magnet GREAT is when it’s something that can be used right away. The more helpful it is, the more likely your new subscriber will look forward to getting more from you.
A lead magnet can be a checklist, a cheat sheet, a video, a report, an ebook, a case study.
Go half-and-half
Give them half of the valuable content and ask them to sign up to get the second half. It’s like a cliff-hanger. Cut it off right at a point where they would get the final tip or detail that makes their life easier or will make them more money.
Offer credentials
This is more than just great testimonials. This is you showing them who you have worked with, the education and knowledge that you have, whatever certifications you have, the experience you have in this area. It stresses and confirms that what you offer will be of value to them. It can also separate you from others in your niche. Then ask them to subscribe to get access to insider tips only known by people with your credentials.
Encourage your readers to ask questions
When someone reads your blog post or article, encourage them to ask you questions. Make it clear they’ll receive your answer via email if they subscribe.
Offer “subscriber-only” content
Make it something valuable, and they’ll want to sign up. This is great when you see you’re getting lots of engagement on social media and want to move them to your email list. Be sure it’s clear that if they sign up to be on your list they’ll get more - and better - content than what they’re engaging with.
List topics that will be in your upcoming newsletter
Again, this is on social media but it can transfer well to in-person events. Create a business card that lists the topics you discuss and the URL to sign up. Make them interesting enough for them to want to read it.
Networking and referrals
Every couple of months, send a “thank you” email to your current list members. Thank them for being a part of your list, and ask them for referrals.
Offer a gift for referrals
You could offer free content to people that send you a certain number of referrals. Make that free content really enticing - maybe a segment of a paid workshop or webinar.
Include newsletter info in presentations
When you give presentations in person or via webinars, don’t just tell them your newsletter/email information. Make it part of your presentation. Tell them the value of subscribing and then show them the URL.
Use your email signature
In your email signature, you can include a “Join My List” link.
Join forces with other businesses
Be a guest writer or featured post on someone else’s newsletter and do the same for them. At the end of the piece you’ve written, invite the reader to join your list.
Use social media
Put your sign-up form link on your social media profiles: Facebook business page and personal profile, Twitter, LinkedIn. Instagram, YouTube.
Give them a sample newsletter
Have a link on your site that shows a sample of your newsletter so they will know what they will be getting before they sign up. Then, of course, have a link to send them to your opt-in page.
Archive past newsletters
Put these past newsletters on your website and make them available. A nice benefit is that this is good for SEO and you should see an increase in organic traffic.
Write an ebook
This will give you credibility as an expert. If you have it published on Kindle, you can add your opt-in URL on the About the Author page (usually page 2 or 3) that appears in the Preview feature. And, you can use the ebook or a few chapters as the free offer for your opt-in page.
Create an author page
If you write an ebook and put it on Kindle or Amazon, you can create an Author page that includes a link to your opt-in page.
Host a webinar
Make it one your attendees must register for. Ask for permission to send them future email mailings.
Start conversations online
Join social media groups and answer questions, be helpful. People look at your profile and see the link to your opt-in page.
And, that’s it!
20 awesome tips to help you build your list.
Are there more? Sure. But these 20 work great for me. Some will work for you. Some won’t.
The next step is for you to DO something. These tips are useless if you never put them to use.
Have questions? Ask in the comments.
Think this is a great list? Say so in the comments.
Think this list is lame? Say so in the comments.
Are you getting the hint that I want you use the comment section? Say so in the comments 😉
And finally - stuck on what to do for a lead magnet? Be sure you’re subscribed because I’ll share a list of 58 irresistible lead magnets next month.
Okay, that’s it for now.
Talk soon -
Charlene Burke
Let's Connect
“Content is the fuel for your lead generation efforts.” – Dayna Rothman
PS Have a lead magnet? Have emails going to your new subscriber? No? Is it because you aren't sure exactly what to write?
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