They say that the money is in the list... but many people set up a mailing list for their website and send out promotion after promotion - and see nothing but unsubscribes and no sales.
Obviously there is more to it than collecting email addresses and mailing out advertisements. You have to actually build a relationship with your subscribers and use good copywriting skills to keep a solid readership and decent conversion rate.
But even then, once you have mastered the skill of sending emails your subscribers love to read and offers they love to buy, there is still money hiding in your list...
Here are 4 places you should be looking for the money that may be hiding in your list
1. Confirmation Page
With your mailing list manager, you should have the option to set up a custom confirmation (or "thank you") page. This is the page your subscriber will be forwarded to when they click the 'submit' button on your sign-up form.
The confirmation page should contain a note about the confirmation email they are about to receive. Let them know that they will need to click the link to confirm their subscription - AND what to expect when they do that (ie bonuses, download links, information, etc).
This is also a great page to lead your subscriber into other related offers. You might promote your own products and services on this page, recommend related products/services through affiliate links, etc. But the important thing is that you recommend a "next step" and give them a link. Not 14 different options - just one good strong call-to-action.
2. Confirmation Email
All email lists must be double opt-in, so your subscribers will receive an email asking them to click on a link and confirm that they requested your newsletter or emails from your list.
Your mailing list manager should allow you to customize this message - and you should. Most people will confirm their request without question, but there will be the few that will second-guess their decision or may need a little encouragement.
If you offered bonuses, say something to the effect of "Confirm your subscription to XYZ by clicking this link and you will receive the ABC bonus via email within a few seconds".
3. Follow-up Message
Once your subscriber clicks the link in the confirmation email, you should send them at least one Follow-up message. This is an auto-response that automatically gets mailed out to each person that confirms their subscription to your mailing list.
Use this email to welcome your new subscriber and give them the links to any bonuses that you promised them when they signed up. This is a great place to give them something of value and make them feel good about having signed up for your list.
You can also let them know about your websites and/or products and put a special offer in this message. Or even invite them to join your affiliate program.
4. Your Bonuses
Whether your giveaways are advertised or not, give your subscribers something of value when they subscribe to your mailing list. While anything of value is 'nice' and will help you to build on your relationship with subscribers, you can use this opportunity to encourage your subscribers to take a specific action.
For example, create a report that leads into a product sale. Give them a free trial of your service or a discount coupon that will encourage them to become a customer or client. Give them a rebranded report that contains your affiliate links. Etc.
You need a solid Call-to-Action in each of these 4 places. Without it you are missing out on a great opportunity to do business with your subscribers, and you are letting that money continue to hide in your list.
Once you have established this "handshake" with your new reader, you can now build on that relationship by delivering quality information and special offers through your list.
Best,
Having trouble figuring out what to write, or what to send to your subscribers now that you have your own list? There's a solution for that!
Lisa Preston created Instant Niche Emails to do all the work for you. Be sure to sign up for the Free Report on her site to find out how to "have subscribers lining up to read your emails!"
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Technorati Tags: list building, opt-in, subscribers, mailing list, autoresponders
About Lynn Terry
Great post! Another page to consider is the redirect page after they click to double opt in. If using aweber, it's the "confirmation success" page at the bottom of the "verified opt-in" message. It defaults to an aweber thank you page, but you can create your own as well. 😉
Your tips on lists are on fire, Lynn! So informative 🙂 I think you deserve a cup of coffee ... or two!
Thank you both - glad you enjoyed the mini-series on list-building. And thanks Carrie - thats another great place to be sure you customize the subscribers experience!
Money that is hiding in my list. What a thing - I haven't even implement list building on my site yet even though I know the importance.
Now your email ideas/articles is bringing something out of my brain again.
Thanks for your great info
You are most welcome 😉
You said that there should be just one strong call to action on the Thank you page. If I have both an affiliate offer to promote and a product of my own to sell, which one of these should I tell my customers about first? Will they be less likely to click a link if I try to present both products, one after the other?
You have given us some great information here. I just implemented an auto responder on my website and already I am getting a few subscribers every day or two.
Thank you!