How to build your e-mail list

by Carolina

Building and maintaining an e-mail list is a challenge for all email marketers. Even so, if done well and consistently, the rewards in terms of new business and customer loyalty can be great. Following these few outlines will help you get started.

Make your sign up list or e-newsletter forms easy to find

On many Web sites it is difficult to find the sign-up forms. They are often hidden and only on the main page of the web site.

Then someone comes to your site, leaving and not even realizing you had an e-newsletter, you have missed out on a valuable prospect for your product or service.

Put your sign-up forms or even buttons in obvious places and on as many places on your Web site as is appropriate. That way, you know you capture the subscription of everyone who would be interested before they sign out of your page, and possibly never to return.

Build trust, post your privacy policy on your web or any prints by your business.

People are mainly concerned about the privacy of information that they give you on line or even in person.

You want to make sure that your privacy policy states clearly that you will not rent or sell their information to other parties.

That helps you build the trust much needed for someone to give you their valuable email address.

Provide attractive incentives to subscribe

In most cases, special discounts, like coupons and offers available exclusively to email list subscribers is a great enticement that website visitor needs to subscribe.

If you are an expert in your field, many people will be enticed by the prospect of receiving valuable information through your e-newsletter.

You can further extend your knowledge by offering links to free educational webinars or other type of classes as an added incentive to sign up for the list.

writing just enough Ask for just the right amount of information. No MORE no LESS!

There is a fine line between asking for too little information and asking for too much.

Get to know your clients. You do not want to end up with lists where you know very little about the preferences of your subscribers. On the other hand, you do not want the sign-up form to be too long that the potential subscriber doesn't think is worth it.

It is a balance to reach and requires eventually some testing to get it right

Make use of your Email Service Provider' s multiple forms feature. See the extent of what your e-mail host offers.

Some Email Service Providers (ESPs) provide a multiple forms feature. Those forms will enable you to offer different options right on the same site or on separate pages and web sites.

For example, you could have an offer for coupons or special promotions, and another for an upcoming webinar in the same place. A simple sign up for your email list or e-newsletter form can work very well, too.

Use the Forward to a Friend feature - it always works!

Most providers (ESPs) have a forward to a friend feature. If your subscribers like your content, some will forward to a friend, and that has the same effect as what once known as "the word of mouth" advertising effect.

Also you can try to go beyond just the "forward to a friend" as the link text in the email to more of a call to action: "If you know someone who might find value." or any phrase that is appropriate to your business type.

To make it easier to the receiver of a forwarded email to subscribe to the list, you can even put a link to the subscription form in the email body or just by your signature.

Share your Knowledge, people will be willing to read more of your site.

If you share your knowledge of your industry in articles, blog posts, etc., you can drive more traffic to your website and get more email list subscribers.

Most of the web sites that publish articles have a space for you to include a "bio" section where you can include a little bit about yourself, even with a link to your website.

Try to make it a text link to drive traffic, to work toward increasing your search engine ranking. Sharing your knowledge is a great way to get more email list subscribers and prospective customers.

People will appreciate to know you stay involved in your community or are an active participant in your specific industry.

© Carolina, All rights reserved.
Submitted on Feb 26, 2009